1640 Throttling - post here

Tenknics,

Record the agent.

Then post to YouTube.

You deserve better treatment than that.

I know that I've posted this link before, but is relevant to this conversation.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=CS2RlBYJkIg

Also see the Consumerist's guide to fighting back.

http://consumerist.com/2007/10/the-ultimate-consumerist-guide-to-fighting-back-revised-edition.html

 

thanks for the well wishes guys..I appreciate it.

Dan that video was great and only gives you a slight glimpse of what I'm dealing with. Imagine how hard it is to normally hear these guys, like the video showed, but then imagine it when they are yelling and interrupting you constantly. I cannot understand what is being said at all..

The video brought a smile to face, especially the bank lending part and the apr he charges, that was classic..

 

We got the same rep. Hes just playing hard ball.

 

tenknics,

Did you read Bugsy's comments on that video?

"I sent this video to dell...

within 2 days I was refunded in full and I was able to buy the same computer with more memory for $100 less at best buy the very same day.

I also got several emails from Dell since then.
These have included threats to my life if I did not take this video down.

I guess they thought I would get scared, but were suprised when I sent them back photos of me holding machine guns. "

I really do mean it when I say to record their antics, and shame them.

Document EVERYTHING.

This includes their badge numbers to also include with your videos.

Post links, so that we may get the word out.

 

nvm forget i asked

 

Just got a call from Dell, replacement system is built and completed, will be shipped on Monday the 22nd and should take 2-3 business days.

 

Good to hear EGM92. Are the specs equal to what you had/paid for and are you happy with the solution Dell provided?

 

LOL that last bit sounds like the end of ever damn service call I've made to Dell.

I am happy with the specs, I don't need an RGB display on my config and was happy with the original WLED. The processor is an upgrade, i5 540m and the ram is a faster speed though I don't know if it's compatible with this processor so it might auto downclock. Overall the experience has been great and I haven't had to deal with the same s you guys have been. Goodluck guys.

 

How is the ram faster? Isn't it the same as the 1640? 1066mhz? Or they gave you 1333mhz ones? Cause when I try to configure a 1647 it only offers 1066. On the other hand 1645 offers the 1333.

I wonder if they can add stuff to builds that we can't online..I was offered a blu-ray on a model that didn't offer it online.


Edit: They probably gave you the 1333 ones. Even tho the processor doesn't officially support it, it will work. At least it does on the desktop versions. All the i5s, i7 work with it, but you have to OC something so it might not be possible. THe ram should autodownclock itself, you have nothing to worry about.

 

doesnt matter if the processor supports it or not the chipset does (GM55)so it will use the full 1333 mhz

 

So i ended up calling standard dell tech support today, because im just tired of my current tech being hard and not helping me out and calling me when i ask. And i got a really nice guy yesterday who emailed corp tech support, which i should be getting a call from by monday, they also completely scratched the current tech who wasnt helping me off my case, when i called today asking if there was any update, and explaining my situation again. Lets see what happens. I was promised a replacement lets see where this goes.

 

Yes according to the specs on the order sheet they gave me 4GB 1333mhz ram.

I for some reason heard that Dell locked out the 1333mhz speed for people with i5's through the BIOS and was only unlocked with a i7 chip. Don't remember exactly where I heard it but it stuck, well it's good to know that I'll get a nice little upgrade soon.

 

Did some phone tag, but on talking with the rep after testing the 130w he said his final option is to send a replacement system. I agreed to that.

Getting a replacement 1645/47. He wasn't sure what it would be, but it should be from those lines.

I don't know if I should try to get with someone through chat on the specs, or just let them ship something and see what I get?

I didn't really get many upgrades on my 1640, so anything in the 1645/47 series will probably be an upgrade. But don't want to get less memory or a smaller hard drive.

 

well if thats the case then you might not ill cross my fingers with you lol

 

Great news! Got a brand new 1647 replacement for my 1640! Best part is I configured as I desired~

But peppe1 don't let them give you what they want as a replacement. YOU have a say! Unless it matches your current build or is better make sure you get what YOU want. I configured what I wanted on the website as a replacement and sent the build to the tech and he approved it. I got exactly what I wanted within reason. I got all the stuff I had before and then some. (So obviously you cant demand a RGBLED if you didn't have one before.) I was first offered a barebones 1645 with no RGBLED or blu-ray and I refused because I had both and paid extra for them on the 1640 I currently own. I demanded if I was to get a replacement it must have at least the 16" RGBLED. The blu-ray I'd budge on but not the screen. You have your rights as a customer!


Please, you have to be patient and persistent. Don't let them just give you a bare bones 1645 unless it is better than what you originally had.

Edit: I didn't read your sig or the end of your post. I think any 1645 they offer you should be a nice upgrade. But the message remains the same to you and anyone else in this situation. I noticed you have 16" but WHLED in your sig. The only 16"s are RGBLED. If you have that now make sure you ask for that in your replacement, unless of course it doesn't matter to you..

 

Great to hear something finally got through to them and you got a replacement. I'll have mine sometime next week, first thing I'm going to do is ebay/craigslist it and grab a different laptop, maybe an alienware M15x. I really like the styling of the SXPS16 but I can't live knowing there are all these problems, I don't need this to turn into an M1530 where there's a massive defect in a majority of their laptops and Dell just kept wanting to offer motherboard replacements.

 

I agree with you 100% my friend. If I could, I would definately do the same. I have a Dell Prefered Account and paid for my laptop that way. Unless I could get a for sure sale for what I paid for it originally, I'm sticking with my 164X. That and my laptop is now 7 months old, so I look at it as getting a (free but not hassle free) laptop upgrade anyway. I am pleased. Good luck to you and everyone else.

I will gladly stick around and help to those who need it. I feel I have a solid grasp on this situation and a wealth of info to share. I will still keep checking on this thread.

I just noticed on my build sheet:

I sent an email back asking to change it to 1333 because all the 1647's and i7 620's are configured with 1333mhz DDR3 not 1067. Im sure it will work but the fact that is says for "1640" and the fact that everytime I try to build a 620m on the Dell website it only has 1333, makes me a little worried.

 

just got an email saying it was shipped, so hopefully wednesday or sooner!

 

Nice! Here's hoping!

 

Hello i have a Dell XPS stuido 1640 and I'm facing the same Throttle problems with the clock modulation, I read your message saying that you got a replacement for this computer. How did you do that ? I try calling on them and got no result. i wanna send a complain letter but I'm not sure where to send it. can u help me a little with that ?

 

First welcome to the forums


Second you have to go through a process where multiple fixes for the same problem have not helped dell states three or more repairs for the same issue.

then you can be offered a system exchange

I since october of last year have had 8 service calls, so when I called them the first thing they offered me was a system exchange.

Just emailing higher will not get the desired result if you haven't gone through the process first

 

@ivanix1
I went through the Micheal dell email posted in this thread.

My first email described the problem (throttling). And inquired if a fix like the one released for the 1645/47 would be available to my 1640. They don't seem to respond to the email, but they do open a help ticket and call fairly often to try to resolve the issue you state in your email.

My rep called everyday after my email. I wasn't able to take the call for a few days. First call I took he asked about drivers and BIOS and wanted to take control of my machine. I declined I said everything was current and then he said this is a known issue and a 130w adapter would fix it.

I knew it wouldn't fix it, but I played a less informed consumer to move forward in the process.

He overnighted the 130w to me and called the next day before I had even tested it. That night i tested the 130w adapter. Did see a reduction in the severity of throttle and sent an email directly to my rep on my findings and asked what other options are available. He called once a day again until I was able to accept the call. On that call he said the last thing left is to replace the entire system with one from a line that has been fixed either a 1645 or 1647.

Two emails and three phone calls. Done.

I agreed to that solution and am waiting for them to ship a replacement.

 

Not true. I emailed Michael Dell. Got a call, argued for a bit. Got a call back the next day with a new system offered as replacement.

No techs came out to me nor were any parts repaired or changed out. Like I said, 1 email and a few phone calls got me my replacement.

What you described is Dell's normal process that they would like you to go through. Those are Dell's rules not yours. As a paying customer you don't have to follow their rules. I didn't.

Good luck.

 

Thank you guys i already sent my complaint letter to Michael dell and I'm waiting for a response. hope i can find a solution

 

lol got a Call back from Dell about the RGB display not being on my new model. The agent told me that it wasn't in my original config, but he was definitely hinting at if I were to call in and ask for a replacement it would be replaced with an RGB display.

I checked the shipping status, finally got a tracking number and whatnot on the order page but no info. It just says in transit as of March 20th @ 15:31hrs

Does anyone here know if Purolator works on weekends? I'm not talking about delivery but just processing and whatnot?

 

They wouldnt give me a refund, but they are letting me customize a replacement.

 

Great! At least somethings being done for you. Aim as high as you can but settle for something realistic

 

Yea ofcourse hahaha, I WANT THE BEST!!!! ARGHHHH! lol

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=6050313&postcount=46

Dell-Bill B mentioned that a fix is in the works for the 1640. You guys better get your upgrades done ASAP.

 

Yea I got a PM from Bill early last week stating that a fix was in the works, but the laptop is already in Toronto, about 25minutes away, should be at my door tomorrow

 

Yea when I got my call back on friday I made sure he submitted the build before the weekend. He actually expidited it and I got a order number with a build sheet and everything that night. I literally just got off the phone with him because I had some concerns. After all the arguements it seems things have settled and things are really positive and cordial and actually the guy has a sense of humor. I am sure it has to do with what I wrote, and it was all the truth, but anway I got a 130w adapter being sent out tomorrow ahead of time. And he said the RGBLED screen will push my build time back a few days and when questioned about it being weeks or months he confirmed I'd get it some time next week. I am really happy and impressed. We talked about my meeting with Michael a few years back. I guess it finally paid off? Anyway my opinion about Dell is love/hate. You have to be on them to get what you want, but in the end you get what you want. Cant fault them for anything but the time they wasted and they make up for that with upgrades

My last concern was matched dimms and he said if they didn't match he'd send me another 4gb in the mail for me to install.

 

Did you get the i5 or i7? The guy is offering me a i7 or i5 but with the i7 id loose the RGBLED. What should i choose? haha

 

i7 620m. I posted that in that other thread you posted in too,

 

Yea haha i saw, but the Core i7 620M is still a dual core. From what i see. Although more powerful than an i5.

 

Oh yea did you get 4gb or 6gb? What did he offer you?

 

Yea well I started with a dual core in my 45nm wolfdale t9800 @ 2.92ghz. I'm getting a nehalem based core now in a 32nm arrandale and it runs its base turbo on both cores 24/7 at 3.06ghz. Already higher than my wofly. And it has 2 threads a core, so with 4 threads its the perfect balance for me. I'm not a fan of 1.6ghz quad cores/8 threads and the heat they produce. Plus I couldnt configure the RGBLED for power reasons. I won't get into it because a lot of people will argue it, but I think the Clarksfield chips stink, i7 720/820..The only decent one is the extreme 920XM but thats a $1k chip.

Anyway, I will take a (higher clocked) Westmere Dual Core over Penryn Dual Core any day.

 

Hi All,

I have something to say to the DELL Reps reading / helping out in these forums.

---------------
I had a call with the DELL tech rep 2 weeks back (after I wrote in a 3 page mail to our Mr. Dell), as of now, I am still waiting for the 130 PSU to be shipped in.

And like we heard, a BIOS solution is in the offing too.

I agree, that although this may solve throttling upto a small extent (and that too only for a while), but what about the extra heat that will get generated even further as now the throttling will start a bit later?

I don't think a PSU + BIOS throttle solution alone will alleviate this machine from its worries,

What we 1640 ppl need with the throttle solution, is a solution for the heat too..

Tell me x@dell, what were you thinking ? My 1640 is like a pressure cooker after a mere 5 minutes of Crysis session! (I reach at least 86 degrees)

This HEAT ISSUE needs to be solved along with THROTTLING in order to make 1640 really worthwhile.

Please DELL, its high time you did something about this..

You are more forthcoming in providing solutions and / or replacing the 1645 machines but what about us 1640 owners?

Some of us lucky to get a replacement while we can, but should the other unlucky ones wait for the 1640 to burn down because of the heat raised by the 130 Watt adapter now?

Please let us 1640 owners know your course of actions.

Thanks,

CK
------------------

 

Where did u here that 1645/1647 were getting recalled/replaced?

 

Its not that DELL are doing this with pleasure or without questions asked. But, I know some people who were experiencing throttling issues in newer 1645 models.

The DELL people are generally more forthcoming in doing the unsuccessful system H/w replacements like Motherboard etc in order to solve this issue and in the end, the users are provided replacements for existing 1645.

This was (supposedly) very easy with 1645 people than with the 1640 ones.

(1645 users have a higher success rate in getting the throttle fixes done or in some cases have been replaced with newer machines.) I did not mean an assembly line recall...(Editing that to save confusion!).

 

I sent Dell an email and just got a call today from them. The guy told me that in order to fix it I need a 130W power adapter and a BIOS update after I get the adapter. I don't see a new BIOS out on Dell's site, does anyone else know if there actually is a new one or was he just bluffing?

 

From what dell told us, they are still working on the bios, so there is no update for the bios yet. They did the same to me and sent me the 130w but that wasnt a solution.

 

The replacement just came in, factory brand new with all software and whatnot. Problem? They sent a damn 90w PSU!

 

Here we go again! hahahaha request the 130w. lol

 

I think the 90w adapters acutally come pre-packaged with the unit and you have to request the 130w before hand. It seems like the Dell people can't think for themselves a lot.

I called in and requested a 130w be shipped with my new 1647 but the guy sent out the 130w adapter today ahead of time so I'd have it ready for when my new machine comes.


EGM92: getting them to send you a 130w should be easy as a phone call and a request. And Im sure you can talk to anyone at this point, not just the guy you were dealing with.

 

Glad I already have a 130 watt adapter, All I need now is a different laptop

 

Whats wrong with yours? Throttling too?

 

Just got a call from the tech, im getting a

1647 Core i7-620M, 4GB ram, RGBLED ,500GB 7200, 4670 1GB, 6 cell battery, bluray combo


as a replacement sounds like a sweet deal.

 

I have had Throttling, , GPU issues, 3 Screen replacements, three motherboard and HSF replacements,2 keyboard replacements, a vent replacement, PCI expressport stopped working so actually 4 motherboards were replaced, speakers replaced, and there is something else I'm forgetting, just can't think of it. and got offered a studio 15

EDIT: oh yah my base was replaced as well as my touchpad panel..... so basically it been rebuilt , and now that I'm typing out all the problems I'm even more disappointed

 

6 Cell battery? You should be getting a 9cell. All the 1647's I configured came stock with a 9cell...Haha the saga continues...Can any 1647 users confirm this? Edit: Ya all the 1647s come with 9cell



Lol I just answered the door and it was Fedex with my 130w adapter. It was overnighted it! holy, wasn't expecting that..

? Are you fighting the good fight still? You should be demanding a replacement that is equal or greater than what you currently have..Whats the current status of your situation? They only offered you a studio 15? I hope you're not taking this from them?

 

I can always complain that i didnt get the 9 cell battery i was suppose to to someone else and they will send it. haha