*OFFICIAL* M11xR1 Owners Lounge - Part 4

If you have the $$$$ go for kingston hyper X ram. Thats the one a lot of upgraders here have.

 

Are you saying the keys press on the screen when closed?

 

So in playing games the m11x gets quite warm to the left of the touch pad. Is this normal?

What's under the case in that spot?

Is it the HD? Would the SSD run cooler?

 

I'm only an "official M11x owner" temporarily-- mine just arrived today. The only problem is that the order was cancelled a week or two ago. I'd like to take this time to apologize to anybody who is still waiting for theirs.

I'm glad I got to see one in person, though. I've been using an XPS M1210 for nearly four years now, and I'm quite used to small laptops-- but it seems like 11" is just a little too small for me. It's nearly an inch of vertical screen size lost. It's otherwise well-built, though, and not nearly as weird-looking in person as it is in photographs. If anybody else is considering it as an M1210 replacement, I'd encourage you to seek out something with an 11" 16:9 screen to compare to your 12" 16:10 to see if it will work for you first. If the screen works for you and you don't need the optical drive, it looks like a great little machine.

I gave up looking for what I really wanted, which was something with a ULV or LV i5/i7 and a GPU as good or better than the 335, in a nice 13" form factor. There just aren't any. Alienware could clean up with an M13x, but for now I've given up on small and gone for an Envy 15-- which at least is relatively light. Hilariously, it's only a quarter-pound or so heavier than my old 12".

 

I still use that white paper thing that computer came with to protect the screen from the keys. Still thoroughly enjoying my m11x. Runs a lot of the games I have better than my desktop for some reason.

 

So does everyone's M11x keyboard keys touch the screen when closed?

This seems like a design error to me, with the possibility of the screen getting scratched over time?

 

I haven't noticed mine touching, and I'm pretty anal about that sort of thing... screen appears to rest on the rubber pads just fine

 

Hello,

The left palm rest is the RAM modules. Yes they do get a bit hot. I've upgraded to Kingston HyperX and they run much cooler.

 

Will this memory fit in the M11x ?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...ebook+Memory)-_-Crucial+Technology-_-20148191

Crucial 4GB (2 x 2GB) 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM DDR3 1066 (PC3 8500) Dual Channel Kit Laptop Memory Model CT2KIT25664BC1067 - Retail

 

I've been hearing a bunch of horror stories of how people have been getting faulty systems. I'm nervous.

 

Don't be, mines peachy

 

Sure will!

 

Agreed - I have the 120 GB version - awesome drive...

In watching klas' fan video of the 2 units he has with regards to his fan issue(s) (mine is somewhat exhibiting the same) - I had forgotten how "slow" the system was with a regular HDD. Boot times for me are 1/3 of what was being shown - plus programs now load instantly versus a slight, yet noticeable, delay with typical HDDs...

 

jsgiv - I just watched the video too after you mentioned it and matched it to my youtube video of my SSD boot and yeah the SSD loads in about ~10seconds faster than the HDD. Not sure if that's a 5400rpm or a 7200rpm though. SSD's rock!

 

That's comforting.

 

I don't have a video camera - however my brother does. Depending on timing, etc. - Whenever my replacement unit gets here - I'll try to do a quick side-by-side comparison of the m11x with the 320GB / 7200 RPM drive vs. my OCZ Agility 120 GB.....

It's really hard to quantify in words the overall impact an SSD upgrade makes to this laptop..

 

Here is my M11x w/ Agility OCZ loading at around 26 seconds and 90% full capacity I am sure I can shave a few seconds off by deleting some space but here it is anyways....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOCQll7If9k

 

Hey guys, I'm doing a fresh install of Windows right now.

There's 3 partitions:
The reserved OEM partition 1 (39mb)
Recovery partition 2 (14.6GB)
Primary partition 3 (134.4GB)

Should I get rid of the recovery partition?
I think the OEM partition is to help the boot speed, and is tiny anyway, or should I remove that as well?

Thanks!

EDIT: Ah screw it, don't need the recovery partition.
Leaving the OEM partition for the bios.

 

The ocz agility 120 ssd upgrade was probably the best thing I've ever done for any computer I've owned. I want to put one in my desktop, but will probably wait till I build a mini-itx.

Also, I'm still relatively new to ssd's, but do they get slower as capacity is used up? I know over time their performance can degrade without trim or something.

 

Testing battery life right now, just enabled word file scrolling and that's all Lowerest brightness, intel video, wifi - off

Something like this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4oe-NCbHTo

Already have about 6 hours and 1 remaining...

So maybe only with SSD we can have advertised 8,5 hours?)

 

I think it was about 22 seconds when the drive was at less than 50% capacity

 

Am I right in that the compatible memory for the M11x is supposed to be 1066Mhz?

Also, is it DDR2 or DDR3 8500?

I have been looking at Kinsgton Hyper X memory (4GB) but they seem to be DDR2 8500, whereas the crucial memory linked earlier in this thread is DDR3 8500.

What is the correct type of memory, DDR2 or DDR3 or does it take either?

Is there any difference?

 

Was it an easy install on the M11X?

How do you go about isntalling it? Do you leave the current drive in your M11X where it is and install the SSD on top?

Sorry for sounding stupid but this would be useful to know.

 

The SSD replaces the HDD inside the chassis. And the system only takes DDR3. The pin arrangement is different for the two types of RAM

 

So does that mean you can only have either a SSD or a HDD drive in there and not both together?

 

Odd question here. I am using a hard drive from another laptop in my M11x so I have 500GB. I have everything working, except it says Toshiba in the system info. Is there a way to switch it back to Alienware?

 

deadlyvirus, you can do a fresh install and that should take care of the issue. Download all drivers first and put them on a usb stick. Also use the Alienware Windows disk that came with your system. Then hookup the USB when your done and install all the drivers.

Zenza, There is only room for one HDD in the M11x. It's pretty packed inside. Any 9.5mm 2.5" HDD/SSD will work, but only space for one.

FWIW, the M11x only utilizes 204pin DDR3 RAM. Anything above 800MHz will be downclocked to run at 800MHz. Currently I have my former M17x 1333MHz RAM in my M11x and it's downclocked to 800MHz. Dell ships the M11x with 1066MHz RAM due to their abundance of 1066MHz RAM modules in stock. So if your buying RAM, keep that in mind.

 

Does anyone else's "flash" a black screen for a split second on the logon screen?

 

FYI to Canadians, the M11x with processor upgrade, 4GB ram, and 320GB 7200 drive upgrade is $999 for the next two days.

See Dell.ca's Signature Event on front page of site.

 

@av1945 - Yeah mine does that. Thought it was kinda of weird ....

 

Am i the only one getting like 10 hours battery life? I leave the keyboard backlight on and have it set to Integrated Graphics, I made sure alienfx software was removed from start up to make sure that there is no 10% cpu usage all the time which causes the fan to run and the battery shows me 10 hours and 10 minutes remaing with 96% battery life while browsing the net and stuff, I got the SU4100

Anybody else?

 

Yep. My unit used to do that. It doesn't now though. Lost track of which parts they replaced which caused the "flash" to stop. I've gone through a fan replacement, top piece replacement, 2 palm rests (lights on right side dim, both times), and a keyboard replacement. 3 technician visits since the 6 days of receiving it. On the verge of returning it actually, the guys who they sent haven't done very good jobs, but just to let you know that I was having that too. Unlikely it's due to the part replacement, but heck, just giving as much info as possible.

 

Glad to see im not the only one!
Prodigy - By anychance did you change the logon screen backgroup picture?

 

Yeah, mine does that flash too. Bit annoying, but I can deal with it.
Does anyone know how to get back the Binary GFX button to work again. I installed the Dox drivers, but then rolled back cause I wanted Binary GFX button again. I installed the Dell drivers, but Binary GFX button still isn't working. Any ideas?

 

I installed a 128GB Kingston SSDNow V+ with Trim support, and its at about 25GB free space. I just tested boot time. Starting when I hit the power button, it gave me the login screen at 25 seconds. I entered my password and had a useable desktop 11 seconds later... so from power button to desktop including me typing my password, it totalled 36 seconds. Not bad!

 

Guys can i use external display via HDMI when I'm on intel graphics? Cause I'm able to do this only on geforce...

 

Just uninstall everything and reinstall the stock 188.85 ones from scratch. I've uninstalled and reinstalled these drivers so many times lol. I'm using Dox again b/c I wanted CUDA support and gameplay fps performance in metro 2033.

 

I've heard that some people have lost battery life even though the bluetooth was set to off. Is this true? Can some people with bluetooth but have it set to off still get the 8 hour battery life?

 

do you just install the Dox drivers "over" the standard drivers? or uninstall the dell drivers first then install the Dox drivers?

I've tried numerous times, and while the Dox Drivers "work" - my machine tends to hang when in IGP mode (I've followed the instructions included in the Dox Drivers - i.e. uninstalled standard first).

 

I've had no hanging issues with Dox drivers. I can switch freely between the two graphics. I installed the dox OVER the standard drivers since uninstalling I think just auto reinstalls the stock dell ones. I did the "have disk" method of installing the dox drivers, not running a setup app or anything. After a reboot or two, I'm set.

 

Quick question here..If I buy this laptop from dell.com in US and have any issues later on, would I be able to get service through dell in Canada?

 

Yeah So I was at future shop the other day and finally seen an 11.6 LCD laptop monitor to get an idea how small the M11x is. HOLY its so tiny!!! Its almost too small, but then again people play on iPod touches and PSP's all the time so it isn't that bad. Still waiting on my M15x to arrive.. blahhrrhghhigihgh....

 

You aren't getting 10 hours battery life just because the battery shows 10 hours remaining.

 

So Dell pretty much just spat in our faces for supporting them early on by being the first ones to order the product...
Its on sale now for at least $200 cheaper... i got mine with EPP pricing, and with this new offer I can still save $100 after tax WITH a better harddrive than my 250gb... !!

i wonder if they'll budge if i ask for a credit, or would they prefer i just return it and order a new one?

 

sorry, forgot the link... check it out..

http://www1.ca.dell.com/content/topics/segtopic.aspx/xps_signature_event?c=ca&l=en&s=dhs&ref=hbn

 

simonj13:
If it is within the return window you can return, but also place your order since this is a two day sale. And they won't give a rip after that. Now is when you'd also want to really haggle with a sales rep also to get the price down even lower. Seems like there is always buyer's remorse with Dell.

 

It's the nature of the beast. Launch, and gather your initial sales. Then have a sale to push more sales. Thats to be expected when you purchase at or near the launch period. Once the hype is gone they will push to make more sales. All about the benjamins.

 

it's okay.. i still got mine cheaper and better than that config.. 920 before tax and with SU7300, 4gb, 500gb, BT, year of mcafee AV, and $50 dell certificate.. but good for people who don't wanna waste time haggling over the phone i guess.. I still don't play with mine enough because i'm at home most of the time on my i7 desktop... ~_~ and the m11x isn't fast enough for me to justify using at home over the i7.. basically just take it to school or when i go out to study.. kinda sad.. lol.. it's like eye candy... or 1 grand paper weight

 

I've had to switch the light effects off in lecture theaters especially if the lecturers like to tone down the lights.

 

You can switch freely between the two graphics but it doesnt seem to shut off the 335m. Or something. With 4 hours of battery life on either integrated GPU or Discreet, whats the point of even switching?

Needs to be clear that, if you aren't going to use the stock 188's from Dell, you won't get the crazy good battery life from the Intel GPU. (DELL: STOP DOING THIS: RELEASE UP TO DATE DRIVERS WITH THE PRODUCT, HOW DID YOU EVEN FIND A COPY OF OLD 188's!!! ARGH!!!)