• Tag Archives Inspiron

  • Digital Archaeology: Gateway M680XL

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Gateway, or Gateway 2000 as it was originally known, was my favorite producer of computers in the 1990s and early 2000s. I never bought a new laptop from them but I did get a couple of desktops over the years including a 486 model in 1993 and a Pentium II model in 1997. I would start building my own computers after that but Gateway also had nice Pentium III and Athlon based systems a little later on.

    I’m not sure when Gateway’s quality started to decline. I think it was probably around the Pentium IV era. I don’t know that they were necessarily unreliable or anything but they just seemed to be not as great of a value and they had a cheaper look and feel. I guess that was true of a lot of PC makers but it just felt like a bigger fall for Gateway. They no longer stood out from the crowd.

    As I recall, their laptops were pretty nice too, at least during the early days with the Solo line. This particular model, the Gateway 680XL was released in 2005 so it’s from quite a bit later than the Solo line. It doesn’t seem to be a bad machine. While it doesn’t really stand out from the crowd in terms of design or build quality, it at least seems to be a pretty good deal for the time and still something I would have considered had I been buying a higher end laptop at the time.

    The Gateway 680XL features the following:

    • Processor: Pentium M 770 @ 2.13 GHz
    • RAM: 2 GB DDR2
    • Video: ATI Mobility Radeon x700 (128 MB)
    • Screen: 17-inch 1680×1050
    • Hard Drive: HITACHI HTS541010G9AT00 Travelstar 5K100
    • Optical Drive: QSI 8x DVD+-RW SDW-082

    Plus the usual array of ports including 4 USB ports, firewire, VGA out, S-Video out, Ethernet, mic input, headphone, SD card and modem. Try finding that many ports on a modern laptop.

    You can see more detailed specs here.

    I would say that this laptop was a relatively high end unit. It wasn’t top of the line but it was close. It had a fast CPU, discreet graphics and a higher than average resolution screen and large screen size. The first laptop I owned was a slightly older Pentium M based Acer. Other than the slower CPU and smaller screen, it was actually quite similar. I think I would have been pretty happy with this one.

    The CPU is a 2.13 GHz Pentium M 770. This is one of the fastest Pentium M CPUs…the second fastest in fact. It generally matches the speed or comes close to the fastest Core Solo CPUs as well. It clocks in at 2.13 GHz with a 533 MHz bus and 2 MB L2 cache.

    This laptop also features a dedicated ATI Mobility Radeon x700 with 128 MB of RAM. It wasn’t the fastest dedicated solution available but again it was reasonably close. Having a dedicated video card put it miles ahead of most cheap laptops which tended to rely on chipsets that included video on the motherboard, usually from Intel. Many contemporary games probably would have been reasonably playable on this. In fact, the benchmark scores on this model indicate that it was within 10% of gaming laptops.

    At the time it was released, the biggest downside of this laptop was its price. It wasn’t overpriced for what you were getting but being a relatively high end laptop it had a relatively high end price. This laptop would have set you back in the neighbor good of $2100-$2700 depending on exactly when you bought it.

    In more modern usage, there are two drawbacks. First, having a 32-bit CPU is increasingly becoming a liability. Of course, 64-bit CPUs have been around a really long time at this point but 32-bit CPUs were still supported by modern operating systems until recently. Earlier versions of Windows 10 supported 32-bit CPUs for instance. However, later versions of Windows 10 dropped support for 32-bit CPUs and Windows 11 only supports 64-bit CPUs as well. In addition, most Linux distributions have dropped support for 32-bit CPUs. Debian still supports 32-bit CPUs but who knows for how much longer. This laptop is currently running an older version of Xubuntu. Given its potential for retro gaming, I might just install Windows XP on it.

    The other main drawback is limited RAM. This laptop probably shipped with 512MB-1GB and has since been upgraded to 2GB. However, I believe that this is the max amount of RAM that this laptop can handle. It’s definitely the maximum that is officially supported though it is possible that it might recognize 4GB. Even though there is at least one modern version of Linux still being released in a 32-bit version, you really want a full 4GB if possible. Software has gotten a lot more memory hungry over the years.

    So while it is still possible to use this machine in a modern environment, it probably works best as a retro machine. It was originally designed for Windows XP and would work pretty well as a Windows XP portable gaming machine.

    It’s not quite yet too old to run BOINC projects though options are somewhat limited. Fewer and fewer projects support 32-bit CPUs. Of my normal projects, this machine has only received work from Einstein@Home and World Community Grid. You can see how it is doing at Free-DC or BoincStats.


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  • Digital Archaeology: Dell Inspiron 9400

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    The Inspiron line has long been Dell’s main consumer laptop models. The Inspiron 9400 was released in the 2005 time frame. It is for all practical purposes identical to the Inspiron E1705 and in fact the manuals were shared. They just had different default configuration options and were targeted at different markets. It is also substantially the same as the M90 and XPS models of the same time period, again, with different default configuration options.

    The Inspiron 9400 supported an incredibly large range of hardware options. There were multiple motherboards used. One supported add-in video cards such as the FX2500M, GeForce Go 7800 and 7900GTX among others while the second motherboard option only supported Intel’s integrated graphics. Display options included a 17″ Wide Screen WXGA+ (1440×900) panel or a 17″ Ultrasharp Wide Screen WUXGA (1920×1200) panel. The processor could be anything from a single core 32-bit Core Solo T1300 running at 1.66 GHz all the way up to 64-bit Core 2 Duo T7600 running at 2.33 GHz.

    My particular Inspiron 9400 is among the lower end models. Specs include:

    • CPU: Core Duo T2080 @ 1.73 GHz
    • Chipset: Intel 945
    • Graphics: Mobility Radeon X1400
    • Memory: 2GB DDR2-533 (2x512MB)
    • Display: 17″ WXGA+ (1440×900)
    • Hard Drive: ST9129822AS 120GB 5400RPM Serial-ATA/150 8MB buffer
    • Optical Drive: TSSTcorp TS-L632D DVD+-RW
    • Ethernet: Broadcom BCM4401-80 100Base-TX
    • Wi-Fi: Broadcom BCM4311 802.11b/g WLAN

    Plus tons of expansion slots and ports including 4 USB 2.0 ports, an ExpressCard 54mm slot, FireWire, 5-in-1 Flash Reader, headphone and microphone connections, 1 DVI-D, 1 VGA, and 1 S-Video Out.

    As far as upgrade possibilities, a Core 2 Duo T7600 could be added and up to 4GB of 667MHz DDR2 RAM is supported. This laptop has what is probably the best graphics option, at least in retrospect. The ATI X1400 is faster than the Intel option and more reliable than the nVidia options which had heat and solder issues (though they werer certainly faster). Unfortunately, it has the lower resolution screen option otherwise it would be a better candidate for upgrade.

    This laptop was made with Windows XP and Vista in mind. It is also capable of running Windows 7 and even Windows 10 (though some more RAM would be needed). However, operating systems supporting 32-bit CPUs are gettig pretty hard to find these days. Windows 10 dropped support in 2020. I’m currently running a 32-bit version of Debian which is the only mainstream Linux distribution I am aware of that still does new 32-bit releases. The Insprion 9400 is capable of being upgraded to 64-bit CPUs as mentioned above, however it is still limited to about 4 GB of RAM due to limitations of the chipset.

    Like pretty much any computer I ever own, this one is running BOINC whenever it is turned on. The only projects it seems to get work for out of my normal selection is einstein@home and milkyway@home. I think that is because most projects no longer support 32-bit CPUs. You can see how it is doing overall via Free-DC or BOINCstats.

    Overall, this seems to be a pretty solid laptop with a great deal of expansion possibility for its time. The build quality is decent and the keyboard feels pretty good. However, it isn’t as nice in that regard as later Latitudes and Precisions. Despite pushing the CPU at 100% all the time with BOINC, it runs cool and quiet. The large size no doubt helps some with that, plus it has a relatively low end CPU at the moment that is probably on the cooler end. If I had been in the market for a laptop at the time this one was being sold, it probably would have been a top contender (though with a Core 2 Duo CPU and the higher resolution screen).

    Despite having some fairly significant upgrade potential, I doubt I will be upgrading this one. I would rather start with the model with the higher resolution screen if I were going to bother. Having said that, there’s a good chance I have a Core 2 Duo that would work and some extra memory so who knows. It at least has what I consider to be the best GPU option overall.

    Check out the complete specs of this laptop here.


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  • Digital Archaeology: Dell Inspiron 1525

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    The Dell Inspiron 1525 appears to have been one of the more ubiquitous laptop models. At least if we are talking in about 2008 or so. Like many laptop models, this one had a pretty wide variety of configurations and included Celeron, Pentium Dual Core, and Core 2 Duo CPUs. Generally speaking, it was a mid-range laptop but there was a wide variety in that range. Specifically, at least according to Wikipedia, the Inspiron 1525 could come with any of the following processors:

    • Celeron 540
    • Celeron 550
    • Celeron 560
    • Pentium Dual-Core T2370
    • Pentium Dual-Core T2390
    • Pentium Dual-Core T2330
    • Pentium Dual-Core T4200
    • Pentium Dual-Core T4500
    • Core 2 Duo T5250
    • Core 2 Duo T5450
    • Core 2 Duo T5550
    • Core 2 Duo T5750
    • Core 2 Duo T7250
    • Core 2 Duo T8100
    • Core 2 Duo T8300
    • Core 2 Duo T9300
    • Core 2 Duo T9500

    What really relegated it to, at best, a mid-range machine was the lack of dedicated graphics, instead relying on an integrated Intel solution, in this case a GM965. The vast majority of laptops at the time used motherboard integrated Intel graphics because it was cheap and functional though it was pretty close to useless for gaming.

    The stats of this particular Inspiron 1525 include:

      • CPU: Pentium Dual Core T2390 @ 1.86GHz
      • RAM: 3 GB DDR2 667
      • Chipset: Intel GM965 Express
      • Graphics: GMA X3100
      • Display: 15.4″ 1280×800
      • Hard Drive: 250GB ST9250315AS
      • Optical Drive: TS-L632H 8x DVD±RW Dual Layer
      • Wi-Fi: Broadcom 4312
      • I/O: 10/100 Ethernet, 56K Modem, S-Video, 4 x USB 2.0, Express Card, VGA, HDMI

    The 3GB of RAM seems like an odd number but I think that amount was provided because that is often all that 32-bit versions of Windows could see. Sometimes other hardware limitations made it impossible to see a full 4 GB as well. This laptop came with Windows Vista and despite this laptop having a 64-bit CPU, I’m pretty sure it came with a 32-bit version of Vista. I think the reason was that many vendors did not have 64-bit compatible drivers ready. A 64-bit OS as the default wasn’t really the norm until Windows 7 came along. Windows Vista had a lot of stability issues early on anyway largely due to immature drivers. If you ordered an OEM system then you were likely ok but if you were building your own, good luck. People who built their own systems largely stayed with Windows XP until Windows 7 came along.

    The delineation between a Core 2 Duo processor, a Pentium Dual Core processor and a Celeron were not always very clear. Generally speaking, Core 2 Duo > Pentium > Celeron though that’s only true when comparing processors released in the same general time frame. And even that is not always true between the Pentium and Celeron. The biggest difference between the Pentium dual core and Core 2 Duo is that the Core 2 Duo has twice the cache (2 MB vs. 1 MB). This made some difference in speed but not a huge amount (at the same clock speed of course). However, Core 2 Duos were available at higher clock speeds and higher bus speeds.

    One notable problem this model had was overheating. Many people experienced random shutdowns most often due to overheating, sometimes when pushing the CPU hard and sometimes hardly at all. It seems the Inspiron 1525 had a rather poor cooling design. Part of the problem is that the fan intake is easily clogged with dust. This happens with most laptops eventually but it seems to happen in pretty short order with this model. Even the one I have experienced this problem to some degree. It didn’t shut down but I did see the temperature reaching pretty close to the max this CPU can handle resulting in periodic throttling. I blew out the van vent area and now it is better. It still runs hot when pushed but not so hot that the CPU throttles. I probably need to take the bottom cover off and remove the heatsink to get to the dust bunnies more thoroughly.

    As far as upgrades go, your options are somewhat limited. The CPU can be bumped up quite a bit as any Inspiron 1525 should support at least the CPU list above and probably lots more besides. Google tells me that it should be upgradeable to the Core 2 Duo T9500 which is 2.6 GHz. A pretty nice bump from 1.86 GHz. However, RAM upgrades are limited by the chipset. Officially, you can install 4 GB but the system will still only see a fraction of that last GB. I have seen reports of the BIOS recognizing up to 6 GB but I’m not sure that would increase the usable amount. So basically, this laptop has 3 GB installed and effectively it isn’t upgradeable beyond that. That means as far as Windows operating systems go, you could probably run 8.1 but 10 would be effectively unusable even if it technically works. Personally, while it originally came installed with Vista, I would stick with XP or just put Linux on it (which is what I did). You can of course always stick in an SSD in it which would make it snappier and would probably be especially beneficial if you are trying to run Windows versions past XP. This laptop really sits in an odd place. As a usable low-end machine, the lack of RAM upgradeability makes Linux your only practical option since Microsoft has dropped support anything earlier than Windows 10. As a retro machine for playing games it isn’t that great because it was a crappy machine for games when new. However, you could probably install Windows XP and play some earlier XP games on it. It would just have to be stuff released a few years (at least) before this laptop came along.

    The Dell Inspiron 1525 received mostly positive reviews. Reviewers seem to have an obsession with thinner and lighter and this model was a pretty substantial improvement in those areas over its predecessor, the Inspiron 1520. However, despite being a little bulkier, the previous model at least had the option of discrete graphics making it a better choice for some. The build quality of the Inspiron 1525 seems pretty decent. I like the silver look on the inside and the way the trackpad is just a recessed part of the palm rest (though it could be a little bigger). There were several options for colors as far as the outside goes. This one happens to be black and it looks pretty good. It also has not gotten sticky with age as I have seen happen to some other models.

    Despite having a relatively low-end processor, even for the time, and only 3 GB of RAM, it handles an install of the latest version of Xubuntu pretty well. I am able to have BOINC running a couple of tasks and a browser open with 2 or 3 tabs without any massive slow down. It’s not exactly snappy but it isn’t painfully slow either. Basic office tasks should be fine as well. I’m sure opening very many more tabs or trying to navigate resource intensive web pages would slow things to a crawl though.

    You can check out how it is doing on Einstein@home, Rosetta@home, Milkyway@home, and Universe@home or how see how it is doing overall at Free-DC or Boinc Stats.


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