Dell Studio 17 Widescreen

In the time I have had my Dell Studo 17 Laptop, I have only had one issue with it which came about after I had had it for over a year. When plugging in the power source a message came up saying the power source could not be determined. I had Dell laptop warranty and so called them up and had an appoitnment which they rectified quickly and easily.

In contrast to another reviewer, the build quality of my laptop is good and it seems sturdy. I was able to custom build it with the specifications that I wanted and it fulfils the job.

The build quality of my dell laptop is total rubbish. The keyboard is particularly poor with cracks between the keys where dirt can get in and 2 keys have now also fallen off. The casing in general is made from cheap plastic and scratches easily.

Dell have cynically skimped on the aspects which are tricky to spot when ordering online (unless you are very knowledgeable about hardware components) like the build quality (the casing looks like metal in a photo), speakers and webcam. The processor and memory are good as these are very easy to compare online.

Dell also have a strange approach to customer service. When I ordered the machine they called and said that they wouldn't deliver to my work address (even though I had ordered from them before). They left me wondering if I would actually get my computer; it arrived in the end though. I have ordered a few machines from them in the past. This one is going to be my last though.

We couldn't work out whether to get a desktop at home or a laptop.Desktop would have a better screen and be a bit cheaper, whereas a laptop is obviously portable so we can use it both in the study and in the sitting room and garden. A quandryWe looked on the Dell website and found the Studio 17" Widescreen which kind of fits the bill of both.Its got a massive 17" screen and a full keyboard - and all the other normal functions you'd expect from a Dell machine - good wireless, good CPU, good memory, good hard drive size etc.Its obviously very heavy with that sized screen, but for carrying around the house its fine. I certainly wouldn't want to carry it about out of the house much, so in that respect its not a 'true' portable machine in my opinion (you'll be going to the physio a lot if you do!)Overall its a great machine for the particular purpose that we had - if you want a 'real' latpop that you want to carry to work or college then Id steer away - but if, like us, you want something that is a compromise between laptop and desktop its great