*OFFICIAL* M17xR3 Owner's Lounge Thread - Part 2

NBR Members with computer and notebook issues will be banned for the next week. All these "issue" threads are starting to clutter up the forum.

From here on out, we need to have discussions of R3 FUN!

 

whoa whoa whoa, sounds like Dell Gestapo

 

Hell yeah!

 

I don't see any fun being had! This is your first warning. Never forget, big brother is watching. The ban hammer will start swinging at 1900hrs EST.

Don't mistake my kindness for weakness!

 

1984 reference?

 

Yup . Great book and George Orwell knew what the future would resemble. Don't want to go to far due to NBR rules, but it was a great book.


Ban hammer is in full swing auto mode. LOOK OUT

 

Hmm I see. Yeah it was a good book and does seem like it is a decent take on the stringent and bland society that is to come.

 

Uninstalling SP1 right now. I have no updates on my desktop which is running win7ultimate, and there's no problems. It's actually much smoother than the R3, which is very weird for a dinodesktop.

 

Just wanted to chime in on my experience...

I received my m17x r3 on 5/2 and I'm seriously impressed with the hardware! I configured mine with the 2720, 6970, and 8GB of RAM. I quickly swapped out the OS HDD for an Intel 320 160GB and added a Seagate Momentus XT 500GB for the data. I installed Win7 x64 Ultimate with SP1, Acronis TI 2011, MS Office, VMware player, and KIS 2011. From bios post completion to visible desktop background, it takes 15 seconds (at stock clocks). Just awesome. To whoever mentioned 2 minutes to boot

After spending nearly a week with the machine, and looking over it carefully, I've noticed the following defects:

1. Four spots and a 6" vertical streak behind the glass.
2. The left speaker rattles even at 50%.
3. The touchpad touches the screen on the left/right sides.

Dell tried to send a tech to replace all of this, but a simple mention that I could return it, made for a prompt scheduling of a replacement. For anyone waiting for their M17s, I hope you have better luck. In fact, if you really, really loathe someone, gift them a defective M17 so they have to deal with Dell customer care. But then again, that would just be too cruel

 

I already ordered M17x R3 and can't wait to check out.

I do aware about screen in M17x R3 is no better than M17x R2 due to less color gamut and no RGB either, however I don't think it is big deal because 72% color gamut is no worse than in 20%-30% in Toshiba notebook that I used to own but ended up in motherboard failure.

 

Does your alienware mousepad smell >.< ?

 

Yes, it has a chemical odor, nothing too bad.

 

Sorry to bring this back up, but this made me laugh. It also reminded me of how microsoft, now that they have acquired skype, want to make tvs and everything skype possible, kinda reminding me about the 2-way tvs

 

When would this be gone?

 

It did when I first took it out of the baggie. A few days and it went away. Btw, my neoprene sleeve that I bought, still smells strong despite over 10washes in the washer and 3 days of airing out in my backyard. STRONG STUFF!

 

I also bought a cheap mousepad that also smelled the same burning rubber smell.

 

Hey all. Just received my r3 yesterday, 8 days before the anticipated delivery date. So far the only thing that seems off is my keyboard, which has a noticable warp in the middle. Gonna call support to see what can be done. Other than that there doesnt seem to be any problems. 2.3 ghz i7 and 6970 does very well with portal 2, modern warfare 2, Unity, and 3D modelling programs. Love the machine and hope something can be done about the keyboard that doesnt include taking the machine away from me lol.

 

Just received my r3 myself. Looked over everything, no flex on the keyboard, no media key problems, no scratches, all good.

 

Decided to cash in on a replacement r3. Just can't stomach less than perfection for the price paid. Hopefully the replacement will be flawless.

 

My media control keys section is slightly lift up, is this normal?

https://picasaweb.google.com/107017...key=Gv1sRgCMrWosTMydKA1AE#5605740257525059650

 

Greetings 3D owners...

Need a favor - Can someone provide the VBIOS REV# for their 460? GPU-Z to grab this, screenshot works fine.

Also, any issues encountered with resuming from sleep to a blank/dark screen forcing a hard reset in order to clear? If so, which NV Driver are you running?

Thanks.

 

Mine is exactly the same, I hadn't noticed that until now but it does not seem like a problem at all to me. As long as the edge is not raised it doesn't bother me.

 

Anyone know what desktop gpu the 6970m is roughly equivalent to? I heard it was the desktop gtx 460 but according to the benchmarks it doesn't look right? Thanks

 

I believe it is the desktop AMD radeon 6850. I could be mistaken, might be the 6870.

The 485m relates the the desktop 560TI (although the 485m is GF104 architecture, while 560 is 114), and 470m is closely related to desktop 460

 

Hello. Iam sure this have been discussed before. One thing I noticed is that most of the M17x R3 owners opted for the Nvidia and 3D direction. I just wanted to ask these owners, is the only reason you went with M17x R3 over M18x is for the 3D?

 

The 6970m is a downclocked desktop 6850

The GTX 485m is comparable to a desktop GTX 460 1GB but with twice the ram and the full 384 shaders present not the chopped 336 that are in the GTX 460. The GTX 470m is comparable to a desktop GTX 460 SE

 

Thanks. 10char

 

I opted for the 3D because I find a 460M is good-enough for my needs...I like playing my games and I'm not too worried about cranking the graphics settings way high to the maximum... I don't need AntiAliasing because it is too overhyped IMO...As long as I can play my games at 30+ fps, I'm pretty satisfied.

I am into 3D animation movies as well and this laptop is just what I needed all this years. I can play all the games out there maxed out without using 3D and while on 3D, I don't mind dropping the settings just a notch so that I can game with my glasses on...

 

Yup...i dont think this is exclusively a 3D display issue (cuz' mine's aint 3D) its either a combo of
460
HD3000
or Optimus

 

i am having issues with my charger not charging in a specific condition.

It happens when i have the charger plugged in (and charging), the battery is not 100% charged, and then i pull out the charger, and try to put it back in.
What happens is that the blue light of the charger is turning off once i plug it in.

Today a tech arrived with a new charger and we saw the same behavior so it's not the charger.
Now while i understand it might be the mobo i would like to ask you guys to try and reproduce this for me.


I need you to check the following:

1. This is very important - make sure the battery is not completely charged ( 70% charge or lower is good )
2. Now with windows running, and charger plugged in pull out the charger, wait a second and put it back in.

Does the light on the charger stay blue or turn off ?
Does windows show the battery as charging ?
Are you on ATI GPU or on IGP when it happens ?

I just have a gut feeling it's a general issue that is presented in some R3 machines but it's just not that common of a scenario for most to notice.

Please let me know.

Thanks!

 

Hey guys I am running into some issues after getting my laptop.
So I got the laptop on Friday May 13 and it may be plagued. I have a sound stutter issue which I think is due to DPC Latency issues (not sure what this is). There is some flex around WASD...where as the H-key area has zero flex.
The free mousepad came with extra glue on it and there was dirt under the plastic finish.
There is a chip on the top corner of the lid (can't be seen when open).
Is the laptop suppose to come with any plastic lament on? The Sager I had was covered in a plastic sheet that I knew came straight from the factory, this is giving me the feeling it was used.

I tried to switch to the Intel HD card and after doing so I attempted to calibrate the screen in this mode and then the computer froze. It wouldn't budge for several minutes so I hard reboot and from then everytime I load windows when not in safe mode it freezes at desktop or after inputting login information.

I think I should ask for a replacement because of all these issues. I'll be calling in tomorrow to see what can be done >_<

I really like the laptop and want alienware! >_<

edit: In safe mode I reinstalled the AMD Driver and that seemed to fix getting back in. Going to fire up a game now to test it

edit2: I must have done something to the laptop as now when I play multiplayer Brink its choppy! Maybe I installed an old driver for the 6970m? (I downloaded it off the dell site) Anyone ever had this issue? When I play sc2 on ultra 1080p it runs fine. Also when I play challenges of Brink on my own it was running fine.

 

Just got a blue screen with error code STOP 0x00...001e what does this mean?? This was while trying to find a Brink server or possibly as I was joining one. I'm scared to try again and I wana video game >_<

 

Warped as in the kb is slightly raised in the middle like a hump? Maybe you should try taking it out and reseating it? My replacmeent was sorta like that, and my current one is like that too, but not enough to do damage to the screen.

I don't quite see what's going on there? If it's like the picture in my picasa page where the media bar is raised on the right side edge, then you can glue it in, or remove it and reseat it.

 

Owners... ATI's 6870M or nVidia's GTX 460M?

 

Go for the 460m or just go with the 6970m. You wont regret it.

 

6870 or 6970 if you're willing to shell the cash. Switchable is better than Optimus, cuz the GPU actually shuts off to save off power.

 

Well the default is 6870 (forgot to mention Canadian site) and other option is to add $50 for GTX 460M. I'm not getting 6970.

 

I'd get the 6870 personally. Many others seem satisfied with the 460m, but there are others having problems with the drivers. 6870 is basically same as 5870, which is basically same power as 460m.

 

Are there any benchmarks of the 6870? Im thinking of picking up a refurb R3 whenever another coupon comes out. It should bring one with a 2630 and a 6870 down to around 1000 without the 1080p screen or around 1150 with the 1080p screen.

Do you think the card would be enough for recent gaming? Or should I add the extra $250 or so for the 6970?

 

Here are some gaming benchmarks if that's what your interested in. Computer Games on Laptop Graphic Cards - Notebookcheck.net Tech.
6870 is supposed to be a bit better than the 460.

 

I am now an Alienware owner!

1 Alienware M17x Soft-Touch, Stealth Black $2,173.24 $2,173.24
1 Intel Core i7 2630QM 2.0GHz (2.8GHz Turbo Mode, 6MB Cache)
1 8GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1333MHz (4DIMMS) 7
1 Alienware M17x 240W A/C Adapter
1 17.3-inch WideFHD1920 x 1080 60Hz WLED
1 2GB GDDR5 AMD Radeon HD 6970M
1 320GB 7,200RPM SATA-II HDD
1 AlienFX Color, Quasar Blue
1 Alienware Command Center Software, M17X
1 Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English
1 DataSafe Local BackUp
1 Vista PC Restore ???
1 DELL-DOWNLOAD-FLAG
1 Adobe Acrobat Reader 9.0 Multi-Language
1 Slot-Load Dual Layer DVD Burner (DVD+-RW, CD-RW)
1 Roxio Creator Starter,No Media
318-0424
1 Internal High-Definition 5.1 Surround Sound Audio
1 Wireless 802.11 g/n
1 Automatic Updates: On
1 Dell Hardware Limited Warranty, Extended Year
1 Dell Hardware Limited Warranty, Initial Year
1 Dell Limited Hardware Warranty Plus In-Home Service After Remote Diagnosis, 2 Year Extended
1 Dell Limited Hardware Warranty Plus In-Home Service After Remote Diagnosis, Initial Year
1 3 Year Limited Warranty
1 Accidental Damage Service, 3 Years
1 Soft Contracts Service Hardware Agreement for Alienware
1 Soft Contracts Consumer Accidental Damage Agreement for Alienware
1 Warrant y Support, 2 Year Extended
1 Warranty Support, Initial Year
1 Steam and Portal Factory Installed
1 Standard Nameplate
1 Thank you for choosing Dell
* -DISCOUNT $47.39
* -DISCOUNT/COUPON APPL




Subtotal: $2,173.24
Shipping & Handling: $0.00
Tax: $110.08
Environmental Disposal Fee: $0.00

Total Price w/Discounts: $2,283.32

 

Welcome to the club!

 

I'm quite happy
Out of curiosity...I opted for the HD6970 gpu, with this setup does the system have the ability to switch between integrated graphics/gpu to conserve battery life?

 

Yes. You can use either choose the 6970 gpu or the integrated graphics to save battery or if you need it for high performance.

 

Do you have any recommendations as far as SSD drives go? Im looking for something with around 120gb.

 

Sorry, But I still have no experience on ssd's.

 

You got to get some, they are VERY fun. I just ordered an Intel 320 160GB today since they were 445 off on newegg

 

This one? Newegg.com - Intel 320 Series SSDSA2CW160G310 2.5" 160GB SATA II MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) - SSD I dont the money man. Spend a lot on my R3.

 

That is the one. I had been eye balling it and that price was good enough for me to give it a go

 

Nice. Congrats on your purchase bro. I will definitely save some more to get one of those.