Comments on: HP 6930p vs. Dell E6400 (review)

By: jke

jke — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 10:29:29 +0000

Sanjay – thx! I am just a regular user like most of us.

Jeff – as far as I am informed, the graphics processor can only be switched off on the Lenovo T400.

Now with the release of the HP 8440w and 8440p, it would be interesting to see a new comparison between these and the Lenovo T410 and a similar Dell (which to my understanding Dell would still need to release). The (brand-)new HPs come with LED screens but still similar metal frame, which means the fan intake is still at the bottom.

By: jeff

jeff — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 14:27:08 +0000

I am going to buy one of these off ebay in the next few days. i have had a few dell D610′s (from ebay) which have worked well for me, but was having trouble with the 6930p vs. e6400 decision.

i am pretty sure i want the dedicated graphics processor.

i have read that on the Dell, one can disable the graphics processor when it’s not needed – for better battery life – but that this is not possible on the HP.

is this true?

By: Sanjay Patel

Sanjay Patel — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 02:14:45 +0000

Hey man,

What are you? You have done an excellent job at comparing these two laptops. I must say, I am very impressed with the details and time you’ve put into this. Kuddos to you.
Anyway, recently I was given a choice at my work if I wanted to replace my Dell E6400 with HP 6930p but not being a laptop guru like you, I was debating with my self as to which way to go. Many thanks to you for helping me to make a decision. After reviewing each and every note on your blog, I am certain that I want to stick to my Dell E6400. And, the flaws with Dell that you are talking about are really minor compared to HP.
So, all in all – Dell E6400 is the WINNER!!

Keep up the good work to help the people like me to make the right decision.

God Bless you!!

By: Bruce Graham

Bruce Graham — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 03:59:07 +0000

Thanks for the thorough review. To my surprise, looks like the Dell wins in this case.

By: Ravine

Ravine — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 16:52:23 +0000

Thanks for the review. I have been struggling with the two laptops. But eventually, my choice was Dell because of:
1. Better screen. I hate watching photos from my Canon 40D on my current laptop, the colors are off and not so bright.
2. I like the Dell design better :)

Anyway, the review was very informative and helpful. Thank you !

By: jke

jke — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 23:14:25 +0000

Hi Ali, you will need a WWAN modem such as this one:

http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/us/en/sm/WF06c/A10-51210-1130359-1130363-1130359-3788189-3788190-3788196.html

In fact, the un2400 is the ONLY one that will work inside the 6930p. Once it is installed, you can activate it on the BIOS and use it under Windows XP & Co.

Problem with this un2400 WWAN modem is that it requires its firmware to be individually loaded each time (the Windows tool will provide this) so having this @ GNU/Linux is a bit more complicated.

By: Ali MAJ

Ali MAJ — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 22:56:58 +0000

Very informative. I have a 6930p but I’ve problems with WWAN in BIOS it’s said “Not available” so how do I use my SIM card for internet?

By: jke

jke — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 15:15:08 +0000

Hi Fakhir, thx for your comment. It’s funny that you mentioned Quicklook2, because it recently had a serious hick-up. Seems like Quicklook2 renders all e-mails using the HTML machine of InternetExplorer and then saves them as PNG. And with one of my recent e-mails (it was a comment notification from Posterous) it stopped working. Had to delete that e-mail in order to get Quicklook back alive.

So….yes, HP notebooks are great, but:
a) the UMTS modem being locked to Windows is a no-go
b) user support software like Protect Tools or Quicklook isn’t good enough for a business notebook and we are better off without them
c)displays, displays, displays! they are so foggy.

But apart from these facts, I love my 6930p as it is one of the strongest notebooks out there.

By: Fakhir Fazil

Fakhir Fazil — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 12:56:02 +0000

Hi, since i am myself into HP selling, employed at one of HP’s Corprorate Business Partner. I would agree to this post partially, actually the 6930P comes with a ambient light sensor which adjusts itself with light quality available within the operating enviroment, if you feel that the brightness on offer doesn’t suit you, you may opt to disable this feature & use manual bringhtness settings set up to your desired mark.

Apart from this, Hp Elitebook 6930P also comes with a set of properity features for business users, best of the lot is HP QUICKLOOK 2, this key is present above your keyboard, amongst the hot keys, right next to the power button. It allows you to access your critial emails (offline) for quick reference at anytime without booting the notebook & it only operates on a single touch. There are more features that i shall post later. Best of luck buying…

By: lolo341

lolo341 — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 14:43:20 +0000

awesome – thank you. i’ve been looking into reviews for both of these for months now, but yours is the only one that’s compared them head-to-head and in-depth. grazie!