[server-admins] Laptop purchases

[Troy A. Griffitts]

Hey guys, I just talked about this on IRC, so you have seen, but...

I've been in the market for the past few months to replace my primary 
development system and I believe I've decided to get a Dell M6500 
Desktop Replacement Laptop.

I've spoken with our Dell Rep, and they are giving a good discount 
because of our ongoing business with them (we purchased our 1U Opteron 
Server from them).  I've run a few configurations by them and compared 
to their website price and it seems to be about a 20% discount.  They 
have also quoted a multi-system price which seems to add another 2-3% 
discount.  If anyone else is interested in purchasing a laptop at this 
time, and find that this system meets their requirements, I'd be happy 
to +1 on the order.

Have a look at these links:

Pics:
http://www.dell.com/content/products/superview.aspx?c=us&cs=555&l=en&pageoverride=gallery_view1&s=biz&xdb=Z2xvYmFsOnByb2R1Y3RzOnByZWNuOmZsYXNoOnByZWNpc2lvbi1tNjUwMCNyZWdpb24=

Reviews:
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9142591/Dell_Precision_M6500?taxonomyId=

Configurator:
http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?oc=bw1s11ad&c=us&l=en&s=bsd&cs=04


My pros for this system:
Other desktop replacements with an i7 CPU are 10+ lbs, this is 8.5
Best screen available: 1920x1200 RGB LED NOT-GLOSSY! NOT-19:9-WIDESCREEN
2 drive bays plus I think you can get a 3rd solid state drive in.
4 memory slots

I'm for sure upping the CPU 1 notch, to get the 8 megs of cache
I'd like to up the display to the highest priced.
I'm upping the memory to match the FSB at 1333MHz.

Downgrades, because 3rd party purchases are cheaper:
I'm dropping the drive to only a 64gig Solid State drive

I'm also adding 3 years Accidental Damage, and Theft Recovery.


It's not netbook for sure, but I believe a good compromise for a primary 
system that is still portable.  I've tested that an M6400 (previous 
generation with same form factor) fits in my standard sized backpack 
with a laptop compartment and it does (just barely).


Let me know, or if you have any thoughts,


Troy