The Official m15x Owners Lounge

I'll have to call, I go to school online at American Military University. From what I checked I see Professional listed at $163, but I also see some other things listed for $10-20. Not sure if those require separate licenses, which are also on sale, for $150-400.

 

About $1300 and the cost of the 9800. How'd my sig make you rethink your laptop?

 

Because it used to be fawning over the m17x, then I saw that and a post actually and I'm like... "Why the hell do I want a laptop if I'm just going to be leaving it in my room and playing games on it?"

 

Alienware® AlienFX® System Lighting
White
Aqua
Fuchsia
Yellow
Blue
Red
Indigo
Lime

does anyone if you are stuck with the color you choose for you m15x? or can we change it as we please? i chose white, but hopefully we have get all color options.

 

Gspot333 that color choice is just for how you want your laptop configured for when you first turn it on. VIa software you can configure it to any color you want.

 

Quick question for some experts-
I installed updated drivers for my 8700 and got lower performance. I reinstalled the alienware drivers.

I just installed the drivers over the original ones (did this 3 times). I deleted the new driver files that the setup made. Should I do anything else, like unistall the driver totally and reinstall? Or is this enough?

 

You are correct.....I added the processor AFTER I originally ordered it...when I pasted my specs, I only added the word "Extreme" and changed my speed to 2.8..didnt change the BUS speed. Sorry for the confusion!!

 

did some answer you already? You need to delete the old driver using driver cleaner pro or something that totally free (i forget the name of the software), you can search around here. I think it's the stickied thread.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=202449 (driver sweeper guide, I don't post the link to it, coz credits to the guy u made the how-to)

And after you uninstall em, now u can install the stock driver. Let us know your progress. We been asked you alot of questions when we need em, and of coz, we should do the same especially when you need any help. That's why we all are here. Keep us posted.

 

HELP! I got my new Alienware Area-51 m15x. I've spent about 8 hours straight trying to find an acceptable driver for my Graphics card which is the nVidia GeForce 8700M GT.

I've installed about 7 different drivers for my video card, I assume that's the problem. Each and every driver I've installed has the exact same problem... they can't display white! White is displayed as gray and red stripes, and it's EVERYWHERE. If you don't think the problem is the driver for the gfx card, please tell me.

I can't believe I paid $2500 dollars for this piece of crap that can't even display white. It's had this problem since I took it out of the box. I'm about ready to shoot myself.

What do I do?

 

Wait a second, calm down. Try the SLI guide above and install new drivers (yes I know you already tried to install a bunch of new ones but it's worth following the guide to make sure you did everything right). If they don't work then just go back to the stock drivers . . . you didn't have any problems with those, did you?

 

The stock drivers were the whole reason I started installing new ones.. Like I said it's had this problem before I ever opened the box.

 

Could you take a screenshot of what you're talking about so we can see?

 

I was trying to resist buying until the full configs were up, as well as the black case....but couldn't resist any longer.

[1] Area-51® m15x

Display: 15.4" WideXGA+ 1440 x 900 LCD (720p) with Clearview Technology
System Lighting: Alienware® AlienFX® System Lighting - White
Video/Graphics Card: 512MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 8800M GTX
Processor: Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7700 2.4GHz (4MB Cache 800MHz FSB)
Memory: 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SO-DIMM at 667MHz – 2 x 1024MB
Turbo Cache Memory: Intel® Turbo Memory (1GB) – Accelerate Data Transfer Speed
Operating System (Office software not included): Windows Vista® Home Premium
System Drive: 200GB 7200RPM (16MB Cache)
Optical Drives : 8x Dual Layer Burner (DVD±RW, CD-RW)
Wireless: Internal Intel® Wireless 4965 a/b/g/Draft-N Mini-Card
Sound Card : Internal High-Definition Audio with surround sound
Keyboard Options: AlienFX® Illuminated Keyboard
Warranty: 2-Year AlienCare Toll-Free 24/7 Phone Support w/ Onsite Service
Power: Additional Battery – 6-cell Smart Bay Battery
Power: Additional AC Adapter – 120 Watt Auto-switch AC Adapter

I tried many times to order it on the phone with 1GB of RAM (since I have a 2GB stick waiting), but to no avail of course. In the end, I just gave up and gave in.

I haven't moved a lick past Phase 1 since yesterday afternoon, though. If the black case version or the full config version comes out between now and Phase 3, I might cancel and reconfigure.

Thanks for everyone's input on this forum, it's helped a ton in my decision

 

I tried the SLI guide to no avail. Can't take a screenshot since the computer thinks it's white so your computer will just display it as white. Its red/gray and flickering badly on my screen though. I did take a picture, though you can't really see it. See attached

 

That doesn't look like a driver problem, looks more like a LCD defect.

 

F***, that's what I was afraid of. And I needed the laptop for this weekend...

 

I'm not sure though...that looks weird, never seen something like that.
Does it flicker all the time?

 

A certain shade of white flickers constantly... pure white is displayed as vertical red lines. I suppose I could keep it for the weekend then send it back afterwards, lol.

 

Can you hook it up to a external monitor?

 

If you have the same problem on a external monitor then it could be a GPU/Driver issue.
If not, it could be the LCD cable which is loose.

 

yeah, try plugging it into a HDTV with an hdmi cable if possible. make sure you plug it in before turning the laptop on.

i'm sorry you're having problems like that with your m15x, if i opened mine up and got that problem i would have taken a flight to florida and forced them to give me my money back (since the 15% restock fee is probably more than a plane ticket to FL)

 

not sure if it's relevant to your problem or not Griddlecakes, but I was having the exact same problem on my m9750 - although I was only seeing it in lower resolutions - I solved the problem by pulling the graphics card, a little compressed air to blow the dust out and put it back together. It's worked like a champ ever since.

 

Thanks for the help, I'll try to connect it via HDMI cable tomorrow.

 

That sucks Griddlecakes. I can only think it is a hardware issue... something coming loose during transport, because if they test these things as well as they say they do then this would have def been noticed before shipping, so I imagine something came loose. I hope it gets resolved very quickly for you. Nothing like waiting all this time for your new baby and then havin git arrive defective. Just wondering were there any signs of dropage on the box or wear and tear from transport?

 

My Del XPS Gen 2 occasionally has a very similar fault - The solid white bits get blue vertical lines though rather than red. It usually goes away if I hit the back of the lid - this is okay on a 3 year old machine that is going to be replaced soon, I wouldn't recommend it in your case. It's quite probable the fault did not show up when they built it but only became apparent after it had been tossed around in shipping.

 

hey mrwater, can you check with everest what screen you have? brand, s/n ID...
thanks. you can write it in a pm

 

I really hope the M15X is not another DELLienware FUBAR.... bad LCD, etc etc.

- What are the known issues so far?
- What LCD are they using (LG, Sharp or Samsung)?
- Any real reviews yet?

 

whats checking with everest?

let me know how to find it out and i'll let you know.

 

Mr Water, in device manager / monitor / YOUR MONITOR .... select ... properties/details/hardware ids .... WHAT DOES IT SAY???

 

I don't think it will work! device manager doesnt give you any info about the screen. if you run everest (about 10MB, you dont have to install it, an you have a complete check of all the components of your system, very useful ) you must go to video, then screen, and you can recognise the brand and the ID code of your panel

I can't decide between 1920 & 1440! I will choose bu-ray, but I dont think that a 15inch monitor @1080p is the best thing either! but I have a 46" fullHD at home
so maybe I will choose 1440 for the laptop bacause I think it's the best compromise! (even 1680 makes icons & words very small)

 

device manager / monitor / YOUR MONITOR .... select ... properties/details/hardware ids

WILL WORK ... tell me the ID and I will tell you the LCD display brand PLEASE NO SAMSUNG OR SHARP

 

agree, no SAMSUNG!
btw, in device manager I can't find any info, I can check it only with everest

 

LPLDF00

that's the hardware ids.

 

ok it's an LG screen and it seems to be a good screen (dell 1530 owners)

 

I know this has been answered before, but I would just like to be sure about these.
I would like to know how long the battery lasts while playing games, and without playing games. Also how loud is it, when you're just browsing web or watching movies?

and how much battery life would an additional 6-cell battery increase?

and which additional battery would you recommend? Smart-Bay or the other one?

thanks again!

 

from what I read:

when gaming --> 45min
web -->1:30 up to 2:15 in stealth mode, with integrated GPU

another 6cells Battery will double you batery life, but I think the better choise is a smart bay one, so you can have 4:30h battery life without stop

 

sweet thanks WLF46WLF

 

you're welcome!

 

THanks finally a clear answer regarding the battery life.

 

don't stop at 4:30... battery life is unlimited if your supply of smartbay batteries is unlimited

 

sure, I was thinking of a couple of batteries

but if you have only two standard batteries (not smart bay) you have to shut down and replace the battery. with the smart bay you don't have to do that.

I'd like to know (with 2 batteries, one standard & one smart bay) which will discharge first! I mean: if smart bay discharge first, your battery life might be unlimited: you replace the smart bay unit with another one. but what if standard battery discharge first?

 

if they designed the standard batt to die first.... then something is seriously wrong with their heads... i sure hope not :!

 

Yes thats the problem
I would get the standard battery as it doesnt matter for me to shut down the laptop to replace the battery... and that way I can keep inside the optical drive or my second hard drive.
Its really a personal choice...

 

I wonder if they use the smart bay to actually supply each component with power or they just use it to charge the main battery. It would make sense to have it charge the main because it's less wires and overall a much simpler process.

 

Yes, I called alienware and the dude took over my laptop and determined it was the LCD. I'm sending it back tomorrow.

Thanks for the help guys, I'd still be installing more drivers right now without yall, lol.

 

I don't think it recharges the main battery since to recharge a battery you need a source with a higher power. In that case the smart bay has the same power as the standard one so it cannot recharge it. The smart bay battery is I think the same thing as the standard battery but only at a different place.

 

Then wouldn't the main battery discharge first and wait to be recharged by the SB battery?

 

That I'm afraid only m15x owners could tell...

 

I called the Alienware today about the 17x but it should apply to the 15x as well. They said the smart bay drive could be hooked up externaly, so take it for whats it's worth. But that could mean the optical drive could place info right on the 3rd drive. Or more than one battery at a time.

I like my 9262 but I think it's going back for a 17x. Ahhh I wish I had the money for both. The one hr life on this thing gets to me. Plus the Alienware has really nice looks, and the back lit keyboard get's me everytime.

 

anyone kno when they'll give us options for an 80gb hd or something :/

and i've read about the 1080p blueray results... would 720p be not noticable at all with blue"way"?