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Laptop question

T

Tullphan

Diamond Member
I'm contemplating a purchase of a laptop through Dell.
While looking through their "outlet" section, it appears I can get an Inspiron 9300 nicely equipped & with a 17" display for about the same price as a similarly equipped Inspiron 6000 with a 15.4" display.
My question is battery life. How much of a difference will there be (if any) between the 17" & the 15.4"? It will be mainly used for internet via wireless access.
I assume there's advantages & disadvantages for both sized displays?
Thanks.
 
The bigger the display, the heavier the laptop, and all other things being equal, the shorter the battery life.

Last year I dumped my 17" laptop and got a 14.1" wide screen. Almost 3.5 lbs. lighter. So it depends on what you want it for. Mine is strictly for travel, so weight matters.
 
I've never owned a laptop. The kid has one, though i'm not sure of the display size. I think it needs a new battery as a full charge will last less than an hour when surfing the net through a wireless connection.
I guess to judge the difference between a 17" & a 15.4" i'd probably need to go to Best Buy or Circuit City.
Can one purchase a battery from anywhere else other than Dell? What about DVD burners? If I can't find anything from the outlet store, i'd want to build one as cheaply as possible.
Is it worth the extra for the WSXGA or the WUXGA display?
 
I guess to judge the difference between a 17" & a 15.4" i'd probably need to go to Best Buy or Circuit City.
Click to expand...
Yes, if you're unsure I would definitely you go somewhere and compare them side by side. I never realized how huge (and unusable for me) a 17" is until I saw it in person.

Can one purchase a battery from anywhere else other than Dell? What about DVD burners? If I can't find anything from the outlet store, i'd want to build one as cheaply as possible.
Click to expand...
Not sure, but I would imagine so.

Is it worth the extra for the WSXGA or the WUXGA display?
Click to expand...
Again, this is a good thing to check out in person. Some will complain that a high resolution display is horrible because everything is tiny. Personally, I think it's great. I have a 1400x1050 display on my 14" and it works great when you're multitasking. Just make the font a little larger if you're having trouble.
 
There's obviously more desktop area on a 17". But the main factor when choosing between screen sizes is the main purpose of the notebook. If you travel a lot and mostly use it while in transit, obviously light and longer battery life will be the preference. Otherwise, if you use it mostly while plugged in (obviously stationary) then screen size and cpu power will be your priority. So the answer to your question resides in you on what purpose you will need the laptop for. Goodluck.
 
I'm not replacing a pc...just need one to use in a different room of the house for net surfing, etc. It'll probably go on vacation & such as well. I'm used to a 19" monitor, though...hehehe. I want the battery to last more than an hour. I'm not going to do any gaming, but i'd like one that has dedicated video memory. If I have to "customize" one, i'd like to know if I can add my own dvd burner. I know I can swap out hard drives & memory. Just didn't know if it'd be cheaper to get a "bare bones", w/the exception of the display, & add other components myself.
 
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