I've had my Dell Precision M6400 Mobile Workstation Laptop since October, 2009, and I love it! Not only do I still use it, but I love it a lot more than my Toshiba Satellite A45 S-150 Laptop for its performance, the novelty of having a secondary internal drive, AND SSD support. The Dell Precision M6400 Mobile Workstation is expandable to 16 GB of DDR3 SODIMM RAM, so beefing it up all the way just makes it an amazing experience for DAWs, NLEs, and graphics applications, like Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.
It's good to hear that the M6400 is still serving you well. Even though newer-generation ultrabooks can match it in terms of performance, you can't beat the price-to-muscle ratio of the M6400, especially not in the 17" class.
Definitely! -I plan to find another Dell Precision M6400 off eBay for future projects, now that I know how to monitor my mic and line-in jack. Additionally, I learned that Dell's website released Windows 8 32-bit/64-bit drivers for the Dell Precision M6400, so it's possible that there might be Windows 10 drivers in the not-so-distant future.
@DoctorKosher - To be honest, I haven't seen any Windows 8 (or newer) drivers for the M6400 on Dell's website myself, but most will install/work okay under 8/8.1/10 except for the Jog Shuttle. That said, I've heard reports of people installing Windows 7, loading the drivers, and then upgrading to Windows 10 in order to retain the Jog Shuttle. For me, it's not worth the effort, but I'd definitely keep it in mind.
I found one of these in a recycle bin last week. Went to a recycling center to pick up a Genuine adapter for it, installed windows 10 and then figured I'd give it away. Then I discovered the battery still worked. Then I discovered the windows key under the battery.Then I looked it up on the internet. Phew, I'm holding onto this!!
I triple boot from three operating systems on the m6400. They are Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows 7 64 bit. It works perfectly with all three. As a matter of fact, I also have all three operating systems working on my m6500 as well.
Dang. It makes sense that XP would work, but 2000 seems kind of old, even for this hardware (especially so for the M6500). Does Nvidia have Windows 2000 drivers for video cards that new, or did you have to jerry-rig something to get it to work?
@@Browningate I no longer have the Precision m6400. But when I did, it had the NVidia Quadro FX 2800m video card in it. I also found a rare nVidia driver for windows 2000\XP for it as well. I then learned how to extend the Windows 2000 operating system Kernel in order to get it to accept newer software as well. I also learned enough to modify the sound driver to get it to work as well. Windows 2000 Professional also only recognizes a maximum of two cores of any processor as well. Because of that I had to modify it so that I was able to get it to recognize up to 12 cores now. Besides the M6400 laptop, I've also installed Windows 2000 Professional on many other i7 computers including the Precision M6500 and M6600 as well. In one of my current machines, I've also been able to get the blueray and USB 3 to work in Win 2000 as well. If you would like to learn how I did this, please contact me at ralphs88@bell.net. PS I also learned how to modify Nvidia drivers as well to add machines and (or) other cards to them as well - within reason that is.
i have this laptop. I love it. I use it mainly as a stationary desktop. Until I need to bring it along with me on my travels. Beautiful machine. It has 8 gigs and a terrabyte HD. No need for hdmi since I can cast whatever movies and photos to my smart tv.
I'd have to agree with you. Despite the small annoyances, (mostly related to the dock and video system) this is probably the best all-around computer that I've ever owned and the first one that hasn't made me hungry for an upgrade right away. And HDMI is never more than a simple $5 passive adapter away! That said, I always keep an eye out for good deals, but this thing should do just fine for years to come; storage upgrades may improve things even further. The Precision M6400 truly is some of Dell's finest work.
Right there with you. 16:10 is the best. Dell has finally seen the light and is starting to bring it back with one or two of this year's models. Microsoft has had 3:2 screens (which are even taller than 16:10) for a few years now. I suspect that it won't be long before the rest of the industry follows suit and comes home.
I love my Dell computers too. I have a Vostro 3700 with an i540m, and Nvidia geforce 330m graphics, a very good desktop replacement, a Latitude e6440 and e7470. I love my business class over the cheap consumer stuff and like you I might not be much of a gamer, But my laptops are more then powerful. What I really enjoy is my e6440. I have dual SSD setup in that plus DVD drive. It's not nearly as powerful as my XPS 8700, but I am not laying in bed for hours with that. The lighted keyboards on these things make for an even better enjoyment. I've owned an M4800 too. These things are built like tanks. All for about or in my case less then the cost of an HP stream like device. I use Linux honestly more then Windows these days, but I do have the licences to run Windows 7 and 10, but I don't like 10. When I ordered my XPS 8700 I got the highest end model bit with Windows 7 pro. I was at the very end of buying a new device with that. But my e7470 had the ability and support to downgrade and so of course I did. Because Windows 10 pro isn't very pro. What pro needs a bunch of bloat like Candy Crush? lol
Glad you enjoyed it. Dell had some good stuff around this era. I'll have put about 3 years on mine this coming Spring, and it still runs strong. I'll probably bite the bullet on Windows 10 around that time as well, or possibly track down a newer Precision (or Alienware, although I'd prefer to stick with the Precision to retain the docking capabilities).
Browningate Can I recommend something like Mint instead? I assure you it will work better over all. I've ran Arch, Ubuntu and Mint on most of my hardware. Arch I great, but I don't recommend it for a new user. Especially since you've got Nvidia based graphics, installing the proprietary packages isn't too hard but getting everything to work properly is a little tougher. Mint 19 runs on my Latitude e series like a dream. Battery life is better too over all. Especially over Windows 10. That constantly updating stuff really kills battery life.
@R.A. - Of all the Linux experiences I've had in my life, not a single one was good. I absolutely don't buy the myth that it's "faster," "lighter," or of any higher efficiency than Windows. Heck, I once had a crappy little Atom-based Samsung Netbook, and that thing (with 2GB of RAM) was quicker to do most things under Windows 7 than it was with Ubuntu. For as many minor foibles as Windows has, everything pretty much just works. The hardware works, 100% of rational software is compatible, the mouse acceleration is perfect, the aesthetics (of 7) have aged well, and it's never really annoyed me except for when it makes the executive decision to restart without asking.
I picked up one of these a couple years ago. Bare computer , no battery or HDD. I installed 256gb and 500 ssd drives, bumped the RAM from 4gb to 8gb. Mine has a more modest processor and the lesser display.............. but man............ what a nice high quality machine. Runs great, and is a joy to work on when doing upgrades, etc. I also picked up a M6600, but gave it to my daughter as I actually like the 16:10 display on the M6400 better.
I wholeheartedly agree. For me, the only upgrade from here would be to an M6500. It wasn't until 2019 when mainstream manufacturers really started embracing 16:10 once again, with the exception of Microsoft, who has been putting 3:2 screens in many of their Surface computers for a couple of years already. Between that 16:10 screen and the spectacularly awesome trackpad of the M6400/M6500, I'm still very hesitant, to this day, to part with this computer. Certainly a masterpiece.
Good choice. The M6500 combines the excellent casing of the M6400 with the modernity and performance of the i7/i5 series. It's tough to go wrong with either of those machines.
Good to hear; glad you enjoyed the review. The ergonomics of this system are very impressive. Even if you don't use the jog shuttle features, that trackpad is still an excellent performer.
I have one and still rocks! even with win 10 pro but win 7 do fine, i love it and i have no plans to change brand mark. thanks dell for this piece of art.
Thank for the video. I ve just buy a M4800 and i´m very happy about the sound card. Incredible real sound as i've never heard directly from a laptop. I have a macbook pro from 2008 and an Imac from 2012 and there´s no point of comparation between them and the M4800.
I'm glad you enjoyed it. While the M6400 won't be as muscular as the 6800, it will cost significantly less, so it'd make a great secondary machine for a variety of purposes if you've already got newer-generation hardware.
@Brent - If I ever own any of those, I'll definitely make an effort to publish a video. I do own a filmsy one-inch throwaway as well. Actually a .6-inch, to be precise - the fourth generation ThinkPad X1 Carbon. It cost almost three times as much as the M6400 and is about exactly as powerful, although the screen size, product dimensions overall, and storage expandability are dramatically downsized. For an ultraportable, I can't complain, but it doesn't replace the good old M6400 for me, despite its surprisingly-good performance.
3700m, actually, but still quite good (and it might be compatible with the 3800m as well). It's clear that the GPU (not the CPU) wears the proverbial pants in this relationship. Still, the T9900 is no slouch, and the M6400 still provides an impressive amount of performance for the price, especially if you don't absolutely need bleeding-edge technology.
This video has gotten me to switch to Dell, I'm tired of my T61p mostly overheating related I don't Need a laptop idling at 62C in my laptop with brand new thermal paste, I'm thinking of buying a M4400, it supports Core 2 Quads, Lowe's wattage but faster GPU and it's just as sleek as the Thinkpad, great video!
Interestingly, I too went to the M6400 from a T61p. The T61p ran well, but I wanted a bit more performance and 1920x1200 without the compromises. That and a 17" screen. At a decent price. The T61p was good, but the M6400 really shows it up. Glad you enjoyed the video!
i actually ended up getting a sandy Precision M4600, its not the 16:10 1920x1200 laptop i wanted but its MXM, has 4 ram slots and fits my needs, actually lucked out and got a fully loaded one for 95 bucks, the only catch is that its an i5, and not the typical i7 QM's but a 2670QM is cheap enough
@Giovanni Good find. While that machine is only a 15"er, the performance should be excellent with the newer chipset and components. And you can't beat getting such a modern and powerful laptop for
Saludos tengo una dell 6400 que al encender se apaga, y no funciona. Que podría ser? Greetings I have a dell 6400 that turns off when I turn it on, and does not work. What could it be?
I got two of these on eBay for $150.00. I have previously been using the XPS M1710 (I have 3 of those) but I wanted a Precision. Both of mine have the Core 2 Extreme QX9300 and the NVIDIOA Quadro FX 2700M. They both work but only have the 1400 x 900 screen. Awesome machines.
Good find. They don't show up that often in lots on eBay anymore, but the ones that are there are usually in pretty good condition. This'll be a welcomed upgrade from the M1710 that doesn't break the bank. The 1440x900 screen might not be as dense, but it's not a bad panel either (as long as it is the name-brand original).
Windows 10 Pro works fine for everything I do with it. No issues for me. A great machine if equipped with a robust SSD/8GB and a Q9000 CPU. Picked mine up for £80 about 4 years ago. Yes...£80!
Good find. I use 10 on my other computer, mainly for its improvements in high-density display support and multi-monitor functionality, but avoid it on my M6400 to keep potential headaches at bay.
Helllo, really nice video i use right now a DELL Precision M4400 and it's already an excellent computer not as good as the M6400 but well, full hd screen keyboard light and really responsive all the connection possibility are here and, the eport for more connection this laptop line is really excellent
I love'em. I have 4, but only 1 works right now. 1 failed after being recently upgraded and maxed out, RAM, CPU, Video Card, for which I switched to Linux on- probably loose RAM board. But watch out, they tend to overheat. Most of what I have now have been modified with heat sink, over the GPU I believe. They'll overheat to failure over time.. But they're cool, last of non-HD 17" screens. As a CodeMonkey, it has more useful centered Real Estate. I tend to keep'em all on raised cooling platform. When refurbished new from Dell, thank god I bought the Dell Biz Warranty, cause I needed it. One failed one Denver Summer in middle of Contract and they came to house immediately. That one had motherboard replaced multiple times.
Nice. Too bad so many of them died on you though. Mine shows no signs of stopping, especially after upgrading to solid state storage last fall. And don't sell that screen short - WUXGA is most certainly *not* "non-HD". In fact, they scaled back to 1920x1080 after switching to 16:9, essentially chopping off that ¼ megapixel from the top and bottom. At any rate, it's good to hear that you still have one going strong!
I saw one of these with a Core 2 Extreme (either a X9100 or QX9000, wasn't specified) sell for a little over $40! Really wish I would have had the cash to get that! It seems like others have caught on, as in the past few months, these things have become more pricey on sites such as eBay.
I'm fairly confident that it'll be temporary. The price tends to go down when the supply goes up, which happens when enterprises upgrade and the surplus winds up on eBay or elsewhere in the used supply chain. You'll see a batch of them appear in the market at once, and then a supply slump might bring up the prices temporarily. I have the feeling that this computer is old enough that we're past that initial volatility. It should all be downhill from here.
I have one of these that I shelled out 1200 bucks few years back; don't want to connect to internet anymore. the 2nd one I bought for $130 about 2 years back and its having touch pad problems. and 2 weeks ago I bought my 3rd for 180. I like the big screen. the only problem I really have is they can get pretty hot (that too is an advantage in winter if you think about it lol) the solution is to open back cover and clean out the cooling fans.
Excellent review, man -- thanks. I've ALMOST run out of excuses on this beast, but I see two _highly_ divergent opinions on the inbuilt speakers. One guy says they are "garbage," other guy says they are the best he's heard! I know the M6300 got raves for sound, but the driver is DIFFERENT (though distantly related). I guess I'm spoiled by my Inspiron 9400. What's _your_ verdict?? TIA
I don't use the built-in speakers terribly often, so it's not something with which I have a lot of experience to base an opinion off of, but they seem acceptable. I don't remember ever being particularly impressed or depressed by their performance.
Yeah, see one of the main things I do is listen to music videos on TH-cam, and I'm so spoiled I don't want to hook up external speakers or headphones. I even went to the trouble of downloading the audio driver -- found out it's the same driver as for the Latitude E6400, which has FAMOUSLY bad sound (I'll vouch for it)! Sad thing is that IDT bought SigmaTel right around when theM6400 came out, yet APPARENTLY they stuck with their bad sound, instead of using the excellent SigmaTel system from the M6300. So I guess I'm stuck. Wish I could get my hands on one. You can't tell anything by listening third hand through the internet. I agree though, it's an EPIC laptop for the price right now. Artificially low cause they didn't keep it up for Win10. Most people aren't so picky like me, and those that are usually prefer external speakers. Win10 is nothing but a huge data mining scam anyhow. ;-} Since Microsluff is going out of the software business, I'm hoping third parties will take over support for 7. Thanks again.
@rickideemus You're welcome. Hopefully something works out. 17" HP Elitebooks and Lenovo ThinkPads from the time might also be worth considering, but I haven't personally tried (or even priced) any of them out yet.
That would be the M6600 actually, if I'm not mistaken, which is also quite a great computer. Basically anything that had an MSRP this high is a pretty safe bet for not being a lemon. There are exceptions to that rule, but thankfully, these aren't them.
I replaced the motherboard and the video card of an HP EliteBook 8540w for only $42 and it's amazing..and also buying it used is about the same amount at this computer and they both have great specs to back them up!
Also has aluminum and a nice latch nice wide trackpad and a the only downside that I can see is that there's only a light above the display for the keyboard...
@@Browningate I work for living as a Coder, not a Gameboy. As I said, anyone who really wants to know about these and maintain them in working order to get stuff actually done, talk to me.
Great review. Really want to get one of these, especially the Covet. But overall, what would you say is the best 16:10 ratio laptop for gaming with non-chicklet keys & a pointer stick?
I'm probably not the best reference for anything related to gaming. Generally speaking, the 16:10 aspect ratio didn't stick around for most product lines after 2010, but was ultimately supplanted by 3:2, (seen in the 2015-and-newer Surface Pro line, among others) which is slowly gaining mass acceptance. Non-chicklet keyboards also started going away around that time, but this personally makes no difference to me. Pointing sticks are typically only seen on business-class computers (ThinkPads, Precisions, Latitudes, EliteBooks, etc.).
There is a known issue with using the FX3700M with some games or high demand applications. The screen goes black - but the computer keeps working. The ATI card is a much better choice for this particular model. I'm using my M6400 right now for this reply under Windows 10 and it works perfectly fine. Also, the front latch on this and the M6500 break easily. The RAID1 option for using two disk drives is very nice though.
Thanks for the insight. While I haven't had the particular issue that you describe, I have seen a strange bug where the DVI ports on the dock behave oddly. One of them will fail to recognize a monitor when the computer hasn't been running in a while (but will work flawlessly after reconnecting the monitor). The other port will always recognize the monitor, but sometimes lose the signal intermittently, resulting in an image that blinks (flickers) in and out, but only sometimes. The laptop's panel and VGA output don't ever show this symptom. The ATI card probably is the better choice, but I don't feel like dumping $50 and several hours of my time into it at this point. As for the latch issue, I haven't run into it on my personal M6400, but have seen it happen on one other one, so it is a noteworthy problem. When it does work right, it is a very satisfying latch mechanism though.
Yes, I have seen the same bug using DVI. I had the M6400 connected to two Dell U2412M's and saw this issue. I converted them over to display port and it went away. I'm moving to using an M4600 as my daily driver at the moment and I'd like to pickup an m4800 before the end of the year as they are really coming down in price now.
@Andrew - You had the exact same unique problems with each of the DVI ports? If so, that's really interesting and I would be very curious to find out exactly what causes it. I had also tried hooking up my monitor using a DisplayPort-to-HDMI adapter, (coupled with an HDMI to DVI adapter) but just ended up seeing the same thing happen. Maybe this is an issue worth exploring.
Yes, while I had a dual display setup. I eventually moved one display to each laptop so don't have that configuration these days. I also wanted to use one of the DVI ports on the screens and connect that to my HP Microserver. It could be a firmware issue in the dock.
@Andrew - Maybe. I thought I saw it happen once off of the laptop's own video output, but I'll test it the next time the bug appears to find out for sure. I would've thought that the dock acts as a simple passthrough.
Hello, great video. Do you know how many screens can be active (counting the laptop screen) at the same time. It has vga and displayport, plus the laptop's screen, is it possible to have the 3 working at the same time?
With DisplayPort, maybe, but that's a really big maybe. The only reason I say that is because newer Intel graphics support 3 monitors, but only if one of them is DisplayPort. Somehow this allows the 2-monitor rule to be broken. I don't personally own any native DisplayPort monitors, so I can't test it. GPUs that support 3 screens in semi-normal computers like this wasn't really a thing until at least a couple years after the M6400's time.
I just ordered a M4400, does not have the nicer design language but supports the same CPU, so I ordered a Q9100 to get performance similar to whats offered on cheap modern hardware. I hope I have got a model with the 1920x1200 LED display. I got it for a great price and the CPU was only $10.00, looking forward to it all arriving, this will be my cheap University Laptop. What do you think?
The Precision M4400 is very similar to the Latitude E6500 in terms of design, but probably has more powerful internals. It should be fine for most use scenarios as long as you have strong eyes to be able to make out the detail that comes with 1920x1200 on a 15" display. Alternatively, you can use the scaling built in to Windows, but this can be hit-or-miss on Windows 8 and older. The trackpad driver may or may not load on Windows 8 or newer though, so you may have to choose between full trackpad functionality and full scaling functionality. Budget some time to do a bit of experimentation.
Browningate Great, Thank you. Arrives tommorow so have the weekend to play with it. Haven't decided yet If I'm going Win 10 or fully commit to a Linux distro. CPU won't come for a few weeks I don't think.
@Gowland Sounds good; hope everything works out. I've not dealt with Linux distributions much myself, although I do have a couple fully-configured virtual machines hanging around (they were a pain to get fully set up the way I like them). I'd personally rather run Windows, but if you can tolerate a Linux, (and the hardware supports it) then it might not be a bad idea. I'd be curious to find out how the various distributions handle high-density display scaling. Windows has always been 1-2 years behind the industry in that area.
Browningate I've had the laptop for a week now and have settled on using Fedora, I initially installed Win 10 and found you were right the scaling was irritating and made navigation a pain, fedora handles it greatly and even has graphics drivers to support the old Nvidia card built into the OS. I upgraded the CPU to a Q9100 from the T9600 cost £9 and put in an SSD I had spare. Works great, I find fedora and the gnome 3 desktop great on this laptop, makes it feel super fast and very good navigation.
@Samuel Good deal. I'll have to either spin up a virtual machine or load it on a spare and see for myself how it handles high density. Windows 10 has improved the scaling tremendously over its predecessors, but still lags slightly behind OSX (from what I've heard, at least). I'd be curious to see how it handles multiple monitors with independent scaling levels (150% on monitor 1 and 100% on monitor 2, for example). If these Linux distributions have really good multi-monitor scaling capabilities, then that's a hugely compelling feature in its own right.
If you count unpublished content over the years, this would actually technically be the big 100. Otherwise, I've just got a quick & fun tutorial coming up in the next week or two, followed by the long-awaited conclusion to the Moto X Pure Edition review. After that, there is still a ton of content in the pipe, probably more than I have time to edit; in fact, I usually end up having to cancel close to five videos a year due to time constraints.
Great laptop and review, i would like to get myself one. I have a maxed M6300 with 8gb of ram and x9000, ssd and bluray 1920x1200 glossy panel but the 16gb ddr3 support and double hdd and overall neat design language is way superior than my m6300.
I have the dell precision m4700 it has a Intel core i7 3940XM Extreme 3GHz cpu and a 15.6 1080p display and 2tb ssd and a 256gb msata drive and Bluetooth and wifi and a blu-ray drive that I installed myself and the precision is running windows 11pro and the notebook has 32gb of ddr3 ram installed
Is this laptop suitable for heavy gaming such as GTA 5, red dead redemption 2, watch dogs, assassins creed origins, etc And also can it run softwares such as Adobe photoshop, Adobe premiere Pro, etc?
Manage your expectations and follow vendor guidelines. I haven't personally tried any of those things, but it stands to reason that they could run those things in some capacity. Some fine people have posted their results with the FX 3700M and FX 2700M, even right here on TH-cam. This should give you a pretty good start for Grand Theft Auto V Five: th-cam.com/video/Fv2_rSUjYHU/w-d-xo.html
I have this laptop, 15,6 inch version and I'm still looking for a proper nvidia quadro 1000m driver for win xp 32 bits. Have you seen one anywhere floating around the net? Thanks!
Yep. It's still available on both the product support page from Dell and on Nvidia's website (www.nvidia.com/Download/driverResults.aspx/58446/en-us/).
Hey friend I have a problem with my computer, it is the same as the one on your video but the audio locks up, I don't know why you could help me, it has windows 10
Thank you.. I realize this is an older video... But, I did find it useful.... But, How do I turn on "BLUETOOTH"... LOL I purchased a bluetooth speaker, as the built in deck speakers finally let go, the micro foam surround of the cone, rotted away... lol.. Yes, I run my laptop hard...
As long as you've got the drivers and software properly installed, you should be able to right click the bluetooth icon in the tray and select "turn adapter on" from the dropdown. As for the speakers, if they're shot, they could probably be replaced fairly easily. As best as I can tell from looking at the service manual and a teardown video, (th-cam.com/video/p1ufybCEHZA/w-d-xo.htmlm39s) they're part of the palmrest assembly, so if you replace your palmrest, you get new speakers as well.
I was going to comment about how great my Precision M6700 is, but then I read the word "inexpensive" in the description, and realised the M6700 did not fit with the theme, since in the spec I have it, it commonly sells for £1000+
Even though they took a few steps back with the M6600 and newer models, (screen aspect ratio, keyboard, etc.) it's still a formidable force of 17" laptops.
@@Browningate what kind of steps back do you refer to in particular? When I look at the Core I series precisions over the Core 2 series, I only see improvements
@@skyediann3399 Not the chipset. Those have gotten consistently better. I'm talking about the machine itself and changes made to the 17" precision throughout its life after the M6500 (shorter screen, funky keyboard, etc.).
@@Browningate Ah yes I see what you mean now, I always thought bigger 17" laptops looked better with 16:10 displays opposed to 16:9. 4:3 works too but I've never really liked 4:3 on a big laptop. The M6700 has a usable keyboard, and it's definitely better than a lot of modern laptops, but not ThinkPad level.
@@skyediann3399 I'm personally glad that they moved away from 4:3 in laptops, as this compromised the keyboard size for laptops of all sizes. In my opinion, 16:10 is the perfect aspect ratio, and I'm glad that Microsoft is at least keeping something similar alive with their 3:2 format portable computers.
Core 2 Duo probably isn't the best choice for hardcore "modern" gaming, but that doesn't mean that the machine is a write-off in terms of performance. As far as relative 17" performance is concerned, you can't beat it, but if you just want to game on the cheap, you can probably do better with a 14-15" machine from a few years ago.
This nigga said Mario kart wii on this laptop isn't an accomplishment WTFFFFFFFFFF THIS BITCH CAN RUN WII GAMES I OWN THIS SHIT AND I DIDNT KNOW WTFF btw! What do you recommend to upgrade on mine i got 250 gb 8 gigs of ram im trying to be able to atleast run battle royale games and just like you im really only into older titles as well
Hey. I'm planning to buy it now. 2 things. Is it worth it buying now. Second, I'm a designer, will it run illustrator Photoshop premiere 2015 smoothly?
I don't use those Adobe programs, so I can't say for sure. I'd imagine that you'd probably have some luck with it though, as long as it meets the general requirements.
They might. I seem to remember putting a great deal of effort into it but getting nowhere (with that and the Bluetooth). I've seen it work when doing an upgrade install from Windows 7 to 10. That's kind of a convoluted way to go about doing it, but if it works, it works (I've not tried this firsthand however).
Its possible upgrade the cpu and gpu? I dont have money for a M4800 or a new laptop for cad design, i use PTC Creo 5.0. So, how can i do, what gpu e cpu can i put on M6400 for make close M4800? Sorry my bad english...
You can upgrade both the CPU and the GPU, as was mentioned in the video, but I don't think it would be a worthwhile investment of time or other resources.
i am about to buy one as my linux machine with core 2 extreme processor, thanks for great video my excitement is very high. EDIT- Bought one in reasonable condition for Rs.10000 ,512mb graphics and core 2 Extreme processor , only one problem Tap to click is not working on touchpad not sure why and not sure how to fix it. Any help will be appreciated.
Make sure that you've installed the correct trackpad driver. Getting full functionality out of it might require Windows, (if you've never used Linux before, get used to ~10% of things not working at any given time being the norm) where the driver installs and functions flawlessly. Personally, I have tap-to-click turned off because I despise tap-to-click, so if that's the worst problem you're encountering with your computer, you're actually in pretty good shape.
Thanx for response , got things going on pretty smooth after a normal windows installation , bluetooth module is missing a weak GPU and under watt power adapter are few issues. I mean I would have loved 1gb GPU variant but let's see how it works.
Look impressive, however at around 200 euro for a core2duo machine, might as well stick with a T530. Also, a T500 from 2008 can be had for peanuts and works rather well with W10.
While the T530 _can_ beat the M6400 in terms of chipset, (if equipped with better graphics, which it often isn't) it's sold with a smaller, lower-resolution (and typically crummier, unless specially equipped) display. The T500 is even worse off. Unless you're using the thing as a desktop, I would not be able to tolerate any of those panels.
After watching both vids on your M6400, I went ahead and bought one! I love it in Burnt Orange colour. It came with Win 7, and like an idiot I upgraded to Win 10. Which may explain why I cant update the BIOS from A11 to A13, it keeps failing. Any ideas?
Hi there, sorry I haven't responded, just seen this. I gave up on 10 and put it to Win 7 64 Ultimate. Was able to update BIOS and get everything to work! Thing is, it feels a little slower under 7? I wonder if its me or a reality?
Better yet Gameboys, get a M6800. Been absolutely flawless over years. "Sorry it's HD- I don't like it too- but won't seize on a whim. & get a heat sink for your 6400, although not convinced that solves everything heat related.
I love my Dells but if your doing anything, grab a dock. The best accessory hands down. Even if you dont plan to use the ports the easy on and easy off charging is fantastic. No broken charger ports! So easy my 6 year old can use it.
Interestingly there are some people who have managed to hack a full blown pcix16 video card adapter into this series laptop's expresscard slot More info here: egpu.io/forums/expresscard-mpcie-m-2-adapters/dell-m4600-expresscard-exp-gdc-beast-v8-4-no-detection-help-evga-geoforce-gtx-750-ti-win7/
I've had my Dell Precision M6400 Mobile Workstation Laptop since October, 2009, and I love it! Not only do I still use it, but I love it a lot more than my Toshiba Satellite A45 S-150 Laptop for its performance, the novelty of having a secondary internal drive, AND SSD support.
The Dell Precision M6400 Mobile Workstation is expandable to 16 GB of DDR3 SODIMM RAM, so beefing it up all the way just makes it an amazing experience for DAWs, NLEs, and graphics applications, like Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.
It's good to hear that the M6400 is still serving you well. Even though newer-generation ultrabooks can match it in terms of performance, you can't beat the price-to-muscle ratio of the M6400, especially not in the 17" class.
Definitely! -I plan to find another Dell Precision M6400 off eBay for future projects, now that I know how to monitor my mic and line-in jack. Additionally, I learned that Dell's website released Windows 8 32-bit/64-bit drivers for the Dell Precision M6400, so it's possible that there might be Windows 10 drivers in the not-so-distant future.
@DoctorKosher - To be honest, I haven't seen any Windows 8 (or newer) drivers for the M6400 on Dell's website myself, but most will install/work okay under 8/8.1/10 except for the Jog Shuttle. That said, I've heard reports of people installing Windows 7, loading the drivers, and then upgrading to Windows 10 in order to retain the Jog Shuttle. For me, it's not worth the effort, but I'd definitely keep it in mind.
Just bought one Aug 24. And I'm very happy. I trade so I need this.
I paid full price for mine. I'm still using it today. It was a sound investment.
I found one of these in a recycle bin last week. Went to a recycling center to pick up a Genuine adapter for it, installed windows 10 and then figured I'd give it away.
Then I discovered the battery still worked. Then I discovered the windows key under the battery.Then I looked it up on the internet.
Phew, I'm holding onto this!!
Good find! Hope it works out for you. I'd keep my eye on that bin to see if anything else of value shows up in there ;-)
I triple boot from three operating systems on the m6400. They are Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows 7 64 bit. It works perfectly with all three. As a matter of fact, I also have all three operating systems working on my m6500 as well.
Dang. It makes sense that XP would work, but 2000 seems kind of old, even for this hardware (especially so for the M6500). Does Nvidia have Windows 2000 drivers for video cards that new, or did you have to jerry-rig something to get it to work?
@@Browningate I no longer have the Precision m6400. But when I did, it had the NVidia Quadro FX 2800m video card in it. I also found a rare nVidia driver for windows 2000\XP for it as well.
I then learned how to extend the Windows 2000 operating system Kernel in order to get it to accept newer software as well. I also learned enough to modify the sound driver to get it to work as well.
Windows 2000 Professional also only recognizes a maximum of two cores of any processor as well. Because of that I had to modify it so that I was able to get it to recognize up to 12 cores now.
Besides the M6400 laptop, I've also installed Windows 2000 Professional on many other i7 computers including the Precision M6500 and M6600 as well. In one of my current machines, I've also been able to get the blueray and USB 3 to work in Win 2000 as well.
If you would like to learn how I did this, please contact me at ralphs88@bell.net. PS I also learned how to modify Nvidia drivers as well to add machines and (or) other cards to them as well - within reason that is.
i have this laptop. I love it. I use it mainly as a stationary desktop. Until I need to bring it along with me on my travels. Beautiful machine. It has 8 gigs and a terrabyte HD. No need for hdmi since I can cast whatever movies and photos to my smart tv.
I'd have to agree with you. Despite the small annoyances, (mostly related to the dock and video system) this is probably the best all-around computer that I've ever owned and the first one that hasn't made me hungry for an upgrade right away. And HDMI is never more than a simple $5 passive adapter away! That said, I always keep an eye out for good deals, but this thing should do just fine for years to come; storage upgrades may improve things even further. The Precision M6400 truly is some of Dell's finest work.
Best laptop I have ever worked with . Love the 16:10 screen.
Right there with you. 16:10 is the best. Dell has finally seen the light and is starting to bring it back with one or two of this year's models. Microsoft has had 3:2 screens (which are even taller than 16:10) for a few years now. I suspect that it won't be long before the rest of the industry follows suit and comes home.
I love my Dell computers too. I have a Vostro 3700 with an i540m, and Nvidia geforce 330m graphics, a very good desktop replacement, a Latitude e6440 and e7470. I love my business class over the cheap consumer stuff and like you I might not be much of a gamer, But my laptops are more then powerful. What I really enjoy is my e6440. I have dual SSD setup in that plus DVD drive. It's not nearly as powerful as my XPS 8700, but I am not laying in bed for hours with that. The lighted keyboards on these things make for an even better enjoyment. I've owned an M4800 too. These things are built like tanks. All for about or in my case less then the cost of an HP stream like device. I use Linux honestly more then Windows these days, but I do have the licences to run Windows 7 and 10, but I don't like 10. When I ordered my XPS 8700 I got the highest end model bit with Windows 7 pro. I was at the very end of buying a new device with that. But my e7470 had the ability and support to downgrade and so of course I did. Because Windows 10 pro isn't very pro. What pro needs a bunch of bloat like Candy Crush? lol
Glad you enjoyed it. Dell had some good stuff around this era. I'll have put about 3 years on mine this coming Spring, and it still runs strong. I'll probably bite the bullet on Windows 10 around that time as well, or possibly track down a newer Precision (or Alienware, although I'd prefer to stick with the Precision to retain the docking capabilities).
Browningate Can I recommend something like Mint instead? I assure you it will work better over all. I've ran Arch, Ubuntu and Mint on most of my hardware. Arch I great, but I don't recommend it for a new user. Especially since you've got Nvidia based graphics, installing the proprietary packages isn't too hard but getting everything to work properly is a little tougher. Mint 19 runs on my Latitude e series like a dream. Battery life is better too over all. Especially over Windows 10. That constantly updating stuff really kills battery life.
@R.A. - Of all the Linux experiences I've had in my life, not a single one was good. I absolutely don't buy the myth that it's "faster," "lighter," or of any higher efficiency than Windows. Heck, I once had a crappy little Atom-based Samsung Netbook, and that thing (with 2GB of RAM) was quicker to do most things under Windows 7 than it was with Ubuntu. For as many minor foibles as Windows has, everything pretty much just works. The hardware works, 100% of rational software is compatible, the mouse acceleration is perfect, the aesthetics (of 7) have aged well, and it's never really annoyed me except for when it makes the executive decision to restart without asking.
Bro u make me fall in love with ur voice...great narration I subscribed
Im watching this video on a Dell Precision M6400.
I picked up one of these a couple years ago. Bare computer , no battery or HDD. I installed 256gb and 500 ssd drives, bumped the RAM from 4gb to 8gb. Mine has a more modest processor and the lesser display.............. but man............ what a nice high quality machine. Runs great, and is a joy to work on when doing upgrades, etc. I also picked up a M6600, but gave it to my daughter as I actually like the 16:10 display on the M6400 better.
I wholeheartedly agree. For me, the only upgrade from here would be to an M6500. It wasn't until 2019 when mainstream manufacturers really started embracing 16:10 once again, with the exception of Microsoft, who has been putting 3:2 screens in many of their Surface computers for a couple of years already. Between that 16:10 screen and the spectacularly awesome trackpad of the M6400/M6500, I'm still very hesitant, to this day, to part with this computer. Certainly a masterpiece.
I've got an M6500 and it kicks ass despite being nearly 7 years old!
Good choice. The M6500 combines the excellent casing of the M6400 with the modernity and performance of the i7/i5 series. It's tough to go wrong with either of those machines.
A great review! Just picked up one of these for cheap, and am quite pleased with it so far. Had no idea that the touchpad could light up like that!
Good to hear; glad you enjoyed the review. The ergonomics of this system are very impressive. Even if you don't use the jog shuttle features, that trackpad is still an excellent performer.
I have one and still rocks! even with win 10 pro but win 7 do fine, i love it and i have no plans to change brand mark. thanks dell for this piece of art.
I have this conputer and i love it this is the Ultimate Windows XP gaming laptop
Thank for the video. I ve just buy a M4800 and i´m very happy about the sound card. Incredible real sound as i've never heard directly from a laptop. I have a macbook pro from 2008 and an Imac from 2012 and there´s no point of comparation between them and the M4800.
Are you referring to the speakers or the DAC in general?
@@Browningate Im talking about the DAC when you conect it in a hi fi stereo or headphones
@@gonzalorocha3105 Nice. Does that model still have an IDT audio chipset?
Great video! I'm looking to grab one to complement my 6800 of which I'm in love with!
I'm glad you enjoyed it. While the M6400 won't be as muscular as the 6800, it will cost significantly less, so it'd make a great secondary machine for a variety of purposes if you've already got newer-generation hardware.
@@Browningate You should do a video on the 66,67 or 6800. They're superior machines to today's flimsy one inch throw aways.
@Brent - If I ever own any of those, I'll definitely make an effort to publish a video. I do own a filmsy one-inch throwaway as well. Actually a .6-inch, to be precise - the fourth generation ThinkPad X1 Carbon. It cost almost three times as much as the M6400 and is about exactly as powerful, although the screen size, product dimensions overall, and storage expandability are dramatically downsized. For an ultraportable, I can't complain, but it doesn't replace the good old M6400 for me, despite its surprisingly-good performance.
Quadro Fx 3800m? SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY!!!! buying one now
3700m, actually, but still quite good (and it might be compatible with the 3800m as well). It's clear that the GPU (not the CPU) wears the proverbial pants in this relationship. Still, the T9900 is no slouch, and the M6400 still provides an impressive amount of performance for the price, especially if you don't absolutely need bleeding-edge technology.
This video has gotten me to switch to Dell, I'm tired of my T61p mostly overheating related I don't Need a laptop idling at 62C in my laptop with brand new thermal paste, I'm thinking of buying a M4400, it supports Core 2 Quads, Lowe's wattage but faster GPU and it's just as sleek as the Thinkpad, great video!
Interestingly, I too went to the M6400 from a T61p. The T61p ran well, but I wanted a bit more performance and 1920x1200 without the compromises. That and a 17" screen. At a decent price. The T61p was good, but the M6400 really shows it up. Glad you enjoyed the video!
i actually ended up getting a sandy Precision M4600, its not the 16:10 1920x1200 laptop i wanted but its MXM, has 4 ram slots and fits my needs, actually lucked out and got a fully loaded one for 95 bucks, the only catch is that its an i5, and not the typical i7 QM's but a 2670QM is cheap enough
@Giovanni
Good find. While that machine is only a 15"er, the performance should be excellent with the newer chipset and components. And you can't beat getting such a modern and powerful laptop for
Saludos tengo una dell 6400 que al encender se apaga, y no funciona. Que podría ser?
Greetings I have a dell 6400 that turns off when I turn it on, and does not work. What could it be?
How soon afterward? Does it post? Do you see anything on the screen at all?
I got two of these on eBay for $150.00. I have previously been using the XPS M1710 (I have 3 of those) but I wanted a Precision. Both of mine have the Core 2 Extreme QX9300 and the NVIDIOA Quadro FX 2700M. They both work but only have the 1400 x 900 screen. Awesome machines.
Good find. They don't show up that often in lots on eBay anymore, but the ones that are there are usually in pretty good condition. This'll be a welcomed upgrade from the M1710 that doesn't break the bank. The 1440x900 screen might not be as dense, but it's not a bad panel either (as long as it is the name-brand original).
Windows 10 Pro works fine for everything I do with it. No issues for me. A great machine if equipped with a robust SSD/8GB and a Q9000 CPU. Picked mine up for £80 about 4 years ago. Yes...£80!
Good find. I use 10 on my other computer, mainly for its improvements in high-density display support and multi-monitor functionality, but avoid it on my M6400 to keep potential headaches at bay.
Helllo,
really nice video
i use right now a DELL Precision M4400 and it's already an excellent computer not as good as the M6400 but well, full hd screen keyboard light and really responsive all the connection possibility are here and, the eport for more connection
this laptop line is really excellent
I love'em. I have 4, but only 1 works right now. 1 failed after being recently upgraded and maxed out, RAM, CPU, Video Card, for which I switched to Linux on- probably loose RAM board. But watch out, they tend to overheat. Most of what I have now have been modified with heat sink, over the GPU I believe. They'll overheat to failure over time.. But they're cool, last of non-HD 17" screens. As a CodeMonkey, it has more useful centered Real Estate. I tend to keep'em all on raised cooling platform. When refurbished new from Dell, thank god I bought the Dell Biz Warranty, cause I needed it. One failed one Denver Summer in middle of Contract and they came to house immediately. That one had motherboard replaced multiple times.
Nice. Too bad so many of them died on you though. Mine shows no signs of stopping, especially after upgrading to solid state storage last fall. And don't sell that screen short - WUXGA is most certainly *not* "non-HD". In fact, they scaled back to 1920x1080 after switching to 16:9, essentially chopping off that ¼ megapixel from the top and bottom. At any rate, it's good to hear that you still have one going strong!
Best way to prevent em from overheating in my experience was to prop the back up with a book or something to unrestrict the airflow…worked for me
I saw one of these with a Core 2 Extreme (either a X9100 or QX9000, wasn't specified) sell for a little over $40! Really wish I would have had the cash to get that! It seems like others have caught on, as in the past few months, these things have become more pricey on sites such as eBay.
I'm fairly confident that it'll be temporary. The price tends to go down when the supply goes up, which happens when enterprises upgrade and the surplus winds up on eBay or elsewhere in the used supply chain. You'll see a batch of them appear in the market at once, and then a supply slump might bring up the prices temporarily. I have the feeling that this computer is old enough that we're past that initial volatility. It should all be downhill from here.
I have one of these that I shelled out 1200 bucks few years back; don't want to connect to internet anymore. the 2nd one I bought for $130 about 2 years back and its having touch pad problems. and 2 weeks ago I bought my 3rd for 180. I like the big screen. the only problem I really have is they can get pretty hot (that too is an advantage in winter if you think about it lol) the solution is to open back cover and clean out the cooling fans.
Excellent review, man -- thanks. I've ALMOST run out of excuses on this beast, but I see two _highly_ divergent opinions on the inbuilt speakers. One guy says they are "garbage," other guy says they are the best he's heard! I know the M6300 got raves for sound, but the driver is DIFFERENT (though distantly related). I guess I'm spoiled by my Inspiron 9400. What's _your_ verdict?? TIA
I don't use the built-in speakers terribly often, so it's not something with which I have a lot of experience to base an opinion off of, but they seem acceptable. I don't remember ever being particularly impressed or depressed by their performance.
Yeah, see one of the main things I do is listen to music videos on TH-cam, and I'm so spoiled I don't want to hook up external speakers or headphones. I even went to the trouble of downloading the audio driver -- found out it's the same driver as for the Latitude E6400, which has FAMOUSLY bad sound (I'll vouch for it)! Sad thing is that IDT bought SigmaTel right around when theM6400 came out, yet APPARENTLY they stuck with their bad sound, instead of using the excellent SigmaTel system from the M6300. So I guess I'm stuck. Wish I could get my hands on one. You can't tell anything by listening third hand through the internet.
I agree though, it's an EPIC laptop for the price right now. Artificially low cause they didn't keep it up for Win10. Most people aren't so picky like me, and those that are usually prefer external speakers. Win10 is nothing but a huge data mining scam anyhow. ;-} Since Microsluff is going out of the software business, I'm hoping third parties will take over support for 7. Thanks again.
@rickideemus
You're welcome. Hopefully something works out. 17" HP Elitebooks and Lenovo ThinkPads from the time might also be worth considering, but I haven't personally tried (or even priced) any of them out yet.
I know I am a little late... but thank you for the video. Looking for an inexpensive laptop that can be a somewhat powerhouse for some programming.
It's never too late to enjoy a good Dell Precision. Thanks for checking it out.
I have a few of these.. no batteries but still a powerhouse for a i7-2nd gen with a SSD in it
That would be the M6600 actually, if I'm not mistaken, which is also quite a great computer. Basically anything that had an MSRP this high is a pretty safe bet for not being a lemon. There are exceptions to that rule, but thankfully, these aren't them.
I replaced the motherboard and the video card of an HP EliteBook 8540w for only $42 and it's amazing..and also buying it used is about the same amount at this computer and they both have great specs to back them up!
Also has aluminum and a nice latch nice wide trackpad and a the only downside that I can see is that there's only a light above the display for the keyboard...
Aaand it had a pointing stick
And the extra 3 buttons
Woah
...
Cool trackpad
Ok I'm in pressed...I do like the build of that one a little better but hey they're both pretty amazing offers for used laptops
I have 4 of these since 2010. I use them mostly as paper-weights. I can advise you on them.
Oh really? The person who uses computers as paperweights can advise me. That's precious.
@@Browningate I work for living as a Coder, not a Gameboy. As I said, anyone who really wants to know about these and maintain them in working order to get stuff actually done, talk to me.
@jphedley - 10-4 there, paperweight man! ;-)
Great review. Really want to get one of these, especially the Covet. But overall, what would you say is the best 16:10 ratio laptop for gaming with non-chicklet keys & a pointer stick?
I'm probably not the best reference for anything related to gaming. Generally speaking, the 16:10 aspect ratio didn't stick around for most product lines after 2010, but was ultimately supplanted by 3:2, (seen in the 2015-and-newer Surface Pro line, among others) which is slowly gaining mass acceptance. Non-chicklet keyboards also started going away around that time, but this personally makes no difference to me. Pointing sticks are typically only seen on business-class computers (ThinkPads, Precisions, Latitudes, EliteBooks, etc.).
This thing's a monster!
An epic beast for sure.
There is a known issue with using the FX3700M with some games or high demand applications. The screen goes black - but the computer keeps working. The ATI card is a much better choice for this particular model. I'm using my M6400 right now for this reply under Windows 10 and it works perfectly fine. Also, the front latch on this and the M6500 break easily. The RAID1 option for using two disk drives is very nice though.
Thanks for the insight. While I haven't had the particular issue that you describe, I have seen a strange bug where the DVI ports on the dock behave oddly. One of them will fail to recognize a monitor when the computer hasn't been running in a while (but will work flawlessly after reconnecting the monitor). The other port will always recognize the monitor, but sometimes lose the signal intermittently, resulting in an image that blinks (flickers) in and out, but only sometimes. The laptop's panel and VGA output don't ever show this symptom. The ATI card probably is the better choice, but I don't feel like dumping $50 and several hours of my time into it at this point.
As for the latch issue, I haven't run into it on my personal M6400, but have seen it happen on one other one, so it is a noteworthy problem. When it does work right, it is a very satisfying latch mechanism though.
Yes, I have seen the same bug using DVI. I had the M6400 connected to two Dell U2412M's and saw this issue. I converted them over to display port and it went away. I'm moving to using an M4600 as my daily driver at the moment and I'd like to pickup an m4800 before the end of the year as they are really coming down in price now.
@Andrew - You had the exact same unique problems with each of the DVI ports? If so, that's really interesting and I would be very curious to find out exactly what causes it. I had also tried hooking up my monitor using a DisplayPort-to-HDMI adapter, (coupled with an HDMI to DVI adapter) but just ended up seeing the same thing happen. Maybe this is an issue worth exploring.
Yes, while I had a dual display setup. I eventually moved one display to each laptop so don't have that configuration these days. I also wanted to use one of the DVI ports on the screens and connect that to my HP Microserver. It could be a firmware issue in the dock.
@Andrew - Maybe. I thought I saw it happen once off of the laptop's own video output, but I'll test it the next time the bug appears to find out for sure. I would've thought that the dock acts as a simple passthrough.
Hello, great video. Do you know how many screens can be active (counting the laptop screen) at the same time. It has vga and displayport, plus the laptop's screen, is it possible to have the 3 working at the same time?
With DisplayPort, maybe, but that's a really big maybe. The only reason I say that is because newer Intel graphics support 3 monitors, but only if one of them is DisplayPort. Somehow this allows the 2-monitor rule to be broken. I don't personally own any native DisplayPort monitors, so I can't test it. GPUs that support 3 screens in semi-normal computers like this wasn't really a thing until at least a couple years after the M6400's time.
I just ordered a M4400, does not have the nicer design language but supports the same CPU, so I ordered a Q9100 to get performance similar to whats offered on cheap modern hardware. I hope I have got a model with the 1920x1200 LED display. I got it for a great price and the CPU was only $10.00, looking forward to it all arriving, this will be my cheap University Laptop. What do you think?
The Precision M4400 is very similar to the Latitude E6500 in terms of design, but probably has more powerful internals. It should be fine for most use scenarios as long as you have strong eyes to be able to make out the detail that comes with 1920x1200 on a 15" display. Alternatively, you can use the scaling built in to Windows, but this can be hit-or-miss on Windows 8 and older. The trackpad driver may or may not load on Windows 8 or newer though, so you may have to choose between full trackpad functionality and full scaling functionality. Budget some time to do a bit of experimentation.
Browningate Great, Thank you. Arrives tommorow so have the weekend to play with it. Haven't decided yet If I'm going Win 10 or fully commit to a Linux distro. CPU won't come for a few weeks I don't think.
@Gowland
Sounds good; hope everything works out. I've not dealt with Linux distributions much myself, although I do have a couple fully-configured virtual machines hanging around (they were a pain to get fully set up the way I like them). I'd personally rather run Windows, but if you can tolerate a Linux, (and the hardware supports it) then it might not be a bad idea. I'd be curious to find out how the various distributions handle high-density display scaling. Windows has always been 1-2 years behind the industry in that area.
Browningate I've had the laptop for a week now and have settled on using Fedora, I initially installed Win 10 and found you were right the scaling was irritating and made navigation a pain, fedora handles it greatly and even has graphics drivers to support the old Nvidia card built into the OS. I upgraded the CPU to a Q9100 from the T9600 cost £9 and put in an SSD I had spare. Works great, I find fedora and the gnome 3 desktop great on this laptop, makes it feel super fast and very good navigation.
@Samuel
Good deal. I'll have to either spin up a virtual machine or load it on a spare and see for myself how it handles high density. Windows 10 has improved the scaling tremendously over its predecessors, but still lags slightly behind OSX (from what I've heard, at least). I'd be curious to see how it handles multiple monitors with independent scaling levels (150% on monitor 1 and 100% on monitor 2, for example). If these Linux distributions have really good multi-monitor scaling capabilities, then that's a hugely compelling feature in its own right.
You gotta do something special for your 100th video man
If you count unpublished content over the years, this would actually technically be the big 100. Otherwise, I've just got a quick & fun tutorial coming up in the next week or two, followed by the long-awaited conclusion to the Moto X Pure Edition review. After that, there is still a ton of content in the pipe, probably more than I have time to edit; in fact, I usually end up having to cancel close to five videos a year due to time constraints.
Browningate well, you don't have to. I didn't. But definitely looking forward to new stuff!
How do you have two monitors + internal display hooked up? My M6500 will only output to two displays, one if the internal display is on.
See 13:21.
Is this laptop still worth it today I'm planning on buying this one really loved it
Nice. Glad yours is still holding up. With an SSD and plenty of Ram, mine is too.
Next to the tracking pad there is a smart card reader can you explain how to use it
I think it's there no matter what.
Great laptop and review, i would like to get myself one. I have a maxed M6300 with 8gb of ram and x9000, ssd and bluray 1920x1200 glossy panel but the 16gb ddr3 support and double hdd and overall neat design language is way superior than my m6300.
Nice! It's always good to hear from folks still rocking these older machines.
I have the dell precision m4700 it has a Intel core i7 3940XM Extreme 3GHz cpu and a 15.6 1080p display and 2tb ssd and a 256gb msata drive and Bluetooth and wifi and a blu-ray drive that I installed myself and the precision is running windows 11pro and the notebook has 32gb of ddr3 ram installed
Is this laptop suitable for heavy gaming such as GTA 5, red dead redemption 2, watch dogs, assassins creed origins, etc
And also can it run softwares such as Adobe photoshop, Adobe premiere Pro, etc?
Manage your expectations and follow vendor guidelines. I haven't personally tried any of those things, but it stands to reason that they could run those things in some capacity. Some fine people have posted their results with the FX 3700M and FX 2700M, even right here on TH-cam. This should give you a pretty good start for Grand Theft Auto V Five: th-cam.com/video/Fv2_rSUjYHU/w-d-xo.html
@@Browningate thank you so much 👍💪
@devilz - You're welcome.
I have this laptop, 15,6 inch version and I'm still looking for a proper nvidia quadro 1000m driver for win xp 32 bits. Have you seen one anywhere floating around the net? Thanks!
Yep. It's still available on both the product support page from Dell and on Nvidia's website (www.nvidia.com/Download/driverResults.aspx/58446/en-us/).
Hey friend I have a problem with my computer, it is the same as the one on your video but the audio locks up, I don't know why you could help me, it has windows 10
Check the motherboard firmware settings to make sure that the storage is in AHCI mode and not RAID or IDE emulation.
Thank you.. I realize this is an older video... But, I did find it useful.... But, How do I turn on "BLUETOOTH"... LOL I purchased a bluetooth speaker, as the built in deck speakers finally let go, the micro foam surround of the cone, rotted away... lol.. Yes, I run my laptop hard...
As long as you've got the drivers and software properly installed, you should be able to right click the bluetooth icon in the tray and select "turn adapter on" from the dropdown. As for the speakers, if they're shot, they could probably be replaced fairly easily. As best as I can tell from looking at the service manual and a teardown video, (th-cam.com/video/p1ufybCEHZA/w-d-xo.htmlm39s) they're part of the palmrest assembly, so if you replace your palmrest, you get new speakers as well.
@@Browningate Yup, drivers are installed, and will check into this direction... Thank you brother!!!!!
I was going to comment about how great my Precision M6700 is, but then I read the word "inexpensive" in the description, and realised the M6700 did not fit with the theme, since in the spec I have it, it commonly sells for £1000+
Even though they took a few steps back with the M6600 and newer models, (screen aspect ratio, keyboard, etc.) it's still a formidable force of 17" laptops.
@@Browningate what kind of steps back do you refer to in particular? When I look at the Core I series precisions over the Core 2 series, I only see improvements
@@skyediann3399 Not the chipset. Those have gotten consistently better. I'm talking about the machine itself and changes made to the 17" precision throughout its life after the M6500 (shorter screen, funky keyboard, etc.).
@@Browningate Ah yes I see what you mean now, I always thought bigger 17" laptops looked better with 16:10 displays opposed to 16:9. 4:3 works too but I've never really liked 4:3 on a big laptop. The M6700 has a usable keyboard, and it's definitely better than a lot of modern laptops, but not ThinkPad level.
@@skyediann3399 I'm personally glad that they moved away from 4:3 in laptops, as this compromised the keyboard size for laptops of all sizes. In my opinion, 16:10 is the perfect aspect ratio, and I'm glad that Microsoft is at least keeping something similar alive with their 3:2 format portable computers.
would this be a good gaming pc in 2018? i have 12gb ram and a 500gb SSD. thinking my nephew could use it to play with.
Core 2 Duo probably isn't the best choice for hardcore "modern" gaming, but that doesn't mean that the machine is a write-off in terms of performance. As far as relative 17" performance is concerned, you can't beat it, but if you just want to game on the cheap, you can probably do better with a 14-15" machine from a few years ago.
This nigga said Mario kart wii on this laptop isn't an accomplishment WTFFFFFFFFFF THIS BITCH CAN RUN WII GAMES I OWN THIS SHIT AND I DIDNT KNOW WTFF btw! What do you recommend to upgrade on mine i got 250 gb 8 gigs of ram im trying to be able to atleast run battle royale games and just like you im really only into older titles as well
Hey. I'm planning to buy it now. 2 things. Is it worth it buying now. Second, I'm a designer, will it run illustrator Photoshop premiere 2015 smoothly?
I don't use those Adobe programs, so I can't say for sure. I'd imagine that you'd probably have some luck with it though, as long as it meets the general requirements.
Touchpad drivers wont run in legacy mode..?
They might. I seem to remember putting a great deal of effort into it but getting nowhere (with that and the Bluetooth). I've seen it work when doing an upgrade install from Windows 7 to 10. That's kind of a convoluted way to go about doing it, but if it works, it works (I've not tried this firsthand however).
Its possible upgrade the cpu and gpu? I dont have money for a M4800 or a new laptop for cad design, i use PTC Creo 5.0. So, how can i do, what gpu e cpu can i put on M6400 for make close M4800?
Sorry my bad english...
You can upgrade both the CPU and the GPU, as was mentioned in the video, but I don't think it would be a worthwhile investment of time or other resources.
I remember when these were new. It was the official laptop of white-collar cubicle jockeys.
And now affordable for the rest of us!
would updating from Win 7 to Win 10 retain the jog control?
Quite possibly. I've seen one that had it running on there, but I don't know how well it worked.
Thanks for the reply!
@marcusYou're welcome. Let me know how it works, if you try it.
i am about to buy one as my linux machine with core 2 extreme processor, thanks for great video my excitement is very high.
EDIT- Bought one in reasonable condition for Rs.10000 ,512mb graphics and core 2 Extreme processor , only one problem Tap to click is not working on touchpad not sure why and not sure how to fix it. Any help will be appreciated.
Make sure that you've installed the correct trackpad driver. Getting full functionality out of it might require Windows, (if you've never used Linux before, get used to ~10% of things not working at any given time being the norm) where the driver installs and functions flawlessly. Personally, I have tap-to-click turned off because I despise tap-to-click, so if that's the worst problem you're encountering with your computer, you're actually in pretty good shape.
Thanx for response , got things going on pretty smooth after a normal windows installation , bluetooth module is missing a weak GPU and under watt power adapter are few issues. I mean I would have loved 1gb GPU variant but let's see how it works.
@@ashutoshjha9147 Definitely get a full-power AC adapter for that machine to unlock its full potential. It's a heavy power supply, but well worth it.
Look impressive, however at around 200 euro for a core2duo machine, might as well stick with a T530. Also, a T500 from 2008 can be had for peanuts and works rather well with W10.
While the T530 _can_ beat the M6400 in terms of chipset, (if equipped with better graphics, which it often isn't) it's sold with a smaller, lower-resolution (and typically crummier, unless specially equipped) display. The T500 is even worse off. Unless you're using the thing as a desktop, I would not be able to tolerate any of those panels.
Does anyone know what port is right under the laptop?
Next to the dock connector?
Also a great video, thanks for the info. Enjoy your retirement, Thinkpad T61p!!
Glad it was helpful. The M6400 is a welcome upgrade, and arguably the perfect next step from the T61p.
After watching both vids on your M6400, I went ahead and bought one! I love it in Burnt Orange colour. It came with Win 7, and like an idiot I upgraded to Win 10. Which may explain why I cant update the BIOS from A11 to A13, it keeps failing. Any ideas?
Not that I can think of. All three of the M6400s that I upgraded went smoothly. Where is it getting hung up for you?
Hi there, sorry I haven't responded, just seen this. I gave up on 10 and put it to Win 7 64 Ultimate. Was able to update BIOS and get everything to work! Thing is, it feels a little slower under 7? I wonder if its me or a reality?
running windows 10 on it
ark survival evolved working
the only cheap laptop that can run it
When it comes to value for the money, it's hard to beat the M6400.
Which is the ultimate gaming laptop?someone recommended this one.thts why I'm here
It's good to be here!
Better yet Gameboys, get a M6800. Been absolutely flawless over years. "Sorry it's HD- I don't like it too- but won't seize on a whim. & get a heat sink for your 6400, although not convinced that solves everything heat related.
What are you even saying?
@@Browningate If you actually knew about these, you'd know precisely what I'm saying. But you don't.
@jphedley - These what?
How do you get bluetooth on it
Thanks!
@@Browningate does the m6400 not connect with Bluetooth
@@etronjones7193 Actually, it does. You are incorrect.
@@Browningate what are u talking about I was asking a question not making a statement
@@etronjones7193 There was no question mark. You were making a statement.
I love my Dells but if your doing anything, grab a dock. The best accessory hands down. Even if you dont plan to use the ports the easy on and easy off charging is fantastic. No broken charger ports! So easy my 6 year old can use it.
I agree. Dell's station isn't as robust or well thought-out as the Lenovos of the time, but it's still quite feature-rich and handy to have.
I say fork out an extra 50 bucks (200ish total) for a 4800 model... i7 4th gen.. =/
The chipset is undoubtedly better, but think of the small screen!
Interestingly there are some people who have managed to hack a full blown pcix16 video card adapter into this series laptop's expresscard slot
More info here: egpu.io/forums/expresscard-mpcie-m-2-adapters/dell-m4600-expresscard-exp-gdc-beast-v8-4-no-detection-help-evga-geoforce-gtx-750-ti-win7/
It has a 2 gig gpu he’s playing Mario card lol that’s like people going out buying a titan x to play Facebook games lol
can it run lol?
Possibly.