- Average user rating:
- My rating: 0 stars
Full user review
-
11 out of 11 people found this review helpful
4.5 stars
"Man-o-Man What a Laptop"
Pros: Maybe better than advertised. Well built not nearly as heavy as it looks.
Cons: Pretty wide, if you travel with it get a rolling laptop case for 17 inch laptops
Summary: I have been using the Dell M170 for about two months and I am frankly very impressed.
17inch LCD screen
2GHz Pentium M processor
2 GB RAM
80 GB Hardrive
Intel Wireless
Bluetooth
nVidia GO 6800 GPU
This is a great machine.
Because I travel a lot (Contract Trainer) I was concerned if this machine would stand up to the rigors, but it has so far without a glitch.
This machine is REALLY a desktop replacement. I have read other reviews about sparkles on the display panel, well either I don't know what to look for or this display doesn't have that problem at all. This display is down right beautiful. Other Instructors and students have commented on how great the display looks.
The keyboard is positioned well on the deck for comfort and ease of use. I have big hands.
While the speakers certainly won't compete with standalone speakers from Logitech, or even Dell brand speakers they are certainly good enough. This is the first laptop that I have seen with a built in mini sub woofer.
The built-in wireless and Bluetooth work great. There are a load of connectors
6 USB, 1394,mic, headphone, SD memory,S-video, VGA and DVI connectors, along with modem and Ethernet connectors.
Because I have been busy traveling I have not had a chance to actually play any games on this machine yet but the DVD burner plays great movies. I haven't tested the battery to exhaustion but I was able to play Batman Returns on a flight from Vegas to Chicago with no problem from battery life or heat.
There are a couple of things to consider. Dell now ships their computers with a lot of fluff software even after I requested to not get it. That wasn't a big deal because I (probably like most that would buy this machine) normally wipe and reinstall Windows XP Pro as soon as I verify I have drivers for all of the on-board equipment.
Dell makes it pretty easy, because included is a drivers disc and Dells website has everything needed that might not be on the System Software Disk.
One other thing to consider is while this machine is not nearly as heavy as it looks it is wide. Well built, but wide. My old rolling laptop case would not work any more. Targus makes a couple of rollling cases designed for 17 inch laptops. I got one of the Targus TCG717 cases. This is a bit larger than my previous case, and because it is a bit wider it will not roll between the seats on most airliners, but will easily fit in the overhead luggage compartments.
If I were to offer Dell some advice it would be these two items:
1). Someone senior at Dell should try calling into Dell Service and Support. It IS maddening, infuriating, exasperating,frustrating and down right irritating. The thing is it doesn't have to be this way and it didn't used to be. What happened. Dell has come very close to offering a Lexus caliber product but with Pinto phone service.
2). As soon as AMD gets its notebook processors to a reasonable battery life please reconsider using AMD processors. It is a shame to have probably the coolest laptop on the planet powered by anything less than the best processors.
All-in-all this is a great laptop and I expect to get great service. Now where is Windows Vista when I need it?
- 1 reply to this review
-
Actually if you use the XPS-only customer service numbers you can talk directly to a person within in 1 minute. Every time.
