Review Dell Latitude E6540 (i7-4800MQ/HD 8790M) Notebook

[Redaktion]

Dell is quick... and offers one of the first business notebook based on the latest Intel Haswell architecture. For 1,860 Euros you get a powerful Intel Core i7-4800MQ in combination with an AMD Radeon HD 8790M and a small SSD.

http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Dell-Latitude-E6540-i7-4800MQ-HD-8790M-Notebook.97595.0.html

[paul234]

Unless I have missed something, you could have included more Haswell 15inch models to compare with, eg the Lenovo Y510 you reviewed yesterday, and the interesting looking Eurocom Electra.   Any chance of a review of the Eurocom (there in Canada!)in the near future ?

[gxtoast]

I liked the review and didn't need to see a comparison against the rest. Thank you.

It is weird, however, that a business laptop includes a discrete GPU. I mean, why compromise the cooling capability for something that just isn't going to be used by most people using this as their primary business tool? The unit suffers from CPU throttling, yet they still put in a GPU that generates the same heat, if not more?

It would be really good to know about why the OEMs make the decisions they make in order to produce the products that eventually get reviewed. Why, for example, do many of the OEMs, at one point or other, create products that shine so well in many areas but eventually fall down in just a few key areas and leave us bewildered? Asking, "what were they thinking"?

Like with the current XPS 15, where an awesome design is let down by a poor trackpad, or excessive CPU throttling?

Or, another product that has an incredible chassis, keyboard and trackpad, only to ship with a very substandard display (um, Razer Blade or DELL Alienware)? Or yet another, like the Acer R7, which could have completed the tablet experience by shipping with a Wacom digitizer and stylus. Same with the DELL XPS 18 - so close yet so far for those that absolutely need a Wacom digitizer and stylus (like me) and feel that the form factor of the 18 is perfect for their use case (reading full pages from PDF textbooks while actively annotating the page being read and taking notes on a blank page next to it).

Yep, it would be awesome if Notebook Check could write an article which could provide some keen insights into the world of the PC manufacturer. Thanks Notebook Check :)

[PM]

Does anybody know why only Apple builds laptops with 16:10 display? I wonder if they made an exclusive deal with all the manufacturers.
Apart from that, this laptop is disappointing because of the limited RAM and disk and because of the noise. I also don't like number pads on laptops but they have to fill the extra width they need to match the surface area of a 16:10 display, right?
Good points: physical touchpad buttons (3 of them would be best), matte display.

[RoelP]

My E6540 has a BIOS entry "Minicard SSD device = None" in General -> System Information. The E6540 has room for 3 mini pci-e devices (2 half size, one is used for wifi, the other is labeled 1/2 mini, 1 full size labeled wwan). It would be nice to test if a msata SSD would work in the E6540 (you tested this in the E6530 review, but not for the E6540). My E6540 has BIOS version A01.

[linuxuser]

Is the radeon 8790m removable or able to be toggled off? Do the external graphics ports still work if it is removed?

[thebyteboy]

Is the radeon 8790m removable or able to be toggled off? Do the external graphics ports still work if it is removed?

There is no BIOS option to switch the Radeon off. I do not think the Radeon is easily removable. I do not know if the external ports work if it is removed.

[thebyteboy]

My E6540 has a BIOS entry "Minicard SSD device = None" in General -> System Information. The E6540 has room for 3 mini pci-e devices (2 half size, one is used for wifi, the other is labeled 1/2 mini, 1 full size labeled wwan). It would be nice to test if a msata SSD would work in the E6540 (you tested this in the E6530 review, but not for the E6540). My E6540 has BIOS version A01.

The E6540 supports msata SSDs in the wwan slot. I personally tested a Plextor PX-128M5M msata ssd which uses the Marvell 88SS9187 controller, which is basically a newer version of the controller used in the more popular Crucial M4..I've seen reports that a Mushkin Enhanced Atlas Series MKNSSDAT120GB-DX mSATA 120GB, which uses a SandForce SF-2281 controller also works.

[Rahul Monga]

Thank you Jonas. I am Microsoft developer and was a bit confused between Inspiron E6540 and Precision M4800. The M4800 looks are very polished but cost 30% more on e6540 at least in India (@nov/2013). I cannot decide if its worth paying 30% on e6540 to buy the precision M4800. Well anyways your reviews are very comprehensive and you do a fantastic job at that. Thanks!

[Vikrant]

DFELL also ships E6540 with 1TBHDD+8GBFLASH drive, which does not give any advantage. And the HDD has just 5400rpm speed.. Windows 7 rates this hybrid drive as 5.9 (all other hardware is rated 7.7)

[Vikrant]

Thank you Jonas. I am Microsoft developer and was a bit confused between Inspiron E6540 and Precision M4800. The M4800 looks are very polished but cost 30% more on e6540 at least in India (@nov/2013). I cannot decide if its worth paying 30% on e6540 to buy the precision M4800. Well anyways your reviews are very comprehensive and you do a fantastic job at that. Thanks!

Hey Rahul, after experiencing E6540 for 120K INR, I wish I can exchange it with Alienware 17 inches, with best Hybrid drive and screen size, the cost is 150K.. but is readily available with compuindia

[Wit]

Media bay battery is NOT available in this model. Just bought it and am disappointed. There's no socket inside the media bay for the battery from previous models (e.g. E6520)

[eurorunner]

Did you noticed that Dell "degraded"  the display lid  build quality  compared to E6x30 series? The lid is is similiar to E7440, so it is thinner, has shorter borders (2cm --> 1 cm), but the material is "only" aluminium, i guess. The former lid is from the TriMetal alloay as the case, and is more tersion resistant, because of :
- the new lid is "simply" said just a 2D plate, but the former lid bends  90° to the front, swich improves stability.
- the bottom side of the  former lid is 1cm wide and is totally rigid, but in the new lid is no such inforcement.

Just compare the images
(http://www.notebookcheck.net/fileadmin/_processed_/csm_DSC04191_042179e529.jpg)
vs (http://www.notebookcheck.net/fileadmin/_processed_/csm_detverarbeitung2_d3628f0a1d.jpg)

[dellon]

What fan size (height is in this ntb? is it  like in E6430 (quadcore+dGPU) OR like in e7440 (thin)

[ABI]

i just bought in 200$ in may 2020 in Pakistan there lots e6540 from bulk containers, import only 200$ per unit i shocked price was 2455$ only 6 years before... i got just like new unit and enjoying and playing games...