Questions Regarding XPS 1730

Guys, I looked through the first 15 pages on this subforum and then saw that the owner's lounge was over 800 pages so if this is answered elsewhere, please forgive me.

Question 1: Is it possible to get Dell to send the 1730 w/o an OS [w/ reduced price] and with only 1 8800m GTX?

Question 2: What is the general consensus here regarding the quality of the 1730 versus the Sagers [9262 & 5793]? I mean build quality, gaming performance, heat issues and so on...

Thank you so much for your help!!!!

 

1. I don't think so on the OS but you could call and try. No they only make a card with 2 8800ms on it. You can get a single 8700 but why on earth would you do that heh.

2. There is no general consensus really. All 3 are greta machines and their owners seem to love them. I was going to get a 5793 and ended up with a 1730 becuase I got a killer deal. I don't regret it at all. Mostly I went with the Dell because I got the good deal but I also enjoy having a superior warranty and I much prefer the looks of it which is of course up to individual taste.

 

Ok so there are no glaring concerns with the 1730 [like heat issues and chassis cracking with the m15x...] ???

The Sagers seem to be primarily problem free, especially since the fan issue was mostly resolved on the 5793... I just wanted to make sure of the same with the 1730.

 

1. I dont believe Dell will sell any system without an OS, unless you are a business customer who has an annual licensing agreement with Microsoft.

A single 8800GTX solution is not currently available, and Im unsure as to whether it ever wil be. You may purchase a single 8700m card, but really, whats the point (unless you are using the 'beast' for simple non-gaming tasks).

2. The laptop is solid, and is probably one of the best built laptops Ive used - and being a network manager, Ive used lots believe me! I love the way its completely upgradable, just like a desktop!
The system does run hot. Average of 65c when idle, and around 75-80c when gaming. However, the system does an excellent job of cooling the unit. The fans really do work very well in this unit.

Gaming performance is dependent on the GPU you choose. The 8700m is a joke, the 8700m SLI is better, and wil lrun many games very well, with some tweaking. The 8800mGTX SLI is AWESOME. Its run everything Ive thrown at it, at max settings. Im VERY happy with this system's gaming performance. No problems there.

If you would like further info on the system, check out my YouTube videos on it - link in sig. They'll give you a good insight into both the outside and inside of the system, its upgradeability, game performance, and so on.

 

Awesome!! Thanks ifti!

 

ifti, what do you mean about the 1730 being completely upgradeable?

How far upgradeable and how long into the future?

 

Can anyone explain a bit more on the whole 'upgradeable' thing? Thanks.

 

With most laptops, the GPU is not upgradable. To upgrade the GPU you have to replace the entire mainboard!! Hence most laptops are not upgradable, since the cost of replacing an entire mainboard wouldnt be justified. You may as well buy a new laptop!

The M1730 is different. It has a graphics card thats seperate from the mainboard - hence you can open the system and remove and replace the GPU without touching the mainboard.
Same with the CPU. You can remove and upgrade it as you wish.
Obviously HDD, RAM, and optical drives are also upgradable.

Hence a few years down the line, if you want to make the system faster, you will probably have the option to upgrade the GPU and CPU etc, rather then buying a whole new system - just like you would upgrade a desktop system.

Watch my videos and you'll see what I mean.....

 

Wow that seriously gives the 1730 an edge then if I can expect some upgradeability for the next couple of years... awesome!