Dell Precision M6700 Owner's Review

[Bokeh]

Hmm, I wonder why they would do such a thing? To me it sounds like a possible compromise solution to be able to support both Optimus and IPS screen (e.g. to upscale Intel's 8 bit color to 10 bit through some processing unit), but they don't support Optimus at all (i.e. not even on non-IPS screens like Dell does). So, you lose some color precision and gain nothing in return (apart from a lower manufacturing price?)? Interesting design decision..

Great review, BTW. Thanks a lot. The M6700 has so many detail improvements that I didn't expect (don't like the grille design above the keyboard, though).

I hope you can add a side by side photo of the open laptops next to each other. I get the impression that the inside color has been changed on the M6700 and it looks closer to the M6400 (which I prefer) than to the HP 8740W as I found the M6600 palmrest and keyboard color/design.. Probably I'm wrong, though..

Time to start saving for one with the K5000M and a IPS or 3D screen (unless some 7970M FirePro variant comes into play with Enduro supported as it certainly can't match Nvidia's power savings rates).

BTW, M6600 introduced the PageUp/Down keys next to the arrow keys which I find very convenient, but I wish they also served as home/end in combination with the FN key (e.g. as my Acer has it) as I find it very useful while programming. Is there any way to add such a function to these keys via Dell Control Point software (I never installed it on the M6400 as I've read that it's a resource hog).

I will be adding a lot to the review this week. Roght now it is just a skeleton.

On the interior, they have put a rubberized finish on the palmrest. It feels almost like leather, but very smooth. I will have to come up with a better way of describing it. Almost like how a golf glove feels, but very thin. Thinner and nicer (to me) than what Dell used on the Latitudes and Lenovo uses on Thinkpads. The only surfaces that still feel plastic are the keyboard trim and led bezel. The M6600 palmrest was magnesium, but the smooth finish felt like plastic. Not onthe M6700 though.

You get a better grip, but it also feels totally natural to type on.

Also really like the new speaker grille. The M6500 was a dust and crumb magnet. The M6600 was sort of art deco, but functional. The new one just fits the machine better.

One of the things I will show in the review is how they blacked out everything. There is no more shiney reflective silver except the Dell logo. Everything is either blacked out or a brushed aluminum. No more silver ring around the camera. Even the drive caddies and back of the bottom cover are now blacked out.

[tommyxv]

Dell is forcing me to upgrade to the $1640 graphics card in order to get the IPS display. I guess I'll just stay with my M6600 with AMD card and IPS.

Nice.. Mine using Deuter Giga Flat 17" and so far it's fit enough for all my office use

That's a nice bag too. My friends are always making fun of my bag, asking if I am getting ready to jump out of a plane. LOL

[Bokeh]

To Bokeh,
I've read on a site that the ten finger touch / pen display will be by Wacom, and not by n-Trig. Is that correct? I couldn't find the information on any other site. It would be icing on the cake. I've read that the Wacom system is much better than the n-Trig system.

Will ask about it for you.

Dell is forcing me to upgrade to the $1640 graphics card in order to get the IPS display. I guess I'll just stay with my M6600

I saw that someone else posted that the K3000M and K4000M would be out in August when they became available.

[SecretAsianMan]

On the interior, they have put a rubberized finish on the palmrest. It feels almost like leather, but very smooth. I will have to come up with a better way of describing it. Almost like how a golf glove feels, but very thin. Thinner and nicer (to me) than what Dell used on the Latitudes and Lenovo uses on Thinkpads. ... You get a better grip, but it also feels totally natural to type on.

The problem with the rubberized surfaces I've used (ThinkPads) is that they are an oil sponge. For those of us with naturally sweaty hands (check) or who eat while typing (check), rubberized surfaces tend to get shiny where they are frequently in contact with hands. Metal can be better here. My MBP has no oily shine—well, except for a little on the keys. My ThinkPad hasn't fared so well.

[Geminus]

I saw that someone else posted that the K3000M and K4000M would be out in August when they became available.

That might have been me. I called Dell to order one on the phone hoping all the options would be available to the sales folks. Some were (like 3 year complete care), but the lower end NVIDIA cards were not available yet. ~24th of August was quoted as I recall.

I think I'll hang on three more weeks and wait until the K3000M is available.

[iieeann]

Wow, a fast review. Thanks for the great photos.

Is there a new E-port with USB 3.0? i really hate having to plug in the ugly hub cable from the laptop side everytime. Somemore the dock is sitting next to me and make pluggin in USB stick very troublesome.
Still not able to overclock XM cpu right?
What is the tested battery life with Optimus?

I am thinking if it is good to upgrade from 15" to 17" M6700. Too bad without thunderbolt in this generation, which mean i can't hook 10Gbs ethernet to my NAS or upgrade external VGA card in the future.

[ijozic]

The problem with the rubberized surfaces I've used (ThinkPads) is that they are an oil sponge. For those of us with naturally sweaty hands (check) or who eat while typing (check), rubberized surfaces tend to get shiny where they are frequently in contact with hands.

Agreed that this is a point of concern. I like that the plastic on the M6400 hasn't developed any shine over the years, even under the stickers which I removed 6-9 months after getting the laptop. I'd hate to see such a "development" on the M6700..

[oxygen]

I am thinking if it is good to upgrade from 15" to 17" M6700. Too bad without thunderbolt in this generation, which mean i can't hook 10Gbs ethernet to my NAS

are you serious about this? want type of nas would that be (which can saturate 1 gbit/s)?

[g1981c]

excellent pictures and information !

Bokeh i read your excellent discussion of headphone jack audio quality on the previous generation of this laptop ... and i would very much like to hear what you think about the sound quality on this one. Specifically its ability to drive 50 ohm headphones such as Sennhesier HD558 to LOUD levels.

i have some more questions for anybody who can answer them ...

if i don't order a secondary hard drive will the M6700 come with all the necessary hardware to install it ?

i want to order the base configuration with 320gb rotational drive, then move it to secondary and install a 256GB Samsung 830 SSD as a primary drive ... but i worry if the piece that mounts the hard drive in place will be included for the secondary drive if i don't order any ?

how bad is the FirePro M6000 ? after problems i had with a Radeon recently ( giving black screen on regular windows tasks ) i am a bit skeptical of ATI ... also, if they go out of business lets say in a year or two - will there still be driver support for it ? and finally, when K3000M Quadro comes to M6700 - how much is the option likely to cost over the ATI ?

also i can see the build quality is quite good, obviously Alienware M17X R4 is not even in the same league ... but aside from the pro graphics, dock connector, better build quality and longer warranty - are there any other reasons to go with M6700 over the M17X ? i mean the price difference is substantial, and i don't really "need" any of the items i just listed. i would *benefit* from the Quadro, but i don't really *need* it over Geforce. i just feel like M6700 is a better device ... but what are some reasons to get it over the M17X ? i want to get it but i need to somehow justify paying premium over M17X ...

[Bokeh]

Bokeh i read your excellent discussion of headphone jack audio quality on the previous generation of this laptop ... and i would very much like to hear what you think about the sound quality on this one. Specifically its ability to drive 50 ohm headphones such as Sennhesier HD558 to LOUD levels.

I have not plugged any headphones in yet. Will try the Sennheiser HD600, Grado 125, Shure e425, and Etymotics.


if i don't order a secondary hard drive will the M6700 come with all the necessary hardware to install it ?

If they use the removable tray, the caddy by the battery should come with 4 standard hard drive screws. They may be in the 4 holes next to the Optical Drive, or may be in a little foam holder like the old one.

If the use the caddy for the drive, the removable tray does not use any screws. Well, actually there are 4 larger hard drive screws that can be used to make the drive non-quick release.

Guess someone will fill us in when their machines start arriving.


i want to order the base configuration with 320gb rotational drive, then move it to secondary and install a 256GB Samsung 830 SSD as a primary drive ... but i worry if the piece that mounts the hard drive in place will be included for the secondary drive if i don't order any ?

See Above.

how bad is the FirePro M6000 ? after problems i had with a Radeon recently ( giving black screen on regular windows tasks ) i am a bit skeptical of ATI ... also, if they go out of business lets say in a year or two - will there still be driver support for it ? and finally, when K3000M Quadro comes to M6700 - how much is the option likely to cost over the ATI ?

This is AMD's first Gen 3 x16 video card for mobile workstations. I am waiting on performance numbers to come in from actual users.

I don't see AMD going away or discontinuing their video card business, but maybe I don't read enough news about them.

I have no idea of what the K3000M will cost. The Quadro 3000M was sort of a dud performance wise. Dell would regularly make it a free upgrade over the much faster (in gaming at least) AMD Firepro. The K3000M is not a dud. The upgrade price from the AMD to K5000M is on the M6700 is the exact same price as the AMD to Quadro 5010M on the M6600. You might draw some conclusions there

also i can see the build quality is quite good, obviously Alienware M17X R4 is not even in the same league ... but aside from the pro graphics, dock connector, better build quality and longer warranty - are there any other reasons to go with M6700 over the M17X ? i mean the price difference is substantial, and i don't really "need" any of the items i just listed. i would *benefit* from the Quadro, but i don't really *need* it over Geforce. i just feel like M6700 is a better device ... but what are some reasons to get it over the M17X ? i want to get it but i need to somehow justify paying premium over M17X

I like the docking ability. I like the overall more professional look. I like that the K5000M gives up very little to the GTX680M at stock speeds, but gives me many more options as far as CUDA accelerated tasks are concerned. I like it that it is easier to justify the company buying a Precision over an Alienware.

The Alienware will overclock the CPU in BIOS. You can see that as a free performance boost or introducing instability.