I see that this is an old thread but I have exactly the same problem and really need a solution.
I too have a Dell Precision M6500 with an i5 CPU. I am running Workstation 7.1 but have also had the problem when running VM Player (not sure what version).
My VMs are generally running XP. I have had several different VMs crash like this. It is possible that they all came from the same "parent" XP VM.
The crash is instantaneous and takes out the host machine as well as the VM and all programs running in both.
I frequently need my USB ports.
Can anyone involved let me know if they were able to resolve this issue and how.
Any help appreciated.