Make E1705 into an XPS M1710?

I was crunching some numbers and wanted to get some opinions. When building an E1705 with the same specs as an M1710, I noticed a significant price difference. I found, going through the epp site with a 3 year warranty, that I could get the E1705 for $1,936 (with an itegrated graphics card) and assuming the Nvidia Geforce Go 7900GTX is about $530, would bring it to $2,666. Alternatively, the XPS M1710 of equal setup would be $3,611.

So it looks like I could save $1,000 by putting the graphics card in myself. But then there's the issue of voiding the warranty on the E1705 and whether or not I could even put a 7900GTX in it. (By the way, does anyone know where I could buy one? Notebook graphics cards seem impossible to find).

So does this seem worth while? I really want the top-notch graphics card, because I want this system to last. Right now, I'm just planning on getting an M1710 through a power seller on e-bay once they're up on e-bay. Any thoughts/alternatives would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

Different motherboards are used for different videocards I think. So if you get it with an integraded GPU u won't be able to add a videocard. Atleast that's how I know it works.

 

I do not believe it is possible to upgrade the graphics card once you buy the system. Your only choice is purchasing the system with the graphics card you want already installed on the system

 

you cannot upgrade from integrated to dedicated gpu without replacing the motherboard

 

When you buy An XPS. You are buying the brand. It's not what's in it they they charge more for (Except the ram $3800.00 FOR 4 GIGs??WTF??) It's the fact that is says XPS on it.


Yes, they DO, use a different motherboard.

 

Thanks for the info so far. So what if I got the 256MB ATI MOBILITY™ RADEON® X1400 HyperMemory for $89 more. I'd still be saving around $900 or so. If I got this card, would the motherboard be compatible for the upgraded graphics card, assuming I could buy one?

Also, that brings up something I hadn't considered, do XPS notebooks use better/different motherboards than the E1705 line? It certainly looks like most of the higher price is because of the name (and all the pretty lights, we can't forget those). So is the upgrade more trouble than it's worth? I'm expecting I could find a good deal on e-bay for maybe $2800 or close to it, that sounds like the best option so far from what I'm hearing.

 

Get the 7900 GS buy your own 2gb of ram from Newegg. That E1705 is extremely close to the XPS. Hell, buy the XPS vanity shield thing from Dell Parts. It snaps right on.

 

Where is this XPS shield thing you are talking about? I went to the dell parts store and couldn't seem to find it.

 

There are two motherboards: the 945GM with integrated graphics, and 945PM with dedicated graphics. Once you get dedicated, the mbs are the same...

This means that buying the ATI, and upgrading to the 7900GS is probably possible. However, the M1710 has a dual heat-pipe construction, which means it can take the 7900GTX too, which also requires a 130W power supply.

In short, you can get from ATI to the GS, but not to the GTX without substantial modding.

The guys at notebookforums.com have done a lot of these kinds of mods, check there...

 

It's called a "Personalization Shield" and its one of those "snap covers" that came on quite a few of the XPS's. Fits right onto the E1705. The item number is 311-4912 and the part number is N9969.

EDIT: Apparently I can't link to images from Ziff ... so ... just google for "Personalization Shield" and you should be able to find a picture.


Here's a picture of one. It's basically a clear shield that lets you insert a photo print and show it off. Almost a picture frame for your laptop.