Vostro 1700/ Inspiron 1720 FAQ

Ok so I've noticed that more and more people are bringing these laptops up so I figured I would make a FAQ about them. I will listen to any comments, good or bad, but don't come and be a hater.

-What is the maximum CPU available?
A: These laptops support Penryn which means that the Core 2 Duo T9300 and even the Core 2 Extreme will fit in this machine, although the latter is not available from Dell as an option when purchasing these laptops.

-What is the maximum amount of RAM supported?
A: 4GB, but Vista 32bit only recognizes 3.581GB. To take advantage of the full 4GB, you need to upgrade to a 64bit OS.

-What is the best video card available?
A: The 8600MGT is the best one available from Dell so far.

-Can I upgrade the video card?
A: As of right now the 8600MGT is the best video card available for these machines, although if you have the 8400MGS you can upgrade to the 8600MGT. If you have the Intel graphics unfortulately you cannot upgrade them.

-Do these laptops have a DVI port?
A: Unfortunately they do not have DVI ports.

-Can these laptops be ordered with Windows XP?
A: The Vostro 1700 can be ordered with XP but unfortunately the 1720 cannot. Dell will stop selling Genuine Windows XP on June 18th.

-What is the best hard drive available?
A: 320GB is the biggest you can go atleast if you order it from dell.com I'm sure that websites such as NewEgg have better deals on bigger drives.

-Is Blu-Ray available on these laptops?
A: No, at least not from Dell.

-How do these laptops do when it comes to gaming?
A: I can play Crysis on near-max settings in DX9 mode. DX10 mode is playable but the settings have to be pretty low. Games like Gears of War and Bioshock can play perfectly on DX10 Mode and X-Plane 9 can play fantastic with everything topped out.

-What is the best screen available for these laptops?
A: WUXGA with TrueLife

-What is the best warranty available for these laptops?
A: 3 Year ProSupport for End Users and 3 year NBD On-site service

-Would I recommend purchasing one of these laptops?
A: Definitely because I think you get a lot of computer for the money.


I hope this FAQ helps customers very much. To be updated soon.

bump

Thanks to all of you guys, I really appreciate it. gerryjoson, this does not include the business models. Only for home edition. Crysis is running at 1440x900 which is the maximum my laptop can support since I only have the WXGA screen. atwood7fan, you are right about this thread also applying to the 1500/1520, as a matter of fact I almost bought a 1520 but decided I needed a 17 inch screen and I liked the black on the Vostros.

Again, thanks to you all.

Bump...I hope this continues to help some people.

Thanks, I just updated that in the original post.





BUMP, maybe we could get this stickied

Bumpity

Daily bump...hope this continues to help.

Bumpity again, hope this helps.

BUMP, hope this works

Seems to me that you have an integrated card. What graphics option did you choose while ordering the laptop?

Bump, these are some great computers. Going on 1-year with mine.

Bump...my laptop continues to run strong. BTW, what would it take for this to be stickied?