Dell Computers

Dell Latitude E6400

The Dell Latitude D630 has had one of the most successful runs in business laptops, gracing the desks of countless professionals over the past two years. But at this point it’s so long in the tooth that it lacks features as simple as a built-in media card reader—something that can be found on most business laptops today. The Latitude E6400 ($1,888 direct) is a major transformation, so much so that it bears little resemblance, visual or otherwise, to its predecessors. The brushed-aluminum-style case, a resurfaced interior, brand-new Intel parts, and, yes, a media card reader are just a few of the upgrades Dell has made in its business laptop overhaul.The D630’s matte silver design, once appealing, now looks outdated. The E6400 continues its use of magnesium alloys but gives the case a trendy brushed-aluminum look. The finish is actually a paint job that makes it look like the real thing, except the real thing would have been sturdier. The lid of the HP EliteBook 6930p, for example, is clad in actual ruggedized aluminum, which guards against scratches and nicks that would otherwise spoil the design over time. The E6400 is more scratch resistant, at least more so than the D630. It’s definitely trendier than the Lenovo ThinkPad T400, but whether that’s a plus depends on whom you ask. There are red and blue configurations for the E6400, as well, because not every working professional dresses in conservative attire.
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The E6400 weighs 5.6 pounds with its 9-cell battery; that makes it heavier than the HP 6930p’s 5.3 pounds (4-cell battery) and the Lenovo T400’s 5.2 pounds (6-cell), but not by much. Keep in mind, too, that its 9-cell, 85-Wh battery is by far the biggest, which translates to longest-lasting, so it’s easier to forgive the extra heft. Another thing about the nine-cell: It protrudes an inch from the back instead of from the front, as with the previous D630. (There are also smaller 4- and 6-cell battery options available.)

The E6400’s 14-inch widescreen is as bright as the 14-inch screens on the T400 and the 6930p. And it’s matte, too, so you don’t get the glare coming from the glossy ones found on consumer laptops. The 1,440-by-900 resolution is the same as you find on the T400 and the 6930p, with an option to go down to 1,280-by-800 for those who want to save $129.

The interior gets a complete makeover as well. The resurfaced keyboard is smoother than the D630’s and delivers a superb typing experience, but it’s still second best to the T400’s. As with the D630, you have dual pointing devices—a touchpad and a pointing stick. Though not as responsive as Lenovo’s TrackPoint technology, the pointing stick doesn’t feel as stiff as the D630’s, or even the 6930p’s. The mouse buttons seem bigger and are as silent as the T400’s. The palm rests, I would argue, could have used a brushed aluminum treatment similar to that of the frame, but that’s an aesthetic preference, not a functional one. The one keyboard feature that the E6400 has over the T400 and the 6930p is an ambient backlit keyboard, which is a terrific addition that is very useful in poorly lit areas like planes, conference rooms, and hotel rooms.

A wide selection of features makes the E6400 as versatile as the 6930p and the T400. The most significant addition, in my opinion, is the SD slot. Everyone, even business professionals, carries digital cameras, and having a built-in reader makes life that much easier. The 6930p and the T400 have had card readers for almost a year now. The E6400 comes with four USB ports, one doubling as an eSATA port. It has a FireWire port, an ExpressCard (or PC Card) option, and VGA-out like the 6930p and the T400. It also has a dizzying range of hard drive options, but I think that the 160GB, 7,200-rpm drive my system was configured with was a good choice. You can go up to 250GB ($55) or save some money by settling for an 80GB drive. As in the T400, pricier options (a 64GB or a 128GB SSD, $450 to $600) are available. SSDs have a reputation for bolstering battery life and data transfer speeds, as well as extending the lifespan of your laptop.

The test configuration also came with mobile broadband, also known as a cellular modem, which accesses a wireless 3G network, similar to a cell phone. Verizon’s EV-DO modem was activated on this system, and it worked flawlessly using Dell’s ControlPoint wireless software. I roamed around New York City and managed average download speeds of 800 megabits per second. If your company is willing to spring for the expensive plan ($60 to $80 per month), mobile broadband is one of those features that can save you from serious downtime in remote areas where Wi-Fi is not available. Not to be outdone, though, the 6930p and the T400 have a new technology called Gobi wireless, in which different data carriers (such as AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, and Vodafone) can be integrated into one laptop.

As with the D630, the E6400 is highly configurable. Although the configuration I reviewed doesn’t have the raw horsepower of the T400 and the 6930p, you have the option of choosing faster—albeit more expensive—parts. The 2.53-GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P9500 is probably a better option than the 2.8-GHz processors found in the T400 and 6930p, as it is energy efficient and fast enough to tackle any workload, not just word processing and Web surfing. It also creates room in your company’s budget for other features, like mobile broadband. Although this configuration comes with 2GB of memory, it isn’t DDR3 memory like that of the T400. You get a marginal performance boost from DDR3 memory (over DDR2) in applications like photo editing, database programming, and video encoding, but its absence here is not a deal breaker. And although the nVidia Quadro NVS 160 graphics card is terrific for 3D-related tasks, the E6400 lacks switchable graphics—the ability to switch to an integrated graphics chipset to benefit battery life when needed, as the T400 is able to do.

Because of the lower-clocked processor, the E6400’s SYSmark 2007 Preview Overall score wasn’t as impressive as the T400’s and the 6930p’s, trailing the latter pair by 16 and 18 percent, respectively. On video-encoding tests, Photoshop CS3 scripts, and CineBench R10 scores, the E6400 outperformed the 6930p but couldn’t catch up to the T400. But as I said before, there’s more than enough power to accomplish typical work tasks. The E6400 was configured with a battery-efficient processor plus an 85-Wh battery for one reason: awesome battery life. On the MobileMark 2007 battery test, the E6400 achieved 5 hours 32 minutes, which basically translates to an entire cross-country flight. If you opt for integrated graphics instead of the nVidia Quadro chipset, battery life could potentially top 7 hours. But if you had the option of switchable graphics, like the T400 does, you could get the best of both worlds.

Despite some stiff competition from Lenovo and HP, the Dell Latitude E6400 is a tremendous upgrade over the original Latitude D630. A new metallic look, assorted colors, and a retouched interior are signs that design is an important criterion in the corporate world. There are plenty of features and processing parts to choose from, although the test configuration is pretty much rock solid. If you had to nitpick, however, the Lenovo T400, which is our Editors’ Choice, has the slight edge from the features and pricing standpoint.

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Dell Inspiron 12 Mini

A truly bizarre day to announce a new notebook, Dell’s Inspiron Mini 12 is officially the most gargantuan netbook on the block. I wasn’t exactly blown away by it when I scoped it briefly a couple months ago, but Laptop was sufficiently impressed in its more in-depth hands on to compare it to the MacBook Air and Voodoo Envy—but you know, 0.2 inches thicker, more ports and you know, a thousand dollars cheaper at only $599.Under the hood, it’s a standard netbook kit—1.6GHz Atom (though the more energy efficient next-gen one that lets it live for up to three hours on a 3-cell battery), smallish 40, 60 or 80GB hard drive, not a whole lotta RAM—though you’ve got a full-sized keyboard and 1280×800 12-inch screen. Unfortunately, it’s only available with Vista at launch (which, also oddly, is only in Japan initially). Since Vista historically runs like garbage on these things, holding out through the late November debut here for the XP and Ubuntu variants coming by year’s end would probably be more prudent.

That said, the Mini 12 is definitely an interesting little experiment from Dell—a mutant mashup of netbook and notebook that might hit some heretofore undiscovered sweet spot, or simply look verrry attractive to some given the current economic climate. Update: Full press release below—apparently it’s a Twitter machine too:

Slim, Stylish and Well-Connected: Introducing the Dell Inspiron Mini 12

* New Addition to the Dell Inspiron Mini Line Expands Personalization Options
* Available First in Japan Through Bic Camera, Kojima and Sofmap Stores
* Includes Windows Vista Home Basic, Webcam and Bluetooth

ROUND ROCK, Texas—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Dell today introduced the Inspiron™ Mini 12, a small, easy-to-carry Internet companion that you can fine tune to fit your specific needs and deeds. Like its counterpart the Inspiron Mini 9, the Mini 12 is ideal for teens, tweens, travelers and “Tweeters” to surf the Web1, chat with friends, blog, stream content, upload photos or enjoy online videos, music and games.

The Inspiron Mini 12 is available initially only in Japan through Bic Camera, Kojima and Sofmap stores and other retail outlets. It will launch online globally by late November with configurations starting under $600 (U.S.). Ubuntu and Windows XP® operating systems also will be available before the end of the year.

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The News:

* With a starting weight of only 2.72 lbs.1 and only 0.92 in. thick1, current standard features on the Inspiron Mini 12 include:
o Windows Vista® Home Basic, built-in webcam, 1GB of RAM and a choice of 60 GB or 80 GB hard drive1, providing ample capacity for mobile applications, content creation and storage.
o Built-in Bluetooth® and 802.11b/g wireless.
o A sharp 12.1-inch WXGA display, offering wider viewing angles and exceptional brightness.
* Dell provides a variety of service offerings and add-on options to help ensure devices are easy to use and maintain optimal performance, including:
o Dell Support Center: Quickly access Dell service and support from an icon on your desktop that provides automated fixes, software upgrades and tools to help keep your system up-to-date and running efficiently.
o DellConnect™ Remote Assistance1: Dell experts help diagnose and solve PC problems via an Internet connection (available only on Windows-based systems).

Source www.gizmodo.com