M4600 vs. W520 vs. 8560w

[sgogeta4]

Which would you get and why? I've made a little table of the features that are relevant to me.

From my recent experience, HP > Dell > Lenovo for build quality and Dell > HP > Lenovo for customer service and looks (subjective).

I hope users with any of the following laptops can post up some actual weights with their configuration, the weight of their power supply (and their wattage), and fill out any "?" in the table. Most of the other options are the same between the laptops or don't affect my decision, so I didn't include them in the table but if they matter to you, tell me about it!

Also, if anyone knows how to get rid of the space below my table, I would appreciate it!

  

    

      
Laptops
      
Dell M4600
      
Lenovo W520
      
HP 8560w
    
    

      
Quad core capable
      
Y
      
Y
      
Y
    
    

      
4 DIMMs
      
Y
      
Y
      
Y
    
    

      
Best nVidia GPU
      
2000M 2GB GDDR3**
      
2000M 2GB DDR3
      
2000M 2GB DDR3*
    
    

      
Best AMD GPU
      
M5950 1GB GDDR5
      
none
      
M5950 1GB GDDR5
    
    

      
10-bit IPS panel
      
Y
      
N
      
Y
    
    

      
mPCIe SSD
      
Y
      
Y
      
N
    
    

      
Listed weight (lbs)
      
6.15
      
5.95
      
6.94
    
    

      
USB 3.0/2.0/powered/eSATA
      
2/2/0/1
      
2/0/1/1
      
2/1/1/1
    
    

      
Numpad
      
Y
      
N
      
Y
    
    

      
Large/slice battery (WHr)
      
97/none
      
94/94
      
83/100
    
  


* = no Optimus
** = no Optimus with IPS panel

[jtreminio]

I'm in the middle of deciding between these, actually.

Question: Is this considered HP's IPS panel: 15.6-inch diagonal LED-backlit FHD UWVA anti-glare DreamColor (1920 x 1080 resolution) with Camera

Because with Dell I've chosen this: 15.6" UltraSharp™ FHD(1920x1080) PremierColor IPS RGB Anti-Glare LED-backlit Premium Panel Guarantee

[sgogeta4]

Yes, DreamColor is HP's IPS panel and should be comparable to Dell's PremierColor IPS panel. Though, I'd like to hear from users who actually have used or seen both before I comment further. But based on specs alone (price in the US, lack of miniPCIe SSD options, heavier weight, and lower battery capacity), I'd most likely pick the Dell. I'm pretty biased towards that right now, hence why I put this post up so that I can get other perspectives in case I've overlooked any glaring flaws or missed an important factor that might make me reconsider.

[Althernai]

For the Lenovo, the "2000M 2GB ?" should be "2000M 2GB DDR3" (look at their configurator). In fact, it is that parameter which makes this choice hard.

The Lenovo is attractive because it is the only one which offers a high-quality display (their 1920x1080 has 95% color gamut) without charging $500 for it. The DreamColor and PremierColor IPS screens are better, but at those prices, the difference is probably worth it only if you're a professional photographer or something of the sort. Unfortunately, they make up the price difference in the graphics card. Compared to every other GPU option in these laptops 1000M is a pitiful card -- the cheaper M5950 is much faster in all applications not specifically optimized for Nvidia. The 2000M is expensive and it might have been worth it with GDDR5 (then it would basically be a GTX460M), but with DDR3, it's only worth it for professional who don't need memory bandwidth.

I don't know much about the HP. As far as I can tell, they have one decent model for $1549 and then the DreamColor one for $2199. Depending on the quality of the 1920x1080 display, the $1549 model may be worth it. The DreamColor is very good, but that price... Also, I don't understand why the 8560w is 0.8 pounds heavier than the Dell and a full pound heavier than the Lenovo. It winds up slightly heavier than even the ye-olde laptop I have right now.

The Dell is probably my favorite of the three, but this depends on whether I would be able to talk the representative into giving me a sizable discount. It has the best set of features, the problem is the price. Its main drawbacks are that Dell charges an absurd price for both RAM and storage so you're better off buying them separately. Configuring it with the IPS display and the options that I want (2720QM, 97Wh battery) brings the cost to roughly the same $2200 as the HP. People on the Dell forum have gotten large discounts (you can't do it with the pre-configured HP models) so this is probably what I would try.

Personally, I am choosing between the M4600 and giving up on a high-end laptop for this generation and going for the HP dv6t Quad-Edition the next time they have a 20-30% off sale (assuming the rumors of the 95% color gamut screen pan out). It's practically the same hardware (the only difference is that it doesn't have 4 DIMMs), but of course consumer rather than business grade. It probably won't last that long, but I can use it to wait until Haswell or maybe Rockwell (or perhaps AMD will come up with a worthwhile CPU, but I'm not holding my breath for that).

[visiom88]

I'd choose Lenovo. I'm not sure what determined your previous experience with Lenovo , but I have never had any better experience with Dell and HP in terms of build quality.

[sgogeta4]

I'm not saying that my previous experience with Lenovo was bad (in fact it was pretty good), but it was just not as good as my experience with Dell.

I've used the T61, T400 and T410 models for a brief time and while they're a step up compared to most notebooks, I've felt that there has been a noticeable decline in quality especially if you've ever taken apart your old T61 and compared it to the current Dell and HP laptops.

If you were to ask me a few years ago, I'd definitely put Lenovo as #1 but in the most recent generations, Dell and HP have caught up and exceeded Lenovo in build quality and I feel Lenovo needs to step up their game in order to be the best.

They're all great laptops and I would not hesitate to recommend any of these over any other laptops but between these three, what I stated is just my opinion based on my experience.

Btw thanks Althernai, changed that entry above.

[afhstingray]

i voted for the dell. the lenovo is very tempting but i cant stand the thinklight. backlit FTW!

my M4600 will probably be here tomorrow, i can answer any questions u have when i get it, feel free to PM me

[neoduffer]

A very tough decision. I'm leaning towards HP this time around.

HP looks very aggressive on their pricing with their Smart Buy configurations. An HP 8560w XU085UT configuration is about $300 less than a comparable Dell, strictly looking at prices at HP and Dell. Factor in the HP retailers that throw in extra savings and the difference is close to $500 in favor of HP.

-------------------
[work] Dell m2300 | Core2 T7700 | 8GB RAM | 500GB HD | Win 7 Pro x64
[home] iPad1 & a Nook Color running Android 2.3

[afhstingray]

Originally Posted by neoduffer

A very tough decision. I'm leaning towards HP this time around.

HP looks very aggressive on their pricing with their Smart Buy configurations. An HP 8560w XU085UT configuration is about $300 less than a comparable Dell, strictly looking at prices at HP and Dell. Factor in the HP retailers that throw in extra savings and the difference is close to $500 in favor of HP.

have u tried calling up both hp and dell? usually they'll price match if you have a legit quote from another vendor

[neoduffer]

Originally Posted by afhstingray

have u tried calling up both hp and dell? usually they'll price match if you have a legit quote from another vendor

I would call Dell if they would call us back. The last 3 times we tried to talk to a rep, we got pawned off to someone who would call us back. What happened after that? No call back, name, email, or apology. We used to get such good service in the past. Our account is in Sales Rep limbo.

I'll give it a shot and see what Dell can do for us. Thanks for the tip. The Dell backlit keyboard and slot loading DVD is drawing me in.