Latitude D600 or T40 -- Please see specs below

[PSUlion01]

I know this has been asked before, but could you guys please look at the specs of each of these systems and give me an honest opinion as to the better deal?

IBM T40
P M 1.3GHz
256MB RAM (1 DIMM)
14.1" XGA
30GB HD
No Wireless LAN card
ATI MOBILITY RADEON 7500 - 32 MB
CD-RW/DVD ROM
Price -- $1400

- or -

Dell Latitude D600
P M 1.4GHz
256MB RAM (2 DIMMs)
14.1" XGA
30GB HD (40GB HD - 5400RPM can be added for $47)
Intel® PRO/Wireless 2100 WLAN (802.11b, 11Mbps) miniPCI Card or
Dell TrueMobile? 1300 WLAN (802.11b/g, 54Mbps) miniPCI Card
ATI MOBILITY RADEON 9000 - 32 MB??? (not sure)
8-24-10-24X SWDVD/CDRW Combo Drive
Price -- $1365 (or $1412 w/ 40 gig)

I can't decide! Any help would be appreciated!

 

[warpedpolygon]

Explain your priorities... then we can help.

If you want battery life/build quality/warrenty the IBM is way better

If you want a good screen and a little more game capability, Dell is better

And did you tack on the extra money for a 3 year warrenty on the Dell?

 

[bgibb]

do you think you'll have any use or need for a wireless card? If so, getting an integrated card is well worth it.

 

[PSUlion01]

Originally posted by: warpedpolygon
Explain your priorities... then we can help.

If you want battery life/build quality/warrenty the IBM is way better

If you want a good screen and a little more game capability, Dell is better

And did you tack on the extra money for a 3 year warrenty on the Dell?

Here's a summary of my expected usage:

DVDs when traveling
MS Office apps
web/email (possibly thru cell phone when on the road)
some games (i'm not really a gamer, but how limited will the T40 be compared to the Dell...what type of games will and won't run on the IBM?)
Digital photos -- i dabble with photoshop and web development apps, but just as a hobby when i'm bored. definitely not the bulk of my workload

no, didn't tack on the 3yr warranty from dell.

how much better is the dell screen? resolution is the same, yes?

As for the wireless, I have a wired LAN at home that I can use to link up to the net, but the wireless would be nice. my understanding is that i'd need the wireless PCI card for the T40 in order to use wireless. not a big deal, as I can add it later.

Should I be concerned with the 4200RPM HD on the T40? Will the 40 gig 5400 drive be noticably different (other than the extra 10 gigs)?

basically I want to make sure that the system isn't overpriced or won't underperform. Then again, my current desktop is a PII 266, so the laptop will be quite an upgrade.

Any more comments would be great!

Thanks,
Mike

 

[bgibb]

Both of these laptops will perform the tasks you have listed easily. Unless you are trying to play the latest games on the market you should be fine with these graphics cards. The 5400 rpm drive I've been told should noticeably increase the performance of the computer over the 4200.

If I were you, I'd add the 3year warranty to the Dell- see how much that increases the price and then see what kind of T40 you can get for that price. The T40 won over all notebook reviews I've read since May, and is well loved in this forum. I don't think you can go wrong with the T40. I have one, but just purchased a D600 for my girlfriend because it was cheaper.

Oh, I have an SXGA+ and the D600 I'm getting for my gf will have the same...I was able to test them at my campus computer store and really couln't notice much of a difference between them for the 15 minutes I played with each. Now that said, you're comparing XGA, but I'd be willing to bet that the screens are not all that different.

If I were you, I'd go with the T40- getting the best one for the price you're willing to spend.

 

[PSUlion01]

Just checked the specs again. The Dell comes with a 3 Year Limited Warranty plus 3 Year NBD On-Site Service, and with the 40gig 5400 RPM drive the price is like $1392 or so (I was $20 off in my original quote).

SO.....

They're both about $1400 with these key differences:

* Dell has Raedon 900 vs IBM's 7500 (I think...need to verify this with Dell)

*Dell has wireless card included (is it better to get the Intel® PRO/Wireless 2100 WLAN (802.11b, 11Mbps) miniPCI Card or the Dell TrueMobile? 1300 WLAN (802.11b/g, 54Mbps) miniPCI Card

* Dell has a 40gig 5400rpm drive vs the 30gig 4200rpm in the T40

* Dell is a 1.4GHz P M vs the T40 w/ 1.3GHz

The memory configuration in the T40 seems better (One free slot, whereas the dell uses 2 DIMMs for the 256MB. I do plan on adding a 512MB DIMM in the future, so I'll lose 128MB if I go with the Dell. Should this even be a concern?

Last few items... do both systems use a software DVD decoder?

Ultimately, the Dell seems to have the chips in it's favor. Specs are higher almost across the board. Question is are the differences that noticable, and lastly, is the build quality of the IBM enough to justify the lesser specs for the same price?

Thanks again guys! Maybe I'll get one of each and then return the one I don't like. Anyone know the return policies of Dell and IBM?

 

[chuckieland]

Originally posted by: PSUlion01
I know this has been asked before, but could you guys please look at the specs of each of these systems and give me an honest opinion as to the better deal?

IBM T40
P M 1.3GHz
256MB RAM (1 DIMM)
14.1" XGA
30GB HD
No Wireless LAN card
ATI MOBILITY RADEON 7500 - 32 MB
CD-RW/DVD ROM
Price -- $1400

- or -

Dell Latitude D600
P M 1.4GHz
256MB RAM (2 DIMMs)
14.1" XGA
30GB HD (40GB HD - 5400RPM can be added for $47)
Intel?PRO/Wireless 2100 WLAN (802.11b, 11Mbps) miniPCI Card or
Dell TrueMobile?1300 WLAN (802.11b/g, 54Mbps) miniPCI Card
ATI MOBILITY RADEON 9000 - 32 MB??? (not sure)
8-24-10-24X SWDVD/CDRW Combo Drive
Price -- $1365 (or $1412 w/ 40 gig)

I can't decide! Any help would be appreciated!

where can you get a IBM T40 for that price
jump on it
please pm me the link too

 

[PSUlion01]

Originally posted by: chuckieland

Originally posted by: PSUlion01
I know this has been asked before, but could you guys please look at the specs of each of these systems and give me an honest opinion as to the better deal?

IBM T40
P M 1.3GHz
256MB RAM (1 DIMM)
14.1" XGA
30GB HD
No Wireless LAN card
ATI MOBILITY RADEON 7500 - 32 MB
CD-RW/DVD ROM
Price -- $1400

- or -

Dell Latitude D600
P M 1.4GHz
256MB RAM (2 DIMMs)
14.1" XGA
30GB HD (40GB HD - 5400RPM can be added for $47)
Intel?PRO/Wireless 2100 WLAN (802.11b, 11Mbps) miniPCI Card or
Dell TrueMobile?1300 WLAN (802.11b/g, 54Mbps) miniPCI Card
ATI MOBILITY RADEON 9000 - 32 MB??? (not sure)
8-24-10-24X SWDVD/CDRW Combo Drive
Price -- $1365 (or $1412 w/ 40 gig)

I can't decide! Any help would be appreciated!

where can you get a IBM T40 for that price
jump on it
please pm me the link too

It's through a purchase plan through my company... any thoughts about my dilemma above?

 

[OldSpooky]

PSUlion - I've owned both systems and ultimately decided in favor of the T40. Here are my thoughts on your queries:

* Dell has Raedon 9000 vs IBM's 7500 (I think...need to verify this with Dell)

In 3DMark 2001SE, the Radeon 9000 in my D600 scored 4800. In the same test, the Radeon 7500 in the T40 scored 4100. The Radeon 9000 is a bit more future proof because it has hardware DX8.1 support, but neither chip is going to be great against the Radeon 9600 and FX5600 mobile chips. Neither chip will be great with the latest and greatest games around the corner.

*Dell has wireless card included (is it better to get the Intel® PRO/Wireless 2100 WLAN (802.11b, 11Mbps) miniPCI Card or the Dell TrueMobile? 1300 WLAN (802.11b/g, 54Mbps) miniPCI Card

The Dell card has better range than the Intel card and 802.11g support to boot.


* Dell has a 40gig 5400rpm drive vs the 30gig 4200rpm in the T40

Surprisingly, I didn't notice any slowdown going from the 40 GB in the Dell to the 30 GB in the IBM. I don't use any HDD intense applications though, just standard office stuff.


* Dell is a 1.4GHz P M vs the T40 w/ 1.3GHz

Again, not much difference between a 1.4 and 1.3 GHz Pentium-M. Most of the time both machines were idling at 600 MHz.


The memory configuration in the T40 seems better (One free slot, whereas the dell uses 2 DIMMs for the 256MB. I do plan on adding a 512MB DIMM in the future, so I'll lose 128MB if I go with the Dell. Should this even be a concern?

I don't like to waste equipment, so the T40's configuration is better for me at least.

In short - the Dell is more of a multimedia platform, and the IBM is a solid, no-nonsense business machine. I decided on the T40 because I didn't need the Radeon 9000 and because I felt the T40 was superior to the D600 in build quality. The T40 also has a great keyboard and weighs 10% less than the D600 (4.9lbs for T40 vs 5.5 lbs for D600 when both systems have optical drive, hdd, battery installed).

 

[PSUlion01]

Originally posted by: OldSpooky
PSUlion - I've owned both systems and ultimately decided in favor of the T40. Here are my thoughts on your queries:

* Dell has Raedon 9000 vs IBM's 7500 (I think...need to verify this with Dell)

In 3DMark 2001SE, the Radeon 9000 in my D600 scored 4800. In the same test, the Radeon 7500 in the T40 scored 4100. The Radeon 9000 is a bit more future proof because it has hardware DX8.1 support, but neither chip is going to be great against the Radeon 9600 and FX5600 mobile chips. Neither chip will be great with the latest and greatest games around the corner.

Ok understood... I'm not buying this as a gaming system, but it'd be nice to play some of the newer games that are out (can't do this on my PII 266!). What will and won't run on system like the Dell or T40? Sim games? BF 1492? Warcraft?

*Dell has wireless card included (is it better to get the Intel® PRO/Wireless 2100 WLAN (802.11b, 11Mbps) miniPCI Card or the Dell TrueMobile? 1300 WLAN (802.11b/g, 54Mbps) miniPCI Card

The Dell card has better range than the Intel card and 802.11g support to boot.

The wireless is something I'm definitely interested in, but it can wait. I'd need to get a WAP and that's money I just don't have to spend now. Just wondering if I should focus on this when comparing the systems (i can always add the 802.11g card to the T40 right? About how much $ to do so?)

* Dell has a 40gig 5400rpm drive vs the 30gig 4200rpm in the T40

Surprisingly, I didn't notice any slowdown going from the 40 GB in the Dell to the 30 GB in the IBM. I don't use any HDD intense applications though, just standard office stuff.

What do you consider a HDD intense application? Here's another question... how much of the T40s drive is free when you first get it? How much space do the installed apps and RapidRestore eat up?

* Dell is a 1.4GHz P M vs the T40 w/ 1.3GHz

Again, not much difference between a 1.4 and 1.3 GHz Pentium-M. Most of the time both machines were idling at 600 MHz.

Didn't expect this to matter either...

The memory configuration in the T40 seems better (One free slot, whereas the dell uses 2 DIMMs for the 256MB. I do plan on adding a 512MB DIMM in the future, so I'll lose 128MB if I go with the Dell. Should this even be a concern?

I don't like to waste equipment, so the T40's configuration is better for me at least.

In short - the Dell is more of a multimedia platform, and the IBM is a solid, no-nonsense business machine. I decided on the T40 because I didn't need the Radeon 9000 and because I felt the T40 was superior to the D600 in build quality. The T40 also has a great keyboard and weighs 10% less than the D600 (4.9lbs for T40 vs 5.5 lbs for D600 when both systems have optical drive, hdd, battery installed).

Was the size/weight pretty significant? Also, how much do you use the ThinkLight? How has DVD playback been on the IBM? SW Decoding?

One last thing... did Dell charge you anything for returning the D600? Thinking of getting both and doing my own side by side comparison.

Thanks again... quickly approaching the purchase!!!

 

[warpedpolygon]

The Radeon 9000 and 7500 can play pretty much every game on the market and most games will be backward compatible for a while... heck, I can use my GeForce 2 on everything but GTA 3 right now

The only other one I'll comment on is the weight... the IBM will be lighter. This is huge in my book, so I ended up purchasing a T40, for all those reasons, and hopefully to curb my gameplay a bit