E6520 Owner's Thread

[erblemoof]

is the bottom of the laptop still the single screw slide off cover?

No, there are 10 (ten) screws that must removed.

[veritas72]

No, there are10 (ten) screws that must removed.

well that's just wonderfully worthless. i take it this machine is truly moving a step backwards away from corporate usability...

am i likely to be disappointed when i have to send back my e6510 to have the e6520 in its place?

[ranranran]

If you check back this thread to his 27 April reply to my post of 26 April, you will see we both are of the opinion E6x20 does NOT have a mSATA slot. Where have you seen Dell state that it has ?

I posted on Dell's vague specification standards here on10 May:
"As Tomshardware's review of the mSATA Intel 310 SSD on 14 Feb points out, buyers can get confused by makers and sellers sloppy descriptions of internal slots - sometimes incorrectly describing mSATA as miniPCIe. Toms review also warns of many incompatible "PCIe" SSDs due to makers like ASUS, Dell and others 'customising' the PCIe spec such that their effectively proprietary SSD 'solutions' only work in THEIR laptops - no interoperability.

Ah, well, yes I am confused. There are three slots in the E6520 one for wireless, one for bluetooth (I think) and the 3rd is labeled "SATA FLASH". are you saying this is actually a "miniPCIe" and *not* an mSATA slot? According to this Anandtech review, The mSATA interface is physically a mini PCIe connector (similar to what you’d see with a WiFi card in a notebook) but electrically SATA. This, then explains my confusion as the physical design is identical despite having a different pinout. So, just because there is a connector does not mean it can actually boot/run an mSATA drive if it's plugged into this slot, eh?

Did some more looking, especially on the JooJoo boards and got a little education...but when it comes to the E6x20, I guess we just need confirmation of what that slot can hold. Given that it is originally designed for a wlan card, I guess the feeling is a PCIe connector, not mSATA....but then *why* say "SATA"???

[erblemoof]

*why* say "SATA"???

Right, that's my confusion, too. Additionally, the slot labeled "SATA Flash" is a half-height slot. All of the mSATA drives I've seen, and the Super Talent CoreStore MV, are full-height cards. Perhaps it the same "special" SSD card that works in a Dell mini? The kind that is completely non-standard?

I wish Dell would release more technical specifications, and specific information pertaining to this. They don't even have a service manual on their website yet.

[ranranran]

I wish Dell would release more technical specifications, and specific information pertaining to this. They don't even have a service manual on their website yet.

My thoughts too.... I'm not used to buying "cutting edge", usually buying used/couple of years old so the fact there isn't even a manual, technical info and such from Dell is just........silly.

[veritas72]

Ah, well, yes I am confused. There are three slots in the E6520 one for wireless, one for bluetooth (I think) and the 3rd is labeled "SATA FLASH". are you saying this is actually a "miniPCIe" and *not* an mSATA slot? According to this Anandtech review, The mSATA interface is physically a mini PCIe connector (similar to what you’d see with a WiFi card in a notebook) but electrically SATA. This, then explains my confusion as the physical design is identical despite having a different pinout. So, just because there is a connector does not mean it can actually boot/run an mSATA drive if it's plugged into this slot, eh?

Did some more looking, especially on the JooJoo boards and got a little education...but when it comes to the E6x20, I guess we just need confirmation of what that slot can hold. Given that it is originally designed for a wlan card, I guess the feeling is a PCIe connector, not mSATA....but then *why* say "SATA"???

for what it is worth (and i caution it may not be a lot), i talked to dell two days ago asking this precise question, and the woman there said that it would absolutely work. the one question is whether it is bootable (but that will be an issue of bios support (which could come later) if it is not.

[erblemoof]

for what it is worth (and i caution it may not be a lot), i talked to dell two days ago asking this precise question, and the woman there said that it would absolutely work. the one question is whether it is bootable (but that will be an issue of bios support (which could come later) if it is not.

Thanks for your response. Just to be clear, what did she say would "absolutely work?" An mSATA SSD?

All of the reps and techs I talked with couldn't give me any specific information. They stated that there was "no information available."

[molix]

Been looking at this machine. I have always had Thinkpads.

Can one of you owners please answer these questions:

1. How is the Trackpoint compared to the Thinkpad's?
2. How is the keyboard compared to the Thinkpad's?
3. And how is the general quality feeling compared to the Thinkpads?

Thanks!

[veritas72]

Thanks for your response. Just to be clear, what did she say would "absolutely work?" An mSATA SSD?

All of the reps and techs I talked with couldn't give me any specific information. They stated that there was "no information available."

she said an mSATA SSD ... but ... I really don't know how much stock I put into her answer.

[ranranran]

she said an mSATA SSD ... but ... I really don't know how much stock I put into her answer.

...and that leaves us in the exact same situation..... someone will have to take the plunge. Anyone live near a Fry's where they can pick one up, try it, and return it if it doesn't work?