Latitude D610 versus Inspiron 600m. Need opinions.

I'm about to purchase one or the other for a college-bound student. I note
that the specs of both seem to be about the same, so I'll assume that the
"guts" are the same with different plastics.

The user isn't going to need heavy multi-media features, but I plan to shop
both heavily (coupons, Dell outlet, savings sites, etc) and get at least 2
years warranty on whichever I wind up with.

I use a Latitude D600 at work and it's a very nice machine, so I'm leaning
towards the Latitude (for durability and better default warranty).

I've read some posts that suggest Latitude durability (versus Inspiron) is
not what it used to be - so I wonder if the 600m might not be a better value
choice; in effect, why pay for 'more' machine when it's not really that much
of an improvement.

I'd welcome opinions and comments from anyone who owns or uses either
machine or who has experience with them.


Thanks,


Stew

I bought my college daughter the 600m last November, with a 3 year
"bumper-to-bumper" warranty. Haven't had any problems....looks and runs
like new. She loves it!

"S.Lewis" wrote in message
...
I'm about to purchase one or the other for a college-bound student. I
note that the specs of both seem to be about the same, so I'll assume that
the "guts" are the same with different plastics.

The user isn't going to need heavy multi-media features, but I plan to
shop both heavily (coupons, Dell outlet, savings sites, etc) and get at
least 2 years warranty on whichever I wind up with.

I use a Latitude D600 at work and it's a very nice machine, so I'm leaning
towards the Latitude (for durability and better default warranty).

I've read some posts that suggest Latitude durability (versus Inspiron) is
not what it used to be - so I wonder if the 600m might not be a better
value choice; in effect, why pay for 'more' machine when it's not really
that much of an improvement.

I'd welcome opinions and comments from anyone who owns or uses either
machine or who has experience with them.


Thanks,


Stew

S.Lewis wrote:

I'm about to purchase one or the other for a college-bound student. I note
that the specs of both seem to be about the same, so I'll assume that the
"guts" are the same with different plastics.

The user isn't going to need heavy multi-media features, but I plan to shop
both heavily (coupons, Dell outlet, savings sites, etc) and get at least 2
years warranty on whichever I wind up with.

I use a Latitude D600 at work and it's a very nice machine, so I'm leaning
towards the Latitude (for durability and better default warranty).

I've read some posts that suggest Latitude durability (versus Inspiron) is
not what it used to be - so I wonder if the 600m might not be a better value
choice; in effect, why pay for 'more' machine when it's not really that much
of an improvement.

I'd welcome opinions and comments from anyone who owns or uses either
machine or who has experience with them.


Thanks,


Stew



I just graduated college and picked up a D610 for my last quarter; my
previous laptop, an IBM T21, died around Feb. My younger brother (still
in high school) needed a computer and I convinced my parents to go with
the 600m. Now that I have had a chance to use both, I am happy I went
with the D610, but I think going with a 600m for most people would be
adequate. The Inspiron 600m my brother got has a P-M 745 (1.8GHz) and
512MB of RAM, my D610 has a P-M 760 (2.0) and 1GB of RAM. The
performance difference is slight (slightly more than 12% when using apps
that take 100% of the CPU), but in my case noticable since I do a lot of
compiling (I run Gentoo Linux, where everything is compiled from
source). Also I was an electrical engineering major, so I found the
exta speed beneficial in circuit simulations. If your student doesn't
plan to use any heavy programs (compiling, CAD, encoding), then I'd just
go with the one you can find cheaper (most likely the 600m). Also keep
in mind that Latitudes come with a 3 year warranty by default.

I'm sure you'd agree from your experiences with the D600, the model is
great for people who actually take their notebooks with them. The build
quality between the two feels fairly similar, and the main difference is
the D610 has a trackpoint (in addition to a touchpad) -- this was
important to me since I was coming from a Thinkpad. Actually, if you're
open to other brands, the Lenovo Thinkpad T43 may be worth a look (very
similar size/weight combo).

"Nicholas Andrade" wrote in message
. ..
S.Lewis wrote:

I'm about to purchase one or the other for a college-bound student. I
note that the specs of both seem to be about the same, so I'll assume
that the "guts" are the same with different plastics.

The user isn't going to need heavy multi-media features, but I plan to
shop both heavily (coupons, Dell outlet, savings sites, etc) and get at
least 2 years warranty on whichever I wind up with.

I use a Latitude D600 at work and it's a very nice machine, so I'm
leaning towards the Latitude (for durability and better default
warranty).

I've read some posts that suggest Latitude durability (versus Inspiron)
is not what it used to be - so I wonder if the 600m might not be a better
value choice; in effect, why pay for 'more' machine when it's not really
that much of an improvement.

I'd welcome opinions and comments from anyone who owns or uses either
machine or who has experience with them.


Thanks,


Stew



I just graduated college and picked up a D610 for my last quarter; my
previous laptop, an IBM T21, died around Feb. My younger brother (still
in high school) needed a computer and I convinced my parents to go with
the 600m. Now that I have had a chance to use both, I am happy I went
with the D610, but I think going with a 600m for most people would be
adequate. The Inspiron 600m my brother got has a P-M 745 (1.8GHz) and
512MB of RAM, my D610 has a P-M 760 (2.0) and 1GB of RAM. The performance
difference is slight (slightly more than 12% when using apps that take
100% of the CPU), but in my case noticable since I do a lot of compiling
(I run Gentoo Linux, where everything is compiled from source). Also I
was an electrical engineering major, so I found the exta speed beneficial
in circuit simulations. If your student doesn't plan to use any heavy
programs (compiling, CAD, encoding), then I'd just go with the one you can
find cheaper (most likely the 600m). Also keep in mind that Latitudes
come with a 3 year warranty by default.

I'm sure you'd agree from your experiences with the D600, the model is
great for people who actually take their notebooks with them. The build
quality between the two feels fairly similar, and the main difference is
the D610 has a trackpoint (in addition to a touchpad) -- this was
important to me since I was coming from a Thinkpad. Actually, if you're
open to other brands, the Lenovo Thinkpad T43 may be worth a look (very
similar size/weight combo).




Thanks for the replies. I ended up locating a new D610 last night, primarily
for the track stick option and extended warranty. Also, any time I've
called for support on Latitude units, I seem to connect with domestic tech
support.

Stew