New Dell XPS L521X (Ivy Bridge)

Well, even with 20%, the computer ($1700 model) is still rather high compared to others. Assuming the throttling issues truely gets resolved, I'll consider getting it with a coupon. I doubt that will happen since it will send the XPS into Inspiron 15 SE territory which they don't want.

I get what Dell is doing with the pricing (premium product, higher price), but the pricing is getting out of control. Already, they're into macbook territory and the XPS costs more than most Windows laptops on the market. Apple can sell at high prices because they're the only ones with MacOS (and they have a cult thing going on), but Dell doesn't. I know few people who would spend that much money on a single laptop. It looks like a good product, but the pricing of it is a complete mess.

The increase in price would make this laptop even higher than it already is. You can buy one online and install it yourself for cheaper if you can find the right deal.

 

The price increases right now are crazy... a $300 increase just for more RAM+1TB and 128GB mSATA and then there's another $300 increase for a 512GB SSD.

The increase from the i5+630M to the i7+640M is $400, and you get more RAM, HDD space and a Blu-Ray drive. If that upgrade is worth $400... how are the HDD and RAM upgrades worth almost as much as that?

 

I bought this computer and I have to say it wasn't purely based on performance. Like you say, the Inspiron 15R SE is similarly stocked up but for significantly less money. The reason you pay a premium for the XPS 15 is :

1. the look
2. it's less then 1" thick, take a ruler out and think about that.
3. It has an aluminum body, not a plastic one.
4. Gorilla glass

I don't think of it as an expensive Dell, think of it as a Macbook pro knock off and am very happy with it.

 

I feel the same, there were many factors that went into me buying one. I wanted a durable, premium laptop in both performance, portability and looks. I don't want to be carrying around a big, bulky, ugly gaming laptop because it was the best "bang for my buck".

You can compare this to many other laptops on the market but really it's in a category of it's own; great power for it's profile and great build quality and looks.

 

So word on the street is (last centuries) the Dutch are cheap.. Wait until you come across this forum Really, please stop whining about the pricing and coupons, take it or leave it. You know the only alternative is a MBPr and then you pay top dollar and you have to take Applecare and the ssd and ram is glued.. Now thats something to cry about, no?

Sure there are things such as customization which should be possible but that's about it.

 

For what it's worth, I would be willing to pay the high price for a PC laptop that has the complete package-- nice screen, good form factor, mSATA slot, capable GPU, and good reliability and support.

I walked into the Apple store just to take a look and they have several computers that fit the bill. Why can't PC makers get it right?

Elands- I'm with you. Show me a good all-round product and I'll cough up the cash.

The day I concede that it can't be done is when I place my order for a GE60.

 

I have to say I'm pretty happy with the purchase so far. I bought it for a dev machine as well as covering conventions such as E3 and CES. I like the size and the screen and it builds my apps quick. Also I do a few VM instances on it and it worked out really well.

I have a very beefy machine to play games but I was able to play some Diablo 3 and some Modern Warfare 3 just for giggles. I'll be even more happy when they fix the throttling issue.

Overall, it is expensive and I've never spent big money on a machine before.. don't think I'll do it agian, but I'm pretty happy with the L521X

 

For for myself, the 32GB mSATA / 7200 RPM combo is exactly what I was looking for.... Using the mSATA as a cache... In my eyes, Dell got that right combo! Fast enough HDD, accelerated with just enough cache to make a safe, confortable difference! Now, if only this combo came with the correct RAM configuration (I want 16 GB)... If only Dell didn't break what made them great, we could at least configure the removable parts (ram, hdd, odd)...

That the #1 reason why I'm still considering this laptop first and haven't bought a competitior yet... Well, to be fair, that, and I would like to stay with Dell for their marvelous support team! This laptopt is in it's own category, in my eyes! Specially with Dell support behind it! Dell nailed the market IMHO!

And the #1 reason I haven't bought it yet, is for price reason! I'm waiting for a good deal... I'm betting for august, the "back to school" sale! I can't, in my mind, justify the current cost for that product, so I have to wait for the correct deal so I can put my mind (and my wallet ) at ease!

 

Whoops I was in the educational store..

 

In canada, it's 50$ off for any XPS over 1000$ (the new ones are all over 1000$ )

 

Definitely not alone. I love the looks of the new XPS, but the lack of customization and quite frankly, very average specs for very high prices is turning me away from buying. I really wish I could get rid of the ODD, have 256GB SSD, upgrade to a better screen, etc.

I'll probably wait until there's another refresh, buy an Envy, or just wait it out until next year (and buy an ultrabook in the meantime).

 

+1

I needed a new laptop for my wife and the new xps 15 was high on the list before it came out... but I was disappointed in the lack of customization and the high price compared to other Windows laptops. I wound up getting a Sony Vaio laptop for her. I LOVE the customization options for the Vaios...you can customize every single thing and each has tons of options.

It was down to HP and Sony actually...both have great customization options and both were better bang for the buck than the XPS 15.

I still hope to get a Dell in the future. 1 of my current laptops is a Studio 1558 and it still does just fine for me. I'll upgrade it in a year and hopefully it will be a Dell again (I still have fond memories of using an Inspiron throughout college) But it won't be if the XPS 15 is an indication of where they want to go for design/price/customization.

 

32gb is plenty for a OS, just turn hibernation off (powercfg -h off) and shrink your pagefile to 1gb and you'll have room to spare!

 

Pretty miffed, the XPS 15 have been taken off sale on the UK site. On top of that the 10% voucher has run out just as my 0% card turned up.

 

Pretty disappoint with what's going on on the reviews too. Saw only 1 review this morning and a lot more today that look fishy. Either someone is playing around and trolling or Dell is padding itself up so it can get more unconvinced buyers.

I agree with the lack of customization. I like it better when Dell only had the name of the laptop and a picture. You click customize and then you get to choose all the specs and whatever. Now it's just giving 4 different product pages and a accessories "customization" and those accessories aren't even cheap... Over $30 for a mouse, no thanks.

The MBP with r/d is looking attractive. Install windows on Boot Camp and Linux on parallels.

 

Ok.... Just got my order confirmation and projected delivery date....

Still 95% likely to get cancelled but as I don't particularly want this model, I'm just wondering if I should cancel it myself.

Originally my girlfriend said she wanted a new laptop but now she says she doesn't.

Gotta be good at £600 though no?

Again, I know it's near on certain to be cancelled but just in case it isn't, I don't know if I actually want it.

Would prefer i7 and 640.

 

Here's one of the XPS 15 reviews from Dell's site:

What in the name of God!?! Even Dell shills wouldn't write something this stupid. And she couldn't have meant the touchpad, because no one would make that mistake. I'm sorry. I need to go get my blood pressure checked or pet a kitten.

 

Hmmm all I can find with regard to whether my order is firm or not is:

"Order and Acceptance
2.1 You may place an order for Product(s) and/or Services directly with Dell either online or by telephone. The placing of an order by you represents your offer to buy subject to these Consumer Terms. Please note that the Contract between you and Dell is formed only when Dell accepts your order by issuing you with an Order Confirmation in writing."


But that is for direct consumer orders and not business. The business part of the T&Cs doesn't say when the order becomes accepted.

 

Ummm... does this mean that there might be a touchscreen option soon?

 

@bill

Just remember that before release someone asked if the laptop would start
around 1100$ and you kinda said it was pretty close and someone joke around saying it probably was 1099$
Did Dell decide to increase the price last minute?

 

Bill has been conspicuously very absent recently... not sure if it's related to him being sick... or a conspiracy.

 

what dell should have done

display one laptop and pic
allow you to hit customize

base being i5 630m 6gb and 500gb

start off at teh base
allow you to choose
i5 with 630m no tpm
i5 with 630m with tpm
i5 with 640m no tpm
i5 with 640m with tpm
i7 with 640m no tpm
i7 with 640m with tpm

then allow you to change ram
6GB, 8GB, 16GB options

HDD
500GB, 750GB, 1TB, 512GB SSD options

M-SATA SSD
32GB sandard
64GB, 128GB options

Optical drive
DVD standard or Blue-ray option

screen , wifi/bluetooth, and other stuff are standard and cannot be changed

and btw if you have a dell business account or attend a university that orders the laptop for you you can get stuff changed

i sent in the specs i wanted and they modified it and send me back a price and spec sheet with my exact config
for a system that was i5 32010m 8GB-ram 640m,750Gb 7200 rpm + 32gb ssd and if i wanted i could have put in the blue-ray drive

but i had to order it from dell Trinidad and Tobago as stated by mu university

 

AHAHAHAHAHA this laptop is officially more expensive than the Macbook Pro with Retina. Hahahahahaha.

At least you can customize Apple laptops!

 

Yep exactly what I want too. It used to be like that in the old days.

True story

 

The MBPRD starts at $2200 and goes up from there. The new Dell XPS 15 starts at $1300 and proceeds upwards. How is what you said even remotely true?


I swear, people lose all sense of logic when trying to prove a point that is immersed in their emotion. How about instead of getting all heated up, we stick with the facts. You are comparing apples with oranges:

The lowest spec MBPRD = The highest spec Dell XPS.?!?!?! :confused2: I don't think so.

 

Amen brother.

Totally agree with you. I had very recently been directed towards Dell solely for the customization options....Now I go to the page and there are basically three models of the XPS 15. Then, like you stated, they ram a bunch of unnecessary and unwanted accessories into the deal - *included in price*.....boooooooooooo

 

Does Dell xps 15 L521x has Student's discount in US? And if it does then how much?

 

Tried reading through the entire thread and am still undecided if I should buy this or the Series 9 X4C. My last two notebooks were a disaster (envy 15 and series 7 17inch chronos, both returned) I need something that should not have any issues because I'll be shipping directly to asia. I just need a 15 inch notebook that has good wifi connectivity, boots fast and easy to carry around.

Would you guys recommend the xps15?

 

The 512 MBPr is $2799, how is that cheaper than 2300? Minus all the discount coupons up to 20%. You need to take some math lessons. (And don't forget to take apple care)

 

Ok my order from last night in the UK for the XPS with i5 for £600 delivered is now in production apparently..... :s

 

I also took advantage of this deal and order was confirmed and in production, so fingers crossed!

 

My order from yesterday afternoon has been put on hold :-/ Still have some hope though.

 

Does this matter? The lowest-spec MBP Retina is better than the highest-specced Dell. It's a ridiculous failure to price the XPS 15 that high. This ignores the non-repairability of the MBPRD, but that's kind of irrelevant to this discussion. The point is that a price point of $2300 for the Dell XPS 15 is absurd, hilarious, completely tone-deaf.

 

As for the reviews...

Does anyone think people who ordered the L502X are just posting reviews in the wrong spot? Also there were more beta testers out there than just downlinx.

The price for the 512GB version isn't higher than I expected. You guys realize the 512GB PM830 goes for 650+ on amazon. Plus Dell's usual markup on parts we have all come to know and love.. I'm sure you can negotiate that down with a rep.

 

You should really compare with the 512 version and the fact some essential parts are glued such as ram and the ssd, after a year when those parts should fail it's in fact hilarious what you go through if you don't have Apple care. The fact Apple care exists is hilarious. Please do buy a MBPr and pray it keeps working.

 

Free xbox or $200 giftcard (must be different purchase) and anywhere from 25-50 dollars or so off. I think its 3% off your purchase.

 

I have just read XPS15 review of laptopmag.com
Dell XPS 15 (2012) Review | Mainstream Laptop Reviews

It's interesting to note that XPS loose performance comparison with Acer Aspire V3-571G-9435 (i3610QM+GT640m with DDR3).

It has seemed to me a much confused review...
I remember that 3Dmark run always at 1280X1024 even if display can visualize that resolution else it run at 1280X768, but they don't consider that Acer uses GT640m with DDR3 instead GDDR5 of XPS15.

In Batman: Arkham City there is a comparison on same resolution:

Batman: Arkham City (high,1366x768)
Dell XPS 15 L512X--------------->19fps
Acer Aspire V3-571G-9435 ------->21 fps

Batman: Arkham City (low,1366x768)
Dell XPS 15 L512X----------------->36fps
Acer Aspire V3-571G-9435---------->37fps

Acer coasts literally the half of XPS.

Laptopmag writes:

Pros: Sleek design with soft touch finish; Colorful and bright full HD screen; Solid performance and graphics; Good audio

Cons: Grainy webcam; Keyboard somewhat mushy;

The Verdict: An elegant design, beautiful full HD display and fast performance make the Dell XPS a compelling multimedia notebook.



It's to remark that Laptopmag hasn't evidenced any throttling, but Bill & Dell engineer have defined this issue systematic, so is this a good and impartial review?

 

Dude why are you even on the forum if your only goal is to say how much your glorified MBPRD is 'better' than a PC..? Steve Jobs is dead. Get your head out of his butt.

 

the 1699 dell, can be user upgraded with a 350 512gb corsair ssd, 80 for max memory, and we would be under the lowest spect Retina yet have more power.....so hmmmm, no sir go back to your Mac forum

 

Is this review accurate because tbh they are selling this laptop better than even Dell is selling it right now.

One of the things that got me was their review of the screen they are saying its one of the best screens they have seen on a 15" laptop yet here people are screaming about it being pixely and not IPS. Im just trying to figure out if people are being overly critical of certain things or if the site is up-selling the laptop.

 

So has there ever been a satisfactory explanation of any kind as to why there is so little customization available now? It must be significantly cheaper to offer less options?

 

Anyone know how removing the optical drive and putting in a ssd would work? Would it work in the new xps 15?

 

To be fair, from what I've been reading in this thread and the owners thread and also owner opinions as well as side by side comparisons the new XPS screen does look good. Without comparing it to the obviously great previous gen b+rgled screen, the colours are meant to look good (once Dells super duper over saturation setting has been turned off) even compared to an IPS panel.

If that review was trying to big up the Dell, surely they would have it winning benchmarks against the Acer. I mean nobody would question it as it has the superior GFX card.

 

Customization doesn't make any sense if you have 2 CPU’s and 2 GPU's. The size of HDD doesn't make any difference if you have 3 options and hey cost almost the same. TPM is standard on XPS, only Russia and China doesn’t have it for legal reasons. The amount of RAM is easy to change and I don't think someone will like to buy cheapest version and spend a fortune on 16GB of memory.
Without customization the system is ready in the warehouse so the price is cheaper and much easier to make any discount. You always know your stock and if it's slow mover you can make a deal. By the end of October XPS will be 40% off because of old windows 7 stock that will have to be cleared.

I have good experience with non-customizable systems. My first XPS originally cost £900 and I paid £400. My Lenovo originally cost £1200 and I paid only £680. Expensive slow movers always end up with large discount.

 

I have doen a few more speed test and the wireless on the Xps is not up to scratch.
It works fine in the room with the router walk out the room with it and the speeds drop down dramaticaly ..I do have another laptop and it has maximum sppeds around the house..
For a permuim product i am not very happy about the wireless especially if the other laptop is a cheaper model and outshines the XPS 15.I have messed around with it all morning to see if i could improve it .

 

Totally Agreed. Lowest mbpr is better than this one. By the way, i used to have last gen dell xps and just recently bought a hp envy 15. Just because we used to buy dell laptop doesn't make us dell fan boy. Why do people keep defend for this overpriced product? Should we speak up and look out for our best interest?

 

Are there more reviews I only see Downlinx's Review...

 

Who says it is overpriced? There are a select few people moaning about the price and generally trolling, some have been banned and come back under a different name...Australians always get ripped off more than any other country with regards electronics and therefore any price increase is exaggerated.

Also, it has been mentioned time and time again that the Inspiron 15 is the replacement. This XPS is a step above in build quality, for that you have to pay extra. If you don't like it, then vote with your wallet, but please stop going on and on like broken record.

 

I wouldn't say it's overpriced. If they will be able to fix the throttling issue it's the perfect laptop for my needs: good specs, portability and great design. I can't ask for more ATM (of course, if the throttling should persist, it's a missed opportunity for Dell and I'll probably return it and ask for for a refund).

 

Well if 2.6 k for a laptop with above average spec is not overpriced than i dont know what is. Regarding buid quality, this laptop just been released for a month, i think it would be too soon to say that it has high build quality. Do we know how long it is gonna last? How many returns or repairs have been lodged? No one knows at this stage. If you are happy to pay that much for a laptop then that's fine. It is a public forum so i can express my view as long as i do not abuse any one.