New XPS 15z

Thanks for your reply! Sweet deal on your new hookup. Well done! Now im hoping mine comes with the new SSD haha

Im not buying from the US but rather from the UK and having bought from the outlet before they dont usually come with the reformat disk and state so on the website. Ill look at what is on it and just remove what i dont want and do a defrag etc. I was lucky myself with this pickup. Brand new in the box the original customer refused delivery, it isnt a repaired system or anything.

Do you have any reccomended programs for the SSD drive? I have an intel SSD on my desktop as i know its not good to defrag SSD drives normally. Also for performance and gaming any reccomended programs for bosting etc?

 

Doh just checked and its in as a - 256 GB Dell Mobility Solid State Hard Drive

 

Congrats and is your system is working fine ?

 

You never know...mine was listed as a SAMSUNG P810, yet when it arrived, I checked and it's the P830!

There is always hope!

To be honest, I'm surprised a unit from the Outlet has a P830, they're pretty darn new on the market. Must have been a bad SSD in the first place that it was returned to Dell, prompting them to replace the SSD with new stock.

Good luck!

 

So far, perfect. It's in mint condition, no signs of being previously pried open, and even had the protective vinyls over the Dell logos.

Movin' my data from my old 15z to the new 15z now.

 

have a look

http://forum.notebookreview.com/dell-xps-studio-xps/636431-dell-xps-15z-issues-list.html

 

I've known about most of those issues. I've had my 15z since they first came out, and have sold a few to clients. The biggest issue, by far, was the Trackpad. BUT, the latest drivers and turning off the Ambient Display Brightness control has all but fixed quirky trackpad issues. The basic gestures I use work fine.

Most of the 15z's that have passed through my hands have a great 1080p display. I have seen one with the screen door effect. But, the majority are fine, including the one I currently own.

I've also had quirky issues with booting from the USB 3.0 ports (via a bootable USB flash drive). About half of the 15's I've worked with boot fine, others refuse to boot from the USB stick while in the USB 3.0 port. They all boot fine with the stick in the USB 2.0/eSATA port.

My newest 15z came with A07 BIOS. (Dell shows A06 and A08, no A07). First thing I noticed was I could not install windows via USB stick when in the USB 3.0 port. Setup could not find any drives to install to! If I booted from USB stick in USB 2.0/eSATA port, it was fine. Go figure. I even tried Ghosting my 15z partition to my new 15z and it would not boot. Windows repair would not find a drive. I updated to A08 and everything is fine. IF YOU GET a 15z with A07, UPDATE TO A08 RIGHT AWAY!

In any case, every laptop has it's list of "issues", and the 15z is no different. All in all, it's a great laptop, and I don't hesitate recommending it to clients.

Also, I have never had the battery issue. My battery always shows the correct percentage and drops normally when running on battery.

 

@lancorp , you seem to be the best person to send Dell screen shots of the good and bad panels

Any hope of getting two such machines side by side
?
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk

 

Just installed the touchpad drivers from 12/22/11... works SO MUCH BETTER now... I mean as far as the two-finger scroll goes, which was horrid before. Great now though. Very happy with the touchpad now. 8)

 

Has anyone else had much trouble with the Intel Wireless N6230 card when they received their laptop. Getting very inconsistent speeds, connectivity etc on my new XPS 15z. Also trying to sus what drivers are the latest etc on the website is a bit of a nightmare and a right pain. Iv updated my Bios, Bluetooth drives, Intel Wifi Card drivers, Nvidia drivers and touchpad drivers.

 

There are lot of issue in 15z it's hard to figure out. check the list how many you have http://forum.notebookreview.com/dell-xps-studio-xps/636431-dell-xps-15z-issues-list.html

 

Does anyone know whether these are Sata II or Sata III?

I'm contemplating purchasing one, but don't know if I should keep my Vertex 2E 240gb or buy a Crucial M4 256gb.

Thanks in advance.

 

The internal HDD is on a SATA 3 port (6Gbps).

 

Thanks for the swift response.

Now I definitely want one I take it that it is just a regular 2.5" drive? The reason I ask is that I was reading that they use a 1.8" SSD.

 

Yep. Regular 2.5" drive.

 

Just received one of these from the Outlet (first ship date 15/12/11)

All in all it's what I expected, I've come from a (Windows) Macbook Pro 15" and the build quality is obviously nowhere near.

However all in all I was happy with the machine, the screen res is way better than my mac, and for the price I paid I would have been happy.

However two deal breakers for me which I'd like some advice on before I call to return it:

1) The left click on the trackpad is awful, it 'sticks' once in every 20 clicks or so, travels way too far and is sloppy as (the right click is sloppy too).

I'm guessing this isn't normal? I'm wondering if they replace the trackpad if it would be much better.

2) The screen - I have the vertical lines going up the screen, clearly visible to
me and smaller images on websites look awful, lines going right through them.

Is there any guarantee that a new screen would be better? I guess this is unsolved at present.

Thanks

 

^^ Check with Dell XPS 15z Issues List thread for more issue.

 

Thanks, but I have and it doesn't answer my questions.

 

Here, you can see the screen door effect vs a regular FHD LED screen.

http://i.imgur.com/5Mvwb.jpg

 

Looks like the sharpness is set too high on the screen-door LCD.

The colors are substantially different, too. Same panel ID in device manager?

 

@lancorp how is 830, have you tried new firmware.

 

830 is nice. Saw mention of new firmware, but couldn't find it. Link??

 

You can get rid of the blotches by turning down the saturation in the windows mobility center.

The lines . No idea how they can be explained. Good photos illustrating the problem . What was the other laptop used?



Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk

 

Ok, looks like as of 1/13/12, it is now on Samsung's site.

Fixes are:

1. Title
Latest Firmware File Ver. CXM02B1Q (iso file)
* Free DOS firmware update tool for bootable CD burning
2. Applicable Model
- 830 Series: MZ-7PC064* MZ-7PC128* MZ-7PC256* MZ-7PC512*
3. Carrier or Corporate Customer
- Improved stability when waking up from hibernation mode (Blue screen, Hang problem solved)
- Improved compatibility with some external hardisk vedors (partition error problem solved)
- Solved compatibility problem with some laptop vendors (partition error problem solved)
- Improved reliability (Increased SPOR related stability - Power loss management)
4. Description
- Windows XP/Vista/7

So far, I don't have any of those issues, and I don't see anything related to improving performance, but I did read where lots of people are getting failed updates, which hose their SSD, so...I'll wait.

 

I've just ordered mine

XPS 15z
Battery : Primary 8-cell 56W/HR LI-ION
256 GB Dell Mobility Solid State Hard Drive, 1.7MM
Display: 15 inches FHD WLED True-Life (1920X1080) with 1.3 Mega Pixel Integrated Camera
Wireless: Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6230 (2x2 b/g/+ Bluetooth Combo Card)
English Genuine Windows 7 SP1 Ultimate (64Bit OS)
Genuine Windows 7 Ultimate
Back Up Media Not Included
Optical Drive : 8X DVD+/-RW Drive
Processor: 2nd Generation Intel Core i7-2620M(2.7GHz, 4Threads, 4MB cache)
Misc
8 GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz (2 DIMMs)

£944

 

Good, having a safe side. My friend is coming next month, so he will bring my 830. I saw someone purchase for $185 (applying coupon) and I paid $220 from newegg.

Congrats bro welcome to the club. I hope you will not encounter with any of those issue.

 

Thanks

Is the 830 shipping as standard with them now, or are they still using the 810? Is there any way to tell upon receipt without opening it up?

 

I got one last week and it was the 810 but that was through the outlet. Chances are if you bought through the main site u will get a 830.

What do people use to manage / maintain their 810 SSD? The Samsung Magician suite doesnt recognize it as a Samsung drive so cant do any of the maintaining etc. Any programs to recommend to use?

 

If you order through the outlet you get the Service tag, then you can look up the original ship date and the specific product codes, these might give you an idea of the ssd.

You could always cancel the order I guess.

 

With regards to the screen issue, can someone let me know if it's possible to get a 15z that does not have this problem?

 

I have a question regarding warranties.


I usually don't consider buying refurbished items but, I figured, if I can get the same system for $300-$400 less and then use that extra money to buy an upgraded warranty, it really makes the most sense. I especially want the Accidental Damage Service.


Looking on the Dell Outlet page, it shows the upgraded warranty as "Complete Care." When I click the "learn more" option to get a detailed explanation of what this "Complete Care" warranty covers, I noticed that the language is different. The warranties are now referred to as Basic, Advanced, & Premium. I found this odd. Then I went to the Dell.com homepage and started browsing through the warranty options on a brand new 15z. The upgraded warranty now is referred to as the "Peace of Mind" package which includes the Accidental Damage Services I want. They also have a software+hardware warranty option available.

My question is, what are the difference between a "Complete Care" warranty, the Basic->Advanced->Premium warranties, and a "Peace of Mind" warranty? Why is the language used so inconsistent?

And does the Complete Care warranty offered on the refurb 15z I'm looking at include Accidental Damage Services?

 

Returned mine, shame but couldn't live with my dodgy trackpad and I had the screen issue too.

It was v close to being just good enough, but not quite!

 

I've just taken delivery of a 15z and it came with the 810 SSD. Will I see any real performance difference from the 830 SSD? Would the performance difference make it worth getting the SSD replaced with an 830? I'd be using the 15z for photoshop and dreamweaver.

Thanks in advance.

 

Did you buy it from the Dell site or the Outlet site?

 

The outlet.

 

Hello all,
Informative thread. We have a new 15Z which seems to be working fine except for one odd problem.

When the one of the fans (seems to be the one in the lower left front) spins down, the last second or so it makes a rattle similar to setting a large dinner plate on a not quite flat table. The fan does not make abnormal sounds when it is actually running

it's not REAL loud, but it is noticeable in quiet room.

The user of the laptop is not bothered by it and is ok not doing anything if it wont hurt anything or is not an indicator of more trouble to come.

Anybody heard this before?

 

My most troublesome 15z (6 repairs before Dell got it right) had a similar issue with the fan. When the fan was spinning down, almost stopped, there was a slight tick-tick-tick, but at normal RPM, it was fine. It was fine spinning up, too.

Out of the three trips to the Dell depot (it has in-home repair warranty, which was attempted 3 other times before Dell requested I send it in), two of them had Dell replacing the fan. Now, it doesn't do it anymore.

You might need to call them to report a noisy fan.

 

Thanks for the response. My experience with dell repairing laptops has been mixed at best (coming back missing a screw, case warped, etc).

I think we will just wait a bit and see if it begins to bother her and/or it gets worse since right now this is the only issue with the unit

 

Would you prefer parts only for the fan, so you can swap it out yourself?

 

How I can access Rupee and Euro currency symbols ? I tried Ctrl+Alt+ 5 not working

 

hi, came across this thread while trying to figure out if my 15z has a SATA II or III interface. Maybe someone here can tell me ( I tried searching the thread but it always tells me that no results were found even though clearly the word "SATA" comes up often ).

The reason I want to know is if it makes sense to upgrade my HDD to an SSD? I have seen a ATTO benchmark in this thread (of a Vortex 3) and it did come out at about 200 R/W. I run the ATTO on my 750GB HDD and came to 110 R/W. The SSD shoudl really score arround 500 R/W, so I am confused, is it only a SATA II interface? http://hexus.net/tech/reviews/storage/29786-ocz-vertex-3-240gb-ssd-review/?page=3

I know the Vertex 3 has some problems so I would pobably get a Corsair Force GT instead.

 

15z have SATA III, if you install SATA II SSD in your system it will work flawless because of backward compatibility. In my opinion Samsung 830 and if you have no concern with money then Intel 510 because reliability matter's to me. Corsair also share the same SF controller.

 

so the SF controller is the issue witgh the Vertex 3 module? That would be a bummer because many drives share this chip... The intel 510 seems substantially slower than OCZ, Corsair and Kingston SF based drives. Maybe its OCZ's bad implementation of SandForce?

 

OCZ Octane is using Indilinx's Everest Controller now

 

Hi, sorry for the delay in responding, I have been traveling.

Yes getting the fan part and swapping it myself would be good. I'm assuming I don't have to take the laptop apart down to the last screw to do it?

Thanks

 

You have to remove 10 screws, a small bezel over the posts on the left side, and pop off the base to get inside. Then you should remove the battery (6 screws) before you unplug the fan's power cable from the motherboard. That leaves the 2 fan screws. People are often tempted to leave the battery in, because they are right there looking at the fan and can just take out 2 screws and a cable to be done. However, Dell strongly recommends you remove the battery before going onto the fan removal.

The trickiest part (and a bit unnerving) is separating the base from the palm rest deck after you remove the 10 screws. Be patient, use something plastic (plastic scribe) to pry the base off a little bit at a time on the resistance points as you go around the edge of the laptop. You run the risk of gouging the metal if you use a normal flat tip screwdriver.

Removing the fan. If you want to go ahead and request the fan as a parts only dispatch, you can reach out to @DellCares on Twitter, or use the "Support" link to the left at Facebook.com/Dell. Just tell them I referred you and link them to this post.

 

Hmm, a bit complicated but doable. I will contact support. Thanks Bill!

 

Most welcome. The social media team (Facebook, Twitter) is a little more seasoned than the average phone tech, so they are more likely to do a parts only request for the fan without a lot of hassle. Phone techs may stick to their guns (what the book says) and want you to accept onsite or depot service, depending on your warranty type.

 

Not sure if anyone read the article, but Engadget just posted a review of the Envy 15 and said people would be better off getting an XPS 15z.

HP Envy 15 review (early 2012) -- Engadget

Search for 15z or just read the last paragraph.

 

Just re-posting... thought it was lost in the rubble.. did anyone get one?