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

Not quite an owner yet, but my XPS 1640 is in production. I can't wait to get it.

 

I cannot say to be exact because i didn't have fraps installed, but it was smooth 98%of the time. only when, for example, the radar scrambler blew up, it got choppy for maybe 2second but after that it was smooth killing

 

congrats, what configuration did u get, and how much

 

I do not know about this subject in detail but shouldn't the black bars on DVD video be eliminated considering this is a 16:9 aspect ratio and 720p? Or am I wrong?

I assume the original video also has to be shot in 16:9 format?

 

Oh wow, glad I'm not alone! Yeah, I mean I've had some issues with Vista (64-bit), but mostly with one particular program or another. It's no more buggy than OS X is, and to me, I vastly prefer the Windows' interface. Plus Windows has WAY better font rendering, and Blu Ray support.

And I like that Microsoft at least TRIES for backwards compatibility, and TRIES to allow you to do the same thing multiple ways (even so much as allowing Vista to revert to Windows 9x methods of using the interface if you want-and that's from 10 years ago!)

But yeah, worst of all is probably the fanbois. You dare suggest that someone needs a feature, or a type of system Apple doesn't offer, and they jump all over you.

I was in the Apple.com forums for something or other, and happened to respond to a thread about why Apple didn't have a Geforce 9800 in the 17" macbook pro. They were all happily saying that oh, that would be too expensive. I just popped in and pointed out that systems that cost less than half what that cost have 9800 series GPUs. I didn't mean anything by it, I wasn't trying to start a fight or something, I was just answering the guy's question. Well, I get attacked by at least 4 people. Just tearing in to me.

And they go on about goofy things like how 'thick' such a notebook would be-as though having good cooling and over twice as powerful a GPU isn't worth an extra 1/4 inch for a lot of people!

Since they kept making insane statements, I used the 1640 as an example-that it has similar hardware for around $500-1000 less than the equivalent macbook pro.

And they (and other fanbois) always pick some arbitrary feature that Apple's current system has, that PC laptops don't, and then use that to justify the price, and claim it's far superior. (Right now it's Firewire 800-nevermind that most Windows laptops have way more USB ports and often Firewire 400 AND eSATA). Previously it's been things like a webcam, or...you know, whatever it is Apple's doing.

But conversely, no one needs a single feature that isn't offered by the hardware or in the OS. That's always a "fringe" feature that the masses don't need, regardless of what it is.

It honestly all turns me off. I mean it's an OS. It's got plenty of good stuff going for it, but it's just an OS.

Oh, and then the goofy "Vista is unstable!!!! (no, it's not), and the UAC is terrible! That one's nuts too, as 1) The UAC is a GOOD thing, and 2) OS X has had that exact type of feature from the beginning! and 3) It can be disabled anyway, if you want to be less secure but not have to occasionally hit a button.

 

Thanks.

I got the T9400 C2D 6MB L2 Cache, RGB LED(1920x1080), Vista Ultimate(64-Bit), Bluetooth, Blu-Ray, 320GB HDD, Intel 5300 WiFi, etc for $1700 via AAFES(Military Shopping) website.

 

I was just wondering 'cause when I was testing it on my notebook, I noticed that even at around 15fps it seemed to run well-it didn't LOOK like it was that slow, which surprised me.

EDIT: Oh, and I'm also impressed by how well that engine scales. It really got a bad rap, as it actually seems to run and look great across a huge range of hardware.

now F.E.A.R.-THAT'S a bad engine!

 

Most films are shot in wider than 16:9, so there are still going to be bars. It's just going to vary from film to film. TV shot in widescreen will be 16:9 though, and of course older stuff (or really old movies) will be 4:3.

 

All this talk about ATI 4k series GPUs.. how about an base-model option for integrated Intel 4700 graphics for those not into gaming or CS4.

 

Why though? There's 90 billion cheap laptops that will work fine if you don't want a GPU. (Though personally even just for general desktop stuff I want an Nvidia GPU.)

 

could you guys help me out here?
i have been looking but havent been able to find any actual gaming benchmark for this laptop.
i might purchase this and i like to play games.

any idea about how GTA4, CoD:5, GoW, Crysis run?
thanks a lot.

PS. sorry if someone already posted something like this already. i searched but couldnt find anything.

 

Mainly cost, battery life, and heat production (although the integrated solution produces heat as well)... or, maybe Dell will get around to having switchable; so you can switch from one to the other based on your needs.

 

3670 is the equivalent of the 9600m gt there is alot more information about that card so take a look

 

Mobility Radeon HD 3670:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/ATI-Mobility-Radeon-HD-3670.9595.0.html

Mobility Radeon HD 4670 (future option for the 1640???):
http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-ATI-Mobility-Radeon-HD-4670.13881.0.html

GeForce 9600M GT:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-9600M-GT.9449.0.html

 

Be aware though that ATi does NOT support their mobile GPUs. For that reason Anandtech (and I) recommend sticking with Nvidia GPUs. More so if you're interested in games.

As mentioned though, drivers aside, the 3670 is in theory in the same class as the 9600GT, though it's not really as good in practice. In terms of hardware that class is good enough to run just about everything, though you'd likely want to run Crysis in SM 3.0 mode and probably in mostly medium settings.

 

9600m dosent perform better in most reviews i have seen the laptop with the nvidia had a 2.8 ghz proccessor and that led to the 3 - 5 fps increase. And i dont think dell wanted to have to put up with the heat issues of the defective 8400 and 8600's. But i Honestly prefer Ati because they run a bit cooler maybe 5c but its still noticable

 

That's the sucky part. I would much rather buy something more gaming oriented but i might just have to buy this one keeping other factors in mind.

Anyway, going back on topic...
from what i have been able to find out, newer games run fine on mid-high settings except GTA IV. which basically gives really low FPS and is kinda unplayable. is that correct?

Has anyone tried out GTA on their 1640?

Another question, if i do decide to buy it, i should probably hold out another month or so considering that HD 4670 rumor?

 

Gta 4 is playable on the 9600m so it is playable on 3670. I wouldnt always beleive rumors that get put out because most never come true

 

If it is then that's really good!
I saw this video :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIK2tz_q0HI

this guy has the following specs:

• Centrino2duo P7350 2,00ghz
• 3 gb ram
• Geforce 9600M GT 512 ddr2

with the following settings:

• 1024x768
• Details : mediumD
• Draw distance- 20
• Detail Distance- 20
• Vehicle Density - 40
• Shadow Density - 0

he getting about 20 FPS. but still it looks pretty nice.
so, is it safe to assume that 1640 will perform better than that?

 

His 9600m was ddr2 and the 3670 is ddr3 so it will perform slightly better Hope i helped

 

I just got mine!!!! On the third day!!! No probs and awesome computer, i'll upload pics after i'm done recovering from my surgery...

 

Congrats and i hope you have a quick recovery

 

I think it's safe to say 4xxx cards will be making their way into Dell notebooks this year, maybe even this spring. So it's only a rumor...for now.

 

If it does ill be really pissed thow i just orderd mine but any case ill call dell and get them to put the 4670 motherboard in

 

+1, i'd be pissed as hell cuz' I'm waiting for my 1640 to come (in boxing stage now). I just hope they won't roll it out until summer or so
and if I don't have to purchase a laptop for college right now, I'd almost wait until summer to purchase, that's way I can upgrade to win7 and have the latest technologies T_T

 

I'm hoping that the 4670 gets released sooner than that. If the Studio 15 gets the 4570 in the next few days/weeks, I don't think it will take too long until the 1640 gets its own 4xxx card with the 4670 being the logical choice (if Dell sticks with ATI/AMD for their Studio line).

 

if that is the case then let's hope dell incorportes the new chipset during my return period

 

so if we can't actually change gpus ourselves can we change it via Dell?

 

what the hell! I just noticed that Dell charged me for
KIT,SW,PDVD,8.1-00,BD-P,TT $10.99
KIT,SW,RXO,VENUE-SUITE,1.1 $10.99

I told them that I was missing those from my package and they said they'll send them right away, but they never mentioned anything about being charged.... I don't see why I would have to pay when I was supposed to have those discs....

 

So I was looking to buy a new laptop to replace my 3 years old vaio and bump onto the specs of this SXPS16 and also liked the look.
I went to the University computer shop that have the SXPS13 and after looking at it...

DUH.. the screen block the vent of the laptop... dumb as design.
After i found this threat and saw that people got overheating problem.

My GF owns a MBP and that already getting pretty hot but the temp on the SXPS16 review show a good 10F hotter than the MBP.

It seems that there is not really a consensus yet about a potential design flaw from dell.

Does anyone did the test that wolfpup explained..
Try watching a BR-disc (or any other workload on the CPU/GPU) with an external LCD...
And to be more than fair,
first workload the CPU/GPU with the screen of the SXPS open (say 95-100 degrees) and check the temps
Next, almost close the screen and do the same workload and compare the temps..


I really like this laptop but if it's a fryer, it's a no go for me...


thanks

 

Incase no one noticed by the sky opening or the sound of the angels singing, I received mine today!

Ordered Feb 2, rec'vd Feb 18th! So, I guess any hexes on Serge(h) can be removed now!

First impressions, I love it, however I need to check it out further. The lid does totally block the back vent when opened!

To Namlas15 - I have an Intel Centrino 2 sticker on mine. However, it is crooked, like Serge(h)'s. Must have been his thought to the universe that caused mine to be crooked too!

Why is microsoft office powerpointviewer 2007 installed? Does everyone have that?

Is anyone using lojack or what do you guys think about it?

For disks included - Dell drivers and utilities, windows vista ultimate reinstallation dvd, microsoft works 9, and not 1 but 2 McAfee Security Center installation Cd

No BSOD but I keep getting disconnected from the internet.

Sound seems balanced to me.

 

It's probably fine. I saw the same thing when I had mine sent (actually they showed like $30 something), but apparently it's some kind of internal accounting thing, and you shouldn't be charged...though watch your card!

From what I saw it's going to run like tha, but I think there's an issue with that wearing the components out sooner. I mean I can run Folding at Home on my two CPUs and GPU on my Asus I replaced mine with, and it still is cooler than the 1640 was idleing. Under load it's technically still within tolerances for the chips, but I'm more comfortable with them a god 20+c cooler!

 

Does anyone's laptop smell fruity? HA Did anyone else notice the bag that the laptop came is scented all fruity / flowery????

 

Congrats smcb. I can't wait to receive mine.

 

Mine didn't.

 

Great! Congrats! So your hexes are the ones causing me all these issues?!

Well I called and I was told that they always charge for discs, the rep I talked seemed didn't seem to know what she was talking about it so I just cancelled it and emailed the rep I first talked to. We'll see what happens

Either you're just too happy to have received it or someone at the factory decided to perfum it for you!

 

I've been told the exact opposite by some long time Dell people when this happened to me-I'd guess that person didn't have a clue what they were talking about. I did inquire about it through the chat thing, and I think he just hid the prices from me so I wouldn't see it :laugh: . Wasn't charged for anything though.

I'd be really leary about something that smelled like that...about what happened to it.

 

With which asus did you went with?

Sorry didn't mean to hijacked the thread..


So back on the road: many people complain about the vent being blocked (partially or completely) and i am not talking about temperature now.

Anyone saying that the design is flawless and that the design is very very efficient?


People also talk about a cooler, but problem on those from what i believe:
A flat cooler, will do a nice job but to do typing the laptop is higher than the table...
An angulated one like the zalman and others, better for typing but it will force you to open more the screen and to block more the vent....

PS: looking for asus G50V now...

 

congrats!! is it awesome or is it awesome?

 

Congrats!! that is a long time for delivery, but whatever the case, i hope u enjoy it. i removed the office powerpointviewer right away.

Haha, i guess you're lucky that you got a Centrino 2 sticker I called today and spoke to the rep who sold me the lappy and he said he would try and have them mail me the sticker. lol.

i have a feeling my sound is imbalanced. either that or i am being paranoid. does anyone know of a tool i can use to check?

 

I would want a Core 2 sticker if I had a "Centrino" sticker! :laugh:

The n80nv-X5 I think it is. It's decent. Much better cooling design, worse screen (though it's supposedly still LED backlit, and I mean it's not junk, but...), better GPU (Geforce 9650GT versus the ATi junk) and mine has a slightly slower CPU than what I ordered in my Dell. Worse keyboard too....I think, although it's hard to say as they're all terrible. (The 1530 actually had a good keyboard.)

Oh, and I hate that it doesn't have Blu Ray built in, and my first external drive (a cheap Light On) didn't work right-I mean the drive was defective. Not sure what I'll try next.

 

"Cons
NO BACK-LIT KEYBOARD - AT ALL. The product description is misleading!!

I allowed support to try to fix the NON-BACKLIT KEYBOARD for over two hours before the support person told me it doesn't light up...only the CAPS lock lights up.

The back-lit keyboard was the MAIN reason I bought it."

This is a quote from a review on dell.com. That's not true, right?

 

whoever wrote this review must have bought the wrong computer....
the studio xps 1340 and 1640 have full backlit keyboards

 

It is backlight you must have got a faulty unit

 

Congrat's, enjoy.


Cin.

 

LOL - I am happy but not delusional! I am not joking, I swear the entire Dell Black Box it came in is stongly scented too! Actually, everything; the black Dell xps box, the bag, the laptop, the battery etc all has this funky, fruity, flowery type scent to it. Sort of air freshener type scent. It doesn't smell totally gross but it's not my style. I would rather it be a nice vanilla smell or something! ha

Maybe it's some new `eaux de dell' they are coming out with!

 

Thanks! I hope you don't have to wait as long as I did to receive yours!

 

I would totally buy that... for someone else as a gag.

 

Maybe the UPS guy has a thing for you

 

It is awesome. I am very happy with my purchase. I think it's retarded that there's no space and the lid when opened friggen covers half those vents but it doesn't seem to make a difference? Mine is not unusually hot, it got warm fast but seemed to stay that way although I haven't done anything intensive.

Prior to purchase when I spoke with my rep, and I had read about the sound imbalance problems and questioned it, he said that on his (different model) he noticed the wifi can cause that problem, don't ask me how but maybe try turning it off or see if there is any correlation with it, or is the sound unbalanced like from the get go?