Upgrade from XPS M1530

Hi guys I am considering to buy a new Laptop and came here for some advice.

Basically the last time I visited this forum was a few years ago when I bought my current Laptop (m1530). Now yesterday out of the blue a Dell employee calls me and asks me if I would be interested in upgrade to a newer model.

He offered me £550 for my m1530 and said that if I paid £350 pounds on top I could get the Dell XPS 15z. I guess my question is would you guys consider this to be a good deal.

I was at work when i received the call so there are a number of questions I want to ask him, such as would this offer extend to other models or if it is only limited to the 15z. I also want to see weather I can get more than £550 out of him for my m1530.

Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

-popwer

 

I, too, have an M1530 that I'm considering upgrading from. I LOVE that laptop, and it's the best I've ever owned - 3.5 yrs old and its still going strong. With that in mind, I've been doing a ton of research on this subject.

... And what I've found is disappointing.

My M1530 has an Intel T7800 processor, Nvidia GT 8600M video card, 4 GB of RAM, an SSD that I installed two years ago, and a screen with a 1440x900 default resolution. It's an awesome machine, but can't run the latest games decently, can't play Blu-Ray discs, is starting to overheat from the heat paste wearing out, has some broken parts from traveling all over the planet, and has had continual screen issues (needed replacement twice).

I considered the XPS 15z, but it isn't much of an improvement, honestly. The best processor it can have is the dual core 2620M, 8 GB of RAM, has a lackluster Nvidia 525M video card, has no Blu-Ray drive, and Dell has done the old bait and switch with the screen... They initially released it wit an HD screen with a very high resolution, got rave reviews, and now no longer offer it (just a 1366x768 screen is offered now). HP did the same thing with their Envy 14.

That being said... If you're OK with the lower res screen than what you already have, it should still offer about an 80% performance increase over your existing laptop. But it is VERY expensive for what you get.

Right now I'm drifting toward the HP dv6 Quad with the Intel 2630QM quad core processor, AMD 6770m video card, 6GB of RAM, 1920x1080 HD screen, and Blu-Ray drive. It's about the same size as my current M1530 and offers about a 175% performance increase... And with the LogicBuy coupon, I can get it right now for about $945. Not bad!

Those are my thoughts...

 

I should also note that I looked at Asus and Sager notebooks... The Asus ones have either crummy screens or are bulky, and the Sagers are HUGE... Too big for traveling all over the place with me.

Macs are nice, but way too expensive (I'd have to pay $2500 to get what HP is offering) and I'm not sold on the OS.

The plain old Dell XPS 15 is nice, but it is ugly, a bit thicker than the HP, and the Nvidia 540m video card is a bit weak for my purposes.

The Acer Aspire Ethos AS5951G looks nice, but I can't find it anywhere for a decent price, and I've heard that their build quality sucks. I'd still like to try one out, as it does look like a good competitor for the dv6... It seems like their specs keep changing now. The one CNET reviewed has a 540m video card, so it's probably a no for me for the same reasons as the XPS 15 is.

 

Hi Arcane thanks for getting back to me. I too love my m1530 and it has served me well over the years, other then some heating issues I've never had a problem with it. I was even planning to hold onto it for another year or so.

But the offer from the Dell Rep is rather tempting after all since he is offering me £550 for the m1530 I'd only have to pay £350 for the 15z. I've looked into the 15z and really don't like how cramped the keyboard looks. From what I've heard its also difficult to switch out the battery once its capacity starts decreasing.

I guess what I am asking is, taking all these factors into consideration would it be wise for me to upgrade.

I hate my own indecisiveness when it comes to purchasing a new laptop.

 

I just had my palm rest replaced on my M1530, so I'm going to wait unless I see a super deal come out. I want to see where Intel's Ivy Bridge and AMD's Fusion is going to take us, and I'm interested in what the PC industry is going to cook up next in response to Apple.

I'm still turned off by Dell's bait and switch with the 15z's screen and I agree that the keyboard looks cramped (the M1530 keyboard is perfect!), especially since it has larger dimensions than the M1530.

That sounds like a damn good deal right mow, and according to Dell's UK website, UK models still have the HD screen. I'm in the UK right now... Would you mind PM'ing me how you managed to find out about that?

Unless you have some kind of application that needs Sandy Bridge technology to perform half decently and your workflow is being hampered as a result, I would wait, too. It's all up to you, though!