Fixing the m15x's quirke's

So far the overheating issue is...... in the beta stages as far as im concerned. The keyboard bending at the arrow keys has a DIY solution. The only majour issue that i see that remains is the screen being very creaky (thats if the machine makes it to you in one piece and works right. Has anyone tried to perhaps put some Lube to the area that it is rubbing off of?

 

good thought. I hope someone can try this (and if possible, have the bottle of KY in the screenshot, would make it very funny)

 

Honestly, I don't see how lube would work for it, since the creaking (at least for me) is coming from monitor area flexing while starting to close or open the lid.

 

so would that not come from the joint? aka the hinge? i wouldnt put too much on though as it may make it too loose, but just to make it acousticly acceptible

 

For me, the little noise I do have is coming from the hinge area

 

Hey guys, I've currently had the system in my sig for approximately 2 weeks and I'm trying to carefully test everything and analyze the system to evaluate whether I want to return or keep it. Let's start out with the things I like:

Design: The overall design and aesthetics of the machine are great. I'm thoroughly pleased with the AlienFX lighting system and personally think this is one of the most attractive notebooks I've owned to date. The sleek contours coupled with the clear coat lamination on the plastics along with the lighting certainly make the laptop attractive. The touch sensitive controls are very cool.

Screen: Excellent screen. I have the LG model and it's one of the best notebook lcd's that I've used. When I saw how bright it was, it reminded me of the LCD screens on the new macbook pro's. Excellent contrasts, colors and brightness. I needed to configure the settings a bit in the nvidia control panel within vista to overcome some inital washout but it looks perfect now.

Keyboard: Tactile, good feedback, springy, comfortable to type on and looks beautiful when lit up.

Performance: The 8800mGTX is a true pleasure to game with, especially when using a 1440x900 screen. I feel like there's nothing that I can't play well. Even Crysis at hight settings runs extremely playable for me. I have a feeling that gaming at 1440x900 would give me extreme longevity with this card.

Smartbay/stealth/binary gfx: Excellent design to give people maximum flexibility and portability given their specific needs. I would have never thought a powerful gaming laptop would be able to last 5+ hours in any circumstance but it's now possible with the m15x utilizing the smartbay battery and power saving features.

Things I'm unhappy with:

Keyboard responsiveness: I'm still having keyboard lag and unresponsiveness that I hope will be fixed at a future point with some sort of hardware or software update. It's not horrible, but tends to happen when you are typing two of the same letters side by side. (I had it happen 3 times when typing this paragraph... "when typing 'horrible' and 'letters'" make that 5 times because it just happened again typing that last part... Annoying and frustrating.

Build quality: I just got done installing (another keyboard skip, double l's) the 1gb turbo memory and I'm really saddened at the poor build quality of this model. The plastic back panel is so incredibly flimsy it's horrifying to me. It sways in my hand like a piece of poster board with flimsy and cheap looking aluminum pieces on the underside. Contrast that with the bottom of my m1710 which is complete and utter metal. Contrast that with the macbook pro which is almost completely aluminum. I understand the design philosophy in perhaps trying to make the m15x more mobile and portable and cut down on the weight but it makes me very paranoid about the notebook getting damaged or not having very good (keyboard skip) longevity. The smartbay upgrade that I received from AW today also is made of cheap plastic that reminds me of the types of plastic used in model airplanes and toy cars that I used to build when growing up. The screen creaks when opening from the cheap and malleable plastics. The only saving grace is that the bottom of the notebook is more sturdy, underneath the palm rests and so the machine doesn't creak much when typing or pressing on the bottom chassis. Again, I can understand designing the plastic for maximum portability and light weight but I can't help but feel uncomfortable at spending $3K for something this cheap feeling.

Webcam: It's truly terrible, but I don't use it much therefore it's more of a non-issue to me.

That's about it really. I don't have any of the heat problems or downclocking but then again I'm running X32 bios. Games run beautifuly and it's a powerful notebook.

I guess my question is whether this type of build quality is standard on all AW notebooks?

I originally wanted a more powerful gaming notebook that was portable enough that I (keyboard skip) could carry (keyboard skip) it more places. If I send it back, I'm not really sure what my other options are at this point. I could perhaps get the m1730 but it's such a monster (not to mention incredibly ugly) and I dread the thought of carrying it on planes though I'm a strong guy and could certainly get used to it.

It's funny, I've owned nothing but Dell's and went to AW with this purchase thinking to get away from the "cheap components" but find that it's a mixed bag with the m15x. Expensive components mixed with really cheap components. It's a rather weird amalgamation and I can't decide whether I should just accept the fact that no notebook is perfect (keyboard skip) or whether I should demand the maximum quality that I feel is deserved for my money spent.

Anyone else in a similar quandry with this notebook?

Sigh...

 

i don't think there are "perfect" notebooks out there. it's always a trade-off of good and bad stuff. i guess it's up to the buyer to decided if he can live over them.

i don't have my m15x yet, but have used various thinkpads. like i said it's a tradeoff. they're rock-solid, i don't think you could really damage them if you wanted to, but they look ugly and don't have that much power. again, it's always a tradeoff.

 

I'm curious to know what this "back plastic panel" is. Are you talking about the panel on the bottom that covers the access to the internals?

 

Precisely. The panel you would need to remove to install the 1gb turbo cache memory module. The large panel that contains the vents. It has an illusion of stability and strength because it's being grounded into the chassis by several screws. I was shocked when I finally got it off and felt how flimsy it actually was.

 

Well, in all fairness, if it's strong when it's in place, does it matter what it's like when it's in your hand?

 

yeah, might even be better in regards to cooling etc.

 

This part, the service cover, is nothing more than a cover! The system can run without it pretty fine since it adds nearly nothing to the overall stability of the case.

But besides that, I couldn't agree more to your thoughts! If mine would not had have a faulty screen - that made me sent it back for repairs immediatly - additionally to all the other known issues, I would be in the exact same position as you are right now. Keep it or let it go? Get used to the bad case and have the fastest laptop around? Or send it back and wait for alternatives... wait long maybe...

 

The build quality you describe is not typical of all AW notebooks. I own a m9750 and, although it is no longer the most powerful notebook out there, the build quality is good. The keys are responsive and never fail to register a key press and although there is a small amount of flex in the LCD panel-lid, it is not nearly as much as you described for the m15x. The rest of the chassis is very solid.
I fault AW for not making the 15x with better quality materials considering that it is a high end notebook.

 

well been on the phone with a roswell support for about 3 hours encounting now... most of my problems are solved, and it's working nice...

only one problem left is my laptop - hdtv's hdcp compliance isn't working properly or something.... need a few more days on that.. once thats solved! everythings perfeecct

 

Did they solve the keyboard unresponsiveness problem as well? Or you didn't have it.

FFS had to correct myself 4 times while typing that sentence before because some letters I pressed were missed out.

 

Well, I've got a tentative cancellation with AW but the dept has to call me back within 48 hrs for the RMA. I don't know guys, I really wanted to love this laptop and wanted it to be everything that I needed but I just don't feel like I'm getting 3 grand worth of equipment. I feel like I've got a cheap product that is falsely influencing me with the "gimmick factor" which in this case happens to be the AlienFX lighting system. I wanted to be portable with this thing and with the flex and creaks in the plastic I'm honestly scared to sling it around in a backpack on long trips. I started to compromise with myself by saying "Well, just treat it as a DTR and leave it on your desk..." which then begged the question why I need the m15x and smartbay accessories if I intend to do that.

I think I'm going to look at the m1730 a bit longer or just wait for some better options over the summer.

Ah well, it was a short but fun ride. I hope all of you that are happy with the m15x continue to be satisfied with it.

 

lol, the only problem i had prior with keyboards, besides the alienfx light not working is that backspace was a little buggy... it still is like that, but i think its just an option i needa change somewhere,

with him, i did reseat the keyboard too, so no problems here.... hdtv conection is my only problem now.. and when they're going to come around getting the stupid sata 2 ssds. :/

 

Good luck to you and your new lappy, groove.

Sorry to hear about your m15x.

 

OH MY GOD

[IMAGINE CAPLOCKS ON]

i just put a light all around my laptop and over the ethernet port! THERS A LINE. but you can only see it from certain angles/lighting.

[END CAPLOCKS RANT]

 

To be honest groove, I think you're worrying yourself into returning the laptop for a frankly inane reason. You're gonna chuck a powerful machine (no faults in that regard) just because the screen makes a couple squeaks when it moves?

Now, I'm not attacking you, and it's entirely your prerogative to return it for whatever reason you want. But it seems like your psyching yourself into worrying about it, while ignoring all the positives your machine has (it's not like you have one of those 'true' lemons which unfortunately have appeared). It's all up to you though and I'm sure you've thought this through and have no problem with your decision, and if you believe you've made the right decision, then you don't need to listen to people like me -- it's your choice. I'm just saying, all I want you to be is completely confident in your choice.

 

Very well said.

 

is that meant to be sarcastic?

 

It was more a rhetorical question but since I saw no smiley I had to ask :3

 

Honestly, it's just a personal preference. There's nothing glaringly amiss with the notebook or any reason why any purchaser couldn't be happy with the machine. In my case though, it's the judicious use of flexible plastics that's bothering me. I place a great deal of value on the sturdiness, durability and perceived resilience of a notebook because I tend to be rough on them when I travel a lot. I hope all you guys continue to enjoy the laptop though and I certainly don't blame you for doing so.

 

That's fine, as I said, as long as you are happy with your decision then I am happy with it too.

 

Btw notebookcheck.com (one of the biggest german notebookreview sites) released their official test on the m15x these days and came to the same conclusion: the build quality, haptics and squeaking are one of the main cons and do not meet the standards of such a high priced laptop...

So although it may be highly subjective to the owner wether the squeaking and whobbling is considered as a problem and also there may be variations in the production quality of the plastics themselves, still no one can be blamed if he/she is not satisfied with the overall sturdiness of a m15x, because it HAS some issues there!

 

Yeah mine came from the Hinge area as well.

 

yep for me the creaking is the only serious issue. cant wait for a user fix!

 

Oh no doubt, I'm not at all defending the build quality and if groove wants to send his in on that basis, that's perfectly fine -- it's his money and his computer so he is allowed to decide. But, in the case of Notebook Check, it didn't stop them from giving it an 88% (my point? These issues aren't really crippling like, say, a dead hard drive or as GPU downclocking was, or a messed up screen like in your case crizzler)

 

no, i really just noticed a line above the ethernet port... it doesn't look like a crack though, more like a scrape off the paint job or something. its barely noticable.. its probably so small or so negligable that dust can't even fit into it.. D:

 

Let's be honest guys, 3k for a laptop is more then the average comsumer would spend. Most of us here are gamers and enthusiast, when we chuck that kinda cash we all expect the quality to match. When you buy high end Desktop components would accept soem crappy plastic and cheap contsuction. No we wouldn't !!! We would move onto the next vendor. Thsi laptop to me is a Brilliant and truly innovative design, but AW shoudl be completely and utterly embarrassed to say it's of the standard AW quality. I have seen many 9750's and they are extremly well built. These M15x look liek something you buy from Walmart. "Good from a far, but far from good"

For the money I spent the quality is disgracefull.

 

I dont suppose that the ribcage, or black ripley design version will fare any better in quality. TBH i would be happier having say about 1/2 pound of extra weight if they would use some proper materials.

Maybe AW have learned their lesson and will change the chasis build quality. OR thats just a hopefull pipedream as i will be buying mine most likely when the new designs come out.

Perhaps they could use alluminium? light, and very heat conductive, so it could help dissapate the heat, fixing any heat issue a bit.

 

yes the casing is very cheap. but for me, its not a deal breaker.

 

I don't think there's anything fundamentally wrong about the plastic or shell itself, but rather the lax build quality is compromising durability (especially in the screen area).

 

I can clearly see your point here and yes it scored 88%, the newest Apple MacBook Pro 15" got 90% btw, and I do not want to denie that the m15x is still an extraordinary notebook out there!
The problem I see here is that, unlike e.g. a dead harddisk, bad build quality does not render your system useless immediately but it eventually will after a year or two. Remember, I do NOT SAY IT WILL, but my experiences I have made so far with this system and other high end notebooks don't really make me very optimistc with this...
And please don't misunderstand me, it is not my intention to talk the m15x bad, I'd rather wish I get back a perfect system from repairs that will last long (heck I already ordered a smartbay battery a few days ago!), but we all know there is a chance this might not happen

I think thats a bad idea, the MacBook Pro is fully made out of aluminium and gets pretty hot everywhere already. Imagine how hot the chassis will get with a 8800 and an Intel Extreme inside!

 

Copied straight from the AW site.

Magnesium Alloy Chassis
When developing the fastest notebooks ever created, you need a strong, lightweight chassis. By building our notebooks on a magnesium alloy chassis, we can provide our customers with the best of both worlds, a material lighter than steel with far more rigidity than plastic.

Heat Management
Proper thermal management is key to system performance. With the notebook’s magnesium alloy chassis, we can cool the internal structures enabling the fastest processors and graphics cards. In addition to the internal details, Alienware designed notebooks have dual air exhaust, porting hot air away from the user.

 

Oh it's alright, you have every right and reason to be angry with the shoddy quality AW provided you, and I'm not here to defend it religiously against criticism, because doing so would be flat-out wrong (the m15x is unfortunately far from perfect).

I think I'm just surprised that everyone's putting a two to three year lifespan on this laptop (after having lived with another one for 6 years and squeezing every last ounce of performance out of it)

 

the m15x is not plain old plastic is it? i think its mylar and/or what dhoang said.

 

The chassis is there but unfortunately there's an over judicious use of plastic in the laptop. The type of plastic is much more malleable than standard fares used in other laptops or Dell's from my personal experience. I mean, a reasonably firm grip on the monitor lid will warp the plastic every time. Take a thumb and press any part of the bottom part of the laptop and it will also slightly warp. When I saw the plastic used for the hd loader for the smartbay, I was just shocked at the cheap construction and thin plastic. It literally reminded me of the type used to build my model airplanes when growing up.

Beautiful laptop but I think the Ripley build needs to be reworked in a big way.

I sent mine back today and went with a m1730.

 

Congrats Groove,

Enjoy your new system. I am still waiting for my system to return from AW, been almost a MONTH now. Will call on Monday if it isn't shipped I want my money back. Glad I had a back up system for work.