Rich, Thanks so much for your reply.

I now have a laptop cooler - which seems to be making a major difference. It has a USB hub with 5 different digital media slots in it. Well worth the $35!

I'm seriously considering one of these -- weight is a big concern. I mean on top of the massive weight of the Dell Inspiron 5150. I probably won't look for media card reader as part of a cooler I'll pick up -- don't have any devices that use these -- already plug the digital camera in USB.

I have recently started having things where the bootup stops during the memory test or something. All I've done so far is repress the button & things bootup fine.

Could there be some residual damage from the laptop being overheated before you picked up the cooling fan unit? I wouldn't know how to check for this... Again, thanks for your input on this! Much appreciated. -*-Bill