Precision M70 Died, need advice on replacement

Hi Guys,

Last night after serving me well for just over 3 years (yeah just outside warranty), my Dell Precision M70 died very suddenly. The graphics now garble after a very short time of use, I know from fixing computers for 8 years that this is classic Graphics card death from a blown resistor. Never the less I did try swapping CPU and memory, but same issue.

So I'm back on NBF to ask for some help and direction on a replacement (I'm actually a user previously with around 100 posts but can't seem to remember my name or email to get it back..oops).

When I got the Precision M70 originally, it was because the Quadro 1400m was basically a 6800 clocked down a bit, I was able to pick one up refurbed from a Dell authorised dealer with a 3 year warranty at the time for a lot off. The reason I didn't get an XPS is because at the time, the same power seemed available in the precision for less.

The newer XPS 1530 has caught my eye, and I am again looking at the same dealer for a refurb, but I wanted to know what peoples thoughts were on a replacement. I considered the lattitude 1720 desktop replacement, but it's not practical. My criteria are:

15.4 widescreen with a resolution of 1440x900 or more (precision had 1920x1200)
mobile - Desktop replacement battery life is not practical for me, nor the 17" i guess.
moderate gaming - Since I'm getting a new one, I would like to be able to play some more modern games, I can accept not at eye bleeding high quality though, so any comments on those 8600M GTs is appreciated

My budget is about £600-£700, which from what I've seen on the Dell outlet site as well is Realistic.

I was set last night on one which had a 2.2ghz core2duo, 2gb ram, 200gb hard drive and the WXGA+ screen for £640 inc vat, when I then saw one on the dell outlet site for the same but with a 250GB drive and 4gb memory. THe trouble is my normal dealer is so clear about the laptop being supplied with a 3 year on site warranty, and the dell outlet site is not.

What I'd like to know here is;

Does anyone know if the Dell Outlet store supplies 3 years on site with it's laptops as standard?

Are there any pitfalls to watch for with the Dell outlet store, like supplying laptops that still require other parts

Thanks for your help everyone.

Thanks for the reply MrEvil. Yes it's not a direct replacement, but given that the M70 was 3 years old managing what I needed, I figure a slightly lower spec laptop now will easily match it.

I remember a friends Dell Laptop having a bit of a bouncy keyboard when you typed with it, does anyone know if the XPS1530 has this? The Precision KB was solid.

One more thing, I've seen someone mention, might have been on these boards, that they had a Dell Laptop fail just outside warranty, and when they phoned up to order a new laptop, Dell gave them a discount for being a returning customer, and because it was for a failed Dell. Anyone know if this seems like something they do? Or am I ust as well hunting for coupon codes?

Might change the model I aim for.