*OFFICIAL* "All Powerful" M15x Owners Lounge, *Part 3*

The European site of Dell support also pulled the A03 Bios and is back to A02
That confirms there are definite issues.

 

Does anyone have any M15x AlienwareFX themes with the lights morphing and all? I know there's a forum regarding the M17x, no love for the M15x?

I've tried to create one but it's to complicated for me.

Can anyone answer my BIOS question couple pages back pls?

 

Here's a couple I made:
http://rapidshare.com/files/333111676/M15x_Color_Cycle_FX_Themes.rar.html

If you mean the question about reinstalling windows, your bios will be unaffected by reinstalling windows so any updates you have done will still be there.

 

update my sig.
going to buy a alienware alx desktop.

 

Smeggit, thanks much man.

Is there a website for the M15x color themes? Cant seems to find any anywhere other then the M17x at this forums.

 

My M15x arrived a couple weeks ago. Absolutely LOVE this machine. The screen is incredible. Moving to PC from Mac (made the switch to osx around 5 years ago, it's time I came back) my Mac Pro / 30" Cinema display are both on ebay. Going to be building a PC in the next week. It's good to be back.

I know this has been answered before, but is it possible to overclock the 720QM? I've only seen this answered with a stern "no", but this machine seems to have enough cooling to maybe bump it up a couple hundred MHz, nothing drastic. Remember, these are enthusiast machines, not your run of the mill laptops. If the GPU can handle a small bump, no reason the CPU can't.

My 260m handles OCing with ease.

Specs:
Intel Core i7 720QM 1.6GHz
4GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1333MHz 2 x 2048MB
15.6-inch Wide FHD 1920x1080 (1080p) WLED
1GB NVIDIA GeForce GTX 260M
250GB SATAII 7,200RPM (Getting an SSD soon)

 

how do we install these?

 

I'm considering a M15x purchase here in the next week or two (whenever they decide to do the refresh) and was wondering, would anyone who has the "Nebula red" and the "Lunar shadow" colors mind posting pictures? I get the impression the pics on their website aren't representative of what the laptop really looks like.

Cheers!

 

yeah i they aren't really google pictures of the lappys you might find something better.

 

M15x has already been refreshed with the intel arrandale cpu. A GPU refresh is probably a few months away.

 

Um... just extract it and double click on it.

 

Hi guys,

I'll be receiving my M15x in a about a week, so I have a few questions: (sorry if they've been asked before).

1. Should I do a clean install once I get it?
2. What's the reliability of the machine like if I were to use it as a 24 hour machine? I'll be studying in Japan for an extended period of time in a couple of months, and as I'm not really all that fluent, I'd prefer to not have it break down on me while I'm there...(my M15x will be serving as my desktop while I'm there)

 

Mate out of interest, what made you do the switch back to Windows after all that time using OSX?

 

I copied them straight out of the Command Center folder. I'm at work so I can't check the exact directory, try going into FX in the command center and select Theme/Open Theme to see what directory it opens to. Just drop the files into this directory and load them.

Edit: Drop them in the directory C:\Users\YourUserName\AppData\Local\Alienware\Alienware AlienFX\Themes

I've posted a couple Nebula Red pics on page 29:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=5624571#post5624571

And Corrupt05 gave us Lunar Shadow pics on page 45:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=5649047#post5649047

 

Don't get me wrong, OSX is great. In many ways I prefer it, but it boils down to applications and ... well ... games.

With a few hacks you can get many of the features I miss from OSX and beyond that there's very little difference.

When it comes to price vs performance, well there's no contest.

I have to be honest though... One thing I didn't miss -- viruses/Trojans/etc. I can't believe how prominent they are on the PC vs the Mac. I had completely forgotten about them. Nothing a few good virus programs can't take care of, of course.

 

im just about to order mine!

can you please tell me what the latest voucher code is for discount?

also...is there no hdmi port on this?

 

Congrats on your decision. No HDMI, it comes with a displayport and a displayport to HDMI adapter.

 

Need some help: every so often, when I plug in my m15x into my HDTV, turn the DP to default device, then play anything that produces sound (movie, mp3, game), there is no sound, and sometimes the player will lock up. In order to fix it, I’ve found I have to restart. I’ve found it happens more reliably when I’ve played anything over the onboard speakers then plug it into the HDTV. If I use the DP right as I power on it never has a sound crash, only if I’m going back and forth.

Also, anyone notice that with the latest Nvidia drivers (19xxx, can’t remember the exact string) you can’t get any sound through the DP? I would say all these problems stem from my TV, which is a Vizio 1080i LCD, about a year old, but it plays sound fine most of the time, so I’m thinking the problem exists within the laptop. IMO, you should be able to swap as many times as you want with it working 100% of the time.

Any help or suggestions appreciated.

 

1. no need to do a clean install. a few driver you can uninstall like the touchpad driver. the one that comes installed sucks. but wait till you see issues.

2. laptop is still pretty new so no one can say how good the reliablity is yet, but judging from built quality its looks good.

 

Smeggit and Roxy
thanks for the help with the AlienFX theme

 

I'll add to this.. I switched back after a year mostly due to gaming. I love OSX and the hardware, shoot I got my GF to get a Macbook since she doesn't game. She loves it. For me, I saw myself gaming more and more in Windows on my MB so I decided I want a gaming machine and switched back to PC.. that's really it. Better gaming hardware for a good cost. I would definitely go back though if new MB's had better gaming cards, but also at this point in time, I gotta save my $$!! And I can get some cheap PC's with decent performance. Oh yeah, can't forget Windows 7. If Vista was still around I would NOT have switched back. I installed 7 beta via Bootcamp in OSX and I liked it a lot, so that helped. Sorry to thread-jack lol

 

I'm actually in the same boat as you. I found myself needing more and more power, and I saw Apple constantly going in the wrong direction (like removing more ports from their computers), so I kinda just got fed up. I'll be selling my MBP and getting an M15x, I just need to save up a little more since I don't qualify for a Dell preferred account.

 

Any mention of OSX on a Windows machine is a BIG NO NO around here which im sure a moderator will be along soon enough to tell you ...

 

How long will you be studying in Japan and when will you be going? I ask because I'm kind of doing the same thing (except I'm already in Japan), and getting the M15x will be somewhat of a problem because of the tariffs that Japan's customs will likely put on it if my family sends it to me.

If you're able to get it sooner, put it through its paces, and resolve any issues with it at home beforehand, it'll be far less frustrating and expensive than having issues with it here. My XBox 360 red ringed on me here and I sent it back home to get it repaired, but when my family sent it back, I got taxed 5000 yen (about $50) for it by customs. I can only imagine what they'd value an M15x at if you had to send it home for repairs...

 

A quick question for Canadian Dell customers...

I received a call today from Purolator saying that my M15x would be delivered tomorrow between 9-5, so I called today asking if I could just pick it up instead and the person on the phone says I should ignore that call cause it will be a few more days as its just hitting customs today...

Anyone have any experience with this? Did you receive the unit the day after the call from Purolator? How long after it was at customs until you received the machine? I need to know because my wife had plans and Ive asked her to make alternate arrangements but she will KILL me if she stays home all day and it doesn't arrive!!

Thank you.

 

SOOOOO FedEx seems to have something up its butt. My computer is in Minneapolis, about 2 hours away from me and I'm almost certain that it will be going to Clear Lake, which is 30 miles away from my house. So I called FedEx and asked if I could pick it up tomorrow at Clear Lake since it won't be delivered until Wednesday. They told me no because Dell would have to upgrade the service to second day delivery and pay the extra fee. Why the hell do they want Dell to pay more, if I'm saving them time and money/gas by picking it up? I just do not understand their thinking and it really bothers me that I cannot get it early just because of their stupid policy or whatever it is keeping my computer from me.

 

It's logistical stuff and red tape, really. It's about liability- they can't just let you come in and take the package. It sucks, I know, but you just have to be patient.

 

Thanks for the response!

I'll be arriving in Japan early April I think (basically when the student accommodation opens up), and I'll be there until either mid-February 2011 or late-Feb.

I should be covered by Dell's international warranty, and since Dell Japan also sells the M15x I should be covered by them (I hope), but I've read stories of how hard/bad it is to use their tech support, especially if you don't speak Japanese well (although it seems you can send them emails in English and arrange to talk to an English-speaking person).

Aside from that, my dorm/room won't have a landline phone available for me to use, so I'd hate to think about the cost of a long call to tech support from a mobile...

 

Ah. Full academic year for you here then. And by the sound of it, no phone in your room sounds like government subsidized, shoebox-sized student dorms. That's going to be fun.

You might want to double check with Dell that they'll cover you in Japan, just to be sure. The worst would be for them to have you send it home anyway, and then upon its return, Japan customs hits you with a duty for it. From my experience, arguing with customs doesn't change anything, and if you're going to be studying in Japan (Tokyo in particular), your budget could be pretty tight.

 

generally if Purolater has called you they will deliver next day: you should be able to track the laptop yourself on purolator's website and it is kept up to date, at least it will confirm if the laptop has cleared customs or not. Usually it goes from customs to a central depot and then out to regional distribution centres: so for me, the unit came over from Detroit, went to Toronto, back to London and then on to me. In my experience, they will only let you pick it up in person from the depot after a failed delivery.

 

I'm not very familiar with memory card readers, but do I need an adapter to read Memory Stick Pro Duo cards?

 

^^

Yes.....

 

States its on the truck for delivery today! Im excited, I was told it would not be here until the 22nd and its the 12th... impressive.

 

Mine too! I can't wait. I'm trying to find a list of things I need to install / fix once I get it. Have you found a good list yet? I just know from reading some places that the touchpad might act funny, but I don't know which method to use to fix it yet.

 

Same here buddy, wasn't supposed to be delivered until the 25th but its on the truck for delivery as we speak. Hopefuly I get home early to play around with it.

 

1) install microsoft security essential or avg antivirus, much lighter on the system and runs well.

2) Install CCCLEANER and clean out all the crap~

3) Then you are good to go! the premium price you pay alienware also include EXCLUDING all kinda promotional crappy program being installed to subsidize dell.

 

Cool, so you don't need to do anything to get the trackpad to work properly anymore? I read on other forums about problems with the installed trackpad driver and you just uninstall it to get it working properly. But then the lighting around it won't work. I haven't had a chance to fully investigate what to do about it yet.

Also, updating the graphics drivers to 195.62 is recommended too right? I'm also going to run all the throttling investigation stuff from Jokers thread

 

Windows will just install a driver for the trackpad after you uninstall the other one. I didn't lose the lightning from it.

From what I've read a lot of people stayed with the 186.82 driver mostly due to a small decrease FPS in gaming and more stability.

 

Well ive been spending the day loading up the new M15x, what a beast though, quite a bit bigger than I had imagined, but livable for the power....

Couple things I noticed where that the front LEDs where the speakers are when the LED's are off is white, doesnt really go, so you basically have to leave the LEDS on to make it look nice....

The trackpad does suck, big time.

I'd like to change the windows splash screen and shutdown screens which I guess is pretty nice if you are 17yrs old, but Im using this machine for work and gaming so I need to make it look more "Adult" if you know what i mean...

The Windows experience levels are accurate to what i've seen here, except the HD is at 5.9 which brings down the score big time...

Will try some gaming tests tonight and see how that goes... oh and BTW it came with A03 bios installed.

 

Once the touchpad gets broken in it feels totally different. It has to build up some finger greese to feel smooth but it does get better. I have no problems with mine after 3 months when I'm home I usually use a mouse which I have done with every laptop I've owned. I'm not really a fan of any track pad.

 

Hi guys,

I have Nvidia GTX260m with driver 05.08.2009 update. Is there a newer one? I couldn't find it on the dell suppor page : (

 

I think he's referring to the problem of stuttering the mouse has, using the touchpad, the M15X seems to have. Just glad uninstalling the drivers fix that problem. -.-



@Razu

You can find updated drivers on Nvidia's site.

 

is it the one with 2009.11.26 realease date?

sorry I'm kind of newbei

 

if you go to nvidia site it will tell you if your driver is up to date or not. if not then update it. but i'm sure you prob have the newest one already.

 

I just found that thing,
thank you

 

Anyone else think the headphone sound is pretty crappy? I have some Sennheiser PC350s and it sounds pretty bad compared to the X-Fi in my PC... The PC speakers are actually not that bad, I prefer to listen to music on the PC speakers than the headphones right now... Still downloading MW2 from Steam, wanna try that out, but for music the PC speakers are better than the headphone output in my opinion. Other than that, this thing is awesome... faster than my PC for sure.

 

So I called Dell myself last night (since a friend is coming to Japan soon and will likely be able to transport the M15x for me) to check on how their international warranty works out. According to the sales rep, I'd need to get at least a three year warranty in order to have any kind of international coverage. And then, if anything breaks down, I'd have to call their toll free number back home and they'd take care of the rest. She didn't elaborate on whether this meant that they'd try to get some local tech to fix any problems, but apparently, there is international coverage (insofar as Japan is concerned) so long as you have a three year warranty. (Now debating whether the extra $270 for 3 years is worth it now... )

Is there anyone who has experience bringing their Alienware laptop outside of the country they bought it from? Just wondering if there are any actual accounts of folks using their international warranty that are consistent with what that sales rep told me...

 

Yup, I was told by the Dell rep that I needed to go for the 3 year warranty to get international coverage, and so I've got that. I wasn't told anything about a toll free number, and calling back home. (I don't think Dell Australia even has a toll free number...). Instead, I was told I would need to do a warranty transfer to Dell Japan.

 

Its terrible, I have emailed dell many times about it I dont know if its a hardware or software thing. The sound is passable if you dont turn it up too loud. I too use Sennheisers (HD280pros) And they dont sound great throught the headphone jack. If you crank the volume the sound clips horribly. It could just be the onboard sound being bad, I've been thinking of getting an external sound card, maybe one of those ones that plugs into the pc card slot. On top of all that my right speaker in my M15x sounds blown at mid volume its totally fine but again if I turn it up too loud it rattles and generally sounds poop.

 

Hi everyone , i am fairly new to this forum and need some advice from all of you m15x owners out there . I just placed my order for an:

Alienware M15x, Cosmic Black
Intel Core i7 820QM
Nvidia GTX260m
1600x900 WLED
6GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1333MHz
500 GB SATA 7200

I am now reconsidering my decision to go for the 820qm instead of the 720qm. I know on paper it is slightly better yes, but i am wondering if theres really any noticeable diffrence in real life? Sorta like the 120hz tvs vs the 240hz tvs, which is all a marketing scheme because our eyes aren't capable of noticing the diffrence at those speeds. That being said, can any 720qm owners out there convince me that the 720qm is more than capable of doing some heavy multitasking, gaming, video editing, picture editing, music encoding, and anything else i throw at it without it ever stutterign to do so? I'm thinking the 6gb ram should also help here. Suggestions anyone? Thanks!!