===> The Official Studio XPS 1640 Owner's Thread<===

My guess is it'll enter boxing tomorrow, then maybe ship by the end of the week? 3-5 days sounds pretty plausible based on what mine did (and a lot of ours did).

 

I just realized the processor in my order is written as P9400 (2.53GHz , 6MB L2 Cache) but there is no processor called P9400. It should have been T9400. I wonder if that created some problems.

 

I understand that 3-5 days may sound plausible for boxing but here is the deal: I called the 1800 number to check my order status->it said testing -> lasted 2 days -> so I called customer care -> they called me back -> they said that my processor(P8600) is backordered and now that they have it in stock, they can proceed -> so they said "the system should ship out in the next 3-5 bussiness day.

My question is: why is my system in testing stage if its processor is backordered? shouldn't the whole system be put together before it enter testing stage? dell makes no sense....

 

Sometimes parts can go on backorder if there is a shortage, and they have to wait for the manufacturer to replenish.

Be happy, when my 1530 was being built a part was on backorder..the Intel Wirleless Pro 4965. Something so simple being on backorder caused my order to be cancelled and *refreshed*....my whole order was built from *scratch* again per say..extending the ESD out even further.

I bet your 1640 does ship w/in the next 3-5 days.
You can ask them to upgrade you to Next Day shipping for something that caused a further delay for you.

Cin

 

ESD is 2/10. I really don't have anything to lose by trying another one! So now it is back to waiting and calling order status.

 

That's next Tuesday! Well, let's keep those fingers crossed for yah, that it ships sooner & this one is *the one*! Aaah, and yes the waiting game, and phone dialing = so much fun!! oh lulz.


Cin

 

Mine has been in testing stage as well for 5 days now. So I finally called earlier to ask them what exactly is taking it so long for them to finish this "testing stage". The Dell person I talked to then said that my configuration is missing some parts and those parts will get restocked only on Feb 5th.

So my order which was supposed to be delivered tomorrow got pushed Saturday if I'm lucky, or, most probably, next week.

(BTW, this is Dell Singapore/Malaysia)

 

sound quality update: i knew from the reviews that the sound on this system wasnt spectacular. and when i got it i noticed a lot of red lining during video playback and listening to music loudly. but i discovered the audio app that lets you configure the sound the 'idt audio control panel.'

its designed to help you configure the laptop speakers separate from the headphone speakers and also separate from the 5.1 output. with the idt i was able to correct the red lining, smooth out the balance, and increase output to the mini-subwoofer. it sounds MUCH better now. the drive image dell used on these first machines is definitely not configured for the proper audio settings out of the box. it took maybe 3 minutes of playing around with the settings to get it sounding like it should have from the start.

 

Hi metroline, what is "red lining"?

 

when audio red lines it becomes distorted/muffled.

the sound master volume was set at maximum, and the dells media controls controlled the speaker volume separately. so as the speaker volume increased, it made the master volume overrun and the audio becomes muffled. the output was set too high, tweaking the settings allows for the master volume to increase with the speaker output volume - and thus you can blast music louder and clearer than the default factory setting, and without muffling.

 

Are you kidding me? They put you from the 6th of feb to the 27th?
Mine is set to be delivered on the 6th, too... I wonder where they are assembled. Maybe for our part of the world (Germany, UK) they come either from Ireland or Poland? (But wasn't Ireland closed? I dunno.)
They better not put mine off to the end of February. The day after the sixth, I start calling in daily

 

Did you test HDMI output? Can you recognize anywhere in the sound configuration screens (separate sound utility or Control Panel > Audio & Sound> HDMI Sound Device > Sound Quality) whether the HDMI is capable of outputting 5.1 sound?

It would be very helpful if you could check.

Thanks

 

Yeah it's crazy isn't. When I ordered my laptop I needed it for work, so the rep told me they had lots of 2.8ghz processors in so if I ordered one of those I'd get it in 10 days tops. The plant in Ireland closed in January so it must just be Poland haveing to fill all our orders. 7 weeks just seems insane to wait when every ones getting there's now and if I've got to send it back cause it's broken when I get it, I'm gona pop mr dell in the nads. How much did you get yours for? I managed to get nearly £200 (£1300 after discount) off mine when I told the rep I was gona buy a hdx16 instead.

 

mine still in production since 16Th...i think this is beacuse de the TV Tuner...

 

This is usefull, but in the windows panel (last screenshot) could you go into the HDMI device and check each tab?

Also have you tried clicking on the "Settings" and "Preferences" buttons in the IDT sound utility screenshots. Do those open the Windows configuration panel?

From the current screenshots it doesn't seem like HDMI would transport 5.1

 

Hmmm... i think i know why my unit is taking so long now (ordered Jan 26, ESD Feb 13): i ordered the Intel 5300, 128GB SSD, BT unit, and RGBLED.. it seems the more custom parts, the longer it takes.. and im in Canada too!

 

I ordered the XPS 13 on January 19th and i'm getting it March 2nd. That's a long time

I'm bored of waiting

 

My EDD just got moved from tomorrow, Feb 4th, to Feb 16th. I ordered Jan 24th.

The wait is killing me!

 

Maybe suko is right and it's because of the darn TV tuner. (Which I didn't want to have in the first place.) Looks like Western Europe is far behind on SXPS deliveries... any1 in this area receive their's yet?

(I got mine for EUR 1209, which was about 10% off the original price.)

 

Ordered Jan 13
EDD Feb 06
Moved EDD to Mar 03 !!!!!!

 

My order got moved because of the Logitech Nano Mouse i ordered with the xps 13

But after reading all the problems some people having here, i'm not in a hurry anymore

 

2nd March???wow...I think my XPS 1640 will be pushed till March too...

 

mine has the same config, except the SSD... ordered it in 1/21, it shipped in 1/29 (to maryland) and was delivered in 1/31. But the ESD was 2/6! EDD: 2/14!
I guess DELL really overestimates these dates... And if it is the same for canada, you should be surprised soon!

 

Still waiting for the 9cell batery... =(

 

by me also to the 3march

 

Here's my configuration...

Obsidian Black with Leather Accent
Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Edition SP1, 64-bit
Intel® Core™2 Duo T9400 (6MB cache/2.53GHz/1066Mhz FSB)
LCD Edge-to-Edge FullHD Widescreen 16.0 inch RGBLED LCD (1920x1080) W/2.0 MP edit
4GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1067MHz (2 Dimms)
500GB 5400 RPM SATA Hard Drive
4 Year Limited Warranty plus 4 Year NBD On-Site Service plus CompleteCare
BluRay Disc Combo (DVD/CD read/write + BD read) Slot Load Drive
Dell Wireless 370 Bluetooth Module (2.1+EDR)
Intel® 5300 WLAN Wireless-N (3x3) Mini Card
ATI Mobility RADEON® HD 3670 - 512MB

Price: $2,177 ... hopefully I'll call and they'll give me at least 200$ discount (HOPEFULLY)

Anyway what do u guys think??? Actually I realized that Puerto Rico SXPS base price for the 1640 is $1,158 so it's $41 less!!! =S weird isn't??

 

Did they give you an explanation? Is something on backorder??


Cin

 

Help, I'm drowning in agony
krionX, hjorte, European buyers? Just checked on mine, still Feb 6. Bet it will be changed later in the day.

 

Does anyone know the optional windows update that crashes this computer because it happened to me again. I have to reinstall again.

 

So you installed something optional? Or does this crash when you just install all the critical updates?

The only optional update on Vista I can remember is just Silverlight (I think?) which I didn't install. Had no problem with anything else though.

What's your hardware config? Have you run memtest overnight on it?

 

silverlight works no problem but its one of the optional updates that crashes the system.

 

What update? I don't remember there being any optional updates aside from Silverlight.

 

hi a question for those with delays, did you chose the TV tuner?

 

First, I'm in Denmark, Europe

Dell DK told me that it is due to a huge interest in this particular model. I asked specifically if they have any problems with the first batch. He claimed that they do not. Truth? Well... maybe this IS a popular model around here.

 

That's the thing: You cannot select or deselect the TV tuner in DELL Germany, Switzerland, Austria. It's preselected.

 

DId you choose the Tv Turner??because i think that there are delays just for this item...

 

Are you planning on sharing a link with us?

 

I couldn't even select it on the Danish Dell site when I ordered. Also, I asked the Dell rep if any parts in my order is on backorder. No, he said.

 

ok. Because there is a website in Spain, where everyone who ordered the Xps STUDIO 1640 talk about the experience, and people who have ordered at the same time as me, 13th January, have received the laptop without the TV Tuner, so I guess this could be the answer for the delay...

I´m not sure. I have talk with Dell Spain, they dont know nothing about a delay in the laptops...

 

I am in Canada as well.
On Feb 22nd I orderd
ESD Feb 12th
actual ship date Feb 30th, due to arrive Feb 4th

My unit was just the base model with a 500 GB HD upgrade

 

So you received it 2 weeks before you ordered it
I think your dates are a bit messed up
lol

 

Yikes. Order date of the 22, estimated to ship a week and a half earlier, but actually shipped a week later, but arrived almost three weeks before it ordered.

Clearly Dell has introduced some kind of space-time anomaly into their ordering process

 

I just called to check the order status and after 8 days of boxing stage my order went back to build stage and I have no idea why.

 

For those of us considering a Dell laptop purchase I found this enticing bit of information about potential savings...


Enjoy!

"Dell’s Twitter experiment seems to be working. After making $1 million during the holidays by alerting Twitter followers to sale items, Dell is now offering discounts exclusively to the 11,844 people who follow @DellOutlet. For instance, here is a Tweet with a link to a 30-percent-off deal on an XPS laptop. When you click on the link, it takes you to this product page on Dell.com.

The new marketing program was, of course, announced on Twitter, as well as on this Direct2Dell blog post:

Beginning today, Dell will offer deals from the Dell Outlet exclusive to Twitter in the U.S. With over 11,000 followers, our team wanted to show their thanks to the Twitter world through these new deals which will continue each week.

Signing up for what is essentially a marketing email on Twitter perhaps gives some consumers the feeling of being part of an exclusive club. (It’s so exclusive, anyone can join). Or maybe they simply don’t want this junk filling up their inbox, and can choose to pay attention only when they are in the market for Dell products.

Twitter as a marketing channel. Hmm, . . . there must be a way to charge for that."

 

Ugh. So now I'd have to create a Twitter account, and pay attention to this, just to get a coupon? Ugh.

 

LOL Dell is very efficient up here in Canada.
When u call to order they tell you they already shipped it 2 weeks earlier

Ordered Jan 22nd
ESD Feb 10th then Feb 12th
Actual ship date Jan 30th
New EDD Feb 4th

 

wow, look a gift horse in the mouth much?

 

Thank you!

My worst fear was that it would be a Panasonic UJ-130A

I believe Optiarc only make one slot loading drive, the BC-5600S, and that is SATA. Another bonus is the ability to make the drive multi-region, something impossible to do with Panasonic / Matsua.

 

Is there an after market Blu Ray writer we can order for this notebook?
I opted not to get the blu ray drive from dell as it is read only.
I am more interested in the write function.