Inspiron 6400


satanic virus

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I recently purchased a Dell Inspiron 6400 laptop from Dell.

It is hard to get excited by Dell products looking at the pictures on the website, but the quality of this laptop has really surprised me.

I use my GP2X mainly at home and was frustrated how Amiga and PSX and some MAME games were not running as well as I would have liked (and yes i do appreciate all the work that has gone into these emulators). The thing is, I have an Amiga and PSX (amongst many other systems) but these days with the family I hardly ever get time to play them on the 'living room TV'. The 6400 has been a perfect solution for me as I can play all these systems fullspeed (with sound) <_< sitting on the couch while the rest can watch telly!

I have had a lot of Dell products over the years, and the styling on this is the best I have seen. I know it seems excessive getting a full laptop to play emulated games, but so far the main pros for me have been:

- Looks. Keyboard section has white plastic edges with silver inner part and black keyboard. I got a leather look clip on cover for the outside which is nicer than it sounds.
- Speakers. These are located at the front and are LOUD baby!
- Multimedia buttons - along the front of the unit is a row of blue backlit buttons. You can play music with the laptop closed and still control volume, go to next song etc.
- MousePad, or whatever it is called. The bottom line and right hand side have scroll bars. In any application, you can use these to scroll left/ right and up/ down. This makes surfing or reading documents a lot easier.
- Media Direct button. Above the keyboard is a special button which brings up Dell Media Direct. This is pretty much identical to Media Centre (Center for you Americans!) and is a great way to launch your movies or music. You can also program this button to launch Media Centre itself if you want.
- Performance. I paid an average price for a laptop and do not intend using this for the latest games. However, performance is still pretty decent. 1.8Ghz dual CPU's, 160 GB HD, DVD + - RW, 128 MB onboard GFX, 2GB ram, 4USB, tv-out etc. For my needs, all emulators I have tried work perfectly. This includes N64 & PSX.
- Screen - 'truelife' display. Basically this is a glossy display like high end TV's. However, it is not good to use in direct sunlight due to reflections.
- Battery life - I got mine with a high performance battery, and with screen set on full brightness, I get over 5 hours with wi-fi on and using emulation.
5 in 1 Memory card reader located on the RHS.

Ease of use has been really good. The battery was half charged out of the box, and within 5 minutes it was all set up, online with my wireless broadband and email working.

Whilst this may seem like an over-generous shout out to Dell, I am genuinely surpirsed about the quality of this thing. I also have a Dell Desktop Dimension 9200 which has caused me a world of grief, and I could not recommend based on my personal experience. I should also add that I was not at all happy with the fact it took over a month from ordering to receiving the laptop. Their CS kept me updated on progress problems but this did not change the fact I was waiting for ages. It cost just over €1,000 so I was hoping to get it quicker.

Anyway, this is just a recommendation for anyone looking to get a new laptop. The 6400 is a lot more impressive in 'real life' than it looks on the web-site. Great battery life if you get the extended battery, plus you have all your roms with full speed emulation all the time. Obvioulsy if you are looking to play new PC games, the lack of GFX performance on the 6400 for 3D graphics would mean it is not suitable for you.

I do not normally post praises for systems I come across, but thought I would share my experiences of 'my new baby here'! I still use my GP2x for homebrew and some emulators. I must say that Scumm game are much better on the bigger laptop screen. However, I will always have a use for the GP2X for journeys where I am not driving (not many these days), and also where I just want to play a game quickly with minimal effort!
 
I think Dell laptops are great value for the money. I have an Inspiron 6000 and a 6400. My only real complaint is this:

Be prepared to replace your battery every 12-16 months!!!!


I didn't even come close to using it for 500 cycles and it has been really weak for many months and a couple weeks ago it just went completely dead. Replacements are super expensive through Dell as well! :(

Enjoy your new emulation machine! :)
 
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