Dell XPS 15 L501 Thread

Mine's actually just the standard 6-cel. But the room was fairly cold (UK winter, and I'd had the window open to let some fresh air in), which probably helped.

I've also not overclocked anything. Not run any benchmarks, but SC2 performance was decent (at 1080) after tweaking the settings a bit

Definitely a significant difference if the base vents are obstructed, though, that must be where it sucks in the air that gets blown out of the main side vent

 

Just a follow-up on temps of other laptops vs the new ones.
My MBP is downloading the Win7 Pro .iso file right now, is doing absolutely nothing else other than iTunes, GPU is at 81 and CPU is at 74. Does this all the time when I download stuff. Fans crank up to ~3200-3300 rpm and start to whine.
MBP, you will not be missed.

 

My unibody Macbook 13" (GeForce 9400m/Core2 Duo, about 2yrs old) also got worryingly hot under load, especially for it's quite weak GPU.

Apple have tried to hide the vents (in/around the hinge), and there's really not a lot of airflow.


Back to the XPS, and if anyone's interested, my Windows Experience Index scores come out as:

Processor: 7.1
RAM: 5.9
Graphics: 6.6
Gaming Graphics: 6.6
Primary Hard Disk: 5.9

So pretty nice, but any idea why the RAM score is low? - my Core 2 Quad-based desktop gets something like a 7.2, and both machines are running with 4Gb*. Normally a 1.0 difference in the score is about a factor of 2 difference in performance, isn't it? Is notebook RAM generally that much slower?

(*hmmm, might have had 8 in the desktop when I ran the test, removed some for stability reasons - should try it again)

 

Do you have i5 or i7?
Doesn't i5 run the RAM at one speed lower than i7? I could be totally off base here but I thought I read that somewhere.
Or timings could be different, no idea.

 

I wonder about the RAM as well. My computer (E8400 / 4GB DDR2 / HD4850 / Samsung Spinpoint F1) has a 6,8 score on the RAM. While the XPS's RAM is DDR3?

 

hmmm, thats odd then as I get much hotter temps and also in a cold UK room
I will be opening mine up this week and putting some decent thermal compound in so we will see if that helps.
Not that my temps are worrying or anything, I just like to tinker.

What settings are you running SC2 at? I am using 1080p and all high with my overclock and get 35-40fps in multiplayer

 

Gonna take pics of the process for the rest of us?

 

I have just made the order for the XPS 15 with the following specs:

i7 740QM
4GB DDR3 (1333Mhz)
GeForce GT 435M 2GB model
640GB HDD
Bluetooth 3.0
9-Cell battery
Intel 6200 wireless card

As soon as I recieve the laptop, I will check out the temperatures and do a repaste with thermal paste and recheck the temps to see how the pasting of Dell actually is. I'll take pictures of the process and post it in here when im all done.

 

Hello,

Just a couple of questions, As i am very much torn between getting an XPS 15 or the 17.

Main and the only reason is the FHD screen.

can any one tell me how much better that FHD screen is from the XPS 17 900p screen, in terms of bright colors and contrast.

Apart from that, can any one tell me how are the viewing angles for the 1080 FHD. Specially when you bob your head up and down/or when you are lying down on your bed and tilt your screen downwards?

As Mitchell2 from the other thread told me 'I have no experience with the F13, but the viewing angles on the Dell 900p screen aren't very good. shifting your head up and down makes you notice this immediately.'

Is it any better than this?

 

I sure will mate. I will post it in a separate thread to make it easy for people to find.

 

Is there any way we can start a new XPS 15 "Owners Club" thread for discussion of only the machine & hardware and no ship dates/orders/etc?

It seems like enough XPS 15s are out in the wild that this would be a good time to do so.

 

This effectively is it

 

I was also thinking same thing.. But i7 doesn't come with IG.. So if I go with i7 + 2GB nvidia, it is fully dedicated..Also worth the price

 

I am going to buy exactly same config(i7+ GT 435). I hope that surface temperatures/noise is below human agreeable threshold. It is always temperature at palm rest/keyboard which bothers me. Also the noise (my present one goes like a jet engine).

Another question : These temperature tests done -- what was the room temperature like ? I am sure that influences the laptop temperature(surface) very much

 

What was the surface temperature like -- warm / hot / extremely hot ?

 

Mine's barely warm.

 

Hello everyone, after a ton of trouble with asus notebooks in the last months or so I finally ordered a studio xps 15 from dell.it. The prices were very good, I had 166 euros of discount, plus I used a coupon for an additional 5% off and I got 4 years warranty with in-house assistance at a reduced price. I'm currently waiting for them to ship it to me, the ETA is 26/11.
The config I chose is:
intel i7 740
4GB ddr3 1333
nvidia geforce 435m 2GB ddr3
15" FHD 1080p screen
internal dvb tuner

I'll be posting impressions as soon as it arrives, and I will here with you to follow the life of this notebook, discussing its features, looking for future driver updates, tweaking and so on

 

Here I am again

If the B+RG screen on the XPS 15 is anything like the screen I had on my SXPS 1645, it will be a lot better than the 900p screen in the XPS 17. That screen was great! Very good color, nice contrast, and good viewing angles. Much better than my current screen.

I didn't get an XPS 15 for the bigger keyboard, extra RAM slots & 2nd HDD in the XPS 17. Those were more important to me than the screen, but the 900p screen is no match at all for a proper RBG or B+RG screen.

 

Would appreciate battery life info from someone with the nine cell.

 

I'm still slightly intrigued whether the 1080p screen labelled AUO17ED (reported by a one or two UK XPS 15 owners) is any different to the one on Anandtech described as AU Optronics B156HW1?

 

Hehe, Mitch thanks but you are making me itch for the xps 15 now,

though i need the bigger keyboard for sure, but 1080 r+bg screen comes with more bragging rights plus, since i will mostly be using it to watch movies and gaming/blogging/ completing assignments/college applications. i will be lazing around with the machine, so i need atleast some better vertical/horizontal viewing angles, i can do with the lower contrast and all.

now only one more thing, i will opt for i5-560m in both the models with 9 cell battery. i.e.

15 inch i5 560m
gpu: 420m 1 gb
9 cell battery


17 inch i5 560m
gpu: 435m 1 gb
9 cell battery

which ones performance will be better and which one will produce lesser heat, as it is also important for me, from where i am coming from.

other parameters stay constant
6 gb ram, 640 gb hard disk. etc etc...

 

XPS 15 looks good, but a few questions for owners/reviewers/whoever got their hands on this system.

1. Better build quality than an ENVY?
2. GT420 perform for good games (such as Crysis)?
3. Any annoying glitches so far?
4. Graphics memory GDDR or just DDR?

For Dell insiders if any, will they release a better GPU that allows Optimus? Screw i7 with only dedicated GPU.

 

I ordered on 10/27 and the EDD is 11/18 with overnight shipping method.

 

I feel pretty silly, but what is the "L501?" I don't see it referenced on Dell's site. (I'm logged into the employee purchase program site in the U.S.)

Also, anyone found a coupon on this system? I searched & didn't find one, which makes sense if it's new.

Sorry if these are dumb questions. I've got an XPS M1530 that'll be 3 years old in Feb. Hadn't expected to buy another laptop just yet, but it had an unfortunate encounter with a door frame.

I'm ready to pull the trigger on the XPS 15, just want to make sure I'm getting the latest.

Thanks

 

Is anyone who already has a xps15 able to cnfirm that it comes with a 12W sub? I can only find specifications as, 2*1.5W + 2.5W on the dell site in the setup manual under specifications.

 

Save $100 off select systems $999 or more2 RX2MSHW431?QLK

 

I can confirm, you can physically see it on the bottom and it makes my balls vibrate when its on my lap.

 

Thanks! It worked on top of the discount that the employee purchase plan offered.

 

Yes, im sure it does come with a sub. But is there any writen/data evidence that it is 12W? Cause im only finding 2.5W

 

I'm idling around 37c on core 0 and 46c on core 1. Not sure why one core is so much hotter than the other but then again this is my first Core I5 cpu.

 

Yeah but that's common for an MBP because of it's thin form factor. This XPS 15 is a lot chunkier, it should be running cooler IMO.

 

Ambient Temps were around 68 degrees last night. I'm debating at this point if I want to open it up and put on some thermal paste or send it back.

 

Right on the XPS 15 Laptop Details webpage, took 15 seconds:

Audio and Speakers

* JBL 2.1 Designed & Certified Speakers +Waves MaxxAudio®
2.1 Audio: 2 X 4W + 12W sub-woofer 20W Total

 

yes it does. And the speakers sound better than my HDX18t, which also has a sub.

As to battery life, it will either be tomorrow or the coming weekend before I can do a general surfing/email etc. Battery run down to see how long the 9 cell lasts. I'm hoping to get to it tomorrow, but I have a lot of disk intensive stuff to do on it as well.

 

But hereif you look at the Setup guide PDF, and look at the specifications in says 2*1.5W + 2.5W



What does it say in the setup guide that you recieved with the system?

 

It's disheartening that there can be so much variation between individual notebooks. They rush these things off the production line in China, no question.

 

Hmmm.
Regardless though, they do actually sound amazing, I have a logitech 2.1 system on my desk but since getting delivery I havnt used them because I really enjoy these speakers.

 

If you're ambient temps are 20C, 37/46C idle looks ~OK for a Core i5.
But I've never owned a Core i5, only Core i7 quad.

My Pentium M (1.5GHz Single) on a Latitude with software-tweaked fan can get 30C idle/small load.

However, in my country, like I said my idle for Core i7-720QM was 56+C for my Lenovo while people with Dell Studio XPS 1645s had slightly lower (40+ to 50+) idle temps on average. GPU was GT 240M (higher benchmarks than GT420M on NOTEBOOKCHECK despite lower ranking).

But if it rained (tropical weather), max gaming temps dramatically fall from 94-98C to high 70sC or 80sC.

So since your weather is so cold (20C) I expect much lower idle temps for both Core i7 quad and Core i5 in this new laptop.

So guys, was I wrong from the start? Temps for this Nvidia card Are Not very good. Amazing that you can get 60+C at load, but remember you are experiencing cold weather, and some of you are even using Coolers already.

 

Oddly enough the GPU temps are lower than the CPU temps under load, and something isn't right about that. I just don't have enough experience yet with the new intel processors, but it doesn't seem right that they run so much hotter. I have to assume there's some kind of problem inside the unit.

Yet do I REALLY want to open up a brand new notebook and fix Dell's issue? The tech in me says sure. And yet the consumer in me says Dell should pay me to fix their mistake.

 

Thats not entirely true. I am not using a notebook cooler. I just wanted to test. With my sxps 16 I HAD to use the cooler, with this notebook I DON'T.
Yes the gpu temps are on the high side but they are not even close to dangerous. People are worrying for no reason.

Also i5 do seem to run hotter than c2d's. I have owned a few i5 machines and all of them got into the 80's whilst being loaded. Check some of the other machine owners threads and you will see similar results. My i7 cpu temps seem good, but I expect it has a more agressive fan profile than you i5 users.

 

1. Its bout on par with the envy, although the dell has a plastic base whereas the envy is metal.
2. so far my 435m has exceeded my expectations and I would put it between a 5730 and stock 5830 when its OCed to 800/1600/1000. The 420m is also a good clocker so I expect good things from it too.
3. No annoying glitches for me yet.
4. not sure, sorry

 

Mitchell - can you post the 900p screen id?
I had a studio 17 and it had a terrible screen, that was the reason I didnt consider the xps 17 in case they used the same POS!

The xps 15 B+RG screen is gorgeous, it was an expensive upgrade in the UK but IMHO worth it.

 

Hi all, I purchased my XPS 15 system yesterday, and I'd love to post a review and benchmarks when it comes in, but I'm wondering one thing:

Has anyone who received their system with the i7/435m setup swapped the Quad for an i5 or 7 dual core with integrated graphics? I'd like to know if the integrated or Optimus is usable at all. In other words, what is the reason for forcing a Quad core on anyone who wants the 435m..

 

hey guys help me out..
what is the better option for CAD SOFTWARES???

i5 460 or i7 740?????

m having following laptop options:
envy 14: with i5 450
xps 15: with i5 460
xps 15: wiht i7 740

which one is better? is A CAD SOFTWARE require DUAL CORE OR QUAD CORE???
(CAD software include AUTOCAD, PRO-E etc.)

thanx in advance

 

Typically for CAD, the more CPU power the better. You'll also end up with a better graphics card when you opt for the quad-core, at least on the XPS line. Definitely the 740 IMO.

As far as the Envy vs the XPS, the best thing the Envy had going for it was the Radiance screen (1600x900). With that part discontinued, I find it a letdown.

 

@ ComputerMD82
thnx a lot.

also will xps 15 i7 give me 3 hrs of battery???
and is CAD use multicore?? dual or quad?
b'cos i7 wud have lower clock speed than i5 when its using more than one core..? m i right??

 

I'm not a CAD user so I might be misleading but I think it has support for dual but not quad. So if that's true then you might not see a performance improvement when moving from dual to quad (remember each core is also Hyper Threaded). Moreover, as you said, depending upon the i7 and i5 being compared an i7 can goto lower clock speeds during multi-core processing as compared to the i5 counterpart. On the other hand if you intend to use many programs side by side, then the quad might be a plus.

xps 15 with i7/435/6-cell will never give you 3 hrs during CAD work. I am not sure about the 9-cell case but looks doubtful.

 

you will get 2-2.5h of light use on 6 cell and probably 3.5-4 on 9 cell.

Right guys, I have just stripped the xps15 down. Will post up some photos in a bit in a new thread.

Now for some bad news, i5 is NOT compatible on the motherboard. The board did POST but then gave an error that arrandale CPU is not compatible

 

thats not good.
hopefully someone can come up with a bios mod that puts the CPU ACPI tables from an i5 xps15 into an i7/435m xps15

 

Quad can work a single or two cores at ~2.2-2.53GHz.
While it might seem like it is doing less work than a dual core clocked at 2.53GHz before turbo, it actually sucks a lot of power, and the additional work is being done as heat rather than computational power > hence, the hot palmrest/touchpad and burning laptop chassis. Even idling, it is not very efficient. It idles way hotter than working Core 2 Duos. But in my opinion even i3 is not very energy efficient. The whole Core i series as a whole, if you overlook low voltage CPUs, did not improve on energy from C2D/Pentiums, and while performance has "increased", so has TDP is a disproportionate manner.

Go for dual core unless you absolutely want GT 435M.