Dell XPS M1330 or Lenovo X61 Tablet?

[CK8-04]

I am a college student that commutes and use my laptop from time to time for schoolwork, but I dread the days when I need to bring it to school. The laptop I currently have, a Lenovo T60p, is heavy and was issued by my school as part of its laptop program where the intended goal is to provide every student on campus with a laptop and all the necessary software for each student's major. Since I work for the school's IT department, I can easily obtain any software that I need. My plan is to give my school issued laptop to my dad and buy a faster and lighter laptop. I haven't browsed much, but I've always known of Dell and IBM/Lenovo to have better support than other manufacturers. So far, I've narrowed down my choices to these 2 laptops:

Dell XPS M1330 Price - $1484
Tuxedo Black
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T7500 (2.2GHz/800Mhz FSB, 4MB Cache)
Genuine Windows Vista™ Home Premium Edition
Slim and Light LED Display with VGA Webcam
1GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz
120GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW Drive)
128MB NVIDIA® GeForce™ 8400M GS
Intel® 3945 802.11a/g Mini-card
Built-in Bluetooth capability (2.0 EDR)
56Whr Lithium Ion Battery (6 cell)
High Definition Audio 2.0
No Fingerprint Reader
Integrated 10/100 Network Card

Lenovo X61 Tablet 12 inch Price - $1638
Processor: Intel® Core™ 2 Duo L7500 LV (1.6GHz, 4MB L2, 800MHz FSB
Operating system: Genuine Windows Vista Business
Display: 12.1" MultiView + MultiTouch WVA XGA TFT, 2x3 UltraConnect II antenna
Total memory: 1 GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz SODIMM Memory (2 DIMM)
Hard Drive: 80GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm
Wireless cards: Intel PRO/Wireless 3945ABG

I plan on purchasing 2GB of memory and a 60GB 7200RPM HDD from Newegg since they're cheaper there. My primary uses would be note-taking in class, GPS for road trips, wireless internet, and maybe a little bit of 2D CAD work. No gaming will be done on it since I have my desktop for that kind of stuff. I am open to any and all suggestions.

[SupDawg]

looks like a no brainer to me, go with Dell. Bigger, faster, cheaper. And those 1330s are sexy...

[3 of 7]

How about an XP Machine? (with the extra ram and a 160g 7200rpm hard drive for less?)
The Dell Online Store: Build Your System
Components
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7500 (2.2GHz, 4MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB), English
Genuine Windows® XP Professional SP2
14.1 inch Wide Screen XGA LCD Display
Integrated 2.0 mega pixel Web Camera
2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz, 2 Dimm
160GB Free Fall Sensor Hard Drive, 7200RPM
8X CD/DVD Burner w/ double-layer DVD+R write capability, w/o Roxio Creator
128MB NVIDIA® GeForce™ 8400M GS
Dell Wireless 1390 802.11g Wi-Fi Mini Card
Integrated High Definition Audio
56 WHr 6-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
$1,263

[k0NG0]

I know this doesn't answer your original question, but as an FYI: Fujitsu has a line of really nice small laptops. Well-built and stylish.

And I don't consider the premium you pay for a flippable screen with touch-sensors to be worth it. The hinge makes me a bit uneasy and I generally never hear of people using the tablet mode to any large extent. Typing on a laptop keyboard is a PITA, but it's still faster than using the tablet mode and handwriting recognition.

[TQ]

I'd like to see the handwriting recognition software that could decipher mine. I make chicken scratch look like calligraphy.

[CK8-04]

Originally Posted by 3 of 7

How about an XP Machine? (with the extra ram and a 160g 7200rpm hard drive for less?)
The Dell Online Store: Build Your System
Components
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7500 (2.2GHz, 4MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB), English
Genuine Windows® XP Professional SP2
14.1 inch Wide Screen XGA LCD Display
Integrated 2.0 mega pixel Web Camera
2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz, 2 Dimm
160GB Free Fall Sensor Hard Drive, 7200RPM
8X CD/DVD Burner w/ double-layer DVD+R write capability, w/o Roxio Creator
128MB NVIDIA® GeForce™ 8400M GS
Dell Wireless 1390 802.11g Wi-Fi Mini Card
Integrated High Definition Audio
56 WHr 6-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
$1,263

I can get a free copy of XP Professional from my school, so it shouldn't matter what OS the laptop comes with. I prefer the XPS, though, since I've seen the Vostro 1500 and XPS M1210 in person.

[CK8-04]

Originally Posted by k0NG0

I know this doesn't answer your original question, but as an FYI: Fujitsu has a line of really nice small laptops. Well-built and stylish.

And I don't consider the premium you pay for a flippable screen with touch-sensors to be worth it. The hinge makes me a bit uneasy and I generally never hear of people using the tablet mode to any large extent. Typing on a laptop keyboard is a PITA, but it's still faster than using the tablet mode and handwriting recognition.

My interpretation of the tablet function was that you could write on it just as you would on a piece of paper and the computer would catch every mark and they wouldn't be altered. That would eliminate problems of empty or dead pens and mechanical pencils. Is this correct? I figured it would be easier to bring a computer with 10s of pages of notes on the hard drive instead of bringing my notebook that has hundreds of sheets of paper inside it. I am a mechanical engineering major, too, so it would be easier to write equations and symbols on a tablet than to hunt for them in MS Office with a standard laptop.

[k0NG0]

Ah, for equations and such it could probably be handy if you're set on using a computer for taking notes. Don Knuth on steroids couldn't TeX equations faster than a normal person writing them by hand. (Though the ultimate goal of a tablet as far as I know is to convert the handwriting to text.)

Although, to be frank, paper never runs out of battery power or has a BSOD. You can't beat the paper low-tech with any high-tech available today IMO.

[Ninjin]

Working for dell I can tell you personally that the xps m1330 is a great system, but cause of it's size it is more prone to heat(known issue) and it feels as if you are going to break it cause of it's weight of less than 3lbs. If you are to get a m1330 do not put XP on it cause dell will not support your hardware or software, plus you will mess up the recovery and diags partition by doing so. If you wanna get a dell xps go for the m1530 it's a much better system, trust me.

[JoeFrat]

A t60 is heavy? What do you have in it...a 9 cell lead acid battery???

my r52 has a 15" screen and only weighs 5.4 pds....

Thinkpad all the way. Built better, designed better than dell ever will be. Far better support techs as well.

[CK8-04]

Originally Posted by Ninjin

Working for dell I can tell you personally that the xps m1330 is a great system, but cause of it's size it is more prone to heat(known issue) and it feels as if you are going to break it cause of it's weight of less than 3lbs. If you are to get a m1330 do not put XP on it cause dell will not support your hardware or software, plus you will mess up the recovery and diags partition by doing so. If you wanna get a dell xps go for the m1530 it's a much better system, trust me.

My biggest question is will my warranty be voided if I decide to install XP? And doesn't Dell ship the Vista OS DVD with the laptop? I could care less about support as I can support myself. My only concern here is warranty.

[CK8-04]

Originally Posted by JoeFrat

A t60 is heavy? What do you have in it...a 9 cell lead acid battery???

my r52 has a 15" screen and only weighs 5.4 pds....

Thinkpad all the way. Built better, designed better than dell ever will be. Far better support techs as well.

Unfortunately, it does have a 9 cell battery. Plus, when you factor in all the textbooks I need to carry, that is a lot of stuff for my shoulders to handle.

[Ninjin]

My biggest question is will my warranty be voided if I decide to install XP? And doesn't Dell ship the Vista OS DVD with the laptop? I could care less about support as I can support myself. My only concern here is warranty

Ya basically dell only supports the operating system that is shipped with the system. If you do end up reinstalling don't touch the second partition that you will notice of the hard drive(D:Recovery). It is a very handy recovery and diagnostic partition on the computer, makes it so much easier to troubleshoot the hardware, especially on a notebook computer. So as long as it's like a no boot issue or no power issue your good to go with installing XP, but if you want any kind of support software wise you are going to need to have Vista installed.