Pass on the 3500
Written: Feb 05 '01
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Pros: Lighter than most Dells of its day
Cons: Plagued with random, inexplicable problems that even Dell could not understand
The Bottom Line: You can probably pick one up cheap on Ebay, but that doesn't mean you should!
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| cplummer's Full Review: Dell Inspiron 3500 A366GT |
I had ordered almost 30 of these units over the span of a year. We opted for the 3500s after quite a few folks were itching to carry something a bit lighter than the Inspiron 7000. As well, the 3500s were considerably cheaper at the time, although they retailed around $2500 or so.
I have both a 3500 and a 7000 at home, and while they're pretty stable now, it wasn't always so. These babys dropped like flies in the field, with the most random, inexplicable problems. Entire keyboards would stop functioning, requiring users to carry an extra keyboard. Endless phone calls to Dell 'support' and countless Bios flashes proved futile. Keyboards would produce the wrong characters sometimes. Displays would flicker as a result of the cheap panel dimming switch. Then there were the units that just 'died'. Music to an IT directors ears - really, really awful music.
As I stated, I have a 3500 at home, and it does nothing but sit on a desk running a Windows 2000 web server. In this capacity, it is efficient and problem free, which is pretty pathetic for a laptop. These units lack any kind of durability whatsoever. I've used several laptops before, Compaqs, IBMs, and Toshibas, even Powerbooks, and none have been as problematic as the 3500s. I should have known better at the time - I should have spent the extra $$ on some hardened, road tested Compaqs instead of these (and I hate to say it, being a Dell shareholder and all) complete lemons. You can probably pick one up cheap on Ebay, but that doesn't mean you should!
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 2500.00
Operating System: Windows
Processor: Intel Pentium II
Processor speed: 301-400
Screen Size: 15
RAM: 96
Internal Storage: CD-ROM
Hard Drive (GB): Under 4
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Epinions.com ID:
cplummer
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Reviews written: 14
Trusted by: 1 member
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