I have been using my new Dell 6000 laptop for a few days now and thought it would be useful for others if I posted a review.
Background: I am in Australia and my new machine came from Malaysia. This is my seconf Dell laptop,
I upgraded from a 8600 with 1.5GB, 512Mb, 60GB HDD and 128mb Card. I was very happy with the 8600, but it was almost 12 months old and I was able to sell the old one and purpcahse this one and essentially pay nothing thanks to the tax man. I usually use it on my lap in front of the TV with a wireless connection.
Performance: It is a quick machine, for word, internet, email etc it really is over spec’d but I also play games on it. I get 70fps on Half Life 2 with medium settings (800 x 600) which is more than enough to enjoy this fantastic game, on Counter Strike Source, the graphics are good and frame rate fine, no shutter or slowdown even when the screen is busy. The problem is that it isn’t actually that much faster than my old machine, which made ATI’s 9600 graphics card not the x300 which I don’t think is superior. Burning DVD etc with DVDshrink perormance not an issue. Battery life is very good.
Keyboard: Good, nice feel.
Case, look: Solid enough but I’m not a fan of the silver and white, I have a black HP for work and it is much nicer.
Screen: This is where I am disappointed. I originally bought a 9300 with WUXGA but found it a strain on my eyes as the font was tiny, I returned it and bought the 6000 with the same specs as I found the 9300 just a tad bulky on my lap. The screen on the 8600 was sharp and colour good. I find this one to not produce real colours and skin tones look patchy. Overall the screen is the worst part.
Problems: My SD card reader is hit and miss and I am going to get them to replace it. It will be interesting to see how after sales service shapes up.
Pros: Affordable, Powerful, overall nice machine.
Cons: Screen quality and look. Don’t buy this if you want an excellent quality screen for photo editing and alike.
Conclusion: Nice overall machine for the price and if you are only surfing net, word, excel, email and the occasional game it is probably fine. If you wont be gaming you can probably save money with a small HDD and lower spec’d processor. Screen is biggest let down.
Bottom Line: Do I recommend the 6000? Yes, if screen quaility isnt the most important thing and you are on a budget, go for it.
My specs
2.0Ghz
100GB HDD
1GB Ram
128 Mb x300 vid card
XGA screen
Win XP Home
Background: I am in Australia and my new machine came from Malaysia. This is my seconf Dell laptop,
I upgraded from a 8600 with 1.5GB, 512Mb, 60GB HDD and 128mb Card. I was very happy with the 8600, but it was almost 12 months old and I was able to sell the old one and purpcahse this one and essentially pay nothing thanks to the tax man. I usually use it on my lap in front of the TV with a wireless connection.
Performance: It is a quick machine, for word, internet, email etc it really is over spec’d but I also play games on it. I get 70fps on Half Life 2 with medium settings (800 x 600) which is more than enough to enjoy this fantastic game, on Counter Strike Source, the graphics are good and frame rate fine, no shutter or slowdown even when the screen is busy. The problem is that it isn’t actually that much faster than my old machine, which made ATI’s 9600 graphics card not the x300 which I don’t think is superior. Burning DVD etc with DVDshrink perormance not an issue. Battery life is very good.
Keyboard: Good, nice feel.
Case, look: Solid enough but I’m not a fan of the silver and white, I have a black HP for work and it is much nicer.
Screen: This is where I am disappointed. I originally bought a 9300 with WUXGA but found it a strain on my eyes as the font was tiny, I returned it and bought the 6000 with the same specs as I found the 9300 just a tad bulky on my lap. The screen on the 8600 was sharp and colour good. I find this one to not produce real colours and skin tones look patchy. Overall the screen is the worst part.
Problems: My SD card reader is hit and miss and I am going to get them to replace it. It will be interesting to see how after sales service shapes up.
Pros: Affordable, Powerful, overall nice machine.
Cons: Screen quality and look. Don’t buy this if you want an excellent quality screen for photo editing and alike.
Conclusion: Nice overall machine for the price and if you are only surfing net, word, excel, email and the occasional game it is probably fine. If you wont be gaming you can probably save money with a small HDD and lower spec’d processor. Screen is biggest let down.
Bottom Line: Do I recommend the 6000? Yes, if screen quaility isnt the most important thing and you are on a budget, go for it.
My specs
2.0Ghz
100GB HDD
1GB Ram
128 Mb x300 vid card
XGA screen
Win XP Home
