Computer experts- Help me pick a new laptop

[Titus]

It is time for me to get a new work laptop, and I have a choice between the Dell Latitude E6400 and the HP Elitebook 6930p. In the past, I have always gone with an IBM, but that is not an option this time around. Can anyone offer any advice or positive/negative experiences with these specific models?

Spec Comparison:
Both of them have the following-
Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo P8400, 2.26GHz, 1066MHz FSB, 3MB L2 Cache
Chipset: Gs45 Express
Graphics: Mobile Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
Display: 14.1" Premium WXGA (1280x800) Display
Memory: 4GB Duasl Channel DDR2-800 Memory
Battery: 6-cell Lithium ion
Connectivity options: 10/100/1000 gigabit ethernet, Intel WiFi Link 5300
Optical Drive: 8x DVD-ROM

Differences-
Primary Storage: Dell- 80GB 7200 RPM Free Fall Sensor Hard Drive; HP- 160GB 7200RPM with 3D DriveGaurd
Ports: Dell- eSATA; HP- RJ-11 (both have eSATA port on docking station)
Weight: Dell- 5.25lbs; HP- 5 lbs
Chassis- Both have Magnesium chassis, but the HP claims it "meets the military standard MIL-STD 810F for vibration, dust, humidity, altitude, and high temperature.

I likely will get my choice between XP and Vista, but could be forced to take Vista.

[sammm]

If those 2 are the choices, get the Dell. HP sucks, worst reliability record among laptops.

IBM (Lenovo) make very good machines.

[Nexus Flux]

I have been working with the E6400's since about Dec of 08. Pretty sturdy, even though they do look like my 3 yr old HP. On the support side, they are great, one screv on the bottom lets you get to pretty much every part you might want access to. On the bad side, I have recieved a few, say 8-10 out of 200 or so, where the LCD connector on the back of the panel wiggles loose and the backlight doesn't light up or the image shakes on the display. Simple 3 min fix, but annoying none the less. Tip: tape the wire down to the panel, and it will never loosen again.

I actually use one at work, pretty much the same specs, except I got a 160 GB HDD and the nVidia graphics. I like it

As far as the HP, well haven't come in contact with the particular model you are reffering to, but my 2 HP's at home are running like champs. One is about 3 yrs old the other about 3.5 - 4 yrs old.


Oh FYI, RJ-11 = phone line beep beep dung slowwwww

[Titus]

If those 2 are the choices, get the Dell. HP sucks, worst reliability record among laptops.

IBM (Lenovo) make very good machines.

Yeah, I am sad I can't get another IBM Lenova.

I have been working with the E6400's since about Dec of 08. Pretty sturdy, even though they do look like my 3 yr old HP. On the support side, they are great, one screv on the bottom lets you get to pretty much every part you might want access to. On the bad side, I have recieved a few, say 8-10 out of 200 or so, where the LCD connector on the back of the panel wiggles loose and the backlight doesn't light up or the image shakes on the display. Simple 3 min fix, but annoying none the less. Tip: tape the wire down to the panel, and it will never loosen again.

I actually use one at work, pretty much the same specs, except I got a 160 GB HDD and the nVidia graphics. I like it

As far as the HP, well haven't come in contact with the particular model you are reffering to, but my 2 HP's at home are running like champs. One is about 3 yrs old the other about 3.5 - 4 yrs old.


Oh FYI, RJ-11 = phone line beep beep dung slowwwww

The wife has had an HP Pavilion laptop running Vista for about 18 months with no problems and my desktop is a 5+ year old Compaq (with XP) that has never given me any problems, so that (and the slightly better specs) had me leaning toward the HP. Then again, I prefer the all black of the Dell and any reliability issues are really not my problem.

[black roadster]

We've had Dell and HP laptops. The Dell's have sucked. Poor reliability. The HP has been trouble free.

[goofygrin]

had a compaq laptop that I used for business every day for three years, no issues. Switched to an XPS M1330, used it for about 18 months and had quite a bit of issues initially (ended up replacing most of the guts) and then at the end (motherboard swapped under an extension that Dell did). Now on a Lenovo T400. No issues with it (6 months use).

I will say that XPS and Lenovo support has been excellent! On my wife's lenovo (x61s, 2 years use), they've replaced the battery twice, hard drive and keyboard without any complaints (one battery and the hard drive was a result of her dropping the laptop, no questions asked, new parts on my door the next day).

I'm trying to repair a neighbor's Compaq and they won't ship me a new keyboard, they want me to mail the stupid thing off. I declined and bought a new one off Ebay for $14. So they get a less than favorable rating :)

[VFR750]

I have been pounding on my Dell laptop since 6/05 doing my insurance job. Other than replacing the keyboard twice have had no issues, its been a good machine.

[tailchaser]

I've had excellent luck with Dell Latitudes. Some of the board/chipset combos have proven flaky - I think Dave04 had about 400 warranty calls on one... The "consumer" Dells, not so much. They're just as crappy as everything on the counter at Best Buy. My current 630 has been back to Dell once. Dell did fine, but UPS lost the box, so I was without it for 5 weeks until it magically appeared on Dell's dock one day. My wife has one, too. I think between us we've electrocuted 4 power supplies, but Dell offers quick and courteous replacement... If you pick up an extra power supply when you buy, they're only $20... I recommend one.

I supported a half dozen HP business line notebooks (and had one). All worked fairly well, but they had weak plastic in the cases. One user had the main casing swapped out 4 times under warranty. Within 3 months following the 3 year warranty expiration, all of them had died. But they were cheap.

[Dave04]

I think Dave04 had about 400 warranty calls on one...

Yeah... My D600 had (over it's 5 year life) 7 motherboards, 4 hard drives, 6 Bluetooth cards, and some assorted plastic bits (hinges, covers, etc)... But... My current D630C seems to be holding up well hardware wise. Sadly, my company requires a whole disk encryption thing that makes it suck a bit.

[mtrx804]

I say you should go with an Alienware

[trickyrix]

I've got a Dell Latitude D630 for work, and I love it. The battery lasts forever, it's dead-nuts reliable, reasonably compact, and plenty fast.

On the other hand, my personal Dell Inspiron laptop was a piece of crap until I added more memory and loaded a clean copy of Windows XP Pro from scratch. Before that, it would go blue-screen on a regular basis, it was slow, and it was very cranky.

[Titus]

Ordered the Dell. Thanks guys.

[MiataMike]

I say you should go with an Alienware

Alienware is still a Dell product