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Shootout: Precision M90 vs. XPS M1710 vs. Inspiron 9400/e1705

Poll Results: Which one is your favorite desktop replacement?

 
  • 29% (31)
    Inspiron 9400/e1705
  • 29% (31)
    Precision M90
  • 40% (43)
    XPS M1710
105 Total Votes  
post #1 of 52
3/25/06 at 7:53am
Thread Starter 
It think it's time to start comparing our top-of-the-line desktop replacements models:

Inspiron 9400 (a.k.a. e1705)
Precision M90 (Released end of March)
XPS M1710 (only guesses so far)

Known/guessed differences:

Processor:
No known differences: all dual core

Screen:
All 17" with WXGA (1440x900) and WUXGA (1920x1200) options.
9400: glossy
M90: non-glossy
M1710: probably glossy?

Graphics:
9400: X1400 currently, Go 7800 previously, Go 7900 GS soon?
M90: Quadro FX1500 M/256Mb or Quadro FX2500 M/512Mb (max 100W)
M1710: Go 7900 GTX or Go 7900 GS (max 68W?)


Memory:
9400: Up to 2Gb
M90: Up to 4Gb
M1710: Up to 4Gb?

Network:
9400: 10/100Mbit
M90: 10/100/1000Mbit
M1710: 10/100/1000Mbit (probably?)

Audio:
9400: Stereo HD audio (or AC97). 2 speakers + subwoofer
M90: Stereo HD audio (or AC97). 2 speakers + subwoofer
M1710: Stereo HD audio (or AC97???). 2 speakers + subwoofer. (7.1 very unsure)

Docking:
9400: No Docking support
M90: D-family docking
M1710: D-family docking (possibly?)

Card readers etc.:
9400: 5-in-1 card reader
M90: 5-in-1 card reader, plus SmartCard reader, plus TPM chip
M1710: 5-in-1 card reader

Chassis:
9400: Plastic or magnesium???
M90: Magnesium alloy
M1710: Magnesium alloy (probably?)

Availability:
9400: Now
M90: Now
M1710: april 14th

Price :
9400: Expensive
M90: Extremely Expensive
M1710: Very Expensive

:-)

Looks:
9400:

M90:

M1710:


(courtesy of http://www.lesdelliens.com)

Post additional aspects you think differ!

So, given the above, which one is your favorite?
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post #2 of 52
3/25/06 at 7:58am
Of course the M1710, it has the most power for gaming.
If it's ever out.
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post #3 of 52
3/25/06 at 12:23pm
M90's going to look like the XPS M170...?

The M90 for sure. The chassis on the new business laptops look sick. Then again, I'm looking at the D820...
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post #4 of 52
3/25/06 at 12:39pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by chuck232
The M90 for sure. The chassis on the new business laptops look sick. Then again, I'm looking at the D820...
Yeah, but because of the puny 15.4" LCD, I decided against adding it to this list...
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post #5 of 52
3/25/06 at 12:42pm
man if the quadro fx2500 go benches good in cinebench and has a decent 3dmark score i am gonna go masturbate, then order one. i mean come on, 512 megs of video ram on a laptop card, thats insane.
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post #6 of 52
3/25/06 at 12:49pm
Thread Starter 
I assume the fx2500 == Go7900GTX + some features needed for CAD and similar.

Looking at a comparison that includes FX4500 and 7800GTX (desktop):

http://features.cgsociety.org/story_...?story_id=3321

You'll find that the FX4500 totally owns the 7800GTX in these kinds of benchmarks. I'd assume it performs about equal in games.

This does not mean the FX2500M necessarily performs like the Go7900, but it's a strong hint.
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post #7 of 52
3/26/06 at 4:47am
why the heck won't Dell put a numeric keypad on the 17" model like some other companies do? If I got a 17, I would want one.
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post #8 of 52
3/26/06 at 2:17pm
On the XPS, it seems to help the cooling by having a couple of vents there, it also allows the keyboard to be placed centrally.

John
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post #9 of 52
3/26/06 at 4:04pm
512 = good, hoping both the 1710 and the M90 come just the Quadro deal being different

4gb required in any gaming machine you even think you might try to run Vista on - if you are a user of 2gb now

Prefer the centralized keyb over the numpad, and to be honest if you need a numpad buy one you can plug in on the side, or use an external wireless keyboard (for the win!)

Might the 1710 try to use SLI? That might change the scene some. Probably not possible, just throwing it out there.

I might prefer the M90 for a non glossy screen, but not at the cost of color quality and contrast, but that glossy glare is annoying.

So I'm undecided until I know more of the differences between the M90 and the 1710.

If 1710=2gb max and M90=4 then M90
If 1710=4gb Core duo and SLI, then 1710
If 1710=4gb and same stuff as M90 just cheaper, well no brainer there

Basically the 9400 is just not powerful enough to entice me, and Dell seems to have made it clear that upgrades of the GPU are going to be primarily a XPS/170 family feature, and I'm happily willing to pay solid $$ for that ability.

$.02
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post #10 of 52
3/26/06 at 6:01pm
Although I have no concrete details on the M1710 I can't see it having SLI - there seem to be indications it will use the 9400 chassis (which seems likely anyway) and there's no way you're going to get two cards in there. If you look at the amount of space for both the cards themselves and their cooling in the Clevo 19 inch SLI machine there's simply no way you could fit that into a 17 inch chassis without making it far deeper.

Dell may prove me wrong (they'd be more than welcome to do so!) but an uprated graphics card and cosmetic change seem most likely for the XPS M1710.

John
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post #11 of 52
3/28/06 at 11:03am
I would prefer M1710 with a 7900 GTX and 17 inch rather than with SLI 7800 and a 19 inch screen
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post #12 of 52
3/28/06 at 4:24pm
Quote:

Basically the 9400 is just not powerful enough to entice me, and Dell seems to have made it clear that upgrades of the GPU are going to be primarily a XPS/170 family feature, and I'm happily willing to pay solid $$ for that ability.

$.02
I still choose the 9400/E1705, Why? Pricepoint vs. Performance.

I am not one to spend my money on the latest and greatest of technologies, I have always refused to spend top dollar for the latest CPU upgrades, but if you watch the prices and can find a spot where the amount of speed increase doesn't find you a massive price hike then that is where you strike. I find the 9400 to be this spot.

I have seen it (in the past) available w/ the 7800 and 100 gb hdd and a 2.0ghz cpu for 1500 range, You just cant get that price in the XPS line.

Don't get me wrong, I think the XPS's rock hardcore, but the fact remains that price is an issue for a majority of folks, My wife would love to have the extra gaming power, but I refuse to spend the money.

just my 2 cents.
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post #13 of 52
3/28/06 at 6:27pm
will the quadro's be good for gaming, dont the GTX cards do much better in games
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post #14 of 52
3/29/06 at 2:35am
I agree probably no SLI but mostly because I think, to maintain Merom as a future as well as for the custom MXM slot they seem to be having great use out of (6800 7800GTX now 7900xx) they'll stick with the 945 chipset.

However, there is a 17" SLI laptop out there. So it can be done in a thicker 17" form factor. However, do remember that IF you can drop in a G80, you'd probably much rather spend your money on a 7900GTX now and a G80 Go later, than 2 7900GTX's now.

That said, if it's SLI I'll take it even so
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post #15 of 52
3/29/06 at 7:18am
p-m90 is not really like neither e1705 nor xpsm170, it is something different you know you can't really compare those three. i think comparison could be only made between e1705 and xpsm170

p-m90 is now on sale in the UK, only a 1k quids 2100 bucks in here
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post #16 of 52
3/29/06 at 11:51am
I don't know what you mean? You can easily compare the 9400/E1705 as you could the M70 with the 9300/XPS.

John
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post #17 of 52
3/29/06 at 11:56am
Thread Starter 
And the e1705 does not compare to the M170 very well, as they use different chipsets, processor families, etc.
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post #18 of 52
3/29/06 at 12:08pm
If the M1710 does come out in April, I think it would still have the Yonah chip (please correct me if I am wrong) meaning no 64-bit support yet.

I would rather wait on the Merom chip which will have dual support and hopefully the mobile card it has will be DX10 compliant.
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post #19 of 52
3/29/06 at 12:14pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by akiladae
If the M1710 does come out in April, I think it would still have the Yonah chip (please correct me if I am wrong) meaning no 64-bit support yet.

I would rather wait on the Merom chip which will have dual support and hopefully the mobile card it has will be DX10 compliant.
It'll be Yonah. However, it seems the first generation of Merom chips (the 667MHz ones) would be possible to use on the current chipsets with a BIOS upgrade.

Also, it's possible the G80M (DX10) card will fit into the M1710.

Thus, with a bit of luck, buy a M1710 now, plug in a Merom and G80M later.
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post #20 of 52
4/8/06 at 11:16am
Thread Starter 
Added Audio comparison.

Now, the M1710 seems even better :-)
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