Precision M6400 Owner's Lounge

Slim Brick from Dell USA

 

Planning on installing Windows 7 (leaked build 7260 possibly RTM version) on M6400.

Am i sticking with ACHI mode.. Anything i should i know before i proceed? All the drivers for Vista should work with Windows 7 im assuming.

Advice is needed..

How about aligning partition?

 

Anyone used the Kensington (K33197US) wall/air/auto, AC/DC power adaptor?

"Packed with 120 watts of power and variable voltage, this lightweight and easy-to-carry power adapter switches for use with either AC or DC power sources so you always have the right adapter wherever you are-in a remote office, in the air, or on the road. It can power a wide range of electronic devices, from virtually any notebook to MP3 players, digital cameras, DVD players, cell phones, and iPods. It ships with tips to ensure notebook compatibility."

Manufacturer Part# : K33197US
Dell Part# : A1752178

 

Thanks, I knew that but need reassurance from people who have a clue. Changed my 320GB #1 drive for a 64GB Samsung SSD so I'm going to have to squeeze it onto a partition on 320GB drive #2. The one I had Vista on is empty and just the right size.

But the surf at Pavones is outrageous so it'll have to sit for a few days. But thanks a lot and I'll probably have more questions, in fact I already have one. At the boot is it going to be 7 that loads unless I'm there in time to pick the "Older operating system" prompt? The main reason I ditched Vista was if I didn't sit and wait on the prompt it automatically went to Vista. Which I didn't want and the same will be true for 7. In other words I want it to be XP unless I tell it different. That possible?

 

sure,
the best way is to run win 7 setup from xp.(just be careful which hd/partition you select to install win 7 ,lol)
That way the boot loader will automatically add xp to the list of installed os's.(if you boot from the win 7 dvd, it won't)

then you can simply change the default os from inside win 7 by running msconfig and clicking on the boot tab, select win xp and change it to the default.

done...........

 

I know this was talked about before, but I can't find the solution. How does one disable the M6400 from going back to full bright every time it starts or wakes from sleep. I have the screen calibrated and the ambient light sensor disabled, but i still have to bring the brightness level back to the point at which it was calibrated after every start.

I think someone said it had to be done in DCP, but I can't see how.

Thanks

 

I've never used the setting but am pretty sure all you need to do is enable the ambient light sensor, or reset the two bars for battery/plugged in brightness to whatever floats your boat. With it enabled mine always starts too dim and I have to do the Fn/up key deal to bring it up to where I want it. Haven't calibrated anything but full bright minus 5 taps of the Fn/down is just right for my preffered brightness. I've never changed anything because I like watching it get brighter and brighter until it's too bright and then backing it off. Cheap thrills.

And maybe you can answer one for me. In BIOS mine is set to RAID and you're also given the choice of ACHI and ATA and since I have no RAID configured and don't have a clue what ACHI and ATA really are want to know which of the others I can change it to and if that will eliminate the screen in the boot with all the RAID stuff on it. And if somewhere in the three big manuals you download if there's a part that covers all the BIOS settings and what you can change without blowing something up.

 

In calibrating the screen, the luminence setting (120 for the web, 90 for print) is actually set by varying the brightness. Because of this, the ambient light sensor must be disabled. Can't have the light level changing, while photoshopping a picture.

Our current method is to use the keyboard to bring the light bar up by 7 clicks (this is what it was at when calibration was done) every time the system is started. I would like to figure out a way to keep it there.

I can't help you with the Raid question since the two 500GB drives in mine are set for Raid.

 

Hi CarlL:

I have encountered the same issue on my system where even though the ambient light sensor is disabled and the screen brightness is set to 25%, it still came up 100% on boot and wake from sleep. The only way I was able to fix it is to re-install the OS. You might try uninstalling or installing the Ambient Light Sensor program from the Dell downloads website.

 

Display brightness is controlled under PowerOptions:

Control Panel --> PowerOptions --> Change Plan Settings