Dell C610-004 laptops are small computers that can enhance your fast-paced lifestyle. Although a few years old, the characteristics of the Dell C610-004 laptop computer make it a viable, inexpensive option. It is one in a series of C610 laptops that Dell introduced in the early 2000s. The primary improvements the C610-004 offers over the base C610 are a CD-RW/DVD-ROM compared to the C610's CD-ROM and a USB 2.0 compatible slot compared to a USB 1.1 slot in the C610. Suppliers of Dell C610-004 laptops are not common, so you'll need to search diligently.

Dell C610-004 notebooks offer the following advantages:

1. The CD-RW/DVD-ROM combo allows you to burn music and data CDs and watch movies;

2. Dell C610-004 laptop computers have a 14.1-inch screen with a 1024 x 768 resolution and 16.7 million colors for a bright, sharp picture; and,

3. Dell C610-004 notebook computers weigh less than 6 pounds, making them highly mobile laptops.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Bump up the RAM of Dell C610-004 laptops

The C610-004 comes with 256 MB of RAM standard, but you can expand it to 1 GB. Using the maximum RAM is usually a cheap way to put some zing into your laptop. To use the maximum RAM, you'll have to remove the existing chip and purchase two 512 MB chips.

I recommend: MemoryTen Inc. provides RAM chips for your Dell C610-004 notebook computer. Silicon Mountain also sells compatible RAM chips. Both companies offer a 100% guarantee of compatibility.

Upgrade your Dell C610-004 notebook's hard drive

Although the included 20 GB hard drive is large enough for most purposes, you may feel constrained if you want to acquire a large library of music and videos. Fortunately, you have many options for adding storage capacity to your Dell C610-004. You can either replace the internal hard drive or plug in a USB external hard drive. The USB 2.0 slot will communicate quickly with an attached drive.

I recommend: Select from among internal laptop hard drive capacities up to 300 GB at Priority Electronics, Inc. TigerDirect.com sells USB 2.0, dual-drive storage systems that provide 1 TB of storage. According to their statistics, that would hold 424 two-hour DVD-quality movies.

Expand Dell C610-004 notebook computers with external accessories

Although the built-in 14.1-inch monitor is normally a comfortable size, you might find that long hours of work require a larger monitor, 20 inches for example. Also, when working at home or the office, a wireless mouse and full-size keyboard will make long use easier.

I recommend: Dell offers many flat panel LCD monitors that you can connect to your Dell laptop, several of which are 20-inches diagonal. Office Depot Inc. sells many wireless mouse/keyboard combos. Wireless connections are usually via radio frequency, which allows non-line-of-sight communication.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  The Dell 610 laptop comes with a DVD-ROM, which means you can't burn DVDs. If you want to use the laptop to backup your DVDs, purchase an external USB-connected DVD-RW from suppliers of Dell C610-004 laptops.