Dell XPS 15 L501 *Owner's Lounge*

This may sound a bit strange to most. I'm not a serious gamer so this came as a shock to me. I ran Call of Duty: Modern Warfare last night and it was like there was a steel foundry in my computer!!! CPU and GPU went up to 76 and 72 respectively, the fan was on full blast and the heat coming out of the vent was unbelievable. The left of the lappy from the "2" key was hot, really got me worried.

There is this metal scrub thing in the liquid ultra pack. Can I use this to smooth the surface of the heat sink contacts or will this cause more damage? Or should I just ask for another heat sink from dell? sprtnbsblplya, you have experience with this product, and others please help!!!

 

If you get an XPS 15 with a Sata I drive, can you still replace it with an SSD?

 

Of course you can!

 

'Steel foundry'! Man, I laughed my bum off

I'm not an expert on heat issues and I don't play games on PC (except for good old adventures) but those temperatures shouldn't be a problem at all I believe. When I use programs like Photoshop, Painter etc, I usually get around 65 for GPU and around 55-60 for CPU. It's around 45 on idle and/or web browsing.

So, I don't think that's too much for gaming. Hope I'm not wrong tho.

---

BTW, I always thought that the fact that some hot air is coming out of the machine is actually good and normal. Because it's a sign that the fan is working properly and keep the thing cool My PS3 gives out lots of hot air, especially when I'm playing games that have amazing graphics, thanks to its 12cm huge fan I guess

 

That's what I thought -- just trying to help a friend who's getting an XPS 15

 

Is it just me who cant find any driver updates for the past month or so, or did Dell stop updating the drivers..? I can't seem to find any driver updates for the past month or so...

 

The 1st gens are now off the dell site.

 

My Dell Support Center says that a wireless display application is ready for install for some time now. But I have no problems with my current setup and heard that it can cause some issues if you install it, which I'm not sure tho...

Any ideas? Should I install it? Is it vital?

 

Has anyone who reinstalled W7, managed to get a copy of powerdvd 9.6 from Dell. Tech support guy told me today that I should have asked Dell before I reinstalled W7 to check what I would lose before I went ahead and did something 'rash'.

He said he could do nothing about it and I should go download WMP12 and the Blu Ray plugin...

 

I always prefer the discs in hand so I used this form to order the OS discs and they shipped the OS and all drivers and software installed on the computer. https://support.dell.com/support/topics/global.aspx/support/dellcare/en/backupcd_form

 

Is there anyone plugged in their external HDD to eSata port & experienced BSOD whenever power transition happen from external power to battery?

 

I just witnessed something amazing happen with my brother's L501 in a 2 minutes time frame an hour ago. First the computer shut down without any notice. Tried to reboot, got to the Dell screen and then it shut down again. Third time it shut down after a few seconds, then it seemed it wouldn't boot. We both noticed a smell of burning, flipped the case, smoke was coming out of it .

The computer didn't feel warm, my brother had never experienced any overheating problem with it and it was only 2 or 3 months old, what could cause it besides short circuit ? Bonus question : do you think he would be able to negotiate a L502 for replacement ?

 

Woah, not much troubleshooting to do now though

Well in the case he might get a L502x as a replacement, sure is amazing, as long as the Hard Drive is still intact. And i think a L502x is more than likely as a replacement. It happened with my cousin just this month, not the problem, but a L502x replacement for a < 1 month old L501x.

Dell forgot to install the WWAN and when he called they said they have to install the antennas aswell, therefore opening up everything, the laptop with the sceen bezel and all. So in simple words, he said screw that, no, not gonna let you open my new laptop. So they gave him a new L502x.

 

Yep it's pretty much dead

Thanks for the information anyway. However I just noticed Dell.fr sells only one L502 with CPU option ranging from i7-2630qm to i7-2920xm at the moment, only dual-core offered being the i7-2620M. It shouldn't be long before they introduce the full line with i3 and i5s as well but before they do I don't know if they'll replace his laptop with a new one that's not technically available yet.

 

i7-2920XM ?!?! I thought the XPS Line, and the L502x at that, would only ever go up to i7-2820QM so as to not compete with the High-End Business or Alienware line

 

Yep my bad the most powerful CPU offered is the i7-2820Qm. I too had some doubts and didn't bother to check a second time.

 

Well, I just received the (1st gen) Dell XPS 15, and am very happy with it. 640GB HHD, 4GB RAM, i5, 1080p, blacklit (duh), bluetooth.

As I wrote in earlier posts, my biggest concern was with the 1080p screen and the text being too small. DPI at to 125% is definitely a big help, but certainly has caused some issues on web pages with some images being fuzzy (obviously - they're zoomed in!) and non-HD video quality a little blurry as well. Not a big fan, considering most of the reason to go with the 1080p was to get some fantastic, crystal clear images and video. Overall of course, the display itself is great, and is bright enough to heat a small home in the winter. I'm glad I went with the 1080p.

That said, could anyone recommend which drivers they feel are most important to update on the laptop as it comes out of the box?

 

Doubt they will give you the L502. My XPS 15 died about 1.5 weeks ago, I was restarting it and it wouldn't turn back on, instead showing horrible green lines all across the screen and loud beeping. They sent out a service tech to replace MB, RAM, and power supply. It worked for about 5 minutes, then died again. So they requested I send it in to the service depot and they're testing it and replacing any faulty parts.
They'll most likely do everything they can to fix the machine you have before replacing it.

 

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, what happened with my cousin's L501x, was when he had literally just gotten it. He had called the day after getting it. Maybe that's why he got the upgrade. If your L501x is a few months old or so then they will probably do what they did with Sprtnbsblplya.

 

To make your web browsing easier, download the Canary Build of Chrome. They finally made the default page zoom setting stick. I have mine at 120% (initially I went with 144%) and that seems pretty much perfect. It will, however, remember any zoom changes you make to individual sites. I highly recommend it.

 

I'll try it, but it's not necessarily the zoom settings changing, it is that zooming in on any browser will make some of the fixed images a bit fuzzy. I realize it is not recommended, but I just changed to 900p resolution, and cranked IE back down to 100%, and it looks beautiful. I realize its not the native res, but I'm willing to try it. Looks like a mac book ;-)

 

New drivers for the Nvidia graphics cards and USB 3.0 controller on Dell UK website.

 

Here's a silly question. Do the drivers on the UK site differ for those of us that visit Dell USA's site? My computer isn't going to have an critical stop alert that yells, "bloody hell" will it?

 

hi

i do not use much of the ports that i have on the XPS15 like the eSATA port or the HDMI port etc...do i need to do anything to protect them or just leave as is .........any suggestions will be greatly appreciated....

thanks in advance

 

OK now it's getting silly! I REALLY need to get video into this thing over firewire. Can anyone point me in a good direction to accomplish this? PLEASE

 

Hi all,

L shift key is very very mushy, getting slightly stuck (have to press FIRMLY) and also occasionally making "springy" noises. I see on the first page that keyboard is generally going after 3 months, and it's been almost exactly 3 months. A crappy keyboard is really a killer -_-

Dell is sending me another one via next day air. I will be replacing the keyboard myself. I downloaded the service manual. Hopefully it won't be too hard

 

HELP!!!

Firewire into my L501x

 

It isn't possible. USB to FW adapters don't exist, and the XPS does not have an Expresscard slot, so you can't purchase an Expresscard adapter either.

 

Anyone else getting BSODs? I've been getting at least a couple a week. I don't think I had one in the 3.5 years I owned my last computer (HP DV6)...

 

It exist in the form of the pinnacle studio HD device;

Pinnacle Studio MovieBox HD Ultimate Collection - Complete package for creating spectacular HD movies

I was just hoping there was some other alternative...

 

Nothing but clear sailing here. Blue skies and calm open seas!

 

They told me I had to ship computer to Dell, which I refused since I need my laptop daily for various purposes. I've done keyboard installs before, so I opted for the part

Dell is sending the keyboard NEXT DAY AIR.


Anyone know how easy it is to install a replacement keyboard on the L501x? I've done previous Dells, and downloaded the service manual. It seems I have to take off the entire front cover O_O

 

If you've downloaded the service manual, it will be very easy to do.

 

I'd also like to know if this has been easy for people to replace. A couple of my keys temporarily die from time to time, and I'll probably have to harass Dell for a new keyboard in the near future.

 

Hey guys,

If anyone is still looking to upgrade their stock L501x screen, I have 2 B156HW01 V4 screens/FHD cable bundles left.

PM me for more info.
Thanks
Lee

 

Probably asked several hundred times by now, but what are the typical full load temperatures for the CPU and GPU (i.e. intensive gaming).
I'm hovering around the 85 degree mark. Should I be concerned?

 

85 for CPU isn't too bad but could be a bit hot for GPU. I forget what my CPU is, but most games give me around 63 for GPU, except Kane and Lynch was high 70s.

 

What are your system specs?

 

Warning to everyone planning to add a SATA3 SSD to their XPS 17:


http://forum.notebookreview.com/del...ssd-clicking-noise-slowdowns.html#post7304839

 

I have had my XPS 15 for about 4 months and want to install a SSD now.

Has anyone done this and how easy is it to do as the only thing I have installed before is RAM.

Are there any instructions available?

 

i7 processor, 6G RAM, GT 435, Win 7, 1080p screen
There temperatures are more like high 70s (76-79 Celsius)
Thanks for any help!

 

Doesn't really apply with the XPS15 , we can only have one drive in the laptop at a time..
And I wish it was that easy to replace the HD in the XPS 15 ..

M

 

Can someone advise?

 

I also have a very strange question.
My friend says that it is not good to suddenly cool your laptop after intensive gaming. What I am referring to exactly is turning on your laptop cooler and an external fan, blowing cold air into the laptop so that it cools from a scorching 75+ degrees Celsius to 35-40 degrees in a matter of a few minutes. Is he correct?

 

That should be fine, it's a fairly gradual change. I would recommend against putting dry ice directly on the CPU and GPU right after an intense gaming session however.

 

It's a little harder than RAM because you need to remove the palm rest assembly for the XPS 15 to access the drive.

XPS 15 L501x Drive Manual

 

Just as an FYI For those interested, you can buy the island keyboard for $49.99 through Dell Parts. I haven't ordered it yet because I spend my life on the phones and just don't feel like making yet another phone call. Dell Chat wouldn't let me order it online if I wanted to use my preferred account. Sadly. I will eventually get around to it as this keyboard is already starting to show a bit of wear, which is slightly irritating to me.

Will probably order it in a week or so.

 

Alright, I don't know if this has been asked before, so sorry in advance!

Anyways, I just got my hands on the Seagate GoFlex portable 1TB drive, and also got a USB 3.0 attachment with it.

Now, using it with my XPS 15 (in the USB 3.0 port), I get some stuttering, skipping audio/video every time I watch movies off the ext HDD.

Just wanted to know if anyone has got this too? Also, how do I actually check/benchmark if I am actually getting the advertised USB 3.0 speeds?

Thanks!

 

That is probably caused by Advanced Power Management (APM) feature. You can change the setting including disabled the feature completely with Seagate Drive Settings tool. In the tool, you can change the power-saving mode setting.

 

What kind of wear are you seeing? Like keys fading and such?