===> The Official Studio XPS 1640 + ATi 4670 GPU Owner's Thread<===

If I recall correctly, most cards score slightly higher on Win7 than on Vista.

~Ibrahim~

 

got the zalman NC-2000 cooler today, its very nice. what app do you guys use to monitor temperature? im using speedfan and i think the temperatures are inaccurate. i just stopped playing BF2 and Call of Duty 1 (been playing them continuously for about 1hr 30 mins) and after I quit to check the temperatures i noticed that Core 0 and Core 1 temps were both about 53-55C. isnt that high considering the bottom of my laptop is barely warm while using the cooler. yesterday i played BF2 only for 20-25 minutes and the bottom of my laptop was quite warm and i was getting same core 0 and core 1 temps. Here are my temps right now:
HD: 36C
Temp 1: 30C
Temp 2: 22C
Temp 3:29C
Core0: 44C
Core1: 46C

those Core 0 and Core 1 still seem high even though the bottom of my laptop is ice cold right now and im only using the web.
Edit: ok my core 0 and core 1 temps fell down to 38C lol

 

Technative: i ran the first time ever 3dmark06 on this system. and i uninstalled it right after it, because it installed also some kind of directx 9 (released in 2005), i don't even know why was it necessary as dxdiag says i have directx 11 already. yes, settings were on default (i couldn't even change them as i have the free version).
also note, i have p8600, not p8700 and i have final version of windows 7 (got it free through msdnaa through my local university).
yeah, windows 7 is considered a faster system than vista.

 

btw i don't know if u guys know this stuff, but i just tried it and multitouch works like a charm, it really makes much easier to use the touchpad, i think it's a pretty great stuff and should go to the FAQ too:
New Synaptics Driver - Multitouch like Macbooks

 

i had almost same results as you when i tried 3dmark06 on vista for the first time, after that i did a clean vista instal and got only 6300 score...but on my third try i got 6700

 

True, but to get in on the next platform, I think it could be only 1-2 months. That's not very bad of a wait for a much faster, next gen CPU.

 

loving my laptop..been editing hours of 1080/24p in premiere pro. Computer hasnt even hiccuped..I've been running into application/software walls before I run into hardware walls..For example I opened up 20 images I needed to touch up today in photoshop and I got an OpenGL/Adobe warning saying it only supports 16 OpenGL accelerate images at once..My task manager was at 50% if that..

 

It's next generation, but "much" faster is debatable. The speed increases now are small incremental increases not huge differences. Yes, in certain applications it will be faster but in your day to day average use, not so much.

And of course, six months from now...old skool....

 

And then, technically, it should only be another two months until SATA6Gbps, which you'll "surely" need for that SSD you want to put in.

Notice how I've switched my side now that I realized I can't get an i7, lol.

~Ibrahim~

 

LOL. I think I'll send mine back and wait a little. I don't mind waiting 1-2 months but after that, I don't really care what comes. I'll be waiting around 2 years before I make another purchase, so what I get now will just have to do until then.

I'm also getting the X25-m 80GB G2 and an eSata external for storage. Should be plenty for my need right now.

 

Done, faq's been updated.

 

Kewl....the guy at Dell (some guy from the Jaguar Team?) didn't think the i7 would be coming to the laptop ever, but then "hinted" at October,but then immediately told me that if he knew anything, he wouldn't be able to tell me because of NDAs and such.

I think, though, that that kind of slip on their site indicates imminent (week, maybe) release.

~Ibrahim~

 

Thanks man! I'll be sending mine back soon. Mine had a wired screen static flicker thing anyway during boot up sometimes.

 

No problem. Good luck.

It's opinion, but I don't see how something like that would slip if it was that far away, really.

~Ibrahim~

 

So im looking into getting an XPS16 now, here's the cofig I chose, do you guys think its a worth it system to own?

i plan on doing audio editing work and gaming and editing photography on CS4

Obsidian Black with leather Accent
T9600 Core2 Duo
16" RGB LED w/2.0MP cam
4GB ram
500GB 7200 RPM
Intel 5300 wifi
Ati 4670 1GB
4x BluRay burner
Hi Def 2.0 audio
6 cell battery
Vista 64bit ultimate
24month security
no office
2 year warranty

comes out to $1773.75 before ship and tax with the current 25% off



and lastly I see some people get it and reformat it immediately to avoid some issues, should i do this? if so I will need to reinstall current version drivers etc, can i easily get these from Dell? or do they come preloaded on a partition?

I see some people are instantly changing the CPU chipset and GPU paste to AS5 as well.

any help would be appreciated so i can get it and doa few steps so it runs clean and good from the start.

 

only drawback of going that route is that you have to endure the newbie system component syndromes and driver issues and bios disasters from being so new that your plagued with tons of initial issues. Id rather get systems at their peak because their mature, proven and whatever bugs are there usually have work arounds.

also the price is going to be high as hell for no reason.

 

Do you think the CPU upgrade will up the price that much? I doubt they will be changing anything else with the laptop. I read that the price for the new i7 820QM CPU is about the same as the current T9900.

Seems like they've already got most of the bugs out of this laptop. Maybe a new mobo will require a few BIOS updates. I doubt it will bring massive problems though, but I could be wrong.

 

Looks like HP has a bunch of refreshes coming soon with the i7's too. They're supposed to ship with W7.

I bet Dell will ship them with W7 too, just like MSI, HP, and more.

 

Well, watch out here. The only, and I mean ONLY, syndrome/issue that would come WHATSOEVER from a CPU change like this would be heat. Increased heat levels would be it. CPUs do not have drivers; Dell will (of course) supply a BIOS that supports them fully.

It isn't like an SSD which is just a component that has to work with a myriad of other parts and thus you have early-adopter issues. These are laptops (entire computers) designed by a huge company: they're sure to work out any problems of that sort before it even gets on the website. Heat, as has been discussed, they are lenient with. But everything else is a show-stopper. Contrary to popular belief, OEMs do not ship out broken systems on purpose to get you to spend your money. There is a reason that Dell, unlike some other manufacturers, requires a warranty of at least one year: they stand behind what they sell.

Price: yes, I can see them having a surcharge for the new i7's. I would venture maybe $100 or so onto the base price.

Double sevens: Win7 + i7! lol.....

~Ibrahim~

 

Where are the fan's located on the XPS 1640 + 4670 GPU?

Are they at the bottom near the screen?

If so, doesn't this BLOCK the air flow of the Zalman NC-2000 Cooler Pad?

 

thanks Joker

 

That's cool he still comes around to update the FAQ.

 

50% is most probably because 1 core is working @100%
In that case, you did run into a hardware wall.

 

I've been at 80% to 100% CPU usage several times with my T9900 in normal HD and specifically flash usage.

Seems to me the i7 Quad would blow away the T9900 in certain stuff, especially in the future when there is more quadcore optimization.

 

Hello All,

I am presently picking up an Studio XPS 16 for the wife and I would also like to purchase one myself.

The one for myself would have to be in XP Pro, as the software I use at work is not and will not be compatible with Vista, maybe Windows 7, but that would be at least 3 years down the road.

Anyway do you know if there are drivers available for all the components to functions, especially the ATI Mobility RADEON M96XT. Is it even possible to switch the Studio XPS 16 over to XP?

Any info you can send my way would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers!

 

Yes. My notebooks is the "working" proof.

Your DVD release button wont work though.
And you might have a few Issues with the sound.

Cheers

 

my dvd release button neither works under win 7, i can only eject it from my computer by clicking to eject.. any solutions?

 

You have to DL and install Dell Quickset software. Works fine for me in W7.

 

Right on thanks Mate, I just order two of them, one for the wife and one for me.

 

damnit.. to buy or not to buy, do I get this XPS16 today with 25% off, or do i wait a month for the new one to possibly come out?

UGGGGhhh LMAO

 

I still don't understand this. I formatted my 1640 3 times with different versions of Win 7 and never had to install Quickset to get it to work. I wonder if something within Win 7's drivers have changed.

 

Just ordered mine everyone, posts from this thread have greatly influenced my decision. Thanks everyone. I hope the RGB screen justifies the reviews. Unfortunatelly UK prices are still slightly more than the US but what can you do. I did use the 5% discount and chose a deal from the dell website.

Note 9-cell is not an option in the UK not even as a secondary battery.

Studio XPS 16(N00X1604)
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T9600(2.80Ghz, 1066MHz, 6MB)
Memory
4096MB 1067MHz Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM [2x2048]
Keyboard
Internal UK/Irish Qwerty Keyboard
Video Card
1GB ATI® Radeon™ HD 4670 graphics card
Hard Drive
500GB (7,200rpm) Free Fall Sensor Hard Drive
Microsoft Operating System
Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium SP1 (64 BIT) - English
Optical Devices
INTERNAL BLU-RAY ROM COMBO (BLU-RAY, DVD AND CD READ, DVD & CD WRITE) SLOT LOAD DRIVE WITH SOFTWARE
Wireless Networking
Intel WiFi Link 5100 (802.11 a/b/g/n 1X2) 1/2 MiniCard
Cables
1 Meter Power Cord (3 Wire) - UK
Shipping Documents
English - Documentation Studio XPS 16
Gedis Bundle Reference
N09X1604
Standard Warranty
1 Year Premium Warranty Support
Enhanced Service Packs
1Yr Premium Warranty Support
Bluetooth
Dell Wireless 370 Bluetooth Module
Order Information
Studio XPS 16 Order - UK
Primary Battery
Primary 6-cell 56 WHr Lithium Ion battery
Carrying Cases
No Carry Case
Dell System Media Kit
Studio XPS 16 Resource DVD (Diagnostic & Drivers)
Camera
Integrated Camera with Facial Recognition Software
Accidental Damage Support
No Accidental Damage Support
Online Backup
DataSafe Online Backup 2GB 1 year
TV Tuner and Remote Control
Integrated DVB-T TV Tuner and Antenna (MLK base)
Labels
Wireless Label (Intel Wireless Cards) - Core 2 Duo
LCD
White Leather back cover : 16" (inch) Truelife 1080p Full HD RGBLED Edge to Edge Display
DataSafe
Datasafe Local 2.0 Basic
Microsoft Application Software
Microsoft® Works 9.0 / English - (Does not include Microsoft® Word)
Protect your new PC
No Security/Anti-Virus Protection - English
Power Supply
90W AC Adaptor
Dell Bluetooth White Travel Mouse (Bluetooth Card required)

Total Price inc Tax (15%) & Shipping (£20): £ 1,157.03

This is to finally replace my Inspiron 8600 which I have had for 5-6 years now.

Will be installing Ubuntu onto it but will keep a small partition for Windows for BIOS updates, shame BIOS updates come only in .exe format for this laptop. Will comment more once I have received it.

 

Any good coolers for the SXPS 16?

 

Damn... Just discovered some dust behind the glass plate of the display of my new machine... It's only small, but... it really annoys me!

Pff... guess I'll be calling my sales rep again...

 

installed it, now it works and i have also some fancy visuals while changing volume or brightness, but (i'm not sure this program caused it) now my keyboard's backlit doesn't work, i'm sitting here in the dark and it just doesn't turn on, it's really annoying. or maybe i've just disabled it accidentally.. is there a shortcut for that which i may have pushed, or is this really just screwed up?
edit: problem solved, i could turn it back with it's bottom/right shortkey, maybe i just pushed it accidentally..

 

Hello everyone. I am a little late (A little over a month !) in declaring my purchase of a Dell Studio XPS 16. I made the purchase on August 8 when Dell was promoting a 25% off everything deal for laptops. The deal ran from August 8-13. Here are the specifications:

XPS 1640, Intel Core 2 Duo T9800(2.93GHz/1066Mhz FSB/6M L2 Cache)
Obsidian Black High Gloss Finish XPS 1640
4GB, DDR3, 1067 MHz 2 Dimm forXPS 1640
16.0 inch Wide Screen 16:9 1080p FullHD RGBLED LCD W/2.0 MP, XPS 1640
ATI Mobility RADEON M96XT - 1GB
500GB 7200RPM Free Fall SensorSeagate Hard Drive
Microsoft Windows Vista with SP1 Home Premium Edition 64-bit Edition English
DELL RESOURCE DVD,BACK-UP XPS 1640
DELL WELCOME,Software Dimension/Inspiron
Dell Dock Consumer
Dell Owners Manual installed on your system,click on icon after system set-up to access
Vista, PC-Restore, Dim/Insp
Dell Connect 2.1
DELL-DOWNLOAD-FLAG
Windows Live Search,Multiple User Interface
Dell Support Center Software 64 Bit 2.0
DataSafe Local BackUp 2.0 Basic
Download Store Links
Integrated 10/100 Network Card
ADOBE READER 9.0 MULTI- LANGUAGE
8X DVD+/-RW Slot Load Drive for XPS1640
Roxio 10.2 DE
Cyberlink PowerDVD DX 8.2 for DVD
Intel WiFi Link 5300 802.11AGN Half Mini Card
Norton Internet Security 2009 MUI, 15-Month
56 WHr 6-cell Lithium Ion P Primary Battery, for XPS 1640
Microsoft Office 2007 Home and Student Edition
Dell Hardware Warranty PlusOnsite Service, Extended Year(s)
Dell Hardware Warranty PlusOnsite Service, Initial Year
Third Party At Home Service with Nights and Week ends, 24x7 Technical Support, 2 Year Extended
Third Party At HomeService with Nights and Weekends, 24x7 Technical Support,Initial Year
3 Year Limited Warranty
CompleteCare Accidental DamageProtection, Inspiron, 3 Year
Soft Contracts - Consumer Complete Care
Soft Contracts - Banctec
Warranty Support,2 Year Extended
Bund. LoJack Theft Recovery - 3 Year DHS
LoJack Theft Recovery Softwarefor Laptops, 3 Year
Warranty Support,Initial Year
2GB DATASAFE ONLINE 1.1 FOR SDO/DIM/INS/XPS
To activate your online backupaccount, go to Start, Programs, DataSafe Online
DATASAFE ONLINE 1.1 2GB
S and P Drop-in-Box Marcom forDHS Notebooks
Dell Wireless 370 Bluetooth Internal (2.0+Enhanced Data Rate)
Premium FHD WLED Display Obsidian Black, 2.0 MP Webcam
Dell Video Chat
Facial Recognition Sensible Vision
Dell Webcam,1.2
You have chosen a Windows Vista Premium System
Intel Centrino 2 Label
Dell Remote Access free basic to access your PCs from outside your home
Dell Remote Access, free basic service - access your PCs and files from outside your home

-DISCOUNT/COUPON APPLIED
Subtotal: $1,901.38
Shipping and Handling: $0.00
Sales Tax: $133.10
Total: $2,034.48 (Around $2,700 had I not bought it during that time!)

I have had no problems with this laptop aside from overheating for no reason (50% CPU when I am running nothing) and cleaning it. Such a fingerprint magnet. Also, I just have two questions.

1.) What free spyware/adware protection software do you recommend most? Norton and Windows Defender seem to overlook spyware and adware because I still get random temperature spikes.

2.) What cooling pad do you recommend for the Studio XPS 16?

 

Random temperature spikes? Those are usually pretty normal....are they prolonged? How much of a "spike" is it, exactly?

GUESS WHOSE SXPS 16 JUST SHIPPED? OH YEAH! OH YEAH!

Black with Leather
16" RGBLED
T9600
4GB DDR3
4670 1GB
3-Year Warranty + 3-Year Accidental + 3-Year LoJack
500GB Drive
Blu-Ray
6-cell battery
Bluetooth thingamabob
Intel 5300
Home Premium 64-bit (with Win7, thank goodness)

I also specially requested that Adobe Reader must be installed...it'd better be, I'm not spending two minutes on the internet downloading that crap.

/sarcasm

But, legit, that is on my invoice. Somehow I ordered Adobe Reader....

~Ibrahim~

 

so i ordered the sxps 16 a few days ago, very similar to ikjadoon's but with the 8800 processor and the soundcard, otherwise the same i believe. i'm wondering what are some things i should do right away when starting it up, do some people reinstall windows? what is the purpose of this? what are other things to do right away to make it as good as possible?

 

The 50% CPU might be the dell web cam check the processes runing in your task manager if it is the web cam update the driver for spyware/adware ive used Spybot Search and Destroy and Lavasofts Adaware both are free and for the cooling I use the Zelman ZM-NC2000

 

It could also be the IDT sound driver. That's what I had the biggest issue hogging cpu usage was with mine.

 

I have pretty much the same build as you except a bd-rom, 9cell, leather and 5100 for wireless. $1630 compared to your $1900..And I got mine price matched during that 25% off sale..Why is yours so much more?

 

You got the 9-cell, Blu-ray, and the T9800 for $1630? That's impressive. I used the 25% coupon, too, but could only get Blu-Ray for $1,777.

~Ibrahim~

 

So does the 4670 have a 128 or 256 bit bus and GDDR3 or GDDR5 ram

 

128 bit, and GDDR3 I think

 

im exited! now the waiting game

1 224-1944 XPS 1640, Intel Core 2 Duo P9600 (2.8GHz/1066Mhz FSB/6M L2 Cache) $1646.25
1 320-7330 Obsidian Black High Gloss Finish with Leather XPS 1640 $0.00
1 311-9487 4GB, DDR3, 1067 MHz 2 Dimm forXPS 1640 $0.00
1 320-7332 Premium HD Display 16" RGBLED 1080P, 2.0 MP Webcam $0.00
1 421-0464 Dell Webcam,1.2 $0.00
1 420-8223 Dell Video Chat $0.00
1 420-9699 Facial Recognition Sensible Vision $0.00
1 330-4424 ATI Mobility RADEON M96XT - 1GB $0.00
1 341-8989 500GB 7200RPM Free Fall SensorSeagate Hard Drive $0.00
1 420-9319 Microsoft Windows Vista with SP1 Home Premium Edition 64-bit Edition English $0.00
1 330-1917 DELL RESOURCE DVD,BACK-UP XPS 1640 $0.00
1 420-6576 DELL WELCOME,Software Dimension/Inspiron $0.00
1 420-9100 Dell Dock Consumer $0.00
1 463-2282 Dell Owners Manual installed on your system,click on icon after system set-up to access $0.00
1 420-6436 Vista, PC-Restore, Dim/Insp $0.00
1 420-7938 Dell Connect 2.1 $0.00
1 421-0092 DELL-DOWNLOAD-FLAG $0.00
1 421-0323 Windows Live Search,Multiple User Interface $0.00
1 421-0187 Dell Support Center Software 64 Bit 2.0 $0.00
1 420-9691 DataSafe Local BackUp 2.0 Basic $0.00
1 421-1193 Download Store Links $0.00
1 430-2600 Integrated 10/100 Network Card $0.00
1 410-1883 ADOBE READER 9.0 MULTI- LANGUAGE $0.00
1 313-8387 4X Slot Load Bluray (BDRW) Rewritable Drive (BD Read and and Write) $0.00
1 420-8161 Roxio Creator 10 Premiere Blu-Ray, Factory Installed $0.00
1 420-9681 PowerDVD DX 8.1 Bluray Playback, True Theatre High Definition $0.00
1 313-4783 Integrated High Definition Audio 2.2 $0.00
1 430-2955 Intel WiFi Link 5300 802.11AGN Half Mini Card $0.00
1 410-2089 McAfee Sapphire MUI, 24-Month $0.00
1 312-0811 56 WHr 6-cell Lithium Ion P Primary Battery, for XPS 1640 $0.00
1 412-1397 No Productivity Software requested $0.00
1 950-3338 2 Year Limited Warranty $0.00
1 993-3488 Dell Hardware Warranty PlusOnsite Service, Extended Year(s) $0.00
1 993-3487 Dell Hardware Warranty PlusOnsite Service, Initial Year $0.00
1 986-0551 Third Party At HomeService, 24x7 TechnicalSupport, 1 Year Extended $0.00
1 992-4490 Third Party At HomeService, 24x7 TechnicalSupport, Initial Year $0.00
1 902-0941 Warranty Support,1 Year Extended $0.00
1 960-8710 Warranty Support,Initial Year $0.00
1 420-8878 Software, Soft Contracts Dell In-Home $0.00
1 988-7707 2GB DATASAFE ONLINE 1.1 FOR SDO/DIM/INS/XPS $0.00
1 988-0099 To activate your online backupaccount, go to Start, Programs, DataSafe Online $0.00
1 420-9518 DATASAFE ONLINE 1.1 2GB $0.00
1 330-0171 S and P Drop-in-Box Marcom forDHS Notebooks $0.00
1 310-8628 You have chosen a Windows Vista Premium System $0.00
1 330-1757 Intel Centrino 2 Label $0.00
1 420-8223 Dell Video Chat $0.00
1 420-9699 Facial Recognition Sensible Vision $0.00
1 421-0464 Dell Webcam,1.2 $0.00

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Sub-Total : $1646.25
Tax : $115.25
Order Total : $1761.50

 

So I ordered a Studio XPS 16 just under three weeks ago, and received it today. Was so excited to try out my new machine.. un-boxed it and turned it on.. but nothing happened. Plugged it in, turned it on.. still nothing. Called Dell and had to argue with them for about two hours while they try to tell me my brand new (barely out of the box) laptop needs to be fixed! Finally got them to send me a new one.. after being transferred through 23 different departments and a couple 'supervisors'.. so now back to the waiting game. I'm so eager to see this laptop actually working! Lol... I just hope nobody else has to go through this, it is a serious let down.

 

I got mine yesterday and so far all is good, I am very happy with my new purchase

 

Dell has an occasional few surprises for enthusiastic new owners... You are not the first person receiving a dead or defective system... Complaints range from dust behind the screen to dead machines...

One more thing: I noticed a difference in build quality between my "old" (3670) and new (4670) SXPS 16. The new one was put together much nicer than the old one. The aluminum parts of the hinges was mounted with a much tighter fit, so it left a smaller gap between the actual hinge and the side of the hinge.

 

Holy Christ on a cracker... My 15.4 WLED SXPS 1640 4670 has been replaced by one with an RGBLED screen. I just migrated the drive over from the old unit and I'm still waiting on a 9-cell battery that was supposed to be shipped with it.

So far I've noticed three things with the RGB unit:

1. Greens were extremely intense (more so than the reds) on the screen straight OOTB. After running the Calibration via page 1 everything seems well balanced.

2. The combination of the T9600 with the 4670 (RGBLED) under full load in L4D runs one hell of a lot quieter than my other unit with the T9550 and 4670 (WLED)... You'd think it'd be the other way around.

3. The bottom panel sat flush on the old unit, but on the new unit it has a slight buldge on the left hand side. I really should mention it to Dell.

 

If this is a repeat, sorry, not sure if my original post went though,
Hi, everyone,
Just received my second replacement XPS1640 w/4670 gpu. The firt one was sended with the wrong screen. I had order a 1600x900 (need slightly larger font), recieved 1368x768 instead, after hours and hours with dell ( for them to admit they sended me the wrong screen) and weeks an weeks of waiting for the replcement. The new replacement appear to have a problem again. Here is the problem, on a normal desktop display, the wording below the icon such as " my computer" , would have a trace of red on the white font, such as the world " m" . I am not sure, if this is consider red bleeding, but this problem ( although is very slight, but really bother me), can be seen on any white character in a dark background. So, here is the question, Is this warrent for another exchange ( i would prefere not to), or can this problem be resolve with ati driver updated. Any help will be appreciate, thanks