My laptop died a few days ago. I'm probably starting a new job next week for which I will need a laptop. The deceased was a one-year-old (JUSt out of warranty) Dell Inspiron 1464 whose motherboard got fried from unknown causes (possibly because it was sitting and idling in a hot part of the house with no way to dissipate the heat). It cost me about $500-something and we were a good team. Question: Should I just get another one of those or try for an upgrade within that same price range?
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posted by bleep
on Jun 6, 2011 -
14 answers
Laptop diagnosis? XP sp3, Dell inspiron 6000. The other day it just died while I was using it. Just powered down (instant black screen). When I tried to power it up, I could hear it coming alive for about 8 seconds, some lights flashed as you would expect, then it died. If you wait 24 hours or so, it will boot up normally, but after about 10 minutes it will die, as above, and then the next day will start up again for a bit, then die, etc etc.
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posted by stupidsexyFlanders
on May 4, 2011 -
18 answers
Netbook/Windows Starter 7 question: What is the filename (and path) for the default, non-changeable background (wallpaper) image? Can I just save what I want as that file and have it use that instead?
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posted by fiercecupcake
on Oct 20, 2010 -
6 answers
Question on upgrading my getting-on-ancient Dell Inspiron 9300's hard drive - what kind of drive do I need, and is there an actual limit to what I can throw in it?
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posted by SNWidget
on Jun 10, 2010 -
7 answers
My 5 year old dell laptop (8600) has suddenly lost processor speed. Techy details after the break...
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posted by merocet
on May 22, 2009 -
9 answers
The PageUp and PageDown keys on my Dell Inspiron 6000 laptop have started acting weird. Sometimes they act correctly (rarely), sometimes they take me directly to the top or the bottom of the current page (now and then), and sometimes they don't work at all (often). I'm seeing this mostly in Firefox, haven't check other apps yet.
This started about a week ago, a few reboots and cold starts since it first occurred...not seeing any improvement or further degradation.
Do you know why this is happening, how I can diagnose the issue, and/or how it can be fixed?
I use those keys often and this is really hampering my use of my laptop.
posted by Exchequer
on Nov 6, 2008 -
9 answers
I've been watching DVDs on my laptop (Dell Inspiron 600m) for the past 3 years without a problem; in fact, I just watched 2 DVDs on it last week. Now, playback freezes after 12 minutes and the drive makes horrible "stuttering" noises.
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posted by venividivici
on Apr 2, 2008 -
13 answers
Will I be able to overclock a Dell Inspiron (Desktop) 531? I know the standard line is that it's impossible, but I hear things about how some Dell motherboards are just slightly-modified from normal ones, and that a little tweaking and flashing will allow overclocking. I can't find any specs on what motherboard the 531 has, though, so I am not sure where to begin.
posted by nervestaple
on Sep 3, 2007 -
2 answers
My Dell Inspiron 9300 seems to have a dead motherboard; would it be worth getting it replaced or do I have a shiny new doorstop?
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posted by zeph
on Aug 30, 2007 -
10 answers
BSODFilter: I tried to install a RAM upgrade in my girlfriend's Dell Inspiron 1100 laptop, and got nothing on screen after powerup. So I replaced the old DIMM, and got the BSOD -- the file that was missing was a driver for the Intel video adapter. Long story short, it's still not working.
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posted by YoungAmerican
on Aug 2, 2007 -
10 answers
OK it is well known that one of the weak links in the power system of a laptop is the AC adapter cord, BUT. . . .
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posted by Danf
on Mar 31, 2007 -
7 answers
Is there a KDE based Linux Distro out there that will "Just Work" with my Intel 945 graphics card on my Dell Inspiron E1405? Or is there an EASY way to get, say, Kubuntu working with it? I can figure out everything else if I can JUST GET GRAPHICAL.
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posted by TrueVox
on Dec 4, 2006 -
9 answers
Help me select RAM for my Dell Inspiron 5150. Currently I have 512 MB RAM and Belarc Advisor says "Slot 'DIMM_A' has 256 MB and Slot 'DIMM_B' has 256 MB."
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posted by sk381
on Aug 21, 2006 -
12 answers
My CD-RW drive will not firmly attach to my Dell Inspiron 8000 laptop. If I push it with my thumbs, it will make a connection, but as soon as I remove firm pressure, it loses its connection.
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posted by UKnowForKids
on Aug 10, 2006 -
3 answers
It's my turn to have ipod woes. Has this particular problem happened to you? Please help before my ipod dream is tragically ended.
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posted by Amizu
on Jan 18, 2006 -
16 answers
When I turn on the phantom power switch on my new Digidesign mbox, I get a warning that the device is pulling too much power from the USB port (and then it stops working). I'm using a Dell Inspiron 8600 laptop, which is one of the recommended systems on Digidesign's site. I have Win XP Service Pack II installed. What gives?
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posted by grumblebee
on Aug 21, 2005 -
26 answers
I recently replaced the battery in my old Dell Inspiron 4000. Today I noticed that the led on the power adapter goes off if the battery is in the machine and the machine says it is running on batteries. If I unplug the battery the computer turns off. I am able to boot on AC power but the moment I insert the battery the adapter stops working. I think this is new otherwise the battery would've drained days ago. Has anyone encountered this before? Any ideas? Also, if the computer is off and I plug the adapter into it while the battery is also present, the led on the adapter goes out. If I then remove the battery and attempt to boot the machine, nothing happens. This is very weird.
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posted by Grod
on Nov 20, 2004 -
2 answers
Is it possible to build a new laptop into an existing case? {More Inside}
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posted by Grod
on Mar 18, 2004 -
6 answers
