Dell E1505 - Anyone still using?

[genin88]

Maybe slightly off topic, but I was just curious if anyone was still using a Dell Inspiron E1505 (or 6400)? I have had mine since 2006 and am getting ready to upgrade the following:

- X1300 to X1400 video card
- T2400 to a Core2Duo (pulled from another laptop upgrade, dont remember which model but bus speed matches etc.)
- Replacing wireless b/g with b/g/n card from dell
- Adding bluetooth card

Yes it's way out of date and not worth it, but its currently running solid with 4gb ram and Win 7 (32 bit). I replaced the original 120GB HD with a 90GB SSD...of course that makes the world of difference.

The CPU update will allow me to re-install Win 7 (64 vs 32 currently installed) and the wireless N is just faster than G. Total cost for parts to do this is $34.00.

It's just interesting to see how far you can baby a laptop and make it go. The only item that presented an issue since 2006 (year of purchase from Dell) from this machine was the x1300 video card required replacement during the warranty period. Other than that, it's been rock steady (especially since installing Win 7). BTW, this is the only Windows laptop that I have, my other laptop is a 2012 13" rMBP.

So my two cents, just curious like I said does anyone have one of these laptops still going strong? Also, it be great to hear of anyone else with a laptop (windows not Mac) that may have the same or similar experience?

Thanks!

 

[ninaholic37]

I seem to prefer older laptops as well. Mine right now is a Dell D410 from 2005. No issues yet, and I haven't tried to upgrade anything. I actually turned off speedstep so it always runs at 800mhz. With the death of XP I just switched it to Linux and Dos on dual-boot, and use it mostly to surf the web and play older games. When the battery became dead I just threw it out and now the laptop is much lighter. Never saw the point of bluetooth so I just disabled it. I tried opening it up but there's two screws (out of about 18) on the bottom that seemed too tight even for Hercules! I can still get to the RAM and Hard Drive, but never really saw the need. I once removed the HDD and just booted to USB for a few days (which made the laptop lighter again) but I think I would need to get a new USB stick that doesn't stick out so much for this to be a good alternative - lol. Took a vacuum to it the other week and sucked around all the vents/openings, not sure if that helps anything or not but I was cleaning the living room anyway. Only thing I find odd about this particular laptop model is that it only has a speaker on ONE side, which is kinda like seeing a person trying to walk around with one leg.

 

[xgsound]

You sure are frugal with your posts! Three posts in 4 years.

I have a Dell e-1505 that I ordered a t-7200 (passmark 1182) for that will arrive this week! It currently has a t-1300 in it, passmark 403. My MOBO (MD666) cannot take any video upgrade and the t-7600 is said (?) to be the Max socket M CPU.

I read on some forums that the Nvidia card is said to be much better (YMMV) than the ATI, and here is a link for $20. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-Inspir...C_Video_TV_Cards&hash=item1e8e63a84a#viTabs_0

I'd like to hear what CPU you used and how your upgrade goes. I'll report mine here also.

**** update to bios A17 for top CPU *****

Jim

 

[xgsound]

I received and installed a $15 t-7200, passmark 1182, to replace the t-1300, passmark 401. That should be adequate for me. Everything went smooth with a small test using a live linux puppy USB. When the hdd arrives I'll get win 7 and the Dell fan program I8kgui.exe on it to see how cool it will run.

I used this guide to get me to the Heatsink. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4iDXWmpphk

Jim

 

[Comdrpopnfresh]

I had an E1505... if it had wheels, they would have fallen off too!
The hinges went bad after two years, and the screen was either down or up + tilted back. I could have handled that, the ATI card that was worse than newer integrated graphics, the limit on RAM capacity, and all the other shortcomings EXCEPT for the horrible 'smart' batteries DELL crapped on customers with. Doesn't matter the health or use wear of the cells... it just decides to stop accepting a charge.

If you take into account the $34 for those upgrades, the comparably higher electrical and AC costs in your home, and the higher insurance rates for injury/disability claims because of the size of that laptop and its unwieldy screen hinges.... it may behoove you to save for an i5-equipped laptop in a year that has one of Intel's new 14nm CPUs: It will make that E1505 feel like a Casio graphing calculator from the 90's.

 

[gmaster456]

Know someone that still has one but it's a Core Duo with 512mb of RAM and Windows XP. They don't use it anymore.

 

[alkemyst]

It's not a great build quality machine, but with that T7200 makes for a decent laptop for basic needs. I have a T60 (much better build quality, but was also much more expensive) that I put in a Scorpio Black and a T7200 plus maxed the ram (I think it only took 2GB). Under Windows 7 it's not a bad machine. The hard drive improved performance quite a bit over the stock unit. If an SSD is in the budget that would be something to look into.

Going to the T7400 or T7600 is usually not worth it as those CPU's are usually brain damage money (enough to buy a T7200 + SSD). I was also able to upgrade my GMA950 to a 128MB Radeon X1400, I wanted to go to the FireGL V5250 with 256MB but many people have overheating issues with that card. The nice thing is it can be soft-modded to a X1700 Radeon which is a nice GPU in that segment.

The machine runs hot even with the X1400 though.

 

[Raduque]

My aunt and uncle have one they are still using. I believe it's a Pentium Dual Core with an X1400 card, 1gb of ram and an 80gb HDD. The USB ports have all died, but it still works.

 

[Sattern]

I used to have one on my second build, but got rid of it after a couple years because I wanted to upgrade.

 

[xgsound]

As to the comments, yes, the 1505 is limited specifically by the 667 fsb requirement and the lousy video on the MD666 board I have. This is definitely not a sports car. The t-1300 solo duo was painful, but the t-7200 makes it usable for email, light surfing, and HULU. The 4 USB ports work and the sd reader too!

I found that the L8kfangui.exe program can turn the fan "always on" and the temp is 30 idle to 48 C doing WEI.

My boy got this laptop and 3 others along with a desktop for a few bucks for me to play with. I put $100 in them and got 2 usable laptops and a decent (e8600) desktop for the relatives.

Jim