Purchase help for Studio XPS 16.

Ok, so I am just a few days from pulling the trigger on a brand new Studio XPS 16 and here is what I would like to know if possible:

1.) How can I determine what is the Studio XPS 1645 and what is the Studio XPS 1647? Which is newer? And which is recommended? Are there more issues than one than ther other?

2.) What color options looks the nicest in person? Black w/ no leather? Black w/ Leather? White w/ Leather or Red w/ Leather?

3.) What are the main differences in the old 1640 VS the new 1645/1647?

4.) If I purchase Win 7 Prem will there be any issues installing Win 7 Ulti 64 Bit?

5.) If you have recently purchased a 1645/1647 how happy are you with it?

 

Hey pittsgutta!

I just ordered my own Studio XPS 16 a couple of days ago, but I'll try and answer your questions as best as I can

1) The SXPS1645 contains one of the following i7 quad core processors: 720, 740, 820, 840. The SXPS1647 contains either a dual core i7 620 processor, or a processor from the i5 range. Which one you get would largely depend on which configuration options you need - in my particular case, the Dell Canada website offers the newer ATI HD5730 card only with the i7 quad cores, so I ended up getting the SXPS1645. Also a thing to note - the SXPS1645 ships with a 130W charger, while the SXPS1647 ships with a 90W charger (although if the 90W charger causes issues you can always request the 130W charger from Dell).

2) Since I haven't received my SXPS16 yet, I can't specifically comment on this one. But from the research I did prior to purchasing the laptop, here's what I can say: the Arctic White option seems to show fingerprints less, but tends to show dirt more easily; the Obsidian Black option is more of a fingerprint magnet but, naturally, hides stains and dirt better; the Merlot Red option is somewhat in-between the two. As for the leather option on the Obsidian Black choice, users have reported that it may help by providing a better grip with which to hold the laptop. Ultimately, it comes down to which colour you prefer. They're all very nice in their own right.

3) I'm not entirely sure on this one but I'll do my best to answer this one. You may want to wait for confirmation from someone who is more knowledgeable about this. That being said, here goes: the new 1645/1647s feature Intel's new processor line (the i3 / i5 / i7 processors) and, depending on your region, they may come with the new ATI HD5730 cards as opposed to the HD4760. The 1645/1647 seem to have fewer throttling/heat issues, which can perhaps be attributed to the fact that the HD5730 runs slightly cooler, and Intel's new cores tend to be a bit more power-efficient.

4) All SXPS16 models ship with a 64-bit operating system, so it should (in theory) be possible to upgrade to Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit while retaining all of the files and programs already on the machine (do a web search for "Windows Anytime Upgrade" for more information on this). Personally, I ordered my SXPS16 with Home Premium, intending to install Ultimate with a disc I already own.

5) Can't comment on this, sorry

Hope that helped! Let me know if you have any further questions. I won't get my laptop until sometime August, so I probably won't be able to comment on #5 until after you've purchased yours.

 

Just to back up what jnkw correctly said and to add a little more...

1645 does experience throttling more than the 1647, just because it produces more heat. You should choose between the '45 and the '47 based on what you'll be using it for however, not on which is newer/better in some peoples opinions. The 1647's are better for the average user (higher clock speeds + higher turbo) and the 1645's are better for somebody who would be doing alot of video or photo editing, and I'm talking about ALOT of that, because you're sacrificing the basic clock speed for the 4 core output.

I have the white with leather and it is really special. Fingerprints will chase you around no matter what colour you choose, because the palm rest is black gloss and that attracts them like crazy. It might annoy you a little, but I can put up with cleaning it every evening. The white doesn't show fingerprints, and tbh the black would annoy me as it would be the same as the palm rest. But it is of course always a matter of preference.

Also if you can't get the 5 series graphics card then don't worry too much. It's only a 15% increase in performance, and for normal tasks the 4670 is more than enough.

I've had my 1647 for a month now and it's taken some getting used to, but it handles everything that I through at it flawlessly, and I'm really happy with it!

Remember - choose the processor that suits your needs the best. Do you really need a quad core CPU? And don't just think that you'll need it for futureproofing your laptop, dual core will be here for a long time.

Best of luck in your purchase!

 

I agree with you for the most part, however, although the 5730 only offers a 20% increase in performance (based on GFLOPS), it also has lower heat / power consumption and DirectX 11.

The Quad core CPUs can 'turbo boost' up to higher clock speeds than the dual cores can when running only two of their cores, making them faster than the dual cores in every situation. Plus, even though only video recording can really take advantage of the 8 threads offered by i7 at this time, more and more programs are being written that can effectively use several threads.

The combination of a quad core CPU and the newer generation GPU will make the 1645 more future-proof than the 1647. Though admittedly, future proof in a laptop doesn't mean all that much.

 

Still buying SXPS 16 after so many issues/problems ???
Best of luck to you.

 

1647 is newer. 1645 has quad cores, 1647 has dual cores. 1647 runs more coolly than the 1645 and has usually higher clock speeds, however with 1/2 the cores, video editing and GTA 4 will take a major hit. 1645 produces more heat. I'd recommend a 1647 unless you need the quad core power.

Black with leather

1640 are Core 2 Duos. Last generation processor and slower RAM. These processors also use a northbridge, reducing efficiency. These processors do not have turbo boost (on the fly CPU overclocking) nor hyperthreading (virtual cores). Less efficient also. The 1640 also supports the ATi 3670, while the 1645/1647 supports only the 4670 and 5730.

No.

Bought mine over a year ago. A 1640 with ATi 3670. Very happy but gaming was merely OK. Then bought the ATi 4670. Gaming improved a lot. November 2009, I got the 1645 with i7-820QM. Very happy, slightly higher heat, but still happy. Just got my 5730 yesterday. Haven't turned it on yet (gonna swap my parts from my old 1645 into this new 1645) but I imagine gaming will take a good hit along with lower temps. Plus, keeping up with the game

Heat isn't much of an issue. Just don't block the vents. Screen is awesome (RGBLED that is. WLED is OK). Like how thin the laptop is for its power, and the fact that it didn't skip any major ports.

 

My dual core can turbo boost 2 cores up to 3.19, which was faster than the 720 and the 820. I've not checked out how much faster the 740 or 840 are but I didn't think it was as high as 3.19, maybe for the 840 as I think that the 820 could get 3.09 from 1 core turbo boost? Don't quote me on that, but since the Arrandale CPU's were designed for the mobile platform they are better than the Clarksfield quad cores, which are just scaled down desktop processors.

Just so the OP understands, the highest frequency is from the dual cores and they are therefore better for normal users, quad cores should be used by people who will optimise the 8 threads.

And seeker_moc, I'm sorry if it is 20% increase, 15% is the figure that's been set in my mind from previous posters in the forum. My bad.

 

The 720 boosts up to 2.8, but it can run up to 4 threads (on 2 cores) at that speed, whereas the dual cores can only turbo boost on up to 2 threads (on 1 core). However, you are right, the dual core i7s will be faster for most programs right now, until multi-threaded programming improves. Also, the dual core i7s are made on a 32nm process, as opposed to the quad core's 45mm process, with a corresponding power consumption improvement, from 45W to 35W. The dual core i7 are also switchable graphics capable unlike the quad cores, though this is disabled for the XPS 16s anyway.

 

Sorry but you should recheck your source. The 720 can boost one core up to 2.8. Two core boost is significantly less. The i7 620 that I own can boost one core up to 3.33 and two cores up to 3.19. So that's 4 threads on 3.19Ghz making it the fastest CPU available for the SXPS.

I don't mean to argue on here but people need to understand that the i7 620 is the best for all round performance. i7 820 is the best for video encoding/photo editing and you should probably stick to the 1647 unless you're going to be heavily involved in those sorts of processes.

 

I looked it up, and you're almost right, the 620 can boost both cores to 3.07 (admittedly higher than I thought, but not 3.19) and one core to 3.33. The 720 can boost 2 cores to 2.4 and 1 core to 2.8. The 820 can boost to 2.8 / 3.07 and the 840 to 2.93 / 3.2. Source: List of Intel Core i7 microprocessors - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I never disagreed that the dual core 620 was faster in most situations right now, but the quad cores are still faster for certain things like video encoding or heavy multi-tasking. They will continue to become more important as programmers begin writing more applications / games / OSs / etc. which can take advantage of multiple threads.

The difference is also more than just clock speed, the quad cores have 50% (7xx)-100% (8xx) more cache, and 23% more memory bandwidth, as they support DDR3 1333, where the dual cores only support DDR3 1066. Also, the quad core memory controller is on-die with the CPU, where on the dual core they're on package with the GPU, but not on die with the CPU. Source: http://ark.intel.com/ProductCollection.aspx?familyId=43402

 

Yeah okay the numbers sound about right there.
And cache is important to everybody. Whether you need quad core right now is up to you and depends on your needs.
And I don't really think that 1067 to 1333 Mhz makes a massive difference and most people wouldn't notice it.
But as long as people make an informed decision on which is better for their needs, 1645 or 1647, then it's alright.

 

Getting back to the XPS and its ability to handle the i7 multi cores; do you really think that if this CPU is fully utilised, you will get to see these speeds? Odds are it will throttle.

 

Throttling only if CPU and GPU are fully stressed.

 

Are you talking throttling from overheating, or do you mean disabling unused cores to save power? The core "i" family chips are rated at 100c, so the processor shouldn't 'throttle' until core temperatures approach 90C.

As far as being able to fully utilize all 4 cores, that depends on the operating system and the software you're running. Quad cores are useless under Windows XP, and only slightly useful with Vista, but Windows 7 has improved thread managing capabilities, so your laptop should be able to effectively utilize 2-4 cores. Besides the OS, it really depends on the software you're running. Older software will only use 1 thread. Newer software, some new games, and things like audio/video encoding programs should be able to use multiple threads effectively.

 

I think you're right that most people won't notice. The i5s are fast enough for like 80-90% of people out there. I would have gotten the 1647 over the 1645 myself, but the price difference was negligible (actually, I think the upgrade to the 620 would have made the 1647 even more expensive than the 1645 I ordered, at least for the config options offered in the EPP store) and as of now they're only offering the ATI 5730 with the 1645s, which was a 1647 deal breaker for me.

 

I have to admit. I will be buying one of these laptops n about 2 weeks. Am as yet undecided on two things. The color (which is of course a minor detail) and whether I should get the i5 (1647 with the 90W power adapter) or a i7 (1645 with the 130W power adapter). The i5 being cheaper ofcourse and coming with a Dell Wireless N card but apart from that both configurations are exactly the same.

I was leaning towards the i5 due to fact that I probably wont need the processing power offered by the i7's and I may get a free adapter which may come in handy.

In regards to the i7's throttling issue. If the CPU were to use more cores; wouldn't this imply drawing more power (and if assuming a fixed GPU power draw); which in turn would increase the likelihood of hitting the power/temp limit as is set in the BIOS?

 

The (quad) i7s use more power and produce more heat, because they're made on a 45nm process, and the i5s (and dual core i7s) are on a 32nm process. If you're running all 4 cores (most of the time you won't be) then they'll consume even more, but I think the larger process makes a bigger difference.

Another difference to consider is that the 1647s come with a 3670 or 4670 (now relabeled as 565v, but it's the exact same thing), whereas the 1645s come with a 5730. The 5730 is more powerful, and consumes less power/produces less heat.

The quad cores' in the 1645 consume 45W, 10W more power than the 35W dual cores in the 1647, but the 5730 in the 45 consumes 26W , 9W less than the 35W 4670, for a total difference of 1W, making the overall power/heat difference negligible.

 

In the i5 config, I do have the option of upgrading to the 5730 GPU so that wont be an issue.

And the process issue you talk about, its one of the other reasons I am considering waiting for the sandy bridge CPU but that could be too far away.

 

Really, that's awesome. Where did you go to get the 1647 / 5730 combo?

Also, why bother waiting? There's always something new that's going to be released next month. If you keep waiting for the next best thing, you'll never get anything .

 

You do? What country site is that on? Some of us here have been waiting for the opportunity to buy an i5 with 5730 GPU. I have not yet seen that option available on the Canada or US sites.

 

Sound advice! I was waiting for the 5 series GPU to be announced before getting my 1647! I waited two months and then gave up and took the plunge. Two months later and it's still not available on the '47 in the UK!

Win!

 

Indeed, Canada's Dell site did not have that option when I ordered my XPS 1645 a few days ago.

 

Dell Australia.

Going by everyone's surprise. I think I shall order it right now. Though I am going overseas tomorrow. Might wait until I get back on the 10th of August and hope its still available.

Should I get the i5 or the i7-620? Both are options on the 1647.

Not sure if the following link will work but give it a try.

http://configure.ap.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?oc=s541210au&c=au&l=en&s=dhs&cs=audhs1

 

If you can pay the extra cash then you should go for the i7 620, it's the best processor for the SXPS right now.

But an i5 may be sufficient for you. Good luck!

 

Wow. They have some awesome config options on the Australia site. However, they are also super expensive!! The same laptop I bought on the US site for $1160 costs $1733 (1922 AUD) on the AUS website!

 

I already purchased the i7 720. Im only going to be using it for tons of word processing (taking hours of notes etc), watching movies, music and the occasional SCII gaming. Should I have gotten the dual core instead of the quad? Will it make that much of a difference with my basic usage of the computer. and Will the computer get too hot when Im word processing for hours on end?

 

You will be fine. Quad cores are way more future proof. I play SC2 with the lappy in my sig at 1920x1080 with all the settings set to medium, and I get 40-45 fps during in game play. I never notice the machine getting hot unless I am playing games. I also pulled the heat sinks and replace with Artic Silver and my temps went down 10c+ under load. Took of all 10 minutes and was totally worth it.

Enjoy your new rig!

 

Great to hear, thanks for the peace of mind man. I'll be on these forums constantly when I get it! Cant wait for all the tweaks I can make lol.

 

efb123 a dual core would have suited you better with the higher clock speed, but the turbo boost up to 2.8 will be enough for you!
As for future proofing I don't agree the quad cores are the future, the dual core looks set to stay with quad cores only being for demanding applications such as video encoding and editing, and of course for gamers.
But either way it's an excellent machine and I wish you the best of luck with it!

 

i5 with 5730 GPU is now available on the Canada site.

 

It's on the US Home and EPP sites now as well.

FYI, for those of you that can use EPP, the 1647 is over $100 cheaper on the regular home&office site than on the EPP one, and it comes with a better baseline configuration. I'm not sure why that is. The 1645 is still about $100 cheaper on the EPP site though.

 

i fear that wont be the case.

with this current architecture and with silicon cpu's cant go past say for 4Ghz so they are currently focusing on increasing the no of core on single chip.
this trend would continue untill 2017 after which intel are planning to use some other metal compound which is cooler than silicon.

 

Have to admit. The price of the 1647/5730 combo is a bit hard to swallow (base AUD$1,799) but am trying to get them to throw in a free blu-ray combo drive as is the case for the 1645's.

And I can squeeze a 10% discount through a e-coupon but still pricey. I would have been happier if I could get everything I wanted for AUD$2,000 flat.

Edit

Just priced up both configurations on Canadian and Australian website. Canadian came to 2175 (with all the options I wanted) which is AUD$2305.86.

The Australian equivalent was $2332.48.

But I can get a further 10% off the Australian configuration with an e-coupon voucher. And the Canadian option came with the Intel N wireless card (Australia does not have this option).

So quite comparable ... I guess.

 

In terms of future proofing, I wasn't thinking as far ahead as 2017!

Granted the number of cores will increase, but the programs haven't caught up to utilize quad cores yet! For the next 3-4 years a dual core will be enough, and there's no sense in getting a weak quad core for the purpose of future proofing. And I don't expect I'm going to be using my laptop for longer than 4 years!

2017 is 2 systems ahead for me!

 

It depends what you do basic computer usage and gaming then a 1647, if you like to run a lot of apps i mean like every single messenger possible, 15 tabs, and watching a dvd at the same time I think you should go with a 1645.

do not get the 1640 unless your really short money.

I have a 720QM, 4GB, 5730, 500GB at 7200 RPM, Full HD Screen (1080P) and I love the laptop!! Its fast never lags, fast everything. Yesterday I made a 40 min DVD into ISO format and it took 10 min flat. I did notice that the web was running a little slower then normal and word was a little lagged during the while I was making the DVD (not burning). But still usable! I don't think a person who doesnt use this computer normally will be able to notice.

 

I'm afraid I am a bit torn myself. Seems the 1645's (quad core) are cheaper at the moment then buying the 1647's (dual core) due to the fact they are throwing in a free blu-ray player upgrade.

Geez. How come I can never get the configuration options I want? Its like Dell are deliberately taunting me.

 

you can never understand their market policy. by the way, if you are getting the 1645 at a cheaper price than that of 1647 plus a blu-ray player, then what's the problem? in my country the 1647 costs $100 more than the price of 1645 and only a person who hates a quad-core will buy it.

 

Or perhaps someone wanting to stretch the battery life as long as possible, avoid carrying around a 130W power brick, avoid throttling issues, and perhaps may not have the need for quad cores just yet.



But with them being cheaper at the moment, its a tough one. I am willing to wait one more month to see if they can offer the 1647 with the free blu-ray upgrade but my current laptops flashing orange battery light is beginning to bug me (I think it time to take the battery out ... I am just lazy).

 

The battery life will differ at most by only half an hour.
Many people are asking for 130W adapter as a replacement from dell because of the overheating problem with the 90W adapter. So you can't merely treat the 130W adapter as power brick. It depends up on your priority (use or ease in carrying).
Throttling has also been seen in case of some 1647 ones although it is less frequent.
Although you don't need a quad-core at present but might need it in future. So, there is no harm in purchasing it if you are getting it at cheaper price as compared to the 1647.
At last, i can only say that the decision is yours. so, good luck.