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8156
May 26th, 2001 03:00
Help on buying a 4100 system.
This could all probably be answered by a sales rep but I wanted to get your guys take on it and if you can answer any of my questions and concerns, the current configuration under consideration...
Dell Dimension 4100 Series:
Dimension® 4100 Series, Pentium® lll Processor at 1GHz
D4110HB - [220-3455]
Memory:
256MB 133MHz SDRAM
256M - [311-7005]
Keyboard:
Microsoft® Internet Keyboard, Dell Edition For Windows ME
STDME - [310-0436]
Monitor:
19 in (18.0 in viewable,.26dp)M991 Monitor
M991 - [320-5321]
Video Card:
32MB NVIDIA GeForce2 MX 4X AGP Graphics Card
32NVMX - [320-1423]
Hard Drive:
60GB Ultra ATA/100 Hard Drive
60 - [340-3456]
Floppy Drive:
3.5 in Floppy Drive
3 - [340-2409]
Operating System:
Microsoft® Windows® Millennium (Windows Me)
WME - [420-8050][412-2900][412-1050]
Mouse:
Logitech MouseMan® Wheel (PS/2v)
MM - [310-0589]
Network Card:
3COM® PCI 10/100 Remote Wake Up Network Card
3C9WOL - [430-5600]
Modem:
US Robotics 56K PCI Telephony Modem-Sound Option
V90HS - [313-0471]
DVD-ROM or CD-ROM Drive:
16X DVD ROM Drive for 32MB NVIDIA Geforce2 MX AGP Graphics Card
16DVDMX - [430-0232][313-0435]
Sound Card:
Turtle Beach Santa Cruz DSP Sound Card
CRUZ - [313-5204]
Speakers:
Altec Lansing THX Certified ADA885 Dolby Digital Speakers with Subwoofer
ADA885 - [313-5068]
Bundled Software:
Microsoft® Office XP Professional
XPPRO - [412-2580]
Zip Drives:
250MB iomega Zip Built-in Drive w/ one disk
ZIP250 - [340-2236]
Norton Antivirus® at no additional charge:
Norton Antivirus® 2001
NAV - [412-4630]
Digital Music:
Dell Jukebox powered by MusicMatch 6.0
JUKEBOX - [412-1411]
Digital Imaging Software:
Image Expert® 2000, Dell Edition ($0)
DPS - [412-2108]
Limited Warranty, Services and Support Options:
3 Year Ltd. Warranty, 3 Year Onsite Service, Lifetime 24x7 Phone Support
I3OS - [902-0772][902-0170]
Internet Access Service at no additional charge:
DELLNET BY MSN ISP
MSN1YRP - [412-9800]
Iomega Zip Disk Packs:
2-Pak of Iomega 250MB Zip Disks
2PAK - [340-6608]
Resolution Assistant:
Resolution Assistant
RA - [412-0175]
Power Protection:
APC Back-UPS 500--$149--With Hot-Swap User Replaceable Batteries
APC500 - [519171]
CD-RW DRIVE FOR 2nd Bay:
New 12X/8X/32X CD-RW Drive
12CDRW2 - [313-3050]
1. I assume the 250 zip accepts 100?
2. What are the mamimum support capabilities of the system? Ie. harddrive size, processor, etc...
3. Are optional software bundles OEM or Retail?
4. Do installation disks have all the software in case I need it, can I do a clean format and get everything back?
5. Power supply wattage and connections?
6. Is US Robotics modem compatible with Windows 2000 as it warns that it is not compatible with WinNT?
7. Dell does not sell any systems with parts refurbed like some other companies? (Brand spankin new?)
8. Are warranties on individual items in force or are they void with the Dell warranty the only valid one?
9. I assume the Santa Cruz and GeForce 2 are seperate cards and not onboard?
10. Though I probably won't use it, Dellnet By MSN ISP requires Windows ME Operating System? What's up with that?
11. Are the individual products like APC Back UPS 500 the same as in accessories dell shopping?
12. DSL, cable or any hardware components (addons/replacing) upgrade capable? Are these cases the only ones Dell uses for their series?
13. What software comes with the hardware like the DVD? CD-RW? etc... Is it just drivers?
If any of you can help me out with opinions or information I'd be grateful, thanks.
Dell Dimension 4100 Series:
Dimension® 4100 Series, Pentium® lll Processor at 1GHz
D4110HB - [220-3455]
Memory:
256MB 133MHz SDRAM
256M - [311-7005]
Keyboard:
Microsoft® Internet Keyboard, Dell Edition For Windows ME
STDME - [310-0436]
Monitor:
19 in (18.0 in viewable,.26dp)M991 Monitor
M991 - [320-5321]
Video Card:
32MB NVIDIA GeForce2 MX 4X AGP Graphics Card
32NVMX - [320-1423]
Hard Drive:
60GB Ultra ATA/100 Hard Drive
60 - [340-3456]
Floppy Drive:
3.5 in Floppy Drive
3 - [340-2409]
Operating System:
Microsoft® Windows® Millennium (Windows Me)
WME - [420-8050][412-2900][412-1050]
Mouse:
Logitech MouseMan® Wheel (PS/2v)
MM - [310-0589]
Network Card:
3COM® PCI 10/100 Remote Wake Up Network Card
3C9WOL - [430-5600]
Modem:
US Robotics 56K PCI Telephony Modem-Sound Option
V90HS - [313-0471]
DVD-ROM or CD-ROM Drive:
16X DVD ROM Drive for 32MB NVIDIA Geforce2 MX AGP Graphics Card
16DVDMX - [430-0232][313-0435]
Sound Card:
Turtle Beach Santa Cruz DSP Sound Card
CRUZ - [313-5204]
Speakers:
Altec Lansing THX Certified ADA885 Dolby Digital Speakers with Subwoofer
ADA885 - [313-5068]
Bundled Software:
Microsoft® Office XP Professional
XPPRO - [412-2580]
Zip Drives:
250MB iomega Zip Built-in Drive w/ one disk
ZIP250 - [340-2236]
Norton Antivirus® at no additional charge:
Norton Antivirus® 2001
NAV - [412-4630]
Digital Music:
Dell Jukebox powered by MusicMatch 6.0
JUKEBOX - [412-1411]
Digital Imaging Software:
Image Expert® 2000, Dell Edition ($0)
DPS - [412-2108]
Limited Warranty, Services and Support Options:
3 Year Ltd. Warranty, 3 Year Onsite Service, Lifetime 24x7 Phone Support
I3OS - [902-0772][902-0170]
Internet Access Service at no additional charge:
DELLNET BY MSN ISP
MSN1YRP - [412-9800]
Iomega Zip Disk Packs:
2-Pak of Iomega 250MB Zip Disks
2PAK - [340-6608]
Resolution Assistant:
Resolution Assistant
RA - [412-0175]
Power Protection:
APC Back-UPS 500--$149--With Hot-Swap User Replaceable Batteries
APC500 - [519171]
CD-RW DRIVE FOR 2nd Bay:
New 12X/8X/32X CD-RW Drive
12CDRW2 - [313-3050]
1. I assume the 250 zip accepts 100?
2. What are the mamimum support capabilities of the system? Ie. harddrive size, processor, etc...
3. Are optional software bundles OEM or Retail?
4. Do installation disks have all the software in case I need it, can I do a clean format and get everything back?
5. Power supply wattage and connections?
6. Is US Robotics modem compatible with Windows 2000 as it warns that it is not compatible with WinNT?
7. Dell does not sell any systems with parts refurbed like some other companies? (Brand spankin new?)
8. Are warranties on individual items in force or are they void with the Dell warranty the only valid one?
9. I assume the Santa Cruz and GeForce 2 are seperate cards and not onboard?
10. Though I probably won't use it, Dellnet By MSN ISP requires Windows ME Operating System? What's up with that?
11. Are the individual products like APC Back UPS 500 the same as in accessories dell shopping?
12. DSL, cable or any hardware components (addons/replacing) upgrade capable? Are these cases the only ones Dell uses for their series?
13. What software comes with the hardware like the DVD? CD-RW? etc... Is it just drivers?
If any of you can help me out with opinions or information I'd be grateful, thanks.
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Cammo
1 Rookie
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19 Posts
0
May 26th, 2001 11:00
For a start, get a GeForce2GTS graphics card not the MX. The MX is fine for systems running up to about 700MHz and then they pretty much hit a brick wall. The GTS has twice the fill rate of an MX and is better suited for a 1GHz machine. Above 1GHz, go fa a GeForce2 Ultra. Dell only install the MX to keep the costs down. Notice how they also install the MX card into the P4 machines. Absolute madness. They do this to keep the cost down because of the high cost of the CPU and RDRam, not because it's the right card for the system. Of course thay will tell you otherwise.
Next, don't bother with a Zip drive. Just get a CD-R. They're cheap and have a greater storage capacity. 650-700MB as opposed to 100-250MB. CD-R discs are also much cheaper than zip discs.
Make sure the hard drive is a 7200 rpm.
Make sure you also check how much Dell are going to slug you for the extra 128meg of ram to make up your 256meg. I think you'll find,as I did, that it is much cheaper to just get the standard 128meg that comes with the system and get any extra from a third party vendor such as www.crucial.com . Although, as the 4100 only has two ram slots you may be intending to go with one stick of 256, leaving the other slot vacant for future upgrading.
Don't get me wrong. I am totally happy with my 4100 system and the support that I get from Dell. It's just that they don't get it right all the time. Hope this helps.
My system:
Dimension PIII 800MHz
512 ram
98SE
GeForce2GTS
SBLV
Yamaha 2100IX Firewire CD-R
Altec Lansing 885
dblundgren
169 Posts
0
May 27th, 2001 12:00
APC Back UPS 500 currently $129.00 at Staples as of yesterday. Double check Dell price on that unit.
Ram can be had for less money from outside vendors, only issue would be that added RAM would not be covered by Dell warranty, and if problem arose in future, they would want it removed before they would provide support.
Aside from that, 4100 very fast and stable machine, much better choice than 8100 at this time. Looks like nice box!
Dimension XPST700r
128MB SDRAM, 128MB added (Dell)
8x/4x/32x CD/RW
8x DVD/ROM
100MB ZIP
20.4GBUltra ATA 7200RPM
Turtle Beach Montego II A3D 320V
32MB NVIDIA TNT2 M64
3COM US Robotics 3C900B TPC 10Mbit Combo NIC
19" M990 monitor
Harmon Kardon HK-595 Surround Sound speakers w/subwoofer
Conexant V.90/56K Telephony Modem
Service Tag EG9UM
Dimension L667r
64MB SDRAM, 128MB added (Dell)
10GB Ultra ATA
48x CD-ROM
100MB Zip
3COM 3C905-TXM 10/100 NIC
Sound Blaster 64V PCI Sound Card
Altec Lansing ACS-340 speakers w/subwoofer
17" E770 Monitor
Service Tag 79HV30B
tonymarquez
268 Posts
0
May 28th, 2001 06:00
Drag and drop files, erase, add to, etc.
wordspring
22 Posts
0
May 28th, 2001 08:00
tonymarquez wrote:
- One of the features of a CD-RW drive, (that usually
- comes with DirectCD or similar program), is if you
- use a CD-RW disc, you can (after a long format,
- once), use the disc as you would any other drive.
-
- Drag and drop files, erase, add to, etc.
-
The down side of Direct CD is that you HAVE to use it to access the files you create with it. You can't access the files through My Computer or Explorer---you can see them, but not get to them...
So say, alright, I will use Direct CD to get to the files, and you do, and then (I think this was how it went) take out the CD with Direct CD open, you will get a scary blue screen when you try to close the program, asking you to put the disk back in....
never liked that program much
anyways...have fun
Susan