Dell XPS 15 (Skylake) 9550 Owner's Lounge

Hi there. Well i am currently using 2 monitors. One that is hdmi to hdmi from laptop to a monitor. The other one is usb-c to displayport. Thus i have 2 cables coming from my laptop to 2 different monitors. So im a bit confused what you mean with display port is my answer?


I took at the link below. I don't understand. So a dell thunderbolt dock is what i need?

 

I did the quick research for your question, as it was my pleasure, yet I believe it's best to wait for other members to graciously respond to you, as I unfortunately use my XPS 15 9550 as strictly a desktop replacement with no external monitors attached, as I just have absolutely no need for 1, 2 or 3 of them.

 

Depending on how serious you are at achieving your 3 monitors with minimum number of cables you may or may not reach this. Don’t expect this to work with some random monitors you may get your hands on.

As said, Display port let you Daisy chain monitors, linking monitors toghether in a chain. The display port protocol feeds back to your graphics card how many monitors you have, so you can set up each monitor individually even though only the first monitor is connected to your laptop.
Do you understand the concept of Daisy Chaining?

This can be combined with hdmi, i.e 1 hdmi monitor and 2 display port monitors for example.
Personally I would not like to mix monitors so I would buy 3 identical monitors, hence daisy chaining all three of them and not use hdmi.

Tb16 gives you more resolution. You can drive two 4K monitors with that, or I assumed four 2k monitors. Connection wise you have one of each hdmi and DisplayPort on TB 16. So daisy chain is a must hear as well.

Do you use your laptop screen as well? Or only external monitors? Are you looking for 1+3 screens? Or “just” 3 external screens?



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

I'm going to be moving on from my 9550 and wonder if anyone has a suggestion for an up to date equivalent.

I'd like to move on to one of the Intel 8750H cpus, at least a 512 GB NVME + at least a 1 TB data drive and maybe a Nvidia GTX1060, but I don't care for the expanded keyboards I am seeing with the number pad alongside on most of the new gaming style laptops which seem to be the only high powered models available.

I've been reading about the continuing issues Dell is having with the new 9560 & 9570 XPSs and don't want to go through that again, not to mention the pricing.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

I think you should know by now that with today's supply & demand and in the world of ever changing electronics how quickly something comes out it just unbelievably becomes yesterday’s news almost just as quick.

In my book, to get this a so-called good whatever becomes the infamous Luck of The Draw as what ones swears about another swears to.

On that note, take a look at the link below as I think it will give you a good idea of what might be right for you.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-Core-i7-8750H-SoC.275944.0.html

 

Well 8750H release was April so I might be inclined to wait next gen CPUs. . .

But Intel is having some issues with 10nm across the board so I suppose Spring 2019 laptop CPUs will be another 14nm stopgap (e.g. Cascade Lake).

Once Intel finally gets production sorted, maybe 2020 laptop CPUs might be released 10nm (Ice Lake). I guess (but am not sure) this would be the time laptop makers to fully revamp motherboards and give opportunity to improve power delivery & thermals; I wouldn't want to be an early beta tester but a few months in I will jump on the bandwagon. . .

 

That might be because they have been solely concentrating on the Good Ole Mobile Money Making World.
https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/intel-5g-laptops-2019

 

Very true about the rapidly changing tech, but in the case of the models referenced in the link, I already viewed most of them and all have the issue with the expanded keyboard that doesnt' appeal to me or they are just beyond my reach financially.

Owing to the increasing problems with heat issues in the thinner, lighter laptops, I'm willing to forego anything thin and light.

 

The 8750H would be a big step up for me. I just need to find a machine that has a keyboard and connections closely matching my 9550 and within my budget.

I also don't want to have to deal with the heat issues cropping up with both the cpus and Nvidia gpus.

 

Got It.
So from what I can decipher here you have now become one of the the many that wants the PERFECT Computer!!!

Fill out the Form Sir!!!
You know, Budget, Size, Resolution and etc.....

 

Well, if I really wanted to get the perfect computer I would definately hold out for something with an 10 GHZ i9, 128 GB of DDR5 RAM, 8 TB 970 Pro NVME, 8 TB 970 Pro SSD, 8k screen with 500nits, and a 16 GB Nvidia 2500 Extreme Edition GPU, most of which doesn't exist.

No, I'm looking to spend about $1250.00 and would like one of the six core 8750H, 16 GB RAM, 512 GB Samsung NVME, 2 TB HDD, Nvidia 1060, and a plain FHD IPS screen with at least 300 nits of brightness. I would also prefer the same keyboard layout as my 9550----but one that actually worked better.

So far, Black Friday & Cyber Monday has not revealed anthing close enough except a bunch of 9560's & 9570's that I am trying to avoid having been there, done that.

I have until just before Christmas (its to be my big present) and I'll just have to keep plugging along to see how close I can get to what I want.

 

Thanks for filling out the Form.

Oh an X-MAS gift Hey...I guess someone was Good Little Boy!!!

Well all that for $1,250 is really kind of pushing it yet if you can up that by a couple of hundred dollars and if you really want to move away from Dell then in my very humble & limited opinion I would go with a Lenovo Business class ThinkPad P1 Mobile Workstaion, as they're made to take it and Lenovo has always been known for excellent keyboards and are very upgradeable & serviceable, which in my book is very important Today. (See Link Below)

Now don't go saying that you don't like the Red Rubber Eraser joystick on the keyboard as when I had a Lenovo I loved it better than the track-pad and you in fact get BOTH!!!

https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpad-p/ThinkPad-P1/p/22WS2WPP101

 

Great looking machine. Starting with the base unit at $1289.00, I opted for the 8750H CPU, added 8 GB RAM for a total of 16, and opted for the 512 GB NVME. No standard mechanical 2nd HDD offered, so no data drive. This brought the price to $1769.00.

Wah wah wah.

 

Wait a minute here. If you choose the View & Customize button and scroll down the 3rd configuration from the left has everything you're looking for at $1,489.00. That's why I said you need to up it a couple of hundred dollar$ more. :-/
Applying the Thanksgiving coupon takes it from $2,129.00 to $1,489.00 Savings of $640.00

 

Dell has some screaming Cyber Monday deals on the 9570 today.

Outlet has 9570 (i7, FHD, 512, 16, WinPro, scatch&dent) is $1192 with 14% coupon. That is well below prices I have seen during the summer and fall.

 

You are right. I missed that, however, looking further I discovered that the machine does not support a 2nd HDD.

 

See the machine, don't see the coupon or is at checkout?

 

Top right hand corner has a button called "coupons".

https://www.dell.com/learn/us/en/22/campaigns/dell-coupons-codes-us-outlet

 

Some of the 4k 9570s are not priced too well. But...(i7, 4k, 1T, 16, WinPro, scatch&dent) is $1383 with 14% coupon.

 

I finally found it, but then after digging into it I discovered that it comes with the 97w battery which means with my needing a 2nd drive, I'd have to get the smaller battery and scrounge up the hardware for the 2nd drive.

After all the aggravation I went through with my 9550 I decided to pass.

 

Darn...and here I thought you would just ask the Mrs for a couple more $$$ and you'd be all set to go.

 

You're.......not married, are you.....

 

Not any longer as I lost the LOVE of my life to terminal cancer when she was 36 and I choose to remain single since.

I know what you're going to say that it's like pulling teeth without any Novocaine when it comes to spending needed monies on our Toys but you get her at the RIGHT time & moment and tell her it could count for your next Birthday gift, Father's Day gift, if you're a dad and X-MAS gift and I know she'll agree.

See the link below...The 2nd configuration one from the left...Now Get it & End it as it has EVERYTHING you want.
https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpad-x/ThinkPad-X1-Extreme/p/22TP2TXX1E1

 

I am truly sorry for having caused such a terrible tragedy to have been brought up. You have my heartfelt condolences.

As it is though, it took all my shrieking, stamping my feet, and holding my breath until I turned blue just to be able to get any budget at all.

Also, if I give up my birthday and Father's Day gifts, I won't have a way to get the latest Samsung NVME SSD or one of the soon to be sold Samsung QVO sata SSD's.

I'm hearing some rumbles that another big drop in price is due soon just before Christmas. If not, I guess I'll be getting a new sweater.

 

First & foremost, you did not cause nor do anything wrong and I thank you kindly.

Next, how long did you hold your breath for and did you agree to clean the bathrooms, wash the dishes and take out the garbage for the whole new year as well?

Seriously, keep looking at the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme because I think it's your best option for your wants & needs if you no longer want to stay with Dell.

Good Luck!!!

 

Since I already do this stuff as my Mrs. is seriously ill and for the past four years I have been Mr. Mom, I can't play that card. I do like the Thinkpad X1, but it doesn't support a 2nd drive which is a deal breaker for me.

Right now, this is the only thing on the table: Dell G5 Gaming Laptop 15.6" Full HD, Intel® Core™ i7-8750H, NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1050 Ti 4GB, 1TB HDD + 256GB SSD Storage, 16GB RAM, G5587-7835BLK-PUS.

Its going for $999.00 at Walmart. Yeah, Dell. Hate them. But for me, they might be the only game in town. I hate downgrading from my 512 GB Toshiba X3 and dread having to swap it over from my 9550.

So, I'm holding out hoping something better will pop as we near Christmas, maybe a similarly equipped G7 which is much, much easier to work on with its one captive screw on bottom cover, though along with the G5's have heat issues which result in the throttling of the 9750H..

 

In regards to your Mrs. we ALL definitely do have our own private issues and I'm sincerely sorry to hear this and just wish you all well.

Where do you get your information from???
The Lenovo ThinkPad X1-Extreme definitely does have space for a second Hard Drive that's why I said "Get it & Forget it" (See Link Below) and scroll down the page to Tech Specs under Storage and then tell me that it doesn't support 2 Hard Drives!!!

https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpad-x/ThinkPad-X1-Extreme/p/22TP2TXX1E1

 

Didn't see this:

up to 1 TB PCIe SSD
* Up to 2 SSDs (2 x M.2 2280 PCIe TLC & SATA) for 2 TB max

Which I suppose means you can have an NVME drive and a sata drive, but the 80w battery threw me making me think there was no room. Usually I like to look at a service manual to be sure and to see how the bottom case comes off. I suffered enough with Dell's tiny screws and two shoulder screws that you can't get replacements for.

Lots of great connections.

 

The X1E has two M.2 slots

 

(See Link Below) and what else do you need as you are certainly one picky & difficult individual to please!!!

https://ok2.de/media/ThinkPad/HMM/p1_x1_extreme_hmm_en.pdf

 

I saw that service manual and didn't see a spot for a 2.5" HDD. As Garcia98 has clued me in, that the machine has two slots for M2 drives which would certainly make it a screamer.

However, for Father's Day I received a 2 TB Seagate FireCude hybrid HDD which was supposed to go in my 9550 to replace the 1 TB standard 2.5" HDD that is nearly full, but I have since earmarked it for a new, more up to date machine as I hate touching the 9550 anymore owing to the issues with the screws and what seems like a very touchy BIOS. I don't have an M.2 drive that is an equivalent in size to the FireCuda nor do I have the $300.00 on average that one would cost over and above my budget for a new machine.

You've sold me on the machine. In fact, now that I know about it, its just another thing to be envious of.

Signed,

Mr. Picky

 

Mr. Picky,

Throw in Doubting Thomas as well and check out the link below.

Seriously, I'm real glad that I could help.

Best Regards,
SDeP58

https://www.myfixguide.com/thinkpad-x1-extreme-disassembly/

 

I upgraded BIOS from 1.7 to 1.9 today. That took a good five minutes as there were a lot of files updated.

Good news is that the irritating youtube white screen crash (when minimizing from full screen) which required a reboot seems to have been fixed. edit - still crashing.

 

Great!!!

Was it because you were leery or didn't have the time as that BIOS has been out for a bit now?

 

The drivers and BIOS releases are so wonky I try to wait a bit before installing major updates.

Also, I don't have the time to scan the internet for updates every day : )

 

AHHH...That Old Use Others as the Guinea Pigs Thing!!!

Makes perfect sense to me.

 

FEI (For Everyone's Information)

Dell's Support Site
Release Date: 20 Dec 2018
File Name: Realtek-USB-GBE-Ethernet-Controller-Driver_CF2R0_WIN_2.45.2018.1025_A11.EXE
Version: 2.45.2018.1025 ,A11

Description: This package contains the Realtek USB GBE Ethernet Controller Driver for Dell XPS, Latitude, Precision and tablets that run the Windows 7, Windows 8.1, and Windows 10 operating systems. It enhances the compatibility of the driver with Windows 10 Fall Creators Update.

Compatible Systems
Precision 5510, 5520 & 5530
XPS 15 9950, 9560 & 9570
I left the XPS 13's out as it's for a different Thread.

Link: https://www.dell.com/support/home/u...0&osCode=WB64A&productCode=xps-15-9550-laptop

 

Anyone have an experience with the 1 TB WD Black NVME in the 9550? Any driver issues?

BTW, Merry Christmas to all.

 

I put a 1TB Samsung 970 EVO without any issues. I'm running under Debian Linux.

 

Everyone with compatible Docks might want to download the following.

Realtek USB GBE Ethernet Controller Driver applicable for TB16/WD15/DS1000 Dock

Enhancements:
- Enhanced driver compatibility with Windows 10 Fall Creators Update.

Version:
Version 2.45.2018.1025, A11

Release Date:
04 Jan 2019

https://www.dell.com/support/home/u...8&osCode=WT64A&productCode=xps-15-9550-laptop

 

If anyone is still interested, I was able to get the elusive shoulder screws from Alibaba.

 

Can you please share a link ?
I could be interested and I guess other people too...

Envoyé de mon Nexus 5X en utilisant Tapatalk

 

If you are located in Europe, this british company on ebay has a variety of small Dell parts: https://www.ebay.de/sch/tradedeals4you/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_ipg=&_from=

 

Thanks, could be useful.
I'll also wait for MikeBravo to share the exact link for 9550 screws

Envoyé de mon Nexus 5X en utilisant Tapatalk

 

https://www.aliexpress.com/snapshot...&orderId=97053524925569&productId=32890375943

This one appeared after I had ordered from Alibaba:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2x-Bottom-...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649

 

Being in the US I try my best to stay away from ordering things from China/Hong Kong/Taiwan even though that's where almost EVERYTHING today comes from and only because of the very long wait needed for delivery, yet if anyone wants 5 screws for less + some "I don't know how good or bad tools" as well then here you go.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/5x-Bottom-...6/202401245734?hash=item2f200dea26:rk:55:pf:0

Edit: Scratch the for less as I didn't see the $2.99 Shipping Fee.

 

I do as well although Alibaba has been developing a very good reputation as it competes with Amazon and at the time there seemed to be no other alternative. I'm going to have to open my machines again soon and the damn heads of the orginal screws are breaking down especially the two shoulder screws.

Its amazing after all these years how the flood gates have finally opened on an item that was recently as rare as Unicorns.

 

Yeah I'm glad myself that it isn't just Amazon and that there are other choices & avenues out there as well.

I know exactly what your saying as it's called, Supply & Demand and if enough people ask (whine) for something then it usually starts to appear.

In my opinion, These Dell XPS's have been definitely worth it regardless of the ones that don't think so and the reason why screws and etc. are in fact being more & more readily available is because many must be keeping theirs and either upgrading or repairing what they can.

 

Despite the keyboard & heat issues, the bright screen and the sudden advance of the i9's (which someone here told me that I was out of my mind and we wouldn't see them for years) eventually convinced me to hold off on a new machine. I might even consider waiting for a a good Threadripper laptop.

 

"Threadripper laptop"
Well it certainly looks like someone has been definitely doing their homework and Kudos to you.

I feel, In this forever fast changing world of electronics if you keep waiting for the next best thing you then usually wind up getting Nothing or regret what you decided to get, yet it really all boils down to what you do and what you ultimately need.

As for me, the XPS 15 (9550) has been and is everything I need and more and I'm really very grateful, yet if they ever make something with a better display then I won't lie, as I will be very much interested in getting it.