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Dell laptop for Win 7

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ps56k

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May 14, 2013, 10:41:58 PM5/14/13
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Would like to get some new or used laptop for running Win 7 -

Have a couple of Dell C610 laptops around the house that we use and love -
with all the modular bay swap capabilities. All are running XP/SP3 -

Mostly just run IE and Firefox, Outlook Express, Office, Quicken & Turbotax

I've been very happy with all our Dell products,
as they are not over-engineered with funny buttons and special software.

SO - suggestions for something used that would run Win 7 just fine ?
Also - current models to look at ?

--
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No Good Deed -
Goes Unpunished


Ron Hardin

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May 15, 2013, 6:57:21 AM5/15/13
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The Dell small business outlet store has lots of laptops with win7.

They don't strike me as particularly cheap though.

Prices seem to have gone up starting sometime last December, when there was a blowout
sale on legacy stuff. About a 50% price/performance rise.
--
rhha...@mindspring.com

On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.

Larry

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May 15, 2013, 3:03:08 PM5/15/13
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If you can wait until Windows 8.1 is released, you might be happier.
Pundits are saying that the start button and Windows 7 like desktop
might return.

However according to this article, the release date for 8.1 might be
later this year. Maybe a long wait, however.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2418944,00.asp

Larry

Ben Myers

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May 19, 2013, 6:55:48 PM5/19/13
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You might be able to pick up a Dell Win 7 laptop on eBay for not much. I like the Latitude E6400-series with the LED screen. The E6410 shipped with Windows 7. I have not had hands on with other Latitude E-series with different size screens, but I would expect the workmanship and quality to be comparable.

DO NOT BUY, in fact run fast to avoid, Inspiron N-series, which are a maintenance nightmare. I am not too keen on Studio laptops either, because they have too much cheap plastic.

Finally, with Win 7, you'll need to move from Outlook Express (R.I.P.) to Live Mail. And you may or may not be able to reinstall and re-use your version of Office... Ben Myers

ps56k

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May 28, 2013, 6:28:04 PM5/28/13
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I picked up a Dell E6400 laptop from eBay - watched several...
it is being shipped UPS... and is on it's way

Dell Latitude E6400, Core 2 Duo 2.8 GHZ, 4gb Ram, 250GB HDD, Win 7 64-bit


Bob_Villa

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May 28, 2013, 6:56:26 PM5/28/13
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When I replace my daughters 1545 with an i3 notebook I put 4 Gigs in it and loaded Win7 64-bit. It runs very nicely on it. This model is excellent to get at the memory, HDD, and heat-sink (although it is all plastic).

ps56k

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May 28, 2013, 11:58:16 PM5/28/13
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"Bob_Villa" <pheeh...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:18e64ae9-2726-4db1...@googlegroups.com...
> How much...if I could ask?

it was $220 total -
A little more than the other E6400s I bid on,
but looked good, and seller replied to a couple questions.... so, thought
worth it - we'll see after it arrives -


Ron Hardin

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May 29, 2013, 8:59:13 AM5/29/13
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ps56k wrote:
>
> "Bob_Villa" <pheeh...@gmail.com> wrote in message
> news:18e64ae9-2726-4db1...@googlegroups.com..
> > On Tuesday, May 28, 2013 5:28:04 PM UTC-5, ps56k wrote:
> >> I picked up a Dell E6400 laptop from eBay - watched several...
> >>
> >> it is being shipped UPS... and is on it's way
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Dell Latitude E6400, Core 2 Duo 2.8 GHZ, 4gb Ram, 250GB HDD, Win 7 64-bit
> >
> > How much...if I could ask?
>
> it was $220 total -
> A little more than the other E6400s I bid on,
> but looked good, and seller replied to a couple questions.... so, thought
> worth it - we'll see after it arrives -

That's about half the price they were going for on the Outlet, at the end, as they unloaded the
last of the core2-duos scratch'n'dent and refurbished.

They have a 3 year warranty, probably, even from the outlet (unlike other models, the E6400 and
E6500 get an extra two years).

Ben Myers

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May 30, 2013, 1:45:18 AM5/30/13
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The E6400 is a very nice laptop, especially the bright LED screen. The E6410 gets just a bit better with an i5 or i7 and cheaper DDR3 SODIMMs... Ben Myers

ps56k

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May 30, 2013, 7:54:17 PM5/30/13
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All the other laptops in the house are the Dell C610s
and have a more square screen vs the "wide screen" aspect ratio.
Not sure I like the Wide version - but have had the others for years.

The other thing, that I had forgot about,
was some problem with "overheating"
and the CPU getting throttled back...
I seem to recall a big deal with Nvidia cards getting hot.


ps56k

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May 31, 2013, 4:44:04 PM5/31/13
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"ps56k" <pschuman_...@interserv.com> wrote in message
news:ko8oj2$co8$1...@dont-email.me...
> All the other laptops in the house are the Dell C610s
> and have a more square screen vs the "wide screen" aspect ratio.
> Not sure I like the Wide version - but have had the others for years.

We'll see how the E6400 Wide laptop grows on me...

Just measured a couple laptops in the house...

Dell E6400 - 14" diag - 12.00" W x 7.50" H (1.60)
Dell C610 - 14" diag - 11.25" W x 8.75" H (1.28)
Fujitsu T - 12" diag - 9.75" W x 7.25" H (1.34)

HDTV - 40"diag - 35.00" W x 20.00" H (1.75)



Ben Myers

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May 31, 2013, 9:11:35 PM5/31/13
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Depends on which build of the E6400 you have, with Intel or with nVidia graphics.

If there are dust and dirt clogging the fan and air vents, it is very easy to clean out. The bottom metal cover has one captive screw. Loosen the screw, then slide the plate away from the battery, and lift off the plate. This gives you perfect access to the CPU cooling fan, the heat sink and the air ducts. Clean out liberally with compressed air. Use a Q-tip or a cheap artist's brush to dislodge any dirt that won't otherwise come loose. High marks for maintainability, compared to the (WRETCH reflex) Inspiron N4010... Ben Myers

Timothy Daniels

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Jun 24, 2013, 10:49:09 PM6/24/13
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I substituted an SSD for the HDD in my XPS M1330 laptop, and
now the cooling fan comes on less frequently, and the palm rest is
a lot cooler.

*TimDaniels*

Ben Myers

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Jun 27, 2013, 12:39:58 AM6/27/13
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Now find the cooling fan and the vents and make sure they are free of dust and dirt. And animal hair, if you have any non-human animals around... Ben Myers

Timothy Daniels

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Jun 27, 2013, 12:30:52 PM6/27/13
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"Ben Myers" added:
> Timothy Daniels wrote:
>> "ps56k" wrote:
>> [. . . . ]
>> > The other thing, that I had forgot about,
>> > was some problem with "overheating"
>> > and the CPU getting throttled back...
>> > I seem to recall a big deal with Nvidia cards getting hot.
>>
>> I substituted an SSD for the HDD in my XPS M1330 laptop, and
>> now the cooling fan comes on less frequently, and the palm rest is
>> a lot cooler.
>
> Now find the cooling fan and the vents and make sure they are free
> of dust and dirt. And animal hair, if you have any non-human
> animals around... Ben Myers

Did that stuff - it was clean. The heat coming from the graphics
card was a problem with the cooling design (XPS M1330), and after
a couple visits, Dell replaced the motherboard with one with firmware
that set the fan to come on sooner. I considered that a bandaid, and
the fan coming on so easily was an annoyance. The SSD cuts the fan
use and its speed down drastically.

BTW, the hot tip on installing the 7mm-thick SSD in the 9mm slot
is to turn the laptop rightside-up so the SSD drops down to engage
the threads of the mounting screws.

*TimDaniels*


Ben Myers

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Jun 29, 2013, 2:36:30 AM6/29/13
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See my latest posting about nVidia graphics.
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