Dell 700m – Ordered!
I had some difficulty ordering my 700m from Dell this past weekend. I saw a deal on Slick Deals for $700 off $1699 on Inspiron laptops, so I started pricing some. I was looking to buy a Dell 700m used for about $950 without the specs that I want, expecting to upgrade.
So I tried to use the coupon and they said it expired by the time I was ready to check out. So I corresponded with Small Business representatives, and they worked it out so that I could get the coupon applied to my order (very nice).
So the following are the specs I got with the Dell Inspiron 700m:
Intel Pentium M Processor 755 – 2GHz/400MHz FSB
12.1″ WXGA
256MB RAM
40GB HDD (4200rpm assumed)
24X DVD/CD-RW combo
Intel PRO/Wireless 2200 for 802.11b/g
65WHr 8-cell Lithium Ion Battery
3 year Economy Plan Warranty
Regular Price: $1817.00
With coupon: $1117.00
Shipping: $0.00 (thanks Dell representative 
)
Tax: $60.29
Total: $1177.29
Expected ship date: 6/15/2005 (meh)
I plan to order 2 1GB RAM sticks to put the total up to 2GB instead of 256MB.
I’ll likely use the adding memory section of the 700m Service Manual to do this.
I found a good review of the 700m with pictures at osnn.net.
Summary – Pros/Cons:
+ Small, light and very portable
+ Beautiful design
+ Latest Pentium-M “Dothan” CPU
+ Widescreen, reflective display
+ Modular Dual-layer DVD burner
+ Outer case and keyboard feel strong and solid
+ Great battery life with 65WHr battery
+ IEEE1394/Firewire port- Keys might feel small at first
- Weak graphics chipset: not for gamers!
- No internal Bluetooth/IrDA option
I don’t expect I will attempt to use it for gaming.
I look forward to getting this laptop 
.
Edit 6/29:
I have written a review of this laptop. You can find it here.
Raybdbomb Said,
May 26, 2005 @ 1:43 pm
I just looked at the ship date, and the latest update was that it would be shipped by 6/1/05… 2 weeks earlier than they originally expected. Alright!
Raybdbomb Said,
May 27, 2005 @ 7:57 am
It shipped late 5/26! They keep pushing it sooner
. Tracking says I should have it by 5/31.
Raybdbomb Said,
June 1, 2005 @ 9:43 am
It came yesterday, I inserted the 2GB of RAM which took me about an hour, then got it all going.
I gotta tell ya, this laptop is near flawless. I’ll post pictures and a review later.
David Said,
June 7, 2005 @ 11:38 pm
Just to let anyone know, Dell is having a great sale on these laptops until the 10th. $750 off $1499. Goto http://www.dell.com/save750 for more info, i just ordered my 700m, can’t wait for it to come. Nice site by the way.
Dang Said,
June 21, 2005 @ 5:15 pm
Raybdbomb, thanks! I ordered mine with 256mb as well, and will order the 2gig of ram from newegg and follow the instructions you posted. If it wasn’t for your post, I would of paid plenty for the 1gig 2dimm ddr. Thanks again!
Raybdbomb Said,
June 21, 2005 @ 6:31 pm
2 GB is overkill for the average user, in fact it might even lower the speed (more RAM = more to look through), but I find it very helpful when I use my MCAD programs.
William Said,
July 8, 2005 @ 10:17 am
I ordered my 700m two days ago. I asked customer service a simply question and they upgraded me to next day delivery ($90 value) just for asking a question. Excellent so far !
Raybdbomb Said,
July 8, 2005 @ 10:25 am
Yes, it’s definitely worth it to talk to the Dell representatives. The coupon I used on my Dell was actually expired when I wanted to use it, but I called them up and got it ordered with the coupon anyway.
Mike Said,
July 15, 2005 @ 7:26 pm
Was the 2GB hard to install? I hear you have to remove the keyboard or something. Either way I ordered
Raybdbomb Said,
July 15, 2005 @ 10:05 pm
It wasn’t hard to install. Like I said it just took about 20-30 minutes and I did everything according the provided manual from Dell.com; it went smoothly.
Eric Said,
July 25, 2005 @ 7:50 pm
I ordered my 700m yesterday w/ 256mb RAM. What is the specific name i should be looking for when purchasing RAM??? Sorry for the stupid question.
Jay Lee Said,
July 30, 2005 @ 10:44 am
There’s another deal out for that laptop:
Dell Inspiron 700m Notebook $749 shipped free, Jul 28
Dell Small Business has the Inspiron 700m 4.1lb light, 1.5in thin Centrino Notebook Pentium-M 725 1.6Ghz 2MB Cache, 12.1in WideXGA Screen, 512MB/40GB, CD/DVD Burner, Intel 802.11g wireless, 1yr warranty, Word Perfect, 6 months ISP, XP Home SP2 $749 after $150 rebate. Exp Sun 7/31 – Free shipping. Tax is charged.
http://www1.us.dell.com/content/products/features.aspx/outrageous_notebooks?c=us&cs=04&l=en&s=bsd
jerome Said,
August 9, 2005 @ 9:22 am
ok, i’ve been reading about upgrading the memory of the dell 700m notbook. I ordered the 700m but only with 256mb of ram. how would i install 2GBs? i heard one of the slots are not user accessable? also i heard one slot can only hold 1GB. would i have to take my laptop apart to get to the other slot?
jerome Said,
August 9, 2005 @ 9:30 am
oh yea, if anyone has details on question #13 just email it to romefolk at aol dot com. thanks
Raybdbomb Said,
August 9, 2005 @ 11:01 am
They’re both accessible, you can read all about it in the service manual, it describes how to get to both.
Eric H. Said,
September 4, 2005 @ 6:16 pm
I just ordered two 700m’s last week (one for me and one for my wife). How are the CPU’s on these? I ordered the 745 1.8 and she ordered the 735 1.7
Raybdbomb Said,
September 4, 2005 @ 9:37 pm
I saw some comparison (don’t ask me where to find it) that had the Dell laptops with Centrino 1.6 were the best as far as benchmarks went.
Aaron Said,
December 19, 2005 @ 1:48 pm
Nice, comprehensive review. It was one of the deciding factors for me in getting the 700m.
Do you know if it’s possible to mix and match memory sizes, or do they have to be the same in each slot?
Raybdbomb Said,
December 19, 2005 @ 2:13 pm
They don’t have the be the same sizes. It’s actually quite popular to get the default 256MB and add a 1GB slot, giving 1.25GB RAM.
Aaron Said,
December 19, 2005 @ 2:26 pm
Cool. Thanks very much