Inspiron E1505/6400 scrap heap avoidance project 2020

Question

I have 3 of these things, I think they all have power bricks/work/are in good shape, I like to max out and find a use for old tech rather than throw it out, I find it fun, these things don't go very far in options though, even at best specs they are pretty horrible for modern standards.

They can go up to 4gb ram and use 3 on windows, I plan to use linux, would that have any impact, maybe that os could recognize all 4? Also, could I/should I install 64 bit or 32 bit linux distro, I plan to have them in a room mosty on running doing grunt work like compressing files and slowly burning m-discs with an external powered drive, things I don't want to waste time on my good laptops doing.

nyc10036 · Accepted Answer

64-bit OS will take advantage of 4 GB RAM

GGarrett2 · Answer

Thanks for the reply/info, linux mint recognizes/utilizes all 4gb of the ram?

nyc10036 · Answer

I use Linux Mint most of the time these days. 4 GB of RAM and 64-bit OS. Since these laptops will have BIOS versus UEFI, it will make your life so much easier. Have fun and good luck.

GGarrett2 · Answer

sweet, not that bad then, should be fun upgrading these

nyc10036 · Answer

You may want to consider upgrading to a 120 GB SSD. They're about $18 including tax.

GGarrett2 · Answer

yeah, ssd, ram, might even try cpu if I can find one on one of them as a test subject, just to mess around/learn.

I have some newer but still old laptops that could also use cpu improving that I plan to do along with the dells.

I've done easy ssd and ram upgrades on my current laptops but I've never replaced a cpu on a laptop before so I can learn on that one and if it doesn't go well that's no huge loss.

Brad L (retired) · Answer

One quick note is that you want to make sure the processor the system uses are some of the later processors that the system allowed (so you can install a 64 bit OS etc.), here is a thread that details this.

The only reason I mention this is because my E1505 (that I bought around release) had one of the original Core Duo processors (not Core 2 Duo etc.) and it only allowed a 32 bit OS to be installed.

Regardless, this sounds like a fun project! I also agree that the SSD will be a huge upgrade from the original drive and is worth the cost for ~$20 regardless of what OS you plan on using.

GGarrett2 · Answer

Thanks for the link Brad, I have no idea what cpus they have, hopefully core 2 duos, I bought one new and liked it, and then a few years later I bought 2 more used from some guy at a good price and had some plan of linking them all together and using the three screens together that I never got around to. I think they had a good screen resolution for the time.

Last I used them i think I installed cloudready on them to be lighter weight than windows because I thought linux would be too hard for me to navigate, but that was boring so I boxed them up.

Might be a while before I get around to it, but I'll get around to it eventually and update the thread once they're all shiny on their 15th birthday.

Inspiron

Inspiron E1505/6400 scrap heap avoidance project 2020

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