Question:
Choose Dell 8600c or Acer TM4002Lmi?
Hi,
again the same topic of which notebook to buy but I've finilazied (I hope) my choice over these two. The Dell is more expensive, about 270$ more than the Acer but it comes with plenty of features.
ACER TM4002LMi
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P-M 725 1.6 Ghz Dothan
512Mb RAM
60Gb HDD 4200rpm
802.111b/g
15"
ATI Radeon 9700 64Mb (not shared)
DELL Inspiron 8600c
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P-M 735 1.7 Ghz Dothan
768Mb RAM
80Gb HDD 5400rpm
802.111b/g
15,4"
ATI Radeon 9600 Turbo 128Mb (not shared)
Bluetooth
Do you think that the additional 270$ for the Dell are worth it? It comes with a faster processor, more ram, the HDD is larger and faster, it has widescreen, bluetooth and the video card has 128Mb!!! The Acer would suit my needs actually but I think the Dell may be a better choice for future. Also what about built quality/reliability? I've heard bad things about Acer 4000 serie screen....
What about the Radeon 9600 Turbo 128Mb against the Radeon 9700 64Mb?
If you were to buy a "cheap" notebook, would you go for the Acer or pay the 270$ more for the Dell to get some additional features (no matter if you really require them, just looking for the best deal)?
Answer:
I actually like the TM 4500 more than both of these. I really like Acer and wouldn't have any problem with you going that route. I much prefer them to Dell, especially the 8600.
Editor in Chief http://www.bargainPDA.com and http://www.SPOTstop.com
Answer:
Thanks for you reply. I've checked the specification of a TM 4502LCi and I'm very disapointed when compared to the TM4002Lmi!!!! The 4502 is more expensive, has only a 40Gb HDD, no DVD writer and moreover it comes with the Intel integrated graphic card. Honestly I cannot see any reason to buy a 4500 over a 4000. Why can the 4500 be better than the 4000 serie?
Why don't you like Dell 8600c? Is it because of reliability problems? It seems this notebook comes with an impressive package, almost everything that I can dream of is inside it while the Acer 4002Lmi comes with what I need, nothing more. I've considered surely not all but most solutions and I've really come across these 2 notebooks as being my ideal choices. What don't you like to the Dell?
Moreover it seems that a 4200rpm HDD such as the one of the Acer TM 4002LMi is really something to avoid. Tomshardware warned that it would be better to get a lower clocked CPU if this helps to get a faster HDD. Since the Dell has a 5400rpm HDD (among so much other features), is the Acer TM4002LMi still to be considered? Here in Switzerland it seems that most "affordable" ACER notebooks come with 4200rpm HDD and the upgrade to a 5400rpm unit costs far more than the additional costs of the 8600c!!! This is why I'm a bit stuck :(
Beware that I'm speaking about the Inspiron 8600c, not the 8600. Look at the features in my previous post: why would it be a bad choice (although I much prefer the design of the Acer....but not really important to me)?
Answer:
In the US the 4501 comes with an ATI 9700 video card. The others in the line have integrated.
The reason I'm pro Acer is their quality is much better than Dell. Dell has become the place to go with low dollars and high specs, but marginal quality and poor support. I would think with your budget you could do better than both with LG, Samsung or someone else in the UK.
Editor in Chief http://www.bargainPDA.com and http://www.SPOTstop.com
Answer:
I can't get any Samsung or LG in this price range. These brands are not very widely present in the Swiss market and only some high end systems that costs almost twice are available. I've also looked at Fujitsu-Siemens, Toshiba, IBM and HP but none offer the same specifications at the same price of either the Acer or the Dell. Definitely my choice must lie between the Acer TM4002LMi or the Dell Inspiron 8600c. Today I just saw that the Acer went a little lower priced of about 40$ so the difference between the Dell and that Acer is around 300$.
Brian, I took good note of your point of view towards Dell's quality but I've heard also bad things about Acer too so I wouldn't base my decision on that particular topic. Moreover the service may depends on the country.
Really I'm really wondering if I shouldn't spend a little more money to get the Dell because it seems it will handle "future" better and I don't plan buying new notebooks every year so. Look at what 300$ more would change when considering the Dell over the Acer:
Screen: 15 -> 15.4"
CPU (Dothan): 1.6 -> 1.7 Ghz
HDD speed: 4200rpm -> 5400rpm
HDD space: 60Gb -> 80Gb
RAM: 512Mb -> 768Mb
GPU: Radeon 9700 64Mb -> Radeon 9600 Turbo 128Mb
Option: no bluetooth -> bluetooth
All these upgrades for 300$ (yes 300$ is still 300$ but again I would spend more than 1000$ to get any cheap notebook anywayso) ! Is this really not worth it? From all the prices comparisons I've seen here in Switzerland, it is almost impossible to find another system with the same features as the Dell for the same price. Same for the Acer so I'm really playing between these too.
I fear that the Acer is a bit limited on the RAM as well as on the HDD speed. 4200rpm is really low and it's been noted that this really lower performance, maybe more than runing a lower clocked CPU! This is why I'm a bit skeptical. Updating the HDD or the RAM of the Acer would run its price over the one of the Dell without bringing all additional features too. This is why I'm really looking at this Dell but.................I still don't know :(
Answer:
Maybe should I still consider the ACER Aspire 1682WLMi? It has same specifications to the TM4002LMi except it has poorer battery life (2 hours vs 5 hours for the travelmate) but it comes with a 15.4" screen! It is about 120$ more expensive than the 4002LMi but it can be a good thing to have a 15,4" screen no? Is it possible to upgrade to get the same battery as on the TM4002Lmi?