This is a very good value.
Written: Apr 25 '01 (Updated Apr 25 '01)
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Pros: Fast, Reliable, Quiet, $$ value
Cons: None I can find.
The Bottom Line: The Bottom Line Based on my experience, you simply can't go wrong with a Dell because of their high quality and reliability.
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| rootk's Full Review: Dell Dimension 4100 Series |
Background
I bought this computer to be the main component in a digital video editing system. I ordered it via phone on Oct 11, 2000 and it arrived at my door exactly one
week later.
My configuration:
Pentium III 866 Processor
20 GB System Hard Drive
256 MB PC 133 MHz RAM
32 MB GeForce nVida Video Card
19" monitor
Sound Blaster Live Audio
48x CD-ROM
8x CD-Recordable
I bought a Dell XPS R450about 2 years ago via the web. I'll have to say that I was pleasantly surprised at the customer service I received when ordering by the phone... Nice and helpful folks they've got manning the phones there at Dell.
Setup
On October 25, 2000 I finally got around to actually opening the boxes and setting it up. I was waiting for my new Canopus DVRaptor Firewire card to arrive, which it did on October 24, the previous evening. I started working with the system at about 9:30 pm, had the everything connected and installed by 10:00. It worked perfectly. No problems whatsoever. The thing that impressed me the most was how quiet it was.
Featured Hardware and Software
I got a modem for it, but I'm not hooking it up to the net because of the aforementioned video editing issues. It was a well known fact in the digital video editing world that Adobe Premiere is a very finicky program and the less things you have eating away at your system resources, the better. The sound card is excellent and speakers are passable. (Sound Blaster Live and Harmon Kardon Stereo speakers, no subwoofer though.) The extra RAM really speeds things up and the graphics card has proven itself to be quite a workhorse. Likewise the 20 GB system drive has been reliable. I also installed a second 40 GB Maxtor hard drive which is a solid performer too. I love having 2 cdrom drives. It makes making backup discs very easy. Plus, the included CD Burning software is very easy to use.
The computer came with Microsoft Office 2000 which is a pretty good productivity suite. I've been using Word for 5 or 6 years now, and with each revision it seems to get more intelligent (although this may not necessarily be good). It also came with Microsoft Money 2001. This is my first experience with Money and I like it a lot. I input all my credit card data and bank account data and the program can tell you where all your money is going... it is quite cool and very useful when used on a regular basis.
General Gripes
Over the years, I've noticed that they try to include more and more odds and ends type software with their computers... all kinds of virus protection software and "helper" "trouble shooting" software. For the most part, the virus protection software is a sham because it is physically impossible to keep it up-to-date because there are so many new viruses being made on a regular basis. The other thing is, the percentage of people who are actually at risk for getting a legitimate destructive virus is small.
Conclusion
I've always had good luck with Dell. I made my boss buy me a loaded XPSB933 here at work a few weeks ago. In my experience with these 3 Dells, never had any problem. They may not be as cool looking as an Apple G3/G4 or some of the other newer desktops, but they do a good job for day to day tasks and then some.
I have friends and acquaintances that have purchased other brands of computers, and they have not had the same high reliability as I've had with my Dell's. So, if you're looking for a good computer, I am confident in saying, you won't be disappointed in buying from Dell.
If you're looking to get a system for digital editing and you've read this, you'll probably want to get a good digital camcorder. I invite you to view my review of the Canon GL1 and also the DVRaptor Firewire card:
GL1
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-6974-73C4CC2-393D76D4-prod5
DVRaptor
http://www.epinions.com/cmd-review-16-3EF7881-39F71AF0-prod1
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 1994.00
Operating System: Windows
Processor: Intel Pentium III
Processor speed: 801-900
RAM: 256
Internal Storage: CD-RW
Hard Drive (GB): 13-20
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Epinions.com ID:
rootk
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Member: Java Boo Boo
Location: Decatur, Alabama
Reviews written: 83
Trusted by: 23 members
About Me:
These opinions have been supplied by me!
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