Latitude D505 - The tough laptop (Dell Latitude D505)

Member Name: malone19

Product:	Dell Latitude D505
Date:	23/02/05 (2531 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Very robust, Large screen , Solid performer

Disadvantages: Fairly large , Can get quite hot

I bought this laptop almost a year ago and have not had a problem with it to date. The design of the laptop is aimed at robustness and portability... all the hardware has been installed with the 'travelling salesman' at mind. I purchased this item as necessary equipment for my university course instead of buying a university recommended IBM ThinkPad. After much research I found that the IBMs tended to be a lot less reliable and the dell had good reviews all round - I have no been disappointed! The D505 does everything my home PC can do and more, with a lot less problems.

The laptop/notebook is not the cheapest out there but the value for money and quality of the product is excellent!

The only drawbacks I have found is that the hard-drive does get hot and you can feel this when you are typing; the heat is not uncomfortable however and is not uncommon in such equipment. Another thing to consider is when typing the keys are fairly far back from the front of the laptop so you have to rest your hands at the bottom of the laptop itself. I myself find this to be perfectly acceptable but it may be a negative for some people depending on their preference. One one had the large screen is a pro for working with but at the same time it makes it less portable and comfortable to carry with the added weight, saying this it is less heavy than most other laptops of the same size.

The Latitude D505 has never caused me any problems and has been worth every penny I paid for it! I would recommend it to anyone who needs to have a reliable laptop while travelling. I did however get my laptop off ebay (never been used before but was in storage so some of the features that come as standard now weren't there; I added a wireless for £20 and it brought the laptop up to scratch) and it was only just over half the price of buying it from Dell's website. Would also recommend the D600... is very similar with slightly better design and features!

Summary: