S-XPS 1645 AC Power Throttle Issue Investigation

Man it just slapped me right in the face how LONG this laptop takes to charge on the 90-watt adapter.... I've had it plugged in for almost 2 hours while using it and its at 55% from 5%.... sigh

 

You lucky, if you are playing, it will take forever

 

that's my next benchmark. im going to take the battery down to 7%, and then charge it to 100% using the 90W, and the 130W.

 

well i started out playing "uncertain caller" and slowly graduated myself to "I know exactly what I am talking about". They're telling me that they wont send me an adapter because its not tested by dell. I told them that they dont need to test it because its been tested already (i had already shown him this thread at this point). long story short im on hold waiting for a supervisor.

On a side note, i love this keyboard lol

EDIT: Update, The supervisor refused to place an order for the 130 watt adapter until he talks with his superiors. I'm to look forward to a phone call on monday.

Max420, can you provide the phone number and if available the extension number you went through? i may try again tomorrow.

 

max420, You asked for a model # for a slim version
I found this replacement for the pa-13 they say the older Dell PA-13 AC adapter can be replaced by the newer PA-4E AC adapter. It has a much slimmer design, so it's more portable than the PA-13 “power brick”.
Anyways you can take a look HERE close to the bottom.

 

Here's a cookie



But don't ask for reps.

+1 good find.

 

Thats the one i ordered for a backup/convenience. Im glad to see it should work then. hopefully ill get both in at the same time

 

Well Dell's website doesn't have a PA-4e listed, but this looks like the one
http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/...etail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=330-1830

330-1830 is the number

I'm gonna have to ask for that one, the 330-1829 is the massive brick. Do not want.

 

Holy christ.... I mentioned in another post i think that the adapter wasn't too terribley hot but i take that back.

I just picked mine up to move my system and literally dropped it involuntarily because its so hot.

Does anyone have a infrared temperature reader? I have mine sitting on top of a meat thermometer atm (i know, i know, i know, save your laughter) and its at 140F.... and i promise you its hotter then that but given the *ahem* method im using to take hte temperature I'm sure its actually warmer.

EDIT: 145F... sheesh. Considering that its just sitting under my ac adapter on my desk and its getting heated up that hot, that doesn't seem safe. I'm not even gaming. I've been idle on the phone all this time and browsing the forums.

 

Where you stress testing? That is definitely a safety hazard. I find it hard to believe dell didnt test/know about this. I have the equipment, can measure when i get my laptop in(2nd day of boxing). I know 130-140 is around the threshold for skin but it also depends on material its made of, plastic vs metal etc. This seems almost negligence if its getting that hot, i couldnt imagine in the summer time how that would play out.

you think the outside is about 160-180 probably, the insides must be just cooking.

 

130W Dell adapter PA-4E
Input current
Output current
2.5 A
6.7 A
Dimensions
Height
70.22 mm (2.76 inches)
Width
146.64 mm (5.77 inches)
Depth
16.3 mm (0.64 inch)

This is from the Setup and Quick Reference Guide for the E6500. it was revised this november. the size is smaller than the 330-1829/30.
I know dell dont list it but it has to exist.. check it out on pages 30 & 31 of the reference guide. I hope this is helping.

 

Yeah the plastic on mine has gotten a little soft in some spots.

 

With mine running prime95 and furmark at the same time with a half charged battery the ac adapter was pulling a steady 93W according to my meter and the adapter got up to 78C at the hottest point according to my laser thermometer which is usually pretty accurate with the rest of the adapter being over 63C at it's coolest point.

The adapter is definitely on it's limit.

One thing I'd like to query is if running realtemp and prime95 the multiplier is always about 12x making the processors run at about 1.6Ghz as they should.

If I then start rthdribl at the same time the clock speed is reduced immediately to around 7x regardless of whether I'm on battery or mains. Is this normal is am I missing another setting that is bringing the multiplier down too when the overall load increases?

 

FYI- Both of those bricks are the same exact size and weight. I looked at both of Dells tech specs and the only difference is that:

330-1829 = 3FT power cable
330-1830 = 6FT power cable

 

Now all we want to know is how long charging takes in addition to the 90W.

 

ill do that right after i come back form breakfast.

whats the best way to do it?

i was thinking let it run down to like 7% in windows, and then see how long it akes to charge in windows, while idle.

 

So you are saying that the 130W gets uncomfortably hot or you were referring to the 90W adapter?

 

the model number X9366 (that max420 has) doesnt seem to be the same as the ones on the current dell website( X408G). looking up the dimensions of the X9366 shows the height to be 1.59" vs the 1" of the X408G. Its also about half inch longer and wider( x9366). Seems to me the X9366 has been replaced with a slimmer X408G. The brick that they sent max is probably just an older version that they do not sell anymore. If you do a search you can only buy a refurbished one from dell. ( link)

Hopefully that might clear some things up. Looks like max420 got a refurb of an older model from dell. Which kind of sucks since we payed a lot of money for a new model that should of worked from the start.

 

Is this one compatible? It's for 150-watt for Alienware M15x.

http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/...etail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=330-5830

"...Packed with 150 Watts of power, this lightweight and easy-to-carry plug adapter..."

 

Now that all of you great techies have figured out the problem, I went ahead and ordered my system. I asked them to throw-in a 130W power adapter for free. They 1st offered me 50% off of the $99 price for the 130W (part number: 330-1830) then agreed to send for free if I signed up for the dell preferred account. The supervisor verified for me that this power supply is compatible and that it is the slim line version (although they are shipping the 90W with the unit as well so I'll only use it when at my desk so not a big deal either way).
Now to wait wait wait
thx again!

 

@Ollie

IDK about the multipliers. If everything worked like it should, the i7-720QM should run at 13x with all four eight stressed and the i7-820QM should run at 14x with all eight stressed.

I used to be able to get 13x by disabling EIST, but that test has shown not to be repeatable.

~Ibrahim~

 

With all these issues from ordering to this power brick problem, it is starting to sound like Class Action time.

 

Except that I dont care to wait 5 years minimum while its in court getting appealed and argued over just to get a $45 settlement.


For the record, i was not stress testing my ac adapter when it got up to 150F degrees. I was actually not using my computer at all, i was on the phone with dell support that whole time, and i sat down and typed out my post saying they would call me back and then picked it up to move my laptop and almost burned my hand. it had been idle at this website the whole time.

 

are you sure about that? the 720 qm is 1.6ghz while 820qm is 1.73.

12 * 133 = 1596
13*133 = 1729
14 * 133 = 1862

14 would be to high for the rated 1.73ghz.. while 12 for 720qm and 13 for 820qm seems to fit nicely. At least thats my observation

 

From what i understand, i7-720QM and i7-820QM has the same core, but the 820 is made from a fine made layer, that is why you may see the i720 hit 13x for an instance but not capable of staying there.
The design specs for i720 is 12x

 

the brick i have is, 1.5" high, 2.5" wide, and 6 5/8" long

 

looks like you have gotten an older refurb for sure. They seemed to been replaced by newer slimmer ones (x408g).

That cant be fair for as much money we payed to have new stuff vs an older bulkier refurb.

not only we pay good money for a performing laptop. But the 90w seems very dangerous to be using all the time. Dell really should be replacing the 90w with the new slimmer 130w.

ill post pictures etc when i get the 130w in, hopefully a week. Also laptop just shipped so ill confirm issues as well when i receive it.

 

The 720QM is stock at 1.6GHz but, all four cores can have Turbo Boost by one multiplier, so it can run at 1.73GHz. Similarly, the 820QM runs stock at 1.73GHz but can Turbo Boost by one multiplier on all four cores to hit 1.86GHz.

 

iv had ebay postings, various online stores and dell tell me that they are just one cord. that being said, when anybody gets their slim 130W in teh mail, or has a slim 150W, or 210, please send me the part number. im not paying for this huge cord, and im also not sending back my 90W with the blue end.

so ill probably pay for the next cord they send me, since i have two now that i got for free. i just need the link or part number.

 

ok so get this.

I was playing left for dead and i was plugged in to AC, havn't been on battery since last night.

I suddenly have my game freeze up, and close out. theres a message on the screen from either windows or dell's battery monitor saying "your laptop is plugged in but not able to charge" and before i could screenshot it my computer hibernated.

More proof i guess that the 90watt just doesn't have what it takes.

Freaking lame though.

 

Well max that link that some one posted earlier that had the PA-4E "slim" it even indicated in the description that it was a slimmer replacement.

I think that Dell's part number just orders you a compatible part thats in stock when they are doing the replacement like you got. If you were to order it retail i bet you'd get the slim but thye probably sent you some crap that they couldn't sell anymore.

I'm going to tell them that they better send me the slim PA-4E because if i get a massive brick like you have im going to tell them to ship me another one thats a slim. no way am i carrying that around with me.

 

im probably going to leave the 90W in my bag, for when im not at home and want AC. and leave the 130W behind my desk at home (where i game)

 

And, any results??

 

High Performance Power Plan, all power saving stuff off, full LCD brightness, while sitting idle, this is how long it took to charge the 9-cell. With the 130W. God that was horrible, it was like watching a whole movie, but with no movie playing.





129 min / 2 hours 9 min

 

Hmm, that's acceptable. Thanks!

I there any chance you can check how it charges while gaming? So start gaming at any random percentage, hook it up, start playing for some time and check how much it charged while being under load.

 

i can say as far as running irc, azureus, and playing HD Video, it always stays at 100% like it should, i can check the charging rate under load (gaming, prime95 etc) tomorrow.

 

Ok, great!

 

Well, I contacted Dell and so far I was denied twice on receiving a 130W Adapter as they seem to think it is still a software issue/drivers and that the 130W adapter is not designed for this model even after I directed them to this forum.

I even explained that the 130W adapter was already shipped to somebody else already. It seems that we might have a hard time getting this 130W adapter.

They stated that even if they were to send another adapter it would be the 90W adapter and not the 130W.

I hope that it is easier for the rest of you, good luck. I will keep trying.

 

lol I'll be calling my rep this monday... if he's gonna say the same as they told you, 2by4, I'm gonna wreak havoc

 

Can someone please answer these two questions for people like me who are following this thread but who aren’t that technologically savvy:

1) Will using the 130 Watt adapter void the warranty?

2) Is it possible to damage the battery or decrease its longevity or damage the laptop by using the higher wattage adapter?

I ordered a spare adapter when I ordered my 1645. This was shipped in advance of my laptop (laptop should hopefully be in this week—in boxing stage). I was sent and have received a 65 Watt Auto/Air AC Adapter as the spare. This is what was ordered by the sales person when I made my initial laptop order, and is what is listed as the spare adapter for the Studio XPS 16.

As you can tell from my above questions, I’m not a technological genius, but I was willing to go out on a limb and guess that if the 90 watt doesn’t work right then there is no way in hell the 65 watt would work. So I called yesterday and purchased a 130 watt replacement (Manufacturer Part# D232H Dell Part# 330-1830). Dell is giving me grief on returning the 65 watt adapter as it is past the 21 day return window. The sales agent said he talked to a "resolution specialist" and was told I could return it because Dell sent a 65 watt adapter as an accessory for a laptop that comes with a 90 watt adapter standard. However, they never sent me an RMA email as he promised.

 

Since I am a novice...

Will this issue effect normal use? Web Surfing? Multiple MS Office Windows open at once? The speed at which we install apps?

 

1) No

and

2) No

But somebody do correct me if I'm wrong.

As for whether Ms Office etc will slow down no you'll not notice any difference, its only for highly intensive graphics apps and games that there may be performance issues (from what we can conclude from the above results).

 

130w might charge faster, max420 i think was testing that. No way would that 65 watt work wow, thats horrible they let you order that for it.

Thats really a shame dell is refusing to send a 130w even after showing proof here. perhaps as we get more proof from other users they wont be able to refuse it.

What concerns me though is the safety if its getting that hot just sitting there like what has been reported. Its only a matter of time til someone gets burned or one fails and burns down a house/apartment complex, all because of an underpowered adapter and negligence on dells part.

 

General use: Using the 1645 plugged in with the 90W adapter:

Not at all, I have been using the laptop for about 2 weeks and running it for about 10-12 hours a day using office ,email, surfing the web and other applications and not had any issues at all. I can say that it has worked perfectly for me.

 

Does the 90W have a UL Mark on it? If so below is the link to file a safety concern complaint. I don't have my laptop yet and I don't have the technical knowledge to explain the problem which is required to fill out the form. But maybe someone else who does might be interested in pursuing this option. That might get Dell's attention and it might force a recall.

http://www.ul.com/global/eng/pages/offerings/perspectives/consumer/fieldreport/

 

What is getting hot the 90W or the 130W?

 

the 90w has been reported to get extremely hot, especially when loaded. users have mentioned plastic getting soft, and one had to let go because of possibly burns. Zlog report it was most likely well over 150F+ just sitting there idle. It was mentioned by max420 the 130w runs cooler.

Ill be recieving mine on mon/tues. Im an engineer, when design we talk about safety things like this all the time. I would be very cautious with it, make sure its in open air etc. Pushed to the limit like it is, its very possibly itll fail early. But for a device getting that hot and expected to be handled by unplugging and wrapped up, doesnt make much sense at all. Im worried if i was gaming on it, and my little cousin or someone picked it up and moved it. Also note its winter time and will probably be much worse in summer. Results will vary though how hot it gets per user.

 

Yeah, I have the 90W. If no one told me, I wouldn't care or even notice this. But I'm OCD about this working properly, a la my purpose in this thread, lol.

I think games is where you really notice this.

I can hold it maybe for five seconds before it starts to hurt, lol, the 90W.

~Ibrahim~

 

Something like overheating is a significant issue that Dell should not be taking lightly. I would not feel safe leaving it plugged in when I'm away from home.

 

Has anybody received a call back from these lazy DELL's elevated team?
I have reported the problem by email a week ago, and by chat 4 times within the last 5 days with a promise of a call back within 24-48 hours and not honored. I was even forwarded to a floor supervisor who was convinced of the problem.