If i get a XPS M1530 now with the large amount of discounts, will it be outdated by september?

well i start school in september, but i saw the deal out right now from dell, and i could save a lot with the student discount + the $600 off. however, my classes start in the 1st week of september, and idk how outdated my system will be by then, because i was thinking about getting it like mid-august, when those new montevina processors will be in the laptops. and idk how good/bad it is to get the XPS M1530 now instead of later.

any thoughts? thanks

 

You can buy the biggest, most powerful computer money can buy you right now and it'll be outdated by September. Point is: technology changes every single day. It's always going to be outdated. The question you need to ask yourself is: will there be a big enough difference between technology now and technology then to warrant the (obvious) price change when the new stuff comes out? Probably not, unless you're really excited for 800MHz RAM in your computer which probably won't matter to you anyway.

 

Every notebook or every gadget for that matter will be outdated within a few months.

 

You're never going to stay on top of performance unless you have a serious amount of cash to burn.

The question you should be asking is will there be a big step in performance SOON. That is within the next month. If not, then purchase. If there is, decide if it's worth a wait or not. You can't continually sit on the fence or you'll never buy a damned thing.

 

It's simple. If you keep waiting like this, you'll never get what you want.

 

My guess is the xps chassis will evolve a little in its next iteration. Probably not a huge change given the popularity of the current generation. The new XPS will probably be smaller given the 25% increase in breathing room offered by montevina. Expect some trickle down from the studio series as well: backlit keyboard, flush screen, dock bar, etc...In terms of performance, there probably won't be a big difference CPU wise. Certainly not one worth $600. The GPU will probably be updated to the 9 series Nvidia (9600GT, 9650GT, or 9700 depending on how much room each of these cards take up). If it's the 9600GT, the bump in performance won't be huge but It will definitely be noticeable.
The XPS series is usually very quick about incorporating new technologies so I fully expect the next generation XPS laptops to be available before September 1st.
I would wait if I were you. It's very disappointing to see your new cutting edge laptop no longer be cutting edge just after you buy it. If the new generation is too expensive, the current generation of XPS laptops will still be in the outlet store for a while and they will definitely be sold at a very discounted price. Finally, don't forget to take advantage of your status as a student to get discounts.

 

It'll be outdated by the time it reaches your doorstep.

I'd focus more on "Does it fulfill my needs?" as opposed to "Is it the hottest, baddest, newest thing out there?"

Because you can always find something that fills Category A. Nothing will fill Category B.

 

I would say it depends on what you are looking to get out of the new Montevinas. From what I have read, it sounds like most of the new processors won't be that much faster, but will use less power. There will of course be a 3.06 gHz one available, but it will be going for top dollar. Unless you are really concerned with getting a better GPU, then I would buy now.

To me, I am totally happy that I ordered my XPS now (though I haven't received it yet.. ). I got a great deal, and this notebook has everything I want. It's a huge step up from my Inspiron 5150 from 2003, that's for sure!

 

k thanks everyone

 

I would wait (which appears to be what I'm doing). It would bother me if my notebook model was replaced a couple of weeks after I received it, even if some of the changes were minor. A replacement is coming this summer.

 

If I need a computer, I would buy it now.
If I don't need a computer, I would wait until I need it or see a huge discount.
If you are on the budget = You won't be able to obtain the latest greatest, then go for something good at huge discount = Good for you
Current XPS with give you enough power to:
- Go thru the college with Words/Excel if you goes for in business school
- Go thru the college with Most development tools if you goes for computer science.
I'm not sure about other department thou, I guess current generation of hardware is sufficient for human needs in next couple of years (2-3)

On the next XPS refresh, I would get couple of addons rather the overhaul redesign:
- Montevina platform
- WLed Standard (currently optional for Studio & XPS)
- backlit keyboard (w or w/o ambient sensor)
- Could be more colors.

This could happen as soon as Intel let the montevina out of the door; that means mid-july, early august. This makes sense since XPS is for younger people and they are going (back) to school soon

 

Let me rephrase that... your right about the technology changing daily, but C'mon... outdated?
NO!!! The notebook will still do most all all chores just fine. It's kinda like cars, you buy a brand new one, partially for the warranty, partially to have something new, ie brag... etc. But that 1 year old car, heck 5 year old cars still get the job done just fine. No different with computers!

 

Outdated in the sense that there's something newer, not in the sense that it's useless. I guess just, "no longer top of the line" is the better way to describe it. Wrong word choice, I apologize.

 

I would look carefully at shipping dates. I would not buy later then mid July if you absolutely need it by Sept 1st since it could take up to a month to get your order (and if there are any problems you want a week break in time at the least).

 

alright, thanks for the insight again

looks like ill be waiting

 

If you order it now, you'll be lucky if it ships before Sept 1st.

 

if you re going to play the waiting game, I d wait for nehalem / calpella instead.

I think that is when you ll see some serious performance difference and quad cores too!