Dell Latitude D430 Review

Total Score

Dell’s Latitude range of laptop computers are targeted squarely in the mid range business user segment. Also known as D-Series, the Latitudes come with reinforced magnesium alloy frames, water resistant keyboards, a dedicated phone support queue and the essentials 3-year Next-Business Day warranty. Dell Latitudes now also come with an ExpressCharge feature that charges your battery up to 80% within 1 hour. Common to the D-Series is the D-module bay which allows for easy swapping of a variety of optical drives, spare battery and second HDD.

The Latitude D430 is Dell’s road warrior machine that is highly portable and lightweight, sporting a 12.1 inch widescreen XGA display and weighing only 1.4kg. The full magnesium allow frame offers strength and rigidity to the D430, and is further enhanced by Dell’s StrikeZone protection under the HDD area. Powering the D430 is Intel’s Centrino Duo platform with a lowe-voltage U7600 Core 2 Duo CPU running at 1.2GHz at its core. This also means that the graphics are powered by a standard embendded Intel GMA950 chip.

Like all Dell computers, you can specify a variety options when ordering the Latitude D430. The standard feature include Bluetooth, built-in phone modem, Gigabit Ethernet and a decent 1GB of DDR2-667 RAM built-in. There is one available slot for memory expansion, and our review unit was configured with another 1GB in this slot for a total of 2GB of RAM. For storage, the Latitude D430 has the option of using a Solid State Drive (SDD). The SanDisk UATA 5000 SSD is a mere 32GB in size, but offers increased reliability and durability thanks to no moving parts. Otherwis, you can can order standard hard drives from 80GB to 120GB.

Wireless LAN is pretty much a necessity for a mobile computer like the Latitude D430 Here you have the option of the old Intel 3945 a/b/g adapter or the new 4965 a/g/n adapter. The new adapter should simply be standard, so look out for this option when ordering online.

The Latitude D430 has three USB ports and IEEE3945 (Firewire). There is also an Integrated SD-card reader and the option to have a fingerprint reader below the touchpad. For external displays, you can connect via the VGA connector. The D430 is also compatible with Dell’s D-Dock which give you ore connectors and video outputs.

Being a highly portable laptop, the keyboard layout squeezes many buttons like key arrow keys and function keys, but manages to maintain full sized keys for the main QWERTY keys. The Latitude D430 comes with both a touchpad and nipple-pointer in the layout.
 

Dell Latitude D630 Notebook Review

The Latitude D630 is Dell’s latest update to the D620, a light-weight business class machine. It's powered by a Santa Rosa spec Intel Core 2 Duo T7300, which has a clock speed of 2.0GHz with 4MB L2 Cache and a 800MHz Front Side Bus. This is complemented by 2GB 667MHz DRR2 RAM, an 80GB 7200rpm SATA hard drive, a DVD Re-writer and integrated X3100 graphics. This is all very good, and with this spec the D630 will make mincemeat of the usual office activities, providing plenty of scope for multiple applications and more demanding work too. If one were being picky one might want a larger hard drive, but for its usage 80GB should be enough and as ever one could just as easily specify a larger hard drive at point of purchase.

However, there's a great deal more to the D630, especially in regards to connectivity. Gigabit Ethernet and 3945ABG Wi-Fi is more or less standard; the lack of Draft N wireless is a disappointment but given the corporate target market is hardly a great concern. Moreover, it seems that this is the result of lack of availability of Draft N wireless modules than any oversight on Dell’s part

Dell Latitude D420 with Core Duo U2500 ULV 1.2GHz Review

Total Score

The Dell Latitude D420 is a 12.1" ultra-portable notebook designed to succeed both the Latitude X1 and the Latitude D410. In an effort to simplify its ultramobile product line, Dell has merged several traits from each of these two retired models to create the new D420. Specifically, the D420 adopts the X1's wide-aspect screen and ultra-low voltage processor while maintaining the D410's aesthetic appeal and full-sized keyboard. In addition, the D420 continues Dell's trend of not including an internal optical drive, although external options are once again available. Road warriors and frequent flyers will appreciate its light yet durable design and all-day battery life, while IT departments will be pleased to see that the D420 comes with Dell’s full suite of management utilities and is Microsoft Vista Capable.

Flip the lid and you’ll find the D420’s sharp, bright 12.1-inch widescreen. The matte finish is more forgiving under office lighting than glare-prone glossy screens are, and viewing angles were good side to side, though the screen looked washed out when viewed from above. The 1280 x 800-pixel resolution makes for some tiny type on Web sites and in apps, so be prepared to use large fonts and zoom in when possible.

The D420 has the footprint of a sheet of paper and is just an inch thick. Weighing only three pounds (or 3.6 pounds with the nine-cell battery our system came with), the unit feels light but solid. The metallic dark-silver chassis, like other Latitude D models, is conservative (almost plain) and inoffensive.

The steel screen hinges provide firm movement, and the magnesium-alloy casing provides resilient protection while avoiding unnecessary creaking. Moreover, the lid seems well reinforced, with pressure on the back of the lid not causing the LCD screen to become distorted on the other side. Finally, Dell's implementation of its StrikeZone technology in the D420 is worth mentioning, since it provides added protection to the hard drive in case of an accidental drop or fall. The only possible improvement I could suggest for enhancing the D420's build would be to replace the steel lid-latch with the magnetic variety, although this is nitpicky at best.

Dell XPS M1710 with Core 2 Duo T7600 and Nvidia Go 7900GTX Review

Total Score

Gaming enthusiasts can certainly remember a time when the thought of fragging on a Dell system was somewhat comical. Granted, Dell built systems were solid and reliable and often came at an exceptionally good price. However, these systems lacked the aesthetics, upgradeability, and high-end hardware the gaming community craves. As a result, those gamers who opted to purchase a complete system rather than build their own often went elsewhere to the more boutique PC vendors such as Voodoo, Alienware, or Falcon Northwest. Dell XPS M1710 Notebook comes equipped with some of the most powerful mobile components on the market. Even within the high-end mobile gaming segment, though, there are still options for customizing performance. Dell allows the end user to select parts for their M1710 from a variety of components in all the key areas. The basic platform -- motherboard, keyboard, chassis, and display -- is standardized, but the processor, GPU, memory, hard drive, optical drive, and some networking features can be tweaked to fit your needs.

Serious mobile gamers have known for some time now that the portable rig of choice is Dell's distinctive metallic and black XPS M170 notebook ($4,215 direct). That common wisdom is unlikely to change, because the company has enhanced its popular laptop's look by adding extra flair and some hot new parts. Dubbed the Special Edition Formula Red XPS M1710, this laptop is guaranteed to draw attention at your next gaming soiree. And thanks to its new nVidia GeForce Go 7900 GTX graphics chipset, coupled with the fastest Intel Core Duo processor available, it's still the best gaming notebook deal in town.

With the launch of the flagship XPS series of systems though, Dell has declared war on this collection of boutique gaming PC vendors. Throughout each generation of XPS systems, it seems as though Dell is gaining more and more ground on these competitors in the minds of enthusiasts as they offer a solid combination of killer performance and a unique aesthetic. With the arrival of the XPS M1710 flagship, Dell has created one of the fastest notebooks money can buy. It features a 512MB GeForce Go 7900 GTX GPU and an Intel Core Duo processor which work in tandem to give nearly any desktop system currently available a serious run for its money.