Dell vs. IBM which should i choose and why?

[NeoHC421]

Basically, i need a laptop for school, would like to stay around 1500 but would consider goin to 2000 MAX, but would really not want to spend as much if possible.

what's important to me?
top 3:
1. travel-friendly (lightweight)
2. long battery life
3. dependable (reliable and durable)

I will also be using this machine for video, music and picture editing. Basically i was set on buying the dell 600m but heard that dell's quality control was not as good as before. Also, people have been raving to me about IBM laptops. basically, i've yet to hear anything bad about IBM except that they are UGLY. Has anyone tried both? what are the major pros and cons of either decision, and what would you recommend?
One more thing is that IBM doesn't let me customize very much (or at least at a reasonable price), so i guess i should clarify other things that i would like in the laptop

WiFi G
bluetooth
radeon or geforce graphics
big HD (40G at MIN)

 

[EvanAdams]

dell if you are going to get a big warenty, ibm for everything else.

consider the sony s series.

 

[NeoHC421]

Originally posted by: EvanAdams
dell if you are going to get a big warenty, ibm for everything else.

consider the sony s series.

i appreciate the advice, but i need more to go on than that. what are the key advantages/disadvantages of each contender?

 

[IgoByte]

IBM T series ownz anything else...

Consider this:
- The build quality of the T is significantly better than the 600m's. Hence, it's more reliable and durable and feels much more solid overall.
- The T is lighter and more friendly to carrying than the 600m. It also feels and looks a lot better.
- As for battery life, I'm very happy with mine...even a year after I bought it. I can still watch a whole [long] DVD on a single charge and I've used and abused this notebook.

Seriously, I carry my T40 with me everywhere and it's my only computer; on all day and night pretty much. While I don't do anything awfully intensive (CAD, gaming, Graphic work), I do tend to have a lot of various programs open at a given time (music programs, plenty of browser windows, email client, etc. etc.), I find that it's performed excellently. The T-series has traditionally been very good.

Whatever you decide, good luck.

 

[Frightcrawler]

Your third obligation is not fufilled with Dell. Especially not with the 600m.

 

[PeeluckyDuckee]

I used to be a Dell owner. If only I found out about IBM back then, I would not have gone with Dell. Now I know better, you guessed it, I'm a Thinkpad owner.

Reasons why I went with IBM?

- undisputed reliability and build quality (I've seen it first hand many old Thinkpads still in use in government settings)
- 3yr warranty
- excellent customer service
- excellent software support
- higher resale (negated by higher initial purchase cost) and generally thought more highly of (well deserved reputation)

The Inspiron 8100 I had felt very plasticky, and the base would bend and the palm rest would squeal. The feel of the keyboard was not as solid as my thinkpad (although this is again subjective).

The only downside I hear of IBM laptops is their poor battery life compared to ther brands.

In the end, you get what you pay for. Some people want fancy laptops with shiny paint jobs. Others want to invest in something that's of quality build and don't put so much weight as to how it looks. I personally find the Thinkpad design is very professional and ages very well.

 

[EvanAdams]

ibm rules on just about everything.

but they are a premium.

if you could get an ibm with equal stats of a dell then the ibm would win out every time. However they are expensive. and thus I lean towards dell.

 

[NeoHC421]

Originally posted by: EvanAdams
ibm rules on just about everything.

but they are a premium.

if you could get an ibm with equal stats of a dell then the ibm would win out every time. However they are expensive. and thus I lean towards dell.

yea, that's what i was thinking too...
with all the crazy deals dell has been having, it's been hard for me to say no to dell over IBM simply because similar configurations (or at least as close as i can get them) have a price differential of several hundred dollars (depending on how hot the dell coupons are).

the SAD part is that i work for a company that gets discounts through IBM, but even with the discounted "off of web price" that is quoted, dell seems to give me a bigger bang for buck.

one quick question though, which laptop has the better battery life with the stock battery? (in terms of average life not the crap they put on their website) how is it different when playing movies?

 

[jmalm]

Originally posted by: NeoHC421
the SAD part is that i work for a company that gets discounts through IBM, but even with the discounted "off of web price" that is quoted, dell seems to give me a bigger bang for buck.

Well the thing is comparitivly speaking, specification wise you may get more bang for your buck with Dell. The only thing is you do pay a little more with IBM, but you also are getting a far more superior quality of machine.

 

[SNoWyV82]

Hey, I'm in the EXACT same dilemma as you. I'm going across country for school (UCLA) so I need something portable and somewhat powerful since it will be my only computer. I don't want to break the bank either. I really want an IBM after reading all the great things about them on this forum, but the IBM T series is at least $400 more than an equally configured Inspiron 600m. I can't justify spending the extra cash on the IBM. Click HERE to get an idea of battery life. The IBM T40 kills the 600m as far as battery life is concerned. I don't know what to do, but my fully configured system with everything I want (found here) is only $1615 shipped. It's a great deal and I don't know if I can pass it up...

 

[cy7878]

Have you consider the Thinkpad R series? You can get one pretty cheap. It is slightly bigger than the 600m, but built like a tank.

Anyways, I would suggest checking frequently the IBM education site IBM

And you can buy a stripped down system without HD, RAM, OS, Wi-Fi, optical drive installed for much cheaper. Also being an educational customer sets you up for 20% off list already.

Now find the stripped down system. buy it without customizing. You can buy a notebook HD from Basoncomputer.com pretty cheap and install it yourself. RAM, check the hot deal forum, but circuit city will frequently have 512 MB 200 pin PC2700 RAM on sale for under $100. Newegg.com will also sell name brand RAM that cheap. Wi-Fi can be bought off eBay for $15-30, and IBM support site even has a video to show you how to install all these components. Optical drive is a standard DriveBay2000 drive. I bought a DVD-ROM off eBay for $30.

I chose to not get a writer because my notebook is not what I plan to use to write DVDs anyway, I have a desltop to do that. And IBM DVD-RW will cost > $300 anywhere. I find CDR-W useless these days with flashdrives around and with a HD that is >60GB, I can't count on CDRs for backup. Instead I use my Ipod to transfer file back to the desktop and write it on DVDs.

Example of a T42 off IBM Education site: $1766 for a 1.8GHZ Pent M, 14.1 SXGA+ with 64mb video, LAN

$T42

$139 for 60G, 5400 rpm Hitachi HD
Bason Computer

$90 for 512 MB RAM from Newegg
$35 for mini-pci wi-fi on eBay
$30 for a DVD ROM on eBay

Supply your own OS and invest 4 hours of you time install the components and setup the computer, all for less than $2100 for a computer that will cost a lot more.

 

[Bloodstein]

Originally posted by: PeeluckyDuckee
The only downside I hear of IBM laptops is their poor battery life compared to ther brands.

Noooo waaayyyyyy....I've got an IBM T40 with the standard battery (whatever it is that came in the box) and i've gone to 7 hrs straight with it (though I did reduce the screen brightness to lowest). And I still had battery remaining after 7 hours....!

And I know few people who own the 600m, Toshiba's, Asus, etc, etc....they don't even get close!


I bought my T40 'bout a year ago. I must say though, if I had to go back, I might actually have gotten the 600m. Yes, the T40 is great in every possible way, but it is rather expensive (where I live it's twice the price of the 600m!). Now it's very much more difficult for me to dispose my T40 cause I've got to keep it long enough to 'realise' the amount I spent on it. Had I gotten a 600m, I mightta said "to hell with it" and gotten something else say couple of years later. IBMs are the Rolls Royce of laptops. Dells are the Toyota's . Everyone knows rolls royce are more superior to Toyotas...but would you dish out the money (if you had any) for a rolls royce? Your call.

 

[aphex]

The only downside I hear of IBM laptops is their poor battery life compared to ther brands.

Tell that to my T41, which consistantly gets between 5-6 hours on a single charge

 

[jkresh]

cy7878, clicking on your providing link then add to cart, goes to a customization page, where it forces me to add windows and memory, then clicking buy brings the total from the 1900 that it starts at to 2600 (with xp home and 256ram) as they charge for dvd (200), hard drive(100) battery, along with the ram and os seperately. So what exactly does that 1900 buy, it appears to be just the case/processor?

 

[alienb]

I think the old saying "you get what you pay for " applies well here. However, in IBM"s case, you get what you pay for, and a lot more
I myself have owned every major brand of laptop, including Sony, Toshiba, Dell, Gateway, HP, Compaq, and worked with nearly every other brand. My last purchase was an IBM t23, and I serously regret selling it every day. The quality, the durability, and the warranty support was better than any other laptop I'd ever used, and I will _never_ever_ go back to another brand. I'm buying a X20 for my girlfriend, and I myself am saving for a T41. I will never own another laptop brand again. IBM has my business.

 

[Wuzup101]

I'm a big fan of the IBM T series thinkpads. They have great batt life, great specs, and a great solid build all at a premium price.

If you're going to opt for a dell, which isn't too bad of an idea right now due to the awesome sales they have... try to go for one of their buisness line latitude models... they are built a bit more solid and are more on par with an IBM T series (though not quite there yet). Defiinitely get a nice warranty with the dell... as sometimes they break... although I would get a warranty with the IBM too!

 

[cy7878]

They must have changed the menu since I bought my X31 in June. Back then I was able to just add to the cart without customize and buy the unit at the price seen. I think you may be able to call the 800 number and talk to sales directly to order. Since you are able to give a part number and price off the web, you should be able to argue for the sale.

 

[PC Freak]

IBM all the way baby.

 

[thuned]

They (dell & ibm) both have "no questions asked" return policy. You can go that route if you want. Get the dell, try it out, if you like it, you just saved 500 bucks. If not, return it and get the ibm. You lose nothing except a couple of weeks.

 

[daddyo]

Comparing the 600m to the T4X series isn't really apples to apples.

The Dell Latitude D600 is the T-series competitor, both are business class laptops. If you configure both with the same features, including warranty, the IBM will not be drastically higher in price from a Dell Latitude.

 

[NeoHC421]

Originally posted by: daddy-o
Comparing the 600m to the T4X series isn't really apples to apples.

The Dell Latitude D600 is the T-series competitor, both are business class laptops. If you configure both with the same features, including warranty, the IBM will not be drastically higher in price from a Dell Latitude.

well, what exactly does "business class" mean, other than having a nice price premium? does it have any real difference?

 

[jkresh]

not sure about currently but it used to be that latitudes had metal or mostly metal cases compared to plastic on inspirion. Latitudes also have more standard parts and dont change as often so it is easier to get replacement parts laster in the life of the machine then with an inspirion, it is also easier for a big business as spare parts will work with this years machines and previous models (ie dvd-drives, batteries, chargers...)

 

[NeoHC421]

Originally posted by: jkresh
not sure about currently but it used to be that latitudes had metal or mostly metal cases compared to plastic on inspirion. Latitudes also have more standard parts and dont change as often so it is easier to get replacement parts laster in the life of the machine then with an inspirion, it is also easier for a big business as spare parts will work with this years machines and previous models (ie dvd-drives, batteries, chargers...)

does the metal casing = a lot heavier? one big thing is i want it to be fairly lightweight, preferably < 5lbs. btw, thanks for all the input guys, keep it coming cause the last thing i want is to be disappointed with my purchase... after all, this is alot of money to me, and i don't wanna kick myself later for what i buy.
one other thing i heard about dell is that recently their quality control has gone down the tubes (like how their CS did by outsourcing to india). is this true or completely unfounded?

 

[jkresh]

quality control will be better on the latitude then inspirion (send a bad notebook to a single customer, no real problem, send it to a compnay ordering 5000, you have issues). Metal casing is generaly a titanium composite so it isnt much heavier then plastic, but it is much sturdier.

 

[jeffbui]

The IBM T40,41,42 series is constructed of a magnesium alloy on it's lid and carbon fiber/titanium reinforced plastic on the rest of it's case. The 14" T42 is < 5 lbs.

I'm not sure about Dell's support but IBM's support is top notice. I had a slightly loose battery, I call them at 3AM in the morning (24 hr/ speak to a person support), they next day air me a new battery and give me over a month to return the old battery. To return it, they give a shipping label and a number to call to have the parcel guy come to my place to pick it up.

I also got mine for a price that is comparable to the Dell because of a university discount. Check with your school as they might have a special contract with IBM. If not, the 2379DXU T42 would be a good choice for you.