980m 8GB

Jeff

The only place I saw an estimated date for delivery was in the original e-mail telling me that it went into production and I didn't believe it at the time as it said 12/24


Farson

 

Update on the light bleed . . . it's definitely there - kind of severe in the upper left corner heading down to the bottom of the screen . . but it's limited to just the side - it may come out a 1/4 of an inch but it's about an 1/8 where it's a bit bright.

I doubt I will notice it while gaming or working.


Farson

 

Jeff

I hope you are as happy as I am with my replacement! 8187 Firestrike 3DMark with the latest Nvidia drivers. Didn't update the bios either . . . but it might be on the latest - 1.2.3. and no OC levels . . .wondering if I should play with those or not lol

Temps hit 75c for the processor!!! that's a 25c drop!! I'd keep this machine based on that alone!! Temp for the 980m hit 67c (I think . . .wasn't much higher) . . . so great there as well!

This is definitely the machine that should have been sent the first time!


Farson

 

even overclocking it can keep those temps.

 

I get similarly low temps WITH performance fans mode engaged. Without that temps hit 90C under load.

OC2 gets those temps up to the 80C area under load, but that's fair enough given the quite significant clock speed increase. The machine holds max performance without any throttling in all of the aforementioned modes, but I guess CPU temps in the region of 90C are a concern from the system longevity perspective.

The downside of the fan perf mode is thè jet engine noise levels, however, it's probably a good thing to keep enabled for any heavy load scenarios given that it controls the temps so well.

Going to give OC3 one more shot. Previously quite unstable, I hope that's because I kept fan perf off.

 

OC3 unstable in perf fan mode. Switched back to OC2. CPU temp 25C - 4C above the room temp, so basically the fans are overdoing it at low load levels causing unnecessary noise

Is there a way to control the fans from Windows?

 

Got a stall call from Dell offering me 2 options:
1. Cancel and refund (not interested)
2. Wait for a replacement

He said there is a problem with a whole batch of machines being built with incorrect GPU memory configs and he can't do anything about it and no precise ETA.
According to him, if I we ordered a new machine now, I would likely receive another 4GB build.

I told him I don't believe in his story given that a) the 8GB config is currently offered on the website b) other people are receiving replacements - he really offered no explanation in response.

He is supposed to call me next week with a further update, I also asked for an email confirming the arrangement which he promised to do - we'll see how it goes

This person, an Indian male, was clearly not the same person I spoke with last time (a female) who claimed that the reason for the delay is her being my dedicated rep who's going on a leave this week - clearly the dedicated rep story didn't hold up.

Oh boy, this is far from ideal, isn't it?

 

Etern4l

That sucks and yeah - I'd keep pressing them as yeah I got my replacement with the 8gb and I have to think others are too!

So I decided I had to try OC3 with the temps . . . score jumped from 8187 to 8404 on Firestrike. Max temp jumped from 75c to 79c (avg about 45c) using the Enhanced Fan Mode and idle temps look to be about 25c which is just a few degrees above room temp. GPU maxed at like 55c.

I'll probably be going back to stock level as I don't need the OC'ing for gaming right now . . . but it's nice to know that I can OC if I need too.


Farson

 

Found this amusing...

 

Thanks Farson, will do. Looks your build is more robust. OC3 crashes my machine pretty quickly no matter what, and it also looked like the 4-core utilization clocks were almost the same as in OC2 mode (3.9GHz), which was a bit weird.

BTW Intel video driver crashes also stopped with perf fan enabled so I really don't know why the non-perf mode exists given that it clearly provides inadequate component cooling.

 

As expected, no email with the promised arrangement in writing yet. The guy didn't even share his name...

I'm sorry to say but they basically appear to be a bunch of lying scum, I'm not sure if I should believe the replacement story given all the blatant BS.

 

Sorry be banging on about this, but I think the community should know what awaits those who dare jump on the Dell train.... Wrote a lengthy email in an attempt to get something in writing from those guys - bam! So annoying

 

etern4l,

I'd call them and get someone on the phone that can initiate the exchange, don't worry about the possibility of another 4GB, nobody can guarantee the problem is fixed. Just get the exchange rolling, cause it's probably going to take a few weeks (if not a month) anyway.

I had to call twice for the exchange (over an hour on each call being transferred around), first time they didn't even want to do the exchange and then I started complaining that my order clearly states 8GB, bla bla and they finally agreed... I got no email after 24 hours tho about it, called again and I got someone to send me an email confirming the order and now I have a new order number in the system "In Production", but with N/A for the EDD. I will be calling them about that too

Bottom line, the phone/email/chat support people have no idea what's going on with these machines. They also deal with all of their products and production issues across the board so I'm sure they are more confused than we are.

<rant>
NEVER expect anyone to call you back. Most won't at big companies, no matter what the company. It's just a mechanism to get you off the phone and on to another complaining customer. The "I'll be your contact" is such BS. They are trying to get you not to call them back and just wait as usually time in their system, things will get resolved naturally. They don't care enough and can't because of the volume they get.

I'm not saying to NOT order from Dell, that's just what happens when you're a large corporation w/ lots of customers. If you roll with their system, usually nothing bad happens, but as soon as something outside the "Norm" happens, this is where the customer gets hurt the most.

I've seen worse problems in Health Care. I'm in IL, try calling BCBS or Medicaid Offices and it's a nightmare that makes dell look like a dream come true. The Medicaid phone number rings and disconnects.
<end rant>

 

Webjeff, thanks for the support and sound advice. I'm concerned that once my cancellation window expires, they might turn around and try to wriggle their way out the replacement. Will try calling again and apply the tactics suggested, but given the blatant stonewalling I received today, optimism is hard to muster. This has really become a huge drain on time, perhaps cancelling is a better option at this point - will think about it, also considering that I appear to have received a slightly sub-par CPU.

It also seems that UK customers are not enjoying the same level of service as the US folks, which makes me wonder if the US replacement success stories are of any relevance in my case.

While my experiences haven't been quite as bad as your Medicaid example, clearly, I haven't really had much luck with customer support lately. Got an LG G3 in its third repair - a complete joke: the phone came back from the first 2 attempts faulty and basically unusable, and they have so far refused to replace it. It's been in the third repair for almost 2 weeks, this time in an outsourced centre (how promising). Will never buy an LG product again if I can help it. Incidentally, the first sign of trouble was their essentially defunct online support system.

 

I see your point on the cancellation. Tough call, luckily my 4GB unit is great, no flaws so I'm fine keeping it if the unit I get in my exchange is still wrong or has other issues like light bleed.

I will also say one more thing, I ordered a 4GB unit and returned it (when the 8GB unit came available like 2 days after I got my machine). That refund for my returned unit is still PENDING after over a month of them having the machine back. Be prepared to wait for your money as well

 

Awesome. What's their excuse?

 

Apparently, this is normal operations. I was told it takes about 30 business days, which is coming up soon. They keep telling me, they have received the unit and it's only a matter of time. I guess we'll see. I'll start thinking of doing a charge back at the end of 2 months, since It's costing me interest at this point.

To be fair, I understand some time, as they have to disassemble the machine and scan back in each part to be sure I didn't take anything out of it. I've heard they get a lot each day. I'm willing to wait, but if you need the money quickly to re-order or get something else, you may be surprised.

 

Well, certainly there is quite a bit of room for things to go wrong in the process. I guess ultimately it's down to company reliability track record and reputation... oh dear

 

Tried calling customer services again, phone got picked up by a tech support guy who said all customer support are on holiday and I need to call back on Tue, just after my 14 day cancellation period ends

 

you just got screwed son! i hate that, it's so cheap.

 

You should get 21 days for a return!

 

Well, def suspect and shoddy. I still have a few days to cancel, if I don't believe that the replacement will actually happen or decide I'm not happy to deal with Dell for example.

 

Looks like you are right. Ticket shows someone in India actually bothered to open my email about 2 hours before I called Dell and got told everyone is on holiday. Dedicated workers reading customer emails on holiday and getting fresh ******** ready I guess.

 

Couldn't agree more, but looks like they only offer the bare minimum statutory 14 days in the UK...

http://www.dell.com/support/content...-change-returns?~srd=true&sk=returns&scat=sup

 

Doesn't matter about the time scale. You contacted Dell within the 14 day period and informed them of the mistake. You should still be covered under UK distance trading laws as you contacted them in a timely manner, plus you have been sent an different item to the one you ordered.

 

this is correct.

As we have notified dell within x days (and i have case numbers to prove it) i'm not worried about it.

Plus, seeing as how they sell my pc with 1 TB ssd (probably a 980M) and the 6820HK on the USA outlet for 2400$ ... way less than the 2900$ i'm paying for my 512gb / 980m model.. I dont feel so bad for them.

 

Another call with Dell. Looks like a more sensible person this time. Claimed the underlying manufacturing issue still hasn't been resolved and they are waiting for an update on that. The fact that the 8GB config is being advertised on the website with 3-5 day shipping ETA is a problem that they escalated to marketing. For the time being, it doesn't make sense to create a replacement order since I would likely receive a 4GB build, whether it's a new web order or a replacement. My refund route is open while this is unresolved and she sent me a confirmation of this in writing, which is pretty cool. I hope they sort it out.

 

That's what I was told. 8gb is unavailable for the foreseeable future. When I questioned the fact it's still advertised online, he couldn't understand why. Presumably everyone ordering one is actually getting a 4gb and they are preying on people's ignorance and not checking. I was happy with mine so I took a 10% refund. To be honest, 8gb is overkill anyway and only really justifiable on an sli setup.

 

VRAM doesn't stack in SLI.

 

My 8GB was delayed for an extra couple of weeks.I received it last week and so far I am happy with the decision I made cancelling my original and getting the extra 4gb for 100.00 more.

 

I know. What I'm saying is a single 980m is probably gonna run out of computing power before it uses up 4gb of vram, but in an sli setup you can play in higher resolutions and make use of more vram. Hence 4gb single, 8gb sli.

 

You mentioned you have the unit with the FHD? You're generally happy with the FHD in lit conditions?

 

I got my 15" 6820hk 980m 8gb unit in last week, so there is a chance that you may indeed get what you ordered. The unit dispatched from Dell's warehouse in TN

 

This is not true, many have received the 8GB in both 15" and 17" variants. I also do not believe they have the ability to know what's going on in the manufacturing dept. in China. I would get an order in the queue now since they are backlogged as it is. Just my 2 cents, I doubt anyone can guarantee the problem is resolved. Better to try IMHO. If I get a 4GB again, then it just goes back and I'll request a small refund and be done with this nonsense!

 

Well it is true as far as I was told by the Dell rep. They wouldn't let me exchange/order an 8gb, only accept 10% compensation refund (£190) or have it collected for a full refund. When I asked if I could exchange, this is what I was told:

Dear David,

We regret to inform you that the systems are not available with 8GB graphics.

This is the reason we have given the two options.

Please do let us know and I will proceed with the request once you have confirmed.

Apologies for the inconvenience.

Many Thanks,

Nischal Dutt

Customer Care Associate for UK and Ireland

So I phoned to confirm, and I was told this was true and they weren't available for the foreseeable future. So I'm either being lied to, or nobody has any idea what's going on.

 

Maybe it's different in the UK, I'm in US... I will tell you, I was initially offered that same deal and they initially refused an exchange. They said I could either get a small refund or return the machine (my only options). I also explained I returned a previous system for the 8GB already and that a return process takes a long time (1.5 months and still waiting for my previous refund). They put me on hold and then finally approved the exchange. I just think they don't like doing exchanges because that's 2 systems being built/shipped for 1 order.

I would call again and complain again (don't mention your other email). I just think they are BS'ing you. I have no proof, just a gut feeling.

 

I have a feeling they are probably giving me some bs. I have returned my previous one for the 8gb, only to receive the 4gb again, same as you. I'll take the 10% either way, as i'm happy with the laptop and it's £189, and the 8gb is definitely not worth that much extra. Best of luck, hope you get the correct one next time!

 

Yep,

I'm giving it one more go!

 

I would have thought that the main benefit of 8GB memory for gamers would be the performance improvement when handling ultra high res textures rather than just enabling high frame buffer resolutions (which in itself wouldn't require that much memory). A single 4k texture with bump is 80MB, so the 4GB card can store maybe 40 of those, which is probably quite reasonable capacity; but if not, the 4GB card would likely slow down on the PCIe transfers. To be fair, I guess we are talking about cutting edge future open world PC titles, such as Star Citizen (which I read approaches the 4GB VRAM utilization on max settings).

 

So this is still an issue? Why on earth are they even letting people place orders for $3000+ machines if they can't fulfill the product specifications they are advertising to sell... I know just lastnight me and another member placed orders for two 15r2 identical systems and we both were sold it would be here by the 11th... so this must be a bold face lie or is Dell/AW really this unorganized and unprofessional now? Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse....

 

You're right, vram is also for storing high res textures amongst other things. But for native 1080p resolution, 4gb is currently more than enough (unless you're using crazy mods). If you're going to be rendering 4k resolution/ textures, the 980m clock speed and cuda core count will be a bottleneck before the vram will.

 

Yes. The matte surface does an uncanny job at keeping the screen perfectly readable, distraction-free and ergonomic - indoors and out. Brightness is fine. 40% is very readable on the tube/train (12h idle battery life at OC2). Colours are natural, perhaps a bit understated compared with a glossy FHD Toshiba L50 display I have on hand to compare to. For serious photo editing/graphic design work the FHD screen might not be the best possible option, but I'm very happy with using it for other work and occasional gaming.

 

Mine shipped from China.

 

The mess is pretty bad, some guys got the 4GB 980M twice in a row. I would be tempted to pre-emptively call customer service to see what they have to say about the ongoing 8 GB issue.

 

I'm not sure the statement is true. 4k screen resolution might get bottlenecked by the 980M's core processing speed, 4k textures by the available memory.

 

Either Nischal Dutt, or all the folks here reporting receipt of AW15 R2 980M 8GB builds lied.

 

Interestingly, this Clevo: http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/notebooks/7985/
is only offered with the 8GB 980M...

 

Well, hot dog!

My exchange just shipped, expected delivery tomorrow. I will report back if it's an 8GB unit or 4GB and take it out for a test drive!

 

they do exist.

 

Nice! P.S. Nice score on that Surface Book! I got the SP3 and it's great!