-->*OFFICIAL: Dell XPS M1730 Owner's Lounge*<--

I think you've spec'd the same system as me

Anyways, Im not sure what the issue with the 8800 is that you mention? But I do know that 8800 M1730's are being shipped. Ive had various discussions with my account manager about this issue.

The 8800 is in short supply and is on back order. The laptop is available with the card, which is why its on the site, but delivery times are quite long. New customers are having to wait several weeks for the delivery of the laptop since the card is in such short supply. Thus the upgrade program has therefore not been started yet for previous customers like ourselves since the stock of cards they do have are going into new systems for new customers. Which would you rather do? Sell new systems or allow upgrades to old? It makes sense to sell them in new systems and gain a larger customer base, and then to upgrade for previous customers.

Nevertheless, I have ordered a second M1730 for someone at work, with the 8800GTX SLI card. I am allowed to swap the card with my 8700, since he wont be using it for gaming. The delivery date I have been quoted is exactly 3 weeks from the day of ordering, since my account manager always marks my orders as urgent, and asks that it takes priority

I also know someone else who has ordered their M1730, and has a delivery time of around 4 weeks.

Hence, Im pretty sure the card is available in new systems now, but is still quite hard to get hold of I think, thus the lengthy lead times.

The only thing Im concerned about is the lack of drivers! Im unsure as to why the drivers are not on Dell's site though since the card is now available? But Im pretty sure they will be coming with the system on disc though - however do they ship drivers for both XP and Vista on the disc??

Then again, saying all the above - I havent actually seen anyone who has actually received their M1730 with the 8800GTX yet........

If anyone has, which drivers are you using for Vista?

 

EXACTLY MY POINT!!! lol Yeah my system spec in Identical to yours..


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Dell Purchase ID dpid_link Order Number order_number_link PO Number Order Description Order Date Estimated Ship Date

N/A XH Dell XPS M1730, Mobile Intel 2.8GHz,EX, 4MB, 800 FSB Merom 2/7/2008 2/13/2008 1/1/0001 In Production

Dell XPS M1730, Mobile Intel 2.8GHz,EX, 4MB, 800 FSB Merom 2/7/2008 N/A 1/1/0001 Canceled

Dell XPS M1730, Mobile Intel 2.8GHz,EX, 4MB, 800 FSB Merom 2/7/2008 N/A 1/1/0001 Canceled

XHX Dell XPS M1730, Mobile Intel 2.8GHz,EX, 4MB, 800 FSB Merom 1/30/2008 N/A 1/1/0001 Canceled

XH Dell XPS M1730, Mobile Intel 2.8GHz,EX, 4MB, 800 FSB Merom 1/21/2008 N/A 1/1/0001 Canceled
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That is how many times this has been canceled... Copy an pasted from the Dell.com Order Status page... An here is my computer build... This is my replacement for the M1710.. ( Mind you that my M1710 Was max spec) An will prob outperform this New machine in till the 8800's are in it... The new configuration also blows my mind due to being told "media direct is not functioning in RAID setups Due to a Vista problem" Well lets see if this gets shipped next week... Or maybe Canceled order #5 from Dell's incompetent staff?

1 223-3102 Dell XPS M1730, Mobile Intel 2.8GHz,EX, 4MB, 800 FSB Merom $2841.00
1 310-9525 PERSONALIZATION SHIELD, LCD COLOR WING OPTION,GRAY $.00
1 412-0946 Dell Travel ExpressCard Remote Control, IR $.00
1 412-1056 Turbine Lord of the Rings Online $.00
1 420-5769 Internet Search and Portal $.00
1 420-5924 Icon Consolidation Application $.00
1 420-6436 Vista, PC-Restore, Dim/Insp $.00
1 420-6815 Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate 32-bit Edition English,Inspiron $150.00
1 420-7401 DELL RESOURCE DVD,BACK-UP,XPS M1730 $.00
1 463-2282 Dell Owners Manual installed on your system,click on icon after system set-up to access $.00
1 320-5788 17 UltraSharp TrueLife Wide screen WUXGA for XPS M1730 $.00
1 311-7446 2GB, DDR2, 667MHz 2 Dimm for XPS M1730 $.00
1 341-6334 400G (2x200) 7200RPM High Performance SATA HDD Free FallSensor $350.00
1 313-5857 2X Blu-ray AND DVD+/-RW $200.00
1 420-6464 Roxio Creator Basic $.00
1 320-5790 NVIDIA SLI Dual GeForce 8700MGT with 512MB GDDR3 Memory $300.00
1 430-2582 Intel 4965 WLAN (802.11a/g/n) Mini Card $35.00
1 430-2655 Dell Wirless 355 Bluetooth Module (2.0+EDR) $20.00
1 312-0603 85 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery, for XPS M1730 $.00
1 312-0604 80 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Additional Battery, for XPS M1730 $100.00
1 313-5360 External Dell USB Modem $20.00
1 313-5014 Integrated Sound Blaster Audigy $25.00
1 320-6171 AGEIA PhysX Physics Accelerator $.00
1 310-9516 You have chosen a Vista Premium System $.00
1 320-5789 Logitech Gaming LCD $.00
1 420-7468 ADOBE ACROBAT READER 8.1 DIM/INSP $.00
1 310-9651 Intel Core 2 Duo Extreme Processor $.00
1 412-0959 Norton Internet Security 2007 15 Month $.00
1 412-1397 No Productivity Software requested $.00
1 464-9572 No Entertainment software pre-installed $.00
1 412-0148 No Internet Service Provider Requested $.00
1 310-0173 Airborne Documentation, System Exchanges,Factory Install $.00
1 420-7100 Media Direct 3.3 $.00
1 420-7404 Dell Exclusive MediaDirect Instant Play Software Application $.00
1 420-7759 Media Direct for Blu-Ray $.00

 

I have not had a BSOD in a few years now...XP or Vista.

 

So, um what is the screen resolution on the m1730, does it have 1200p??

 

The XPS M1730 Is 1200P... But there is no Media in 1200p.. blu ray HD an HD tv are 1080p.. Anyone please feel free to correct me if iam wrong but iam prettttty sure iam right..

 

i'm guessing you take 1200p as 1920x1200, so yes our monitors do that resolution but blu ray and hd dvds only go to 1900x1080. hope that helps

 

a laptop riser is for ergonomic benefit... here's an example. I don't have this one, but it gets the point across

http://www.homedepot.ca/wcsstore/Ho...og/4d435a53-61b3-4b8e-bf63-dbd0c173600a_4.jpg

 

Is the small LCD screen on top right
any useful or worth it

 

i only use it for the media function to see how far through a movie i am lol when watching in full screen, although i would like to use the pop3 monitor for gmail but it doesnt work for me, does anyone know how to make gmail with the pop3 monitor

 

FRAPS works nicely w/ it.

 

I use it only for showing the current date and time.

 

The logitech LCD has a lot of potential to be very useful but there arent that many applications for it and they are hard to install and they crash heaps. They also need to make it easier for us to get our hands on the software we need to make our own applications

 

Thank you guys

 

Well I'm back from my banning....lol

I told a moderator how ridiculous it was for him to lock out a useful thread for no reason at all, and he banned me...I sent a message to speak to his supevisor but haven't gotten a reply back yet. Kinda pisses me off to be banned for no justifiable reason....

The moderator essentially read the topic, felt that too many topics about grainy screens were posted, and instantly locked it out without reading a single post inside...

The stupidity of some people overwhelms me sometimes and I just have to speak up.

Anyways...

I've been doing some research on the sli 8800M GTX, and i hate to tell you guys but it sounds like a motherboard swap is required for the sli 8800M GTX's, that's probably what's holding things up.

http://www.fudzilla.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4584&Itemid=34

clevo/sager is having the exact same issue.

 

Guy I spoke to in XPS tech didn't have a clue about the three different screens and just said I get whatever they send.....thankfully it was the LG

ten

 

Why has it been cancelled so many times?????

I may switch the media function back on, thats a good idea!
In regards to GMail, I think the POP3 monitor uses default ports, hence it works with my email address fine. GMail uses different ports for its mail - not sure if you have set GMail up in Outlook, but you have to go in and enable SSL security and change the ports to send and receive email via GMail. Maybe this is why the POP3 monitor wont work with GMail - unless you can find somewhere to enter the port numbers.

But where does it say the M1730 is having the same issue?

That article is from the beginning of December, and Im sure I read that the M1730 was supposed to come with the 8800 card initially installed, but since Dell wanted to get the M1730 out quickly they didnt have time to refine the 8800, so went with the 8700.

That article doesnt necessarily say the M1730 has the same issue as the Clevo/Sager, and I have read no report to say so, unless they are using the same mainboards? The parts one company uses do not have to be the same as another company, otherwise the size/shape of the laptops would generally be the same also, and we would be able to buy parts from a different manufacturer to fit our Dell's.

I, for one, hope that the mainboard is compatible, since Ive just ordered a second M1730 for someone else, and was hoping to do a card swap!

 

Forum member 'miprs4' has just ordered his max spec (except BluRay drive) M1730, with the 8800GTX card.

Ive just checked all part numbers from my max spec 8700m system, with his order. All of our part numbers, including the processor/mainboard part, are exactly the same. The only difference being the optical drive (since I have BluRay) and the graphics card.

Hence, Im pretty confident that all parts are the same, and the only swap out needed with the GPU upgrade program, will be the graphics card itself.

 

Good to hear!!!

 

I hope you're right ifti

 

Ive just had a thought about these coolers.

They suck in cool air from the rear of the unit, right?

The laptop blows hot air through the exhaust at the rear of the system, right?

See any problems?

The notebook cooler intake is right below where the laptop blows out its warm/hot air. So wont the cooler just intake some of the warm air thats being exhausted by the laptop??????!!!!!!

I think if I got this cooler I would get a thin piece of aluminium, a thin plate or somet, and just place it in between the laptop and the cooler sticking out of the rear of the unit a few inches(not in between them under the laptop!!!). Just so that the hot air was not being sucked striaght in by the cooler and the air flow was being kept seperate......

 

I hope so too. Especially since I ordered a second system for the 8800!
Im pretty confident though

 

Welcome back :laugh:

Would have been very interesting to get this verified, if there is a motherboard swap going on this might affect the support of coming Xxxx Penryn CPU's which are just around the block, also for the XPS m1730.

 

^^^
Personally I think that with the Penryn processors, there may well be a new mainboard, but Im pretty certain there is no mainboard swap for the graphics card, as mentioned in my explanation above.

Nevertheless the Penryn processor can only be purchased with a new system - there will be no upgrade path for the processor.

 

Might be you are right there Ifti, I am waiting for a new XPS tho so might be an option to include the Penryn. If there is no motherboard update there is definately no problem replacing the CPU, either with a Dell spare or purchase a Penryn yourself. This has allready been tested on the XPS m1330.

 

Im not 100% certain that there is no mainboard change for the Penryn processor though, just for the graphics card.

I am, however, pretty confident there will be no mainboard change. If there is, there will probably release a new version of the laptop altogether some time in the future. Although Dell wont release an upgrade program from the processor, I think this is more because when Dell get the mainboard, the procesoor is already with it.

With my laptops at work, we have requested mainboard changes in the past, and they have always changed the mainbaord AND the processor, since the processor comes on the mainboard already.

I could be wrong, but I don tthink there is any mainbaord change. Im pretty confident users who really feel they want Penryn, will be able to install the processor, as long as they can purchase it, whether its through Dell parts of a third party.

As we are talking of processors, I thought I read that the processor in the M1730 is just like, or the same as, a desktop processor in terms of size and socket? Is this correct? I dont know whether to believe it or not, since desktop CPUs have much better heatsinks and cooling etc.

 

So I just got news from my tech and....


1 XPS M1730 CORE 2 DUO T7500 2.20GHz,800,4M 210-18764
1 Ageia PhysX Processing Unit Card 221-10005
1 17.0" UltraSharp Widescreen WUXGA (1920x1200) TFT Display with TrueLife with 2.0MP Web camera 230-10134
1 Bone White 320-10171
1 Euro Ship Accessories Euro Power Cord 340-14750
1 Spanish Documentation XPS M1730 340-14757
1 Resource DVD XPS M1730 - (Diagnostics & Drivers) 340-14764
1 Eng, Frn, Ger, Spn Placemat XPS M1730 340-14893
1 Memoria canal dual 2048MB (2x1024) 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM 370-12184
1 Hard Drive 160GB Serial ATA (7200rpm) 400-13194
1 Fixed Internal 8X DVD+/-RW Drive including software 429-12762
1 Euro 220V AC Adapter Power Cord 450-11558
1 AC Adapter 230W 450-11569
1 Primary 9-cell 85WHr Li-Ion Battery 451-10485
1 XPS M1730 Backpack Carrying Case 460-10251
1 DUAL SLI 512MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 8800GTX card 490-10782
1 Dell Travel Remote control 506-10024
1 External 56k Modem (USB) EUR 530-11742
1 Intel® Pro Wireless 3945 802.11a/b/g Mini-PCI Card EUR 555-11010
1 European - Dell TrueMobile 355 internal Bluetooth Module 555-11194
1 Spanish Internal Keyboard (QWERTY) 583-11666
1 Software Drivers XPS M1730 613-10521
1 Spanish - Vista Home Premium (32Bit OS) 619-10923
1 Español Microsoft Works 8.0 (Word Processor, Spreadsheet, Outlook Express, Powerpoint Viewer) con CD de recuperación 630-11004
1 Spanish - Adobe Reader 8.1 640-10404
1 Dell Support Center 2.0 640-10551
1 Spanish McAfee Security Centre 8.0 - 30 Day Trial Version 650-10804
1 Base Warranty - 1 Year XPS Premium Hardware Support (incl. Gaming and On-Site Support) 754-10789
1 4 Year Consumer XPS Premium Hardware Support 754-10842
1 ** Complete Care Accidental Damage (3 Year) 762-10278
1 ** Vista introduction Online Training (30 Days) 766-10306
1 ** Vista introduction Online Training (30 Days) 766-10307
1 To access Online Training or free trial, please go to www.learndell.com/euro to register 767-10026
1 La información sobre los detalles del pedido no está disponible en estos momentos. 800-10137
1 La información sobre los detalles del pedido no está disponible en estos momentos. 990-10157


So, graphics card upgrade, backpack and 160gb from 120... thats pretty ok in my opinion... The waiting starts... EDD 29/2

 

From the pictures I've seen from the service manual for the M1730, the CPU is located on a pluggable module much like the graphics hardware.

It would make sense. Manufacturing costs would be lower if configurable parts were not soldered to the board.

 

So that should make it pretty easy to upgrade to the Penryn then.

So the question is, why wont Dell offer an upgrade program for current users to get the Penryn?? I mean, Im not bothered anyway and probably wouldnt be upgrading, but wouldnt it be profitable for dell?

 

anybody got any tips for sli issue in both xp and vista, tried diferent drivers as far as 169.09 in xp but performance is better with sli off. 5800 in 3dmark06 with sli on at best, but games run better with sli off. ive seen a few posts with people who got the same issue but none with the performance problems in XP?? any pointers or anybody have the same problem before i call Dell

Dell XPS M1730
Intel Core 2 Extreme X7900 (2.8Ghz @ 2.8)
2GB DDR2 SDRAM 667Mhz
DUAL NVIDIA SLI GeForce® 8700M GT
2x200GB HDD (Raid0)
Genuine Windows XP® PRO 32 (169.09) bit SP2 & Vista pre (167.51)

 

Have you been through the 'manage settings' when you turn SLI on in the Nvidia control panel?

I know with some programs, like Movie Maker, with SLI on the system does become unstable, but on the whole, with SLI on things have calmed down for me. I had the same kind of issues as you, but I just reinstalled my system with the below drivers (see sig) and things seem better.

3DMark06 scores with SLI on should definately be better though, and games should run better also.

 

Thanks for the reply, I’ve rebuilt the system from scratch dual booted with XP to avoid any sli issues, (failed miserably). Have tried multiple different settings for each driver I run with varying levels of success, 5800 being the best. The performance in games with the single card is great battlefield 2142 at full no lag (in vista) if I turn sli on good luck. When I play ghost recon 2 (in XP) with sli on I have to lower it down to low in everything. sli off high in most. I think its gpu fault but I’m hoping to narrow it down more before I look for a replacement.

 

Im also beginning to think its a fault with one of the GPUs.
Im afraid it may be time to contact Dell.........

You could try opening the system and make sure the card is seated in properly, but it would probably be safer to give Dell a tinkle

 

Try different drivers. I had the same problem with some of laptopvideo2go's drivers.

Try beta driver from nvidia.

 

You are right Ifti, but the Penryn is being released by Dell these days, and as you know from our experience waiting for the 8800 GPU Dell will not speak of any upgrade program before they start selling the computers with the new component.
In time they might include the Penryn in the upgrade program, as with the 8800GPU, but as we allready know Dell are slow with upgrade programs in general.

However for those who are ordering the XPS today it might be worthwhile sorting out, if you are returning an XPS or have one on the production line the Penryn might be worth considering (as soon as we know the price).

A Penryn T9300 Dual-Core mobile has been tested successfully with the m1330, I can tell you this much with certainty.

 

I have to agree with you, after some serious effort on my part Dell will be collecting my system, and refunding me. So I can then order the 8800's.

If an upgrade was going to be available, then why would they allow me to return my system ?

 

I never bothered trying any drivers from LV2G - I always seemed to have more crashing with them. I tend to stick to Dell drivers, or drivers directly from the Nvidia site (beta ones for now) and havent had as many issues with them....

 

Are you still in your 30 day return period?? This is the only way you could get a refund, and is why they are allowing you to return your system.
Outside of 30 days they do not accept any returns for refund.

We already know 100% that an upgrade program is to be available once the card is more readily available.

I fail to see why a graphics card upgrade would need an entire new mainboard for this system, especially since Dell have already stated the graphics card itself is upgradable. If this is the case, the upgrade program will need to include the mainbaord as well as the graphics card, and would cost a hell of a lot, and Im pretty sure Dell would not offer an upgrade program if an entire mainboard needed to be swapped out as well - it would be like a whole new laptop altogether!

The only thing holding up the upgrade program, is supply.

 

They wont include Penryn as part of an upgrade program. It was stated my the XPS manager in a blog on the Direct2Dell site. he stated the only upgrade program they will offer is forthe graphics card, thats all. Not for the processor.

I agree thought, that if you are ordering your system now, it may be more viable to hold off a littl elonger for Penryn, but then again, something else may come along, and you'll be holding on for ages!

 

I agree with the 'holding on for ages' principle, this is something which holds back many potential buyers at all times However when we are talking about weeks for a new generation of a component it is definately worth some patience. The 8800 is of course a breakthrough which will not be matched for any basic components for quite some time, so that is the really important part imo.

 

^^^
agreed

 

i also agree cant wait to have it....

 

Hi guys, im a newbie here, just to say i have been following, this is an awesome forum, and glad u guys help eachother out and stuff..as for Jammeista's comments above.. I totally agree, the 8800 will be worth the wait,as long as dell are nice to us with the upgrade program.. lets just hope santa dell gets a move on lol..

i do have a query though.. for those of u with 4gb's of ram, as i have and running vista 32 bit, im sure u know of vistas limititation of mapping 4 gb total ram, so with the increase in graphic card memory, it will leave approx 1gb of system memory unused, by my understanding anyway ..
Im not sure Vista 64bit is the way to go though, anyone wanna talk me into it?

Also for the Laptop cooler questions raised a few pages ago, i was lookin at this one
http://www.lian-li.com/v2/en/produc...ex=104&cl_index=2&sc_index=23&ss_index=43&g=f

the fans are adjustable, so i think it could be quite effective, but im not sure if that raised section at the front will block access to the meida buttons??

one last thing.. anyone else counting the days till DCS: Black Shark?

All the best fellas

Frenchy

 

64bit is cool, but with the lack of driver support its a bit risky. Ive used Windows XP 64bit in the past and all worked well, but its just finding drivers for all your peripherals etc that are compatible with 64bit. If you can, then go ahead, everything else, applications etc, should still work as normal......

 

Nope I'm way outside the 30 days, but when I ordered the system, I was told it would be at least 6 months before the 8800's would be available, and an upgrade would be offered at that time.

If I had known the 8800's would be available so soon, I would have held off ordering, plus everyone I've spoken too at Dell says the same. No upgrade is possible.

So they allowed me to return my system.....

If an upgrade was going to happen, I feel they would have told me to be patient, or there chain of communication is very poor indeed.

 

The chain of communication is VERY poor. While there will be an upgrade program, as stated my the XPS Product Manager on the Direct2Dell site, they dont know when its actually starting - probably down to the short supply of the card.

Yet every time I have contacted Dell, Ive been told either the card is not upgradable, or that they will not sell the card alone an dthere is no upgrade program - both of which are complete rubbish.

Im 100% certain there will be an upgrade option for the graphics card, but not for the processor. Its just a matter of waiting until the card is more readily available before Dell announce the upgrade program details. The Dell employees at tech support and sales do not seem to have been made aware of this since the option is not yet on their system, and they will probably only be made aware once the program starts and appears as a saleable item on their system.

 

Here we go:

by Lionel Menchaca, Digital Media Manager:

Link

 

If you guys are questioning about upgradability on the system, there's a guy who has done it already about few weeks back in other forum (his linked bench is in this thread). I remember he said it was a simple GPU swap, nothing needs to be modified.

 

^^^
great!

 

One week ago I was estatic, my new M1730 arrived in 8 days from order to delivery. That's when the joy stopped. I was sent a misfit, nothing worked properly, DVD hung up, could install any games, even trying to watch movies was a test of my patience. Think it has been damaged in transit (box was broken) and I am now sending it back after a week of trying to get someone from Dell to talk to me. The customer service department needs to be renamed methinks.

I tried to get a 3DMark06 on it and hit the dizzy heights of about 5672 score. Damn I am disappointed. But maybe things happen for a reason, now, when I get my refund, I can order the new 1730 with the 8800s, anyone got one yet?

 

Just been told by my account manager that my second XPS M1730 that Ive ordered for the 8800 card should arrive in about 10 days

Hopefully then I can confirm whether its a straight GPU swap or not