The Dell Vostro 1520 is sold by Dell as a small business targeted laptop. It has a 15.4″ widescreen display, relatively thin design, and has a black glossy finish. The Vostro 1520 is an update to the Vostro 1510 laptop released last year by Dell. Though not a whole lot has changed in terms of design with the refresh of the Vostro 1520, the newer model is slightly thinner and lighter while still maintaining a sturdy build, and it does offer more powerful processor and graphics options.
To start as a reference, here’s a link to the Vostro 1520 being reviewed on Dell.com:
http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?oc=bqcwc1z&c=us&l=en&s=bsd&cs=04&kc=productdetails~laptop-vostro-1520 (opens in new window)
The Vostro 1520 is available in a wide variety of configurations, with processor configurations ranging from a 2.1GHz Core 2 Duo to speedy Core 2 Duo T9550 2.66GHz, optional Nvidia 9300 dedicated graphics, and fast SSD storage or a large 320GB standard hard drive. While the Vostro 1520 is sold through Dell Small Business, it is a laptop that could suit students or indeed anyone looking for a durable well appointed machine that also comes at a very reasonable price and backed by good support.
Pictured below is the Dell Vostro 1520:
| Vostro 1520 box
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Vostro 1520 out of the box
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Specifications of Vostro 1520 Review Laptop
The Vostro 1520 comes in a wide variety of configurations, the one under review is a budget configuration with lower end component choices. Because of this the price was only $619:
- Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo T5870 (2.0GHz, 2MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB)
- Graphics: Intel Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
- Hard Drive Storage: 160GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive
- Memory: 2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz, 2 DIMM
- Screen: 15.4 inch WXGA Anti-Glare LED Display
- Media: 8X DVD+/-RW with double-layer DVD+/-R write capability
- Battery: 6-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
- Wireless: Dell Wireless 1397 802.11b/g Mini Card
- Ports: 4 USB 2.0, VGA out connector, Ethernet, Modem, 8-in-1 media card reader, 54mm ExpressCard slot, FireWire (IEEE 1394)
- Weight: 5.42lbs
- OS: Windows Vista Home Basic
Below is a table comparing the Vostro 1520 weight to its predecessors:
| Notebook | Weight |
| Dell Vostro 1520 (15.4” screen, 6-cell battery) | 5.42lbs |
| Dell Vostro 1510 (15.4″ screen, 6-cell battery) | 5.66lbs |
| Dell Vostro 1500 (15.4″ screen, 6-cell battery) | 6.75lbs |
| Dell Inspiron 1520 (15.4″ screen, 9-cell battery) | 7.4lbs |
As you can see, over the years the Vostro 15XX series has dropped weight and slimmed down, certainly good news for mobile types.
| Older Vostro 1510 top view | New Vostro 1520 top view |
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Above you can see the glossy finish of the Vostro 1520 lid is quite reflective, so you can imagine the problems it has with showing greasy fingerprints (some of which you can see on the lid). The previous Vostro 1510 also had this glossy finish and it seems to be the favored design style for all laptops of late.
The Vostro 1520 has a typical optical drive tray that pops out, in the previous Vostro 1510 the optical drive was slot loading. I personally like the slot loading drive, though it can be prone to more issues such as disks getting jammed inside.
| Older Vostro 1510 has a slot loading drive | Newer Vostro 1520 has a more typical tray drive |
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With the lid open you can see there are touch sensitive button controls along the top of the keyboard and the interior thankfully has a matte finish so it’s easy to keep looking clean. Speakers are aligned along the left and right side of the keyboard.
The look of the Vostro 1520 is very “standard issue” business notebook like, it’s by no means stunning and won’t win any awards. But for business users you’ll appreciate the thinner and lighter style, it’s much better for on the go. Students will appreciate the fresh glossy look and the extra mobility will be great for ease of carrying around campus.
Vostro 1520 size comparison to textbook |
Vostro 1520 underside view |
Build Quality
The durability of a laptop is one of its most important aspects, if a laptop is constructed of cheap plastics that easily breaks then you might pay a low price but it will be more prone to breaking. Thankfully, the Vostro 1520 has a case that is extremely rigid with no flex whatsoever. There’s especially good support in the palm rest area and the keyboard is very sturdy. The bottom of the Vostro 1520 is also rigid so putting it in your backpack is safe as it is well protected. Overall I was impressed with the Vostro 1520 feel and build quality.
Ports and Features
The Vostro 1520 has a decent range of ports. Four USB ports is certainly enough, FireWire is good to have and other than that everything is pretty standard as far as what’s included. The web camera and fingerprint reader are optional. For students the web camera would be a nice option to get ($40 upgrade), I’m not so sure the fingerprint reader is necessary unless you like to have that for easier logins. Missing is any type of higher resolution display output such as HDMI, DVI or even S-Video. If you don’t plan on giving presentations or using a large external LCD screen this won’t be a problem. Blu-Ray was an option on the Vostro 1520 at the time of my purchase, but without a method for hi-def output and no hi-def screen option this would be a wasted (and expensive) selection.
Front view of Vostro 1520: Headphone and Mic jacks, 8-in-1 media card reader slot
Left view of Vostro 1520: Two USB ports, ExpressCard 54mm slot, Wi-Fi switch
Right view of Vostro 1520: FireWire port, Two USB Ports, optical drive
Back view of Vostro 1520: Battery, Monitor out port, Ethernet jack, power jack
There is no dedicated docking solution for the Vostro lineup, though you can get a USB based port replicator if you want to add more ports (just as you can with any laptop).
Keyboard and Touchpad
The keyboard is of course full sized on the Vostro 1520. For a budget business notebook the keyboard is surprisingly good, it’s very firm with good tactile feedback from keys. I could not find any area of flex on the keyboard, even when trying. The touch sensitive buttons for media control look nice at the top, they’re some of the more responsive touch sensitive buttons that I have used – I never had a problem with a touch not registering.
Worth mentioning is the fact the palm rests are also very firm, you can lean heavily on the palm rest areas and still not cause any sinking in the case. This is thanks to the rigid case structure which should help the Vostro 1520 to last you a long while.
The only minor complaint I can find regarding the keyboard is the fact the Page Up and Page Down keys seem flipped to me, intuitively the PgUp should be on the right and PgDn on the left.
The touchpad works well, it could be a little bigger though. The mouse buttons actually have a nice tactile feel providing good feedback. You can get an optional fingerprint reader for an extra $25. This can be used to login to both Windows and save logins for websites that you access, so saves on time.
Performance and Internal Components
Performance of course varies depending on the configuration you select at Dell.com. If you don’t have demanding needs then the cheapest Core 2 Duo option will be enough power and offer the most power efficiency. The “slowest” current processor, the Intel T6570, is already 2.1GHz, so for most that will be the option to take. At the time of my purchase the Intel T5870 was the base model processor.
The Vostro lineup offers up to a 320GB hard drive, you know what you’re storage needs are, so get what you need to store all the files you need when on the go. If you’re more concerned about the speed of your system and money is no concern, the smaller capacity 128GB SSD will give you the fastest performance at the cost of an additional $400. The $50 upgrade to a 7200RPM is certainly a much more cost effective way to get better performance.
If you plan on playing games the Vostro 1520 might suit for some light gaming with older 3D based games, but neither the Intel 4500 or Nvidia 9300 will provide enough power to play the latest graphic demanding such as Grand Theft Auto 4. If gaming or graphics performance is of no concern, then go with the cheaper Intel integrated graphics option.
With the specifications for the Vostro 1520 under review I got a score of 4,442 PCMarks on PCMark05:
Compare this score to the Vostro 1510 with a Core 2 Duo T5870 2.10GHz, Intel X3100, 5400RPM HD of 3,783 and you’ll see it’s a significant improvement with the new Intel chipset, even though I had the exact same processor in the Vostro 1520 as was in the Vostro 1510.
In terms of 3D performance, the 3DMark results of 737 should give you the idea that with the Intel 4500 integrated graphics you’re not exactly going to be tearing things up in PhotoShop or GTA 4.
Running PCWizard gave a global performance score of 2,768.80:
Obviously the more you pay for better internal components the better performance you will get, but for most tasks except gaming your average student will have ample power with this configuration. If you’re an engineering student and need a computer for CAD design you will also need to consider getting a laptop with a more powerful graphics options.
Screen
Dell gives quite a selection of screens you can configure with the Vostro 1520. You can choose the following resolutions:
- 15.4″ Widescreen WXGA (1280 x 800) LED matte Display
- 15.4″ Widescreen WXGA+ (1440 x 900) LED matte Display
- 15.4″ Widescreen WXGA+ (1440 x 900) LED Display with TrueLife
“TrueLife” means a glossy screen finish, some might prefer this as it does make colors look brighter, if you’re in an office setting with bright lights it’s not so great though because glossy screen equates to a lot of reflection of lights. Since most students aren’t working in an office and will also use a laptop to double as an entertainment machine, glossy might be the way to go. If you work in a brightly lit office environment then go with the standard matte screen.
The standard resolution of WXGA is the most comfortable for viewing, but if you like to fit more on a screen, which is important for design or computer science students, then a higher resolution is better.
The brightness of the Vostro 1520 screen is good, the LED screen is brighter and thinner than that of the previous Vostro 1510 laptop.
Battery Life
Dell gives you the option of getting a standard 6-cell battery or an extended life 9-cell battery. The 9-cell of course adds extra weight and will stick out a bit from the back. Under normal usage, wireless on and screen brightness two notches below full I was able to get 4 hours and 50 minutes of life out of the 6-cell battery, which is very impressive. Unless you know you need longer battery life for a marathon lecture the standard battery would seem to be just fine. Dell claims up to 8 hours of battery life with the 9-cell battery.
Heat
The Vostro 1520 was disappointing in the respect that the palm rest areas did get more warm than I would like. The left palm rest became noticeably warm to the point of annoying after prolonged usage. The fan on the Vostro 1520 was also sporadic in the way it turned on and off. Though it was overly loud, it can be heard quite easily and it will kick in for about 10 seconds, turn off, and then 30 seconds later repeat. Quite annoying.
Audio
The Vostro 1520 has audio speakers on either side of the keyboard. They’re a bit tinny sounding as many laptop speakers are, but certainly not awful and better than many other business notebooks I have heard. Volume levels are good and the touch sensitive volume controls make it easy to turn volume up or down. As usual, headphones will provide the best listening experience and you of course have a headphone out port on the Vostro 1520.
Buying Advice
When buying through Dell Small Business there is no student discount such as is offered on the Inspiron and XPS line. Recently Dell has been offering more coupon codes on the Vosto lineup, so it’s worth searching around for coupon codes before buying.
If you configure the Vostro 1520 to be over $1,200 it’s probably worth considering an extended warranty to protect such a large investment. If you get a budget configuration skip the expense of an extended warranty. Also keep in mind that if you use an American Express card to make your purchase then American Express will automatically double your warranty with a max of one extra year coverage, effectively making your 1-year warranty a 2-year warranty or turning a 2-year warranty into a 3-year warranty — it certainly makes getting an Amex card worth it.
Conclusion
There’s nothing particularly fancy about the Vostro 1520, but the price and features are in line with what many people look for when purchasing a laptop computer. It might indeed be an exactly middle of the road offering – not too big and not too small in size, not to powerful but not to weak with performance, not too flashy yet not too dull, and not too cheap yet not too expensive. For a student on a budget the Vostro 1520 is a great choice as it shoud last you 3 – 4 years yet not break the bank. There’s not too much to complain about with the Vostro 1520, the heat issue on the palm rest and slightly warm temperatures in that same area is the most I can think of as being a problem. The features, performance and price make the Vostro 1520 easy to recommend.
Hi guys. I’m thinking to buy a Vostro 1520 since i think it has a good price but i was wondering about the fan noise. Though in review is mentioned, nobody has addressed this issue in the comments above. Anyone experiencing continuous fan noise? Is it annoying? If yes do you know any fixes?
Thanks
Amanda,
I am confused. I need a laptop but, I don’t know whether to pick a used one from ebay or buy new. My needs are simple. I am doing a Ph D. I need the laptop for three hours of reading and writing (pdfs and word processor) and may be a little bit of browsing too for the next four years. No need for great battery support, as I sit close to a power source. But, being in the tropics, my environment is very hot and dusty. I am ready to pay if I am getting value for money. What do you suggest?
Thanks,
Cyril
for those of u experiencing the heat issue: is the laptop on top of your lap (or any suffocating “soft” material like on beds or pillows) without adequate ventilation? even flat surfaces like on top of desks without a gap of air between the bottom of the laptop and the top of the desk surface may “trap” heat. with modern laptops consisting of powerful components, the side/bottom case vents are part of the overall cooling system and if any or most are restricted, the heat could build-up and heat-up other internal components.
not a big problem with the fan noise..sometimes it will go fast but most of the time it won’t..if anything is blocking the air vent on left side it gets hot.
if you keep it on a table always it’s fine (flat surface) unlike mattress etc..
The left palm rest on mine doesn’t get hot, I have the 320GB 7200rpm hardrive, 2.4Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4GB RAM, 9300GS Graphics etc (all for £344 using 50% off discount code
)
The fan is not bad at all, and rarely comes on. A very nice laptop!!
James, can you provide the url for web page for the 50% off discount code D. As looked at del.co.uk website and tried discount code D and this is not valid discount code
The hard disk is fitted under the right palm rest so cant be the source of the heat.
Which Wifi card should I opt for and what does wwan mean against colour options?
Steve, the cheapest Dell wi-fi card has been fine in my usage, unless you have needs to be streaming large amounts of data across a wireless network (such as lots of video or gaming online) then go with the Dell 1397. If you know you’ll need a lot of bandwidth, upgrade to the Intel 5300. WWAN means integrated cellular modem for Internet anywhere, you’d have to pay Verizon about $70 a month for that though, most people don’t need it.
I ordered the vostro 1520 and I believe I have found the culprit of the hot palm rest. Located directly under the left palm rest close to the touchpad is the half sized PCI wireless card. I found when I shut off the wireless the palm rest cooled down to a comfortable level. As soon as I turned it back on and began surfing the web it became uncomfotably hot. I have yet to decide if I will return the laptop because of this, but I am 99% sure this is the culprit in my case. It is a bad location for the wifi card and there are no vents to help with circulation in that area. Good Luck all.
Jason,
As I mentioned earlier in my postings, I ended up returning my Vostro 1520. I had the Intel WiFi 5100. I connected the 1520 only using the WiFi. The left palm rest was 103C. Which WiFi card do you have? I also had the Bluetooth module.
As mentioned by Steve, the hard drive is beneath the right palm. Could you confirm?
Thanks!
-Gregory
Oops, it was 103F, not 103C…
Thanks Amanda, I don’t need anything other than the basic wifi. I’m still undecided about the 1520 as I’m worried about the left palm rest heat issue but apart from that it looks like a great machine at a great price.
Hi Gregory,
Yes, the Hard Drive is under the right palm rest. I measured the temp of my left palm rest with laser temp reader and the temp was 100 degrees. I have the 1397 wifi. I have decided this is a deal breaker for me too. I have emailed Dell to process the return. I am back on the hunt for another laptop.
Did you have any problems returning the laptop? Any extra fees?
Hi Jason, I didn’t have any problem returning my 1520. The return was promptly processed. They even paid for the returning freight and arranged for UPS pick up. I was very impressed with Dell’s Small Business unit. BTW, the no question asked return policy is for the initial 30-day only.
Do you also have the 160GB hard drive? nVidia graphic card?
I am about to order the 1520. I was looking for a machine that would have all the drivers for Xp, and be configurable for 3GB RAM, which I understand is the most Xp can use.
Still haven’t decided between the 2.4 GHz P8600 with 3MB L2 cache 1.066 GHz FSB, or the next one down. I am going for the 250 GB drive with free-fall sensor, 9 cell battery.
I will probably upgrade to Win7 around SP1 or so!
Hope the heat issue isn’t intolerable.
I noticed something interesting. The higher powered P8600 2.4 GHz CPU with 3 MB L2 cache and 1 GHz FSB has a 25 watt TDP (Thermal Design Power) rating, while the 2.1 GHz T6570 with 2 MB L2 cache and 800 MHz FSB has a TDP of 35 watts, 40% higher.
See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermal_Design_Power
I got the specs here:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Mobile-Processors-Benchmarklist.2436.0.html
Seems counterintuitive, but I guess the slightly faster CPU with 50% more L2 cache runs cooler.
I finally ordered, with a July 13th estimated arrival date in Seattle.
I’m in the process of returning my 1520 as well. I could not stand the warm palm rest and the really dire keyboard flex.
Does the Vostro 1520 have a print screen button on the keyboard?
Also how bad is the keyboard flex? How is it compared to an Inspiron 6000 for instance?
@Brian. You hold down Fn + F11 for Print Screen, there is no dedicated button. I did not find keyboard flex to be an issue, it’s got a bit of flex above the optical drive but it is not mushy. If you’re a very firm typist I can see complaining, but from my perspective it is a non-issue.
Cyril,
I haven’t seen Amanda respond to your post so I thought I would. IF your needs are exactly as stated and you do not need a large screen I would personally suggest buying the ASUS Eee 1000HE PC (upgrade the RAM afterwards, and buy an external DVD drive btw).
The 1000HE is a 10inch netbook that is great for just school purposes (ie: anything from microsoft office, websites, etc). The keyboard does take a little getting used to being slightly smaller than normal but that is a netbook for you. Finally, the battery on the 1000HE officially lasts 9.5hrs but I have had it run a respectible 7hrs at a stretch with the processor running at full speed.
Total cost is around $375-400 for the mini, around $50-75 for the external DVD drive and around $20-25 for the 2GB ram upgrade. Total cost about $475 at the prices I paid a few months back.
Hope this helps – Gauss
DON’T waste your time with Vostro 1520.
I purchased a high end build and support package (almost $2000) for small business use, and well lets just say that its costed me a lot of time and money because of the problems with it.
Major parts of the build were:
T9550/2.66G/1066 FSB/6M L2/35 watts
320G 7200 RPM w/free fall sensor
4G memory
NVIDIA GeForce 9300M
WXGA True Life
Essentially all the highest end parts you could get a couple of months ago.
It shipped with a defective keyboard, as the spacebar was all flakey. Obviously Dell didn’t do any testing. I’ve had issues with the MBR getting corrupted randomly and having to restore it every few days. The hard disk died after about a month and I had to get that replaced. Even with the new hard disk the MBR corruption issue is still there.
Since I use this laptop for business use, part of my process for backing up the system is to run a diskcheck while in windows on C drive, (which gets scheduled or the next boot up – and then to back up the partition with imaging software), and that diskcheck often will not occur for some reason on the next bootup – and I’ve even installed just a bare windows XP installation with SP3 and that even has the problem.
Minor annoyances include the fan, which runs almost constantly even if the laptop is idle and it is quite noisy. The palmrest area is very poorly constructed. As my palm initially rests on it, you hear some creaks from the plastic.
As an FYI, the hard disk is on the right side of the laptop, not the left. Heat didn’t seem to be much of an issue.
The only thing this laptop has going for it is the LCD, which is good quality, but the rest of it really blows. But when its all said and done, this is a poor laptop all around, especially for almost $2000.
Trust me and look elsewhere, possibly a toshiba or HP will be alot better.
On the Vostro 1520, does anyone know how to turn the
WLAN 1/2Minicard off and on?
I heard that turning it off will save power.
Also, did anyone notice if inverse video settings are
available with their Windows XP? For some reason it
isn’t on mine.
Good work. This helped a lot. Thanks.
ama
By the way, how is the DELL vostro1520 support for Ubuntu OS.
I am planning on ordering the 1520 tomorrow, but I’ve been seeing tons of complaints about the heat on the left side. Has anyone used a cooling pad? If so, how did that work for you? I have one because my last computer had major heat issues, so I’m looking for something that could use a cooling pad, but not that it would shut off without having one under it at all times.
Thanks!
The Vostro 1520 is in my price sweet spot, but it sounds like the temperature and fan issues are deal breakers. Any recommendations for something similar? I like Dell’s warrantee and service, and I want XP, not Vista. I just need a basic laptop, no gaming or graphics.
BTW, great comments here. Incredibly helpful .
Hi,
Great review!!, I just bought the 1520 for my study in Holland.
I hope i’m happy with the parts and the laptop
For all of you who have bought a 1520 recently, how is the heat at the left palmrest? Is it okay, or very bothersome? I would like to know if they were able to correct this problem. thanks!
hi
I have 1520 :2066 GH ram 4 hard 320 vga 9300
but my 6 cell battery give me only 2 hours
is it regular or my battery has a problem
my battery type is k738h
plz tell me about your battery type and time that support you
thanks
reply to shahriar:
That’s unusual that your laptop only gets 2 hours with a 6 cell (even with a dedicated graphics card). What are you doing when you get your 2 hours? Are you gaming? Also does your left palmrest get hot like others have mentioned here?
my dearest friends
thanks a lot for all the fabulous feedbacks! i really owe you all 1!
as i checked the high end build, well i’m gonna order it and i think it’s good in comparisson to the price and configuration!
to put everything in a nut shell for myself, about the heat issue, y turning off bluetooth and wifi at the most time and leave the laptop on a flat surface with enough space for vent, it’s gonna be ok and the noise according to much of the comments won’t be too much, about the keyboard, it’s gonna be nice according to what dear amanda said
i couldn’t find major other issues by reveiwing all the aboves and most of the problems seem to be arose from the form of usage! and for a symple pharmaceutical student with no gaming and hard work, gonna be a good pal for the next even 10 yrs!
i’m gonna order the follow:
T9550 2.66Ghz FSB 1066
4 GB Ram
15.4 truelife
Gforce 9300 256MB upto 2200
HDD 500++ 7200 rpm free fall sensor
DVD RW
6 cell battery adaptor 90w
vista home premium with SP1
internal modem V92 56K
Lan, wifi, BT,FP,webcam 1.3 Megapxl
i’ll let you know my experiences too and hope dell corporations read these comments and take full of advantage of these issues being said to improve their product!
i’ll follow reading your kind posts too
thank you dearest amanda and my nice friends
be well guys!
houman
After a month of waiting, mine arrived on July 27th. Ran it continuously the last few days for 5 hours at a time while connected to wifi. The left palm rest does get warm but not unbearably hot like others have described. <–maybe fixed issue or just a lucky build. My specs:
Core 2 Duo T6570, 2.1GHz800MHz
3GB
NVIDIA GeForce 9300M GS
250GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive
TrueLife LCD
WINDOWS XP PRO
8X DVD+/-RW
1.3 Mega camera
Dell WLAN 1397
6-cell
Just got my 1520, Fastest computer I’ve owned… I haven’t had any heating problems what so ever (Its never been hotter than my hand!)even while running RAM intensive simulations. The cooling fan does seem sporadic at best though (a bit annoying).
System Specs:
Core 2 Duo, 2.66 GHz
8 GB RAM
320 GB HD
Windows Vista 64-bit
Great to hear people are happy with their new 1520′s. What type of battery life are you getting with your new laptops? Do you have the 6 cell or 9 cell? Thanks
I’ve been reading many reviews of the Vostro 1520 both here and at other websites. I’ve noticed quite a variance in the personal experiences of people. Some think the keyboard is great with minimal flex, others think its cheap with very huge amounts of flex. Some have had very hot left palmrests, others notice no difference from the right palmrests. Some have great battery life, others very disappointing battery life. I don’t recall seeing such a variance of reviews for another laptop recently. It leads me to think that Dell’s Small Business quality control is frankly, terrible. It’s a shame as I was really considering this laptop for purchase. I am thankful for this website for the reviews and feedback of the readers.
Amanda – Thank you for writing such a comprehensive review of Vostro 1520 which I’m planning to purchase shortly.
Guys do you think “Intel Integrated Graphics 4500MHD” is sufficient to handle AERO features of Vista Business OR should I go with a dedicated graphic card?
I do not play games and would like to avoid the additional graphic card but if Vista AERO could benefit from it then I can think about including it.
So kindly suggest if default integrated 4500MHD is suitable for Vista Business.
I would really appreciate your suggestions in this regard and look forward to hearing back from you.
Cheers, Viv
From what I understand, the 4500MHD integrated video if fine for Windows aeroglass. In fact it should be able to handle HD videos.
Just received my standard (no extras) 1520
Fan no issues
Keyboard flex no worries – keys have a nice smooth feel
Heat concerns on palm rest(s)- Again no worries
Hi everyone!
I’m glad to hear alot of you have had good experiences with your Vostros. I’m planning on buying a laptop mainly for music production, and the Vostro 1520 really seems to offer the best price/performance ratio.
I’ve googled around a bit and found that many Dell laptops suffer from poor audio playback, clicks, pops and distorted sounds when playing/editing music etc. When producing music, these problems are a huge blow. Before I buy a Vostro I want to be certain this is not the case with it.
I kindly ask any of you Vostro 1520 owners to try and run the test program called dpclat.exe, found here: http://www.thesycon.de/deu/latency_check.shtml , and post the results here (i.e. if it only shows green bars, and how big the maximum latency was). If you get a poor result (yellow or red bars), it would be very kind of you to disable the WiFi card and try to run it again.
Thank you very much for helping, and I’m hoping the laptop doesn’t have any latency spikes (red bars
)!
David
Excellent Analysis! Thanks.
Thank you for the good and detailed review!
Great review! I picked up a vostro 1520 2 weeks ago and I am finally recievieng it sometime today. Hope i dont have the heat issue. I will post my findings at the end of the day.
Great Omar. Looking forward to hearing about your new laptop! Perhaps you could post about your approx battery run times. Thanks!
@Aboy-I have a 4-cell battery and i get about 2-3 hours! I dont experience the left palm heating up at all. Ther is only a small difference between the left and right. I have the dell 1510 wifi card with wireless n. If the palm heating up is a deal breaker then you should get this laptop. Dell must have fixed the problem
Oh and if you want to use the feature windows aeroglass get the nvidia. It is only slightly over the required 1.0(nvidia gets 2.1 i believe)
Thanks for the info Omar! I am really glad to hear that the left palmrest isn’t heating up like it had for previous users. Hopefully Dell has fixed this problem. Also getting 2-3 hours on a 4 cell is great! I went ahead and ordered the laptop. Looking forward to receiving it. Thanks to everyone on this board and Amanda for her review.
Hey guys, the heat issue isn’t that bad. I just got my vostro 1520 today, and its at 64 degrees Fahrenheit. Its really not a problem, and I’m happy with this laptop and build.
I am also planning for Vostro 1520.
The only additions that i ahve made to the Dell Recommendations are 3GB RAM,320 GB Free Fall Sensor HDD @7200rpm,NVIDIA GeForce 256MB.
I am really confused with the NVIDIA.Should i go for it or go for 4GB RAM instead of 3GB(as i read above 3gb will decrease performance)
I am getting T6670,15.4″ WXGA (1280×800) Anti-Glare LED Display,Genuine Windows Vista(R) Home Basic SP1 32 bit Edition.
Wat also i want to ask whether i would be able to install xp/windows 7 on 1520.
@Kartik- if you want windows 7 just upgrade to vista home premium and you can then request an upgrade to windows7