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

yea, i wouldn't care too much about i7s at this point. those are quad core CPUs clocked much slower. might not be that great where single threaded performance is desired (esp for games)...

 

First post has been updated. I removed the notebookcheck benchmarks and plan to add member based scores. If you guys run a benchmark on your new 4670, please note the configuration of your machine, catalyst settings, benchmark settings and resolution. Preferably in this format:

• System configuration
• Catalyst version and settings (AA settings, AF settings, Catalyst AI, MipMap settings, Adaptive AA settings).
• Game or benchmark settings
• Game or benchmark results

Once I start getting submissions in the above format, I'll add them to the first post.

 

rock on ..... wednesday joker wednesday

 

So dell shiped my laptop at 11am this morning with next day shiping, yet FedEx shows that the package will arive on the 15th. Does fedex pad their delivery times or should I not be expecting my laptop tomorrow?

 

My experience with FedEx in general is that they pad the shipping time. UPS is a lot more accurate.

 

Not to rain on anyone's parade, as I am too getting one these soon but Clarksfield is a pretty big deal. It drops the FSB and eliminates the northbridge. What used to be a 2-chip chipset solution will become 1. This was a big deal on a desktop but it will be a even BIGGER deal on laptops. One less chip to draw from your battery! This will help with power and obviously, most importantly, latency to ram (on-die memory controller). Also these current Core 2 duo's are single threaded. Clarksfield will have 4 cores with HT/ 8 threads, just like its desktop counterparts. OK so you dont have any apps on your laptop that need this many threads? ( I do) turbo mode on Clarksfield with be on its 3rd iterarion/generation, like someone mentioned prior, and will boost the 2.0 up to 3.6 on TWO of the cores. This is why they are clocked so low. Also keep in mind 2 Clarksfield cores are still HTed so you will have 4 threads at 3.6 compared to the 2 current core 2 duo's t series maxed at 3.06 for a duo and 2.53 quad (mobile). These laptops were supposed to be out now, but due to pressure from OEMs (dells, apples, hps, ETC) are being pushed back to fall due to the horrible economy and huge leftover stock of current mobile Penryn core 2 duos. Which is also why you are seeing these huge discounts...they're trying their darnest to get these out..Its a shame. I cant wait till October!

 

The i7 will be great for people that use professional level applications (maya, photoshop etc) but for gamers, there will be little benefit. The reason is that the SXPS 16 is already bottlenecked by the 4670 so additional CPU processing power will do little to alleviate that. Maybe in very CPU intensive games there will be a benefit of 5-6 fps but really that's about it.

 

You completely missed my point about power savings??? Its a big deal whether you game or not..and actually every new crazy game that is out is somewhat multi-threaded and every new major game in development is using multiple threads now. The game you tested on your XPS, Crysis, is multi-threaded and runs better on 4 cores then two.. By the time i7 comes to laptops, there will be a refresh on the video cards especially since the 40nm parts will be out by then for Windows 7. You can bet if mobile i7 is coming out in octobor they will have dx11 compliant gpu parts along with it for W7. And the Studio XPS was never marketed as a gaming machine anyway so why would this matter to gamers? I don't know why you brought that into it but you can't be more wrong..Oh well..

My original point was/is, the new chips are a big deal for laptops no matter what you do.

 

Gaming on a battery really isnt a viable option.

 

Crysis may be multithreaded as might future games (though we've been hearing this for ages) but again, the 4670 is a bottleneck right now and I doubt Dell will refresh it with a better video card in September. ATi doesn't have anything newer in their mobility line to add as it is. The form factor is prohibitive for anything else more powerful. This laptop may not be billed as a gamers laptop but for many that's an important part of it. I could've gotten some cheap Asus gaming notebook with a GTX 260 but I didn't because of the SXPS 16's aesthetics, form factor and RGB LED display and of course the 4670--I think you will find a lot of others did for the same reasons.

No doubt the i7 will be nice but it's not as important as a GPU refresh (to me at least) but some of your points are valid and important to some, especially the battery life--heat might be reduced as well if the NB is eliminated. As for the video card, I'm sure eventually ATi will have a refreshed mobility line but I don't expect to see anything for another 6 months or more. If you feel content waiting, then by all means do so. A lot of us were waiting on the 4670 and now that it's here, we've got no more reason to wait.

 

I kinda lucked out and saw the bigger option when I was ordering, didn't know it was the second coming hehehe.

 

Ah you missed out on all the waiting. It started back in May when the A08 bios was released early by Dell and it had the 4670 support mentioned. There were lots of doubt, arguments, speculation and a lot of us just kept waiting until it was released. I'm not surprised by the i7 speculation either since that's been talked about for awhile now.

Anyway, to get back on topic, since you're receiving yours on Wednesday, we should do some comparison benchmarks to see the difference between the T9550 and P8600 in games. I don't think we'lll see much in GPU heavy games (just take a look at my results w/the DV7 vs XPS in SF4) but a game like Left 4 Dead might yield some positive results.

 

Hey 5150,

I'm looking into purchasing a notebook within the next 2 months. I work mainly with Adobe software (photoshop, illustrator, indesign, lightroom etc.) and DO NOT game. Would you suggest that I wait instead for the mobile i7 processors to come out as I would benefit more from them? Any ideas on when Dell, HP, etc plan to start putting them in their notebooks?

Thanks!

 

Honestly that's something for you to decide. I really don't know how much additional performance the i7 would offer or if it's even coming to the SXPS. So far engadget only suggested that it would be a logical update, nothing more. That said, it will likely come in the next 2-4 months so it could be prudent to wait if you want an i7 based laptop.

For my purposes, the current iteration of the SXPS 16 is exactly what I needed. I used to be a hardcore gamer but not as much now since I'm in medical school but I do still like to play games. This laptop with the 4670 update fits that bill while doubling as a fantastic multimedia machine.

 

Hey guys, been following this thread for last the 2 days to get my mind off the waiting. I was happy to find something new I hadn't read or watched about it yet! lol

I ordered my XPS 16 on June 27th, here's all the stuff I got:

1 224-5210 XPS 1640, Intel Core 2 Duo T9550(2.66GHz/1066Mhz FSB/6M L2 Cache)
1 320-7330 Obsidian Black High Gloss Finish with Leather XPS 1640
1 311-9487 4GB, DDR3, 1067 MHz 2 Dimm forXPS 1640
1 320-7329 16.0 inch Wide Screen 16:9 1080p FullHD RGBLED LCD W/2.0 MP, XPS 1640
1 330-4424 ATI Mobility RADEON M96XT - 1GB
1 341-8982 256GB Dell High Performance Solid State Hard Drive, 2.5MM
1 420-9319 Microsoft Windows Vista with SP1 Home Premium Edition 64-bit Edition English
1 330-1917 DELL RESOURCE DVD,BACK-UP XPS 1640
1 420-6576 DELL WELCOME,Software Dimension/Inspiron
1 420-9100 Dell Dock Consumer
1 463-2282 Dell Owners Manual installed on your system,click on icon after system set-up to access
1 420-6436 Vista, PC-Restore, Dim/Insp
1 420-7938 Dell Connect 2.1
1 421-0092 DELL-DOWNLOAD-FLAG
1 421-0323 Windows Live Search,Multiple User Interface
1 421-0187 Dell Support Center Software 64 Bit 2.0
1 420-9691 DataSafe Local BackUp 2.0 Basic
1 430-2600 Integrated 10/100 Network Card
1 410-1883 ADOBE READER 9.0 MULTI- LANGUAGE
1 313-7054 8X DVD+/-RW Slot Load Drive for XPS1640
1 420-9850 Roxio 10.2 DE
1 420-9334 Cyberlink PowerDVD DX 8.2 for DVD
1 421-0170 Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi MB(Panzer) Application 1.0
1 430-2955 Intel WiFi Link 5300 802.11AGN Half Mini Card
1 410-2090 McAfee Sapphire MUI, 15-Month
1 312-0811 56 WHr 6-cell Lithium Ion P Primary Battery, for XPS 1640
1 412-1397 No Productivity Software requested
1 993-3498 Dell Hardware Warranty PlusOnsite Service, Extended Year(s)
1 993-3497 Dell Hardware Warranty PlusOnsite Service, Initial Year
1 992-1212 Third Party At Home Service with Nights and Week ends, 24x7 Technical Support, 2 Year Extended
1 992-4460 Third Party At HomeService with Nights and Weekends, 24x7 Technical Support,Initial Year
1 950-3339 3 Year Limited Warranty
1 980-5877 CompleteCare Accidental DamageProtection, Inspiron, 3 Year
1 412-0358 Soft Contracts - Consumer Complete Care
1 412-0360 Soft Contracts - Banctec
1 960-3652 Warranty Support,2 Year Extended
1 991-1159 Bund. LoJack Theft Recovery - 3 Year DHS
1 476-7773 Thanks for choosing Dell!
1 420-8653 LoJack Theft Recovery Softwarefor Laptops, 3 Year
1 960-8710 Warranty Support,Initial Year
1 988-7717 5GB DATASAFE ONLINE 1.1 FOR SDO/DIM/INS/XPS
1 988-0099 To activate your online backupaccount, go to Start, Programs, DataSafe Online
1 420-9519 DATASAFE ONLINE 1.1 5GB FOR DIM/INS/XPS
1 330-0171 S and P Drop-in-Box Marcom forDHS Notebooks
1 430-3206 Dell Wireless 370 Bluetooth Internal (2.0+Enhanced Data Rate)
1 320-7618 Premium HD WLED Display Obsidian Black, Leather 2.0 MP Webcam
1 420-8223 Dell Video Chat
1 420-9699 Facial Recognition Sensible Vision
1 421-0464 Dell Webcam,1.2
1 310-8628 You have chosen a Windows Vista Premium System
1 330-1757 Intel Centrino 2 Label
1 420-9800 Dell Remote Access free basic to access your PCs from outside your home
1 993-1919 Dell Remote Access, free basic service - access your PCs and files from outside your home
1 464-8859 Special Offer - $140 off <-- Talked em down slightly on hard drive lol

It will be here on Wednesday according to tracking which is 2 days short of the original delivery date!!

Subtotal was around $2850 or something like that, including the 9 cell battery on a seperate order.
Total price after all taxes, discounts, etc. $2308.14

 

ATI will most certainly have a dx11 part out for Windows 7 launch in Oct. Windows 7 is DX11 standard, ATI's desktop dx11 parts are due out sept/oct why wouldnt they have at least one mobile part? It'd be a missed opportunity if they didn't.

 

AMD might have some Dx11 parts by late 2009 but mobile parts always lag behind by 3-6 months. I wouldn't count on a dx 11 ati mobility until Jan 2010 at the earliest. Like I said, if you want to keep waiting feel free, there's always something better around the corner.

 

Bonjour everybody !

I'm getting an xps 16 from the US (I'm from France) and I think I may have rushed things when ordering for the sake of a lower price tag :

I'm getting the fancy 4gigs of ddr3 and RGBLED display, as well as of course, the 4670 w/ 1gb of memory. Two things though :
-P7350 @ 2GHz
-500gb @ 5400RPM

So I'm wondering if those two little brats are going to bottleneck my system, as far as performance go. And if this is the case, which one of these two components should I replace to gain the max perf increase? (I'm not really ready to shell out more than, say, $300)

Joker, where are you in FL? I used to live in Sarasota for a while...

Thanks !
P.S. : I live in Paris, you Americans sure loooove this city, I kinda meet one at every corner during summertime, which is fine, as long as you don't eat too many of our croissants

 

I'd say the CPU. I'd try to get the P8600 or P8700. The 5400 RPM drive should not slow you down in most situations (slower load times, but not once programs are running), and it is easier to upgrade yourself later if you need to. For about the same cost, can you get a 320 GB 7200 drive?

 

You overpaid, by a lot! Even if you use this laptop to be your only friend forever, you were taken by Dell. Once you receive it, go ahead and send it back. /Chastise

 

49guy: Do you work for Dell? I have gone back and read many of your posts, you seem to be a Dell apologist! Is your real name Paul McKinnon? If so, please give us insider information as to why your laptops are made with so many defects that stifles the users productivity? Why is the studio xps designed so poorly? Answers please!

 

I never posted my specs, but I went with the T9800, 4 GB DDR3, 1080P, 500GB 7200RPM, and of course the ati 4670..
it was about $2030.. which would've~ been at a nicer price if it were the T9550.. but i'm okay with it.

 

I'm in Aventura although I'm only in FL until December. Then I'll be moving to NYC Originally from California though. FL-->Paris is quite a change.

 

haha! I live in Miami also! Looking forward to your move!

 

Joker no offense, but I follow this stuff pretty closely. ATI will have dx11 out by October. And for those who can wait, I'd wait if I were you. i7 will bring some pretty big sweeping changes and increases in performance. Centrino 3 is going to be big.

 

Item Number Quantity Item Description

224-5210
1 Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T9550 (6MB cache/2.66GHz/1066Mhz FSB)

320-7330
1 Obsidian Black with Leather Accent

311-9487
1 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1067MHz (2 Dimms)

320-7329
1 Edge-to-Edge FullHD Widescreen 16.0 inch RGBLED LCD (1920x1080) W/2.0 MP

330-4424
1 ATI Mobility RADEON™ HD 4670 – 1GB

341-8982
1 256GB Solid State Drive

330-1917
420-6436
420-6576
420-7938
420-9100
420-9319
420-9691
421-0092
421-0187
421-0323
463-2282
1 Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Edition SP1, 64-bit

430-2600
1 Integrated Gigabit (10/100/1000) Network Card

410-1883
1 Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 9, Multiple Languages

313-8387
420-8161
420-9681
1 4X Slot Load Blu-ray Disc (BD) Burner (Writes to DVD/CD/BD)

313-4783
1 High Definition Audio 2.0

430-2955
1 Intel® 5300 WLAN Wireless-N (3x3) Mini Card

412-1397
1 No Microsoft Office

461-8389
1 No Security

312-0811
1 6-cell Battery

412-0358
412-0360
420-8653
476-7773
950-3339
960-3652
960-8710
980-5877
991-1159
992-1212
992-4460
993-3497
993-3498
1 3 yr In-home Service after remote diagnosis + Complete Care+LoJack
320-7618
420-8223
420-9699
421-0464
1 Edge-to-Edge FullHD Widescreen 16.0 inch RGBLED LCD (1920x1080) W/2.0 MP

330-5122
1 Intel® Centrino™ 2

310-8628
1 Windows Vista™ Premium

420-9800
993-1919
1 Dell Remote Access, free basic service




Dell EPP Members save $419 off select Studio XPS 16 systems! - $419.00

ADDITIONAL DISCOUNTS AND COUPONS


Receive 7% off your Member purchase - $155.33


Order Subtotal: $2,063.67
Shipping and Handling Total: $29.00
Tax Total: $120.35
Total Amount: $2,213.02


Did i get a good Deal or owned?

 

Do you have any credible sources/links saying that ati will release a dx11 mobility in oct? I've been following graphics tech since the first voodoo 1 so I'm not a newbie to this either. Unless you can show an ati roadmap indicating a dx11 mobility part in oct this discussion is a waste of time. Furthermore oems like dell are slow to react to gpu updates, just look at how long it took them to add the 4670.

 

Just my .02, but I spec'd out an XPS with the lesser screen, P8600 (notTHAT much slower than your processor), 320gb 7200 rpm HDD, no blu-ray burner, and 2 year warranty for about 1/2 of your price (It was I think $1100).

So I guess my question to you is: Was the processor, screen, SSD HDD, blu-ray, and 1-year extra warranty worth ~$800-900 more?

Edit: Here's my spec for $1115 -

Studio XPS 16 Intel® Core™ 2 Duo P8600 (3MB cache/2.4GHz/1066Mhz FSB)
Operating System Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Edition SP1, 64-bit
MEMORY 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1067MHz (2 Dimms)
LCD Panel Edge-to-Edge HD Widescreen 16.0 inch WLED LCD (1366x768) W/2.0 MP
Video Card ATI Mobility RADEON™ HD 4670 – 1GB
Hard Drive 500GB 7200 RPM SATA Hard Drive
DVD+/-RW or Bluray Drive 8X DVD+/- RW(DVD/CD read/write) Slot Load Drive
Sound Card High Definition Audio 2.0
Wireless Networking Cards Intel 5300 Ultimate-N Half Mini Card (3x3) with MyWiFi
Battery Options 6-cell Battery
Hardware Services 2Yr Ltd Hardware Warranty, InHome Service after Remote Diagnosis

 

The 1080 screen and the SSD was a must.

The BD burner wasn't necessary but i would love to "archive BD movies" ;-)
and the 1 year extra warrenty was tossed in by Dell under their university offer which added an extra year to your warrenty option.

Dunno if all this was worth it. I think i would have been more confortable paying this same price if i got this same config but wit a T9800

 

Processor, screen and ssd hdd definately worth it. They are in 2 completely different leagues. The bluray burner is the only thing not quite there yet. Media is too expensive. Especially with the price of HDD coming down.

Twice the price, twice the productivity.

Studio XPS 16 Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T9800 (6MB cache/2.93GHz/1066Mhz FSB)
Operating System Genuine Windows Vista® Ultimate Edition 64-bit
System Color Option Obsidian Black with Leather Accent
MEMORY 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1067MHz (2 Dimms)
LCD Panel Edge-to-Edge FullHD Widescreen 16.0 inch RGBLED LCD (1920x1080) W/2.0 MP
Video Card ATI Mobility RADEON™ HD 4670 – 1GB
Hard Drive 256GB Solid State Drive
Integrated NETWORK ADAPTERS (NICS) Integrated Gigabit (10/100/1000) Network Card
Adobe Software Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 9, Multiple Languages
DVD+/-RW or Bluray Drive BluRay Disc Combo (DVD/CD read/write + BD read) Slot Load Drive
Sound Card High Definition Audio 2.0
Wireless Networking Cards Intel 5300 Ultimate-N Half Mini Card (3x3) with MyWiFi
Productivity No Microsoft Office
Software - Antivirus McAfee 15 month
Battery Options 6-cell Battery
Hardware Services 2Yr Ltd Hardware Warranty, InHome Service after Remote Diagnosis

 

SSD is a good price compared to what retailers charge. I agree about the 1080p screen, that's the best feature of this laptop. I don't think the BD burner is worth it yet either because of the cost associated with the media.

 

I dont update my laptops often, lol im replacing my 5-6 year old compaq persario R3000 (one of the first to have a cd/dvd burner)....now i build this computer up to par so that i could get atleast 3-5 years out of it.

and blank BR disc will drop within the next year and become alot more afordable. They are working on a newer blue ray disc technology that would allow upwards of about 30 -50 Gigs

 

I was wondering how you figured that....I understand the T9800 is alot more powerful than the P8600 (though I doubt I'd ever see the difference in practical use), and the SSD is faster. But, IMHO, a P8600 and a 7200 RPM 500 gb HDD aren't exactly slouches. They move pretty fast (even better in Windows 7)....

I'd love to see the 1080p screen in person. For me, it's not worth it. Totally a judgement call for each person. But I'd love to have it just for those times when such a screen blows you away.

 

the blue ray buner was only about 125 upgrade from the original config i customized.

so i said lets toss it on there for future reference. might need to do some hardcore movie archiving ;-)

 

The processor and ssd hdd make a world of difference. I use my laptop for everything, but largely business, so any increase in productivity means more time to make money. I tend to have 50+ windows open at any time and little patience to wait, so for me, I feel I'll more than make up the extra cost by not waiting for tasks to complete etc. I also have an addiction to AV equip, and this machine does quite nicely in the media arena. I'm actually waiting for mine to arrive now, as I returned one with the same config and the 3670 to upgrade to the 4670 for the increase video and the ability to play 7.1 audio.

The old one did get a 5.6 WE score only limited by the GC also. So I can't wait to see what this new one will do. I think everything else maxed out at the top with a 5.9.

Not sure, but I think the SSD may have a bit lower heat than a 7200 rpm drive. I didn't notice heat being too bad in the one I returned.

Maybe I go to the extremes with pushing my machines, but I hate nothing more than limiting potential because of equipment issues. Over building is worth the peace of mind to me.

 

hi would just like to ask about the sound system in the laptop, is it loud is it clear with good quality?

also how hot will it get with the p8700 processor and also the t9950 processor?

 

Good quality is subjective since some are more picky than others. To me it sounds good and is nice and loud.

 

The sound is honestly probably the best I've heard on a laptop. I was playing it at my office and people were blown away (especially the mac fan boys...gotta love it when you can stick it to em) Plays very loud. The t9800 wasn't that hot, certainly not enough to concern me.

 

dunno if the processor makes a difference in the sound quallity. My first xps 16 back in March came with busted woofers. sent it back and didnt bother to reorder becuase that was actually my SECOND XPS 16... the first one had motherboard problems and would not charge my battery......waited a few months and now decided to re order again with a better config.


Still waiting to arrive. EST 7/24/09

 

Great response and I totally agree about productivity. Mine is for home use primarily, so I'm not worried about it. But for business if a faster computer saves 10 minutes a day that's the equivalent of, easily, 2000 minutes a year or ~33 hours of my time. So that easily would pay for itself, and I'm sure that's a conservative estimate if I was taxing my system daily (as you are).

From what I understand, SSD's operate at room temperature/ambient temp. So if anything, they should operate as a heat-sink for the nearby components to spread their heat build-up into. Once prices come down substantially, I could see that being an upgrade.

 

Nope. Don't wanna get dragged into an argument or anything, but the T9800 is not twice as fast as a P8600.

The performance increase after 2.5 GHz is not linearly proportional with price. In fact, price increases exponentially while performance increases logarithmically.

But, its your money and if it helps you sleep better, then sleep better knowing your computer is better than it was the day before.

 

Wasn't specifically speaking of just the processor, but the combination of everything the laptop has including the SSD HDD. It wasn't meant to be an exact math equation. The T9800 does however also have twice the cache @ 6mb vs 3 mb which will also improve speed as it needs to read/write from the main memory less. It doesn't help me sleep better though, just work better...

 

OK, it is here...

What is the best way to wipe this sucker clean? Does the recovery disk re-install the crapware (i.e. Roxio DE, etc)? I've done hundreds of clean installs, just looking for some advice to potentially save me some time.

Thanks

 

Reboot-->Insert Vista/Windows 7 dvd-->format the drive-->Install new OS.

 

If you do a clean install, does tht mean you'll also lose the security software?

 

You lose it all. I think the reinstallation discs may have the software available though I haven't bothered to check. I put the box away so if someone wants to look and confirm please do so.

 

The recovery DVD or a genuine Microsoft Vista 64 bit DVD? The reason I ask is I seem to recall the the retail versions of the Microsoft DVDs don't like the OEM activation code.

 

Got mine as well, picked up my laptop at FedEx during my lunch hour. Not a lot of junk on there and since I'm in testing phase I'll leave it be for now. Just went ahead and put in my basic settings and set up my wireless connection. Will wait until this weekend to really see what the SXPS 16 can do. Windows Experience Index is 5.5 due to the T9550, Gaming Graphics score is 5.7. An attractive laptop for sure, I did notice it getting warm when I had it sitting on my coffee table during configuration. I now have it in place of where my Inspiron 8600 use to sit, on top of Antec Notebook Cooler To Go and it is now very cool. It will be interesting to see how much this changes once I fire up a game. Oh well, will try and keep from spending too much time on this new toy until I can afford to do so.

Oh, anyone know of a good Bluetooth mouse?

 

I think you got a pretty good deal. I tried to configure the same system via my hospital's EPP and came up with a significantly higher total ($2742 - $259 instant savings = $2483, less 7% EPP discount = $2309). That's a fully loaded system that should be quite capable for several years.

Could you post or PM me the link or coupon you used ? I'm ready to buy but am holding out for a slightly better deal than the ones I can find right now -- $404 off from Dell Home with free shipping, or $259 + 7% off via EPP; the latter ends up being a little cheaper. I am looking for pretty much the same setup as you have, without the extra warranty or BD burner.

 

Have you tried talking to a rep? I got the $504 off home deal (well 404 now) + 7% off via EPP with free next day shipping