M1330 Display Issue (Vertical Lines on Reboot & Crash & Vertical Lines)

Say, how's the X4500HD graphics? Can you at least enjoy flicker-free 720p HD, if not 3D applications?

 

Interesting note about the red marks. I got my motherboard replaced today and noticed the same red dots around the GPU. When I had my motherboard replaced last April, there were no red dots around the GPU. Looking more carefully, there were actually dark black dots on the April motherboard where the "new" motherboard's red dots are.

I wonder if these changes to the GPU/motherboard will keep it from failing. So my question is.... Have any motherboards with red dots around the GPU failed, yet. Please chime in if you noticed the red marks on your replacement motherboard, and let us know if you've had a GPU failure, yet.

Thanks.

 

NO it will not keep it from failing. There is no fix for this problem and you will get about 6 months out of your laptop before a Dell tech will need to be sent out .

 

I don't doubt what you're saying at all. I recognize that this motherboard will probably fail again. I'd just like to know if anyone that has the red dots around their replacement GPU has had their motherboard fail, yet. Maybe the red dots cause the GPU to last longer than it normally would -- but then still fail. I'd just like some anecdotal information from people.

Thanks.

 

Still going on I see.


It's 1 month past my suposely 3rd mobo replacement now given the normal timetable of 6 months service life per mobo. Granted I haven't had much time to stress the GPU this time around.....perhaps explains the longer service.

I still have 1.5 years left on my standard warranty plus whatever enhancement Dell is offering so it will look that I may retire the notebook from active service before my waranty runs out.

 

After 2 motherboard replacements, Dell finally offered to send me a replacement system (a Studio XPS 13). I should be getting it soon. Only problem is that it doesn't appear to have a LED backlit display, whereas my M1330 does. Looks like I'll have to call them to get that fixed.

I actually kind of wished I had the luck of others in getting offered a Studio XPS 16. I'm in the mood for a larger system

 

They should normally offer you a system with the same or higher spec. It seems strange to me that the screen got downgraded.
Is the replacement a refurbished unit? did you request for it specifically?

 

Hmm... looks like I'm lucky, third mobo's been running fine since Nov. '08 so it may be the first to have made it a whole year, yaaay...

But just to be clear, only my first GPU died. The 2nd mobo's power rail circuit bit the dust (but the Cu-modded GPU was still going strong...).

Regardless of the fact that the series of 4500M nVIDIA chips used in the ~2007-2008 Notebooks (be it Dell, Sony, HP, etc) are faulty, I still believe the Cu-mod does a lot to curtail the ah, RSOD (Rainbow screen of death).

 

Mine lasted for 14 months before it died a few days ago. The day will come

 

The unit was refurbished. I asked for Dell to give me a permanent solution to the Nvidia GPU problem after having 2 motherboards replaced. I had to speak to many agents and get escalated, but they finally relented. They offered a replacement system (I would have also been happy with a motherboard with the Intel integrated graphics).

I spoke to the rep in charge of my exchange, and he assured me that he would get me a system with LED display (seems he isn't in charge of picking the refurbished system; Dell has another team for that). He just decided to get a brand new system built for me; he forwarded the specs to me for my approval and then ordered the system later that day. I ended up getting less hard drive space and RAM than on the refurbished system (still more than my M1330, though). However, I am getting a WLED display and an upgrade to the N10m graphics card.

Dell finally made things right for me. I must say that I am pleasantly surprised by how Dell eventually stepped up and gave me a permanent solution to the problem. Hopefully, they'll do the same for everyone else having problems.

 

I wanted to update my situation for anyone that might be looking for another direction after their warranty has expired to switch from the Nvidia GPU to an intel integrated motherboard. After a third GPU failure and my extended warranty officially ending one month before the last failure, I took a gamble on E-Bay from a company called Race Technologies in Jersey. It cost me $250.00 and they have a 100% satisfaction rate. After installing Windows 7 and doing all sorts of testing, I'm pretty happy at the end result. It does run cooler with the integrated graphics and they also installed a dvd burner replacement for nothing ( which I provided). I know having a dedicated GPU is all the rage these days, but in my case all I was looking for was a reliable notebook with an optical drive that ran fast enough to run everything else except games and was portable and semi light. I'm hoping after ditching the Nvidia GPU, I now have some kind of reliability. Spent $2000 when I bought it; didn't want to abandon it so easily, so if anyone isn't ready to give up on their M1330 just yet and no longer have any kind of warranty, they might want to consider going in this direction.

 

I've now had 7 motherboards replaced since I purchased the laptop 16 months ago. Now the latest one has failed, 10 minutes after the technician left.

I've asked for a replacement laptop, but they now insist on collecting my laptop to repair it, promising that it won't fail again. Has anyone else had theirs collected before? Will Dell just put another "refurbished" motherboard in and send it back, or will they actually fix it for good?

Surely after so many failed attempts to fix this issue, I should be eligible (under the Sales of Goods act) for a replacement laptop.

 

just for the record I've got the same Dell XPS M1330 that I got almost 3 years ago. Still running Bios A03! I play company of heros on it regularly.

Neil.

 

Hi first post here

I bought my m1330 in Jan 2008. Approx 5 months later, I had the motherboard replaced due to the GPU problems. It had been working fine up until last week when the usual signs returned (video glitches, driver failure etc) and now the dreaded Rainbow Screen Of Death has appeared. Luckily, I had my data backed up due to installing windows 7 before it occurred. I'm actually impressed the system lasted so long (approx 18 months medium to heavy use).

However, upon discovering the extended warranty and reading the posts on here, I'm at a loss on what to do next. Should I risk getting it replaced with another potentially faulty motherboard and GPU? Or get an Intel integrated video motherboard? Or try and see if I can push for a SXPS13 replacement (considering I'm only covered by extended warranty so I'm not sure if it's possible)? What would be the best course of action for me?? (Buying a new laptop isn't really a viable option for me at the moment). I still need use of a dedicated graphics card since I run a fair bit of graphically intensive applications (and occasionally game).

Any suggestions are welcome!

PS. I did speak to Dell support earlier but it seems the department that deals with GPU failures/extended warranties are only open from 8am - 8pm....

 

I would push for a XPS13. Even if you get a replacement, it would likely be refurbished unit.

 

Well the integrated graphics option, albeit the most reliable option, is right out for a start due to your requirements and even if they honored the extended warranty, they'll still replace it with the Nvidia GPU motherboard. As far as receiving another model, you could try to push Dell for a replacement, but I doubt if they'd go for it. The option you'll probably be reduced to is getting Dell just to replace the motherboard again with the same setup. It's better than having a paperweight. I, after having three motherboard failures, don't have a lot of confidence in the Nvidia motherboard, but I did get 14 months out of my last one. So, the bottom line is get Dell to fix the motherboard now. If it turns out you have a failure sometime down the road ( 18 months is really good with the Nvidia chip motherboard ), and are out of warranty and also you can't afford another notebook, you could always do what I did which is get a motherboard replacement off of ebay. I decided to go with the Intel version, but you could stick with the Nvidia motherboard and hopefully get another year or so out of it. You're not completely backed into a corner if you end up with another motherboard meltdown out of warranty, but just don't listen to anyone that tells you that Dell has now fixed the problem.

 

I didn't know that Dell switched to nVidia chipsets. nVidia is becoming a pariah in the OEM world.

I would go with integrated if at all possible. I have not heard of failures on the nVidia chipset alone. Charlie at The Inquirer indicated that the newer nVidia integrated graphics chips (9***) used the better bumps.

 

I think due to a long and stressful day, I'm been using the wrong terminology to describe the Nvidia GPU chip integrated onto the Dell Motherboard.

 

@callanish: thanks for the advice

in the end i did opt to get it replaced with the same nvidia GPU motherboard.
certainly getting an intel integrated motherboard further down the line is much cheaper than shelling out for the nvidia one. i plan to carry out the copper shim mod as highlighted in another thread. hopefully this will help in delaying the inevitable destruction this GPU suffers..... which when the time does come, hopefully ill be in a position to purchase a new non-Dell, non-nvidia laptop

 

There are plenty of examples on this board of people who have gotten Dell to give them a replacement system -- usually Studio XPS 1340s -- myself included. So getting a replacement is not unheard of and not out of the realm of possibility.

 

How did you get them to give you a replacement? Was it a refurbished unit?

 

I had to get my problem elevated and insisted on speaking to a supervisor in XPS support. The supervisor assured me that he would take care of me if anything went wrong after getting my motherboard replaced one more time (which I then had done). I also PM'ed Dell's "Chief Blogger" on their Direct2Dell blog - see this comment.

I think contacting the "Chief Blogger" was most effective. After explaining my problems, I got a phone call from someone at Dell who offered to replace my system with a Studio XPS 13. I was assured that the replacement would have the same or upgraded specs as my M1330. The 1st replacement was a refurb (which was fine with me). However, it did not have an LED-backlit display (my M1330 did have one). So I got back in contact with the rep who was in charge of my replacement system and let him know that I was unhappy with the replacement I received. He immediately offered to build me a brand new system and forwarded me the specs for my approval before actually placing the order.

I must say that I was impressed with the way Dell handled this once they decided that I should be given a system replacement. They bent over backwards to answer all my questions and make sure I was completely satisfied. Dell's higher levels of customer support are fantastic. The problem is getting through the lower levels first.

 

Awesome. Did you still have warranty on your M1330? I just had my mobo replaced last month and it would probably last me another year.

 

My warranty was showing up as expired in their (Dell's) system even though it was still active. They didn't seem to care either way because I was still definitely within the GPU extended warranty period.

One upshot is that my original, longer warranty got restored on my replacement system and is showing up in Dell's system once again (and in the online warranty checker). So now all my problems are solved

 

That's why you might give them a second chance down the road on your next purchase, where as, after my experience, I'm completely done with them.

 

Okay. I think I might have a solution for people who are out of warrenty and have near given up.

This is all my speculation.

The problem with the boards is a heat issue.
The graphics processor chips are attached to the board.
They are attached with solder paste.
This solder paste is crap and actually liquifies at high operating temperatures when it shouldn't.
When this happens the processor can get moved by external forces as the solder paste is not 100% solid and connections can be broken.

This is the same issue that is currently causing the red rings of death on an xbox 360 and to a lesser extent PS3's.

So, what can you do about it?

This is pretty dodgy, but it got mine to work. If you damage ur laptop beyond repair its ur own fault not mine, etc etc.

Heres what I did:

1) Let the laptop warm up so u can feel the heat coming through the back panel.
2) Remove the back panel.
3) Firmly but not excessively push down on a pair of diagnoal opposite corners of the gpu chip (the one on the right). Then switch and do the corners.
4) Reboot and with a bit of luck, you might have restored the graphics!

Let me know if you had success with this.

 

I just got a free m1330 because of this problem. Warranty is dead.

I'm going to ebay a motherboard with intel graphics and hope for the best. I believe it will still be a better laptop than my m1210.

 

You will need cooling unit for intel gpu

 

They don't have this one in stock, but this is the heatsink and fan you'll need for the intel integrated motherboard

http://www.parts-people.com/index.php?action=item&id=5552

 

you could always try ebay might cost you $20 max

 

And if that fails, you can always bake your mobo... talk about taking it to the limit...

Thx to BlackRussian & Hep! for the link

EDIT: better yet, why go through all that bother when you could get away with this:
<param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/NJlgPbELL0E&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/NJlgPbELL0E&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width='560' height="340"></embed></object>

Thx to Moral Hazard for the link

 

Thats a hot air gun im assuming.

 

Or a Barbie doll hair dryer.. sorry just had to add that.
Baking is easy as most of us can get access to an oven, but not many will have access to a hot air blower/gun.
Nice link by the way..

 

Thanks for the advice on the nvidia to intel swap.

 

Had my intel swap done from an Ebay seller a couple of months ago. No issues whatsoever to speak of. Runs cooler and outside of gaming, I can't really see a difference in speed compared to the Nvidia motherboard.

 

After two years of happy times with my m1330, it looks like I'll be joining you guys in the 'faulty m1330' club.

The machine has been good to me. I installed the copper mod and have been playing everything from Fallout 3 to Resident Evil 5 to Tomb Raider Underworld on here without any problems. Now, when I try and run a game, I'm lucky to get as far as the title screen before the thing locks up and I get the coloured vertical lines.

Frustratingly, it works perfectly fine when doing non-gaming stuff like desktop, web browsing, music etc, so it makes it harder to justify buying a new laptop =/ If this thing just flat-out died, it would be easier.

 

I'm baaaack. Well it's been six months since Dell put a new motherboard in my m1330 and the fans are at it again! The GPU is running at 82 deg C (179 F) as I casually browse the internet. The fan will not shut off. I recently switched from W7 RC to W7 Pro so I'm downloading the updated NVidia driver for W7, although I doubt it'll do much. If Dell has to put a new mobo in my laptop every six months, so be it. I'm going to get my money's worth.

 

Did you have the motherboard replaced previously or was this your first time having an issue? My GPU is just starting to fail the second time and I don't want them to just replace the motherboard again. Ideally, I'd like a new laptop out of this, with a totally different chip in it (no, I'm not downgrading to the Intel chip). IMO the m1330 is nicer than the XPS 13, but I don't want to have to deal with a board replacement every six months, and then when I'm out of warranty I'm stuck with a pretty conversation piece. I still have two years of warranty. I posted a comment on the Dell blog guy's page, but it looks like he's not really doing much lately. So when I call and they want to just replace the motherboard again do you think I have any ground to stand on to ask for a new or refurb XPS 13?

EDIT: Whoops, so you've already had it replaced a couple times. I'm still going to get nasty with them and ask for a "permanent" solution. And by the way... my latest motherboard has red goobs around the GPU, and it's failing.

 

Dell wouldn't replace mine, even after replacing 6 failed motherboards. The final time, they insisted on collecting the laptop, but after missing the collection date, I decided to send a strong email to a few of the addresses below, as telephone support is absolutely useless:

[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]

I sent the email about 11pm and surprisingly received a call the next morning offering me a replacement system. The only problem was, they wanted to give me another m1330 with the problematic 8400GS, so I sent another email and 10 mins later, got offered brand new XPS 13 with the following specs, which was delivered to me last week:

• Intel® Core™ 2 Duo P9600 (2.66GHz, 1066MHz, 6MB L2 Cache)
• 512MB nVidia GeForce 210M graphics card
• 4096MB 1067MHz Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM [2x2048]
• Black Leather back cover 13.3" WXGA (1280x800) White-LED Display with TrueLife (thinner & brighter)
• 500GB (7,200rpm) Free Fall Sensor Hard Drive
• Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium 64bit
• Primary 6-cell 56 WHr Lithium Ion battery
• 2 years Next Business Day + Accidental Damage
• McAfee® Security Centre - 15 Month Protection

I love Dell!

 

kmw, where did you get those addresses and who are they?

 

I got them from here.

 

Thanks. I found the US equivalents. I'll call customer support tomorrow and when they want to replace my motherboard again I will make a stink. In 100% seriousness if they don't replace this stinker of a laptop I'm never buying Dell again.

I shouldn't call it a stinker; I love the thing... when it works. Last night I was browsing ebay. I didn't even have anything running in the background, and the fans got loud. Then the screen blinked and it turned off the "glass" effect of Windows 7 and ran really slow. Ugh.

 

I talked to a woman at XPS support today and we went through some diagnostic stuff that turned out to prove nothing- two hours of my time wasted. I told her again that I had this exact same problem six months ago and it's the GPU. So she started setting up a service call to have my fan replaced because my computer is overheating. Noooo that's not it. Well, I skipped the whole supervisor bullsh because who ever gets anywhere with that? I fired off a letter to Michael Dell himself, with all the others CC'd, including Lionel Menchaca. A few have already bounced back with a mail_demon error. Whatever. We'll see how it goes. Meanwhile my m1330 is struggling to scroll through a WORD DOCUMENT! Just text!

Update: I just got a call from a guy named Sarjan (?) or something. They're sending a technician to replace my motherboard this week. I told him I didn't want them to replace my motherboard again, but he said that Dell knows about the issue, has put out a recall, and has an updated part (!?) that he assures me will no longer give me trouble. Is there any truth to this? I'll make sure I take lots of pictures of my current motherboard and the new one to see if there are any noticeable differences.

 

Right,

My m1330 failed after 1 year (it failed today), got the vertical lines issue, effectively a paperweight, maybe quite a light one though...

anyway, phoned dell support in the UK, spoke to a supervisor who claims that they have a new solution in the form of a new chip...

what I want to know is 1. is this true?

2. will it be permanent (at least last 1.5 years)


Luckily I still have 600 days left on my warranty, I got the biggest one!

should I accept replacement refurbished parts ie another motherboard or should I demand a new system such as the studio 13?

To be honest I really like the m1330, much nicer than studio , but I need something that is reliable!

any thoughts? (sorry if someone has asked this before and there are answers, just wanted latest info on the situation)

Thanks

 

Ask them what the new chip is.

 

well all they said was it was a a new 8400 chip revision, but I think that is BS


I've got them coming round with a new mobo, heat sink and fan, I really don't see how that is going to work

funny thing is, it took me about 15mins for them to even acknowledge there was a problem, even after mentioning the dell hp nvidia lawsuit!

I really want to make sure that I can prove to them that what they replace is no different from what I have.. should I just use the revision numbers? how do i know they don't stick on false stickers?

 

I think that you can get the revision number using something like CPUID if you don't trust the packaging.

What I'd like to see is an article from Charlie (inquirer) stating that the problem is fixed. I don't think that will happen though. Even when the bumps problem was "fixed", the issue of heat remained. My belief is that the only long-term solution is Intel Integrated Graphics, which is what I have. I specifically went with integrated as I had already lost a MacBook Pro to the nVidia problems before buying the M1330.

 

Sounds like we're in the same situation! I just had them replace my motherboard, heatsync, and fan the other day. It's running very well for now. We'll see how long that lasts, I have 600 days of warranty left too! They told me it's a new chip too but I couldn't get any other information out of them! I posted this on the Dell Blog thing and haven't gotten an answer yet:

Lionel, Dell just replaced the motherboard on my XPS m1330 after the NVIDIA chip failed again; this is motherboard number three for my laptop. I was hesitant to let them do this again but a guy named Saran B. assured me that Dell knew about the problem and has a recall out, as well as an updated part, and that this new motherboard would not fail. I can't find any literature online about this recall and supposedly updated part. I asked Saran about getting me some proof but he just said to look in the blogs and forums... nothing. Seeing as multiple people have reported having their motherboards replaced upwards of six times for this NVIDIA problem, I was under the impression Dell had done nothing to update the part. I took detailed pictures of my old motherboard and compared them to the new motherboard, and it looks identical in every way, shape, and form. Can you confirm that the part has been updated? I just need it for peace of mind because I don't 100% trust that Dell is telling me the truth and might be trying to push me out of my warranty before I demand more action. Thank you!

 

hmm, well I am going to let them replace my mobo etc, see how it goes, because I don't trust dell one bit, as people have said in this thread, it is far cheaper for dell to knock customers off with replacements as they dont get charged (nvidia do).

Then I will stress test it, it will fail after a few months, then I will say that because your fix to the solution is not permanent , I want a new model.

dell have not fixed the problem, its not in their interest to, the amount of money for R and D for a new design and getting them built would be too much.

just learn your consumers acts etc and they will give in with hassle

good luck

 

as far as anyone knows, the problem has not been fixed.

I *think* dell's policy is replacement after 3 failed repair attempts.