New Business/Work Mobile Workstation

[PreOmegaZero]

Looking for a new Mobile Workstation to replace a Dell Precision 490 at work.

The Precision 490 is configured with the following:

• 2 x Xeon 5500 CPU's (2 Core w/HT, 3Ghz each)
• 16GB DDR2 667 ECC FBDIMM RAM
• 500GB WD Black HD (OS drive)
• 500GB WD Black HD (Virtual Machine drive)
• 750GB WD Blue HD (Application/Storage drive)

I'm looking to replace it with a Mobile Workstation with the following specs (in order of importance):

• 16GB RAM (I already have this, so overpriced vendor RAM isn't needed)
• Core i7 Quad core w/ HT (speed not of utmost importance. More cores needed for VM's)
• Good quality 15" Display (Dreamcolor may not be an option: Read below)
• Primary 500GB 7200 RPM HD (I already have a Seagate Momentus XT for this)
• Secondary SSD for Virtual Machines (I already have a 256GB Crucial M4 for this)
• Graphics not important, but must be able to run 2 x 24" LCD's @ 1080p each
• 3 year On-site warranty (work computer)

I've narrowed the models down to the following:

• Dell Precision Mobile Workstation M4600
• HP EliteBook 8560w
• Lenovo ThinkPad W520

Here are the basic specs across all customized builds:

• Intel Core i7-2720QM 2.2Ghz
• 4GB RAM (I can't select less than 4GB on any customized builds)
• 320GB 7200RPM Hard Drive (I can't select anything smaller on customized builds)
• 15.6” HD 1920x1080 LCD/LED
• AMD FirePro M5950 1GB / Quadro 1000M
• 6-cell Battery (Minimum)
• Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 (Minimum)
• Bluetooth
• WebCam
• Fingerprint Reader (May need it)
• Intel vPRO (it's there, don't really need it)
• Back-lit Keyboard
• Support a 2nd 2.5" Hard drive (natively or via an adapter)
• 4 DIMM slots
• 3 year On-site "Premier/Pro" warranty

Pro and Cons for the 3 models...

Dell Precision Mobile Workstation M4600
Pros:

• Fairly priced for the specs (almost on-par with ThinkPad W520)
• Decent chassis build
• I kind of like the keyboard layout (Have not had an eval unit to test first-hand)
• Very good display upgrade option
• Can do Nvidia Optimus graphics switching

Cons:

• Less flexibility in customization
• Have to buy ProSupport/Premium support for US phone support (working in IT, this matters when I need less hassling to facilitate a repair)
• Cannot do graphics switching with AMD video it would appear

HP EliteBook 8560w
Pros:

• Most flexible configuration options (More lower-end/free OS options, more hardware config options)
• Has the best display upgrade (10-bit DreamColor display)
• Has the best chassis build that rides the fence between business and consumer lines (Closer to an HP Envy than a typical business notebook)
• Back-lit keyboard option
• Premium 3-year warranty is standard
• Intel LAN and Wireless

Cons:

• Most expensive out of the bunch (even with work discount)
• Has the most expensive display upgrade
• Display upgrade does not allow Nvidia Optimus graphics switching (due to it's 10bit display that Intel's integrated video does not support)
• Cannot graphic switch with AMD graphics card either it seems with 'default' display

Lenovo ThinkPad W520
Pros:

• Cheapest of the 3 vendors for similar spec
• Nice hardware/software options/features (Lenovo RapidBoot, Access Connections/Power Manager, etc.)
• Cheapest basic 1080p LCD option
• ThinkPad keyboard. If you've ever used one for an hour, you know.
• Nvidia Optimus support (Graphics switching)
• ThinkPad build quality (you take that as you will, but my experience has been fairly positive)

Cons:

• Cannot upgrade the display to something on par with the other 2 vendors
• No backlit keyboard option
• Textured Trackpad. Not crazy about it (had an eval unit for over a month)
• Needs lots of different software loaded to support what the add-on hardware can do

 

[vbuggy]

I've had a LOT of buying problems with Dell (mostly Precision / Latitude / Poweredges, some XPSs). In fact, it came to a head and I stopped doing business with Dell since late last year and haven't been back. The last set of machines I bought - and the worst buying experience thus far - was a set of M6500 Covets.

So regardless of spec and Prosupport (which, for purely technical support I found more than decent) I'm simply going to say 'don't buy one'. There were build discrepancies, quality control issues, huge delivery delays, etc.

However, of the ones which were properly built, even if they didn't bother to turn up anywhere near on time, I couldn't fault the stability of the machines.

BUT...

I've had no problems (bar my very first order through an incompetent supplier when I still had Dells around) when I canned all my Dell workstations regardless of their age, sold them to a broker & swallowed the loss (this probably hints at just how bad things were between me and Dell last year) and replaced them wholesale with HP's. Orders have turned up on time. When there's been a supply chain delay I get notifications from my account manager. Support is decent, although I have to say Prosupport has the edge in certain situations.

The hardware is built to a higher standard than Dell, although I'd say Dell actually matches HP for the most part in terms of stability.

Lenovo? I don't have any of their desk or mobile workstations but have had plenty of their T/X Thinkpads recently (all X-series at the moment). Overrated I think, especially the keyboard (an equivalent HP is just as good in many cases IMO), but it's not a bad buy by any means.

The Thinkvantage stuff can be a blessing or curse... while what 'featureware' that ships with Dell or HP does just tend to work, it's clearly not as comprehensive in scope as Lenovo's stuff - there's a lot going on with Thinkvantage, and consequently a lot to go wrong - I've had neverending issues with sleep and docking-related problems on my X's for example.

(In fact, I'm typing this via RDP on an X201t and having just undocked it, I've lost the touchpad)

The biggest question though is really whether you want to go with a mobile workstation. For example, the M6500 Covets were part of a plan to replace desktop workstations in some key roles and also at home, where I didn't want a hulking machine(s). These were flagship machines in terms of power at the time, and all were in the maxed-out approaching-$10K spec.

I was aware of the numbers in terms of what I was giving up, but numbers and experience are two different things: Coming from a similarly flagship desktop workstation, it was just really slow in comparison and I just couldn't use it for some key computational tasks. This had nothing to do with the issues we had with the machines, but rather just a miscalculation on my part in terms of what the mobile workstations could actually usably handle.

So, the upshot is that you'd better be damned sure that you actually need a mobile workstation, and that you actually have an identified need to lug a ~3Kg machine on a regular basis.

If you have that need, from my experience, I'd say go Elitebook.

 

[PreOmegaZero]

Thank you for that very in-depth, first-hand experience reply. Seriously invaluable.

Some more back-story on my end first:
My work does not standardize on ANY hardware except for Dell Optiplex for the limited amount of 'managed'/locked-down workstations. Otherwise, we will use ANY vendor.
I build the desktop images as part of my job duties, so I've developed a love/hate relationship with certain vendors and business-series'.

We are looking into HP as the Dell replacement, and I've been waving the flag for this move, and was seriously looking at HP as my new machine to be able to say "Hey, I'm willing to put all my work on it" to the higher-ups.

While I don't NEED a mobile workstation, when looking at a 'business'-supported machine, these were my 'must-haves', and were hard to find in a 'lower-end' series, in order of necessity:

1. Support for 8GB+ RAM with 4 DIMM slots
2. Quad-core i7 (speed not as important as 4+ cores)
3. If 14"+ LCD, it MUST support 1080p. No crappy screen (I WILL be looking at this thing for the next 3+ years after all)
4. 2 x 2.5" Hard drive support (natively or via add-on)

I've seen the Dell 15z, Latitude E6xxx (have an eval now at my desk actually), ThinkPad T420/T520 and even the Envy 17" (MBP-line for Windows folks), but haven't been able to get an HP eval unit yet.

I do NOT need workstation graphics (but I get them forced on me).

I'm willing to listen to recommendations that are NOT Mobile Workstations as long as the 4 requirements can be met.

Oh, my budget is about $2500 (Basically, a 17" MBP . This Budget includes the $80 16GB RAM and $350 256GB SSD I already purchased out of pocket).

 

[Emulex]

i like the elitebook myself. lenovo quality is hit and miss and their support really stinks lately. HP is a solid. Dell is cheap junk imo.

It's pretty cheap to add AccidentalDamage, DiskMagenticRetention(you keep your ssd if anything fails and you have to mail it in), and computrace pro(burnt into the bios, survives formatting) - like $150 for 3years. if you drop the laptop - they make you sign a waiver so that SSD drive you promise to destroy it and then take it out and send in the laptop - need that for security these days. computrace can do remote wipe or insure the return of your laptop with cash - accidental damage - that's a given when you spend that much money.

The sad part is the 16:9 on newer elitebooks - i'm sorry but i love my old 8730W 16:10 (dream) and my macbook pro's (one matte 17" 1920x1200 one glossy) - i can't wait for the new 2560x1600 (more likely to be 2560x1440) on 15 and 17" to come out (retina baby).

Why don't you just get the elitebook demo? Hp loves to demo those units. Have them config it how you want it - and if you like it - pay for it after 30 days. usually if the config is a smartbuy they'll just send you a new unit.

 

[vbuggy]

Thank you for that very in-depth, first-hand experience reply. Seriously invaluable.

Some more back-story on my end first:
My work does not standardize on ANY hardware except for Dell Optiplex for the limited amount of 'managed'/locked-down workstations. Otherwise, we will use ANY vendor.
I build the desktop images as part of my job duties, so I've developed a love/hate relationship with certain vendors and business-series'.

We are looking into HP as the Dell replacement, and I've been waving the flag for this move, and was seriously looking at HP as my new machine to be able to say "Hey, I'm willing to put all my work on it" to the higher-ups.

While I don't NEED a mobile workstation, when looking at a 'business'-supported machine, these were my 'must-haves', and were hard to find in a 'lower-end' series, in order of necessity:

1. Support for 8GB+ RAM with 4 DIMM slots
2. Quad-core i7 (speed not as important as 4+ cores)
3. If 14"+ LCD, it MUST support 1080p. No crappy screen (I WILL be looking at this thing for the next 3+ years after all)
4. 2 x 2.5" Hard drive support (natively or via add-on)

I've seen the Dell 15z, Latitude E6xxx (have an eval now at my desk actually), ThinkPad T420/T520 and even the Envy 17" (MBP-line for Windows folks), but haven't been able to get an HP eval unit yet.

I do NOT need workstation graphics (but I get them forced on me).

I'm willing to listen to recommendations that are NOT Mobile Workstations as long as the 4 requirements can be met.

Oh, my budget is about $2500 (Basically, a 17" MBP . This Budget includes the $80 16GB RAM and $350 256GB SSD I already purchased out of pocket).

OK, so we're established that you must buy a laptop...?

In which case, well, you buy into a mobile workstation in terms of the enhanced stability engineering as well. I don't know what your utility / evaluation criteria is for, but I can almost guarantee that a consumer machine, even a higher-end one, will give you more issues in a business setting. Having said that, $2500 is a slightly constrained budget if you want to spec things up a little on the Elitebook side, unless you can get a good deal.

Or you can buy into a pure-consumer machine like (yes, even) the Crapbook Pro's (and their Windows equivalents) - which I suffer with on a regular basis as well, but unlike Windows I don't get a choice in the matter - buy the extended warranty and hope it doesn't give you grief. Personally, if I can avoid it I will not go that route.

Perhaps Dell Precision is not that bad a route after all given the tight budget, in that it's a more value-biased balance of cost, build and stability. Just as long as you don't have as disastrous an experience as mine...

 

[BudaBomb]

In my experience i dont like dell they've never had good support for me and hp right now seems to be going through a weird time. i have a thinkpad and i love it its built solid and is easly customizable. so i recommend lenovo over the other two but hp would be my second choice.