XPS 12 Owners Lounge

Hi Guys,

I've got a new XPS 12 (I7 256GB) and am having wireless issues. Half of the time after cold boot or sleep it just doesn't see my network (others appear fine though...) I have unchecked the let windows turn this device off in device manager and put it in max performance mode in power settings with no improvement. Is there anything else I can do?

 

I have had my XPS12 for 3 days. I've gone thru some configuration problems with trackpad and display, but now seem to have enough stability to not restore or recover, but continue to set up the machine "in this instance of Windows 8". I have a base unit with a 3317 I 5, 4GB, 128SSD.
I got a Toshiba Canvio + USB 3.0 portable HDD which comes with it's own backup utility. I need to decide whether to use the Dell back up or the Toshiba. Im looking for suggestions and opinions about back up. Partition the toshiba?

I was very happy to be able to install some legacy programs that use serial to USB peripherals without a problem!
The Display is awesome.
At the moment, I am using a USB 2.0 hub for several USB 2.0 devices and using my second USB for the USB3.0 Toshiba HDD.
Would there be any reason to get a 3.0 hub?
What functional differences are there between windows8 and 8pro? worth the upgrade? my uses are pretty basic, but for added stability i might invest in an upgrade.
TIA for replies, Larry

 

Do not even think about the dell backup utility or the Toshiba utility ( by the way I also have external canvio ).

Use control panel ==> WIndows 7 File Recovery and ( at least ) use that to create a system image and system repair disk. The old ( completely useable ) windows 7 backup can also be used here.

I double up on backup and along with using that I also installed Symantec System Recovery Desktop Edition 2013 ( basically ghost version 16 ) ... you can get that for around 80 bucks ( maybe under ).

The dell thing is not to be trusted at all ( at least for now under windows 8 ) ... may get fixed eventually ... don't count on it.

 

Improve compatibility with UEFI based Systems (like this)

 

Not sure what you mean by it is amazing? Just bigger size disk

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk HD

 

Watch for the keyboard backlight... it turns on when the computer starts booting. This is how I know it is actually firing up or not...

 

Yesterday, I saw some dimming of the display, checked settings, was on max performance, no power saving, then, one of the colors went out
Solid color Test:

Red Button shows green
Green shows purple
Blue shows Yellow green

Went to Dell Chat tech support, let the tech do remote access, he flashed the BIOS, re-configured the wireless as I was concerned that losing connection in the midst of his work could be bad,
I had hooked up an external display to the display port and it was normal color, so the graphics card was good.
Dell is going to send a tech here with a new display.
This morning, a few minutes after boot up, the colors are normal again....???
I sure hope this machine (or is it the OS) settles down to stable soon!

 

5 minutes later:
Back to missing color on display again

 

No graphics card just onboard intel ... sounds like bad connection to screen maybe ? Good luck but with any machine you get some lemons.

 

Not for me... the keyboard backlight comes on at most a fraction of a second before the display comes on.

 

Update on my wireless issues:

After 3 months I just called dell tonight and they are sending a tech out to replace the wireless card.
The idiot said that it is not possible it is a hardware problem since I ordered TWO XPS 12's and because the other one doesn't have issues it is a software/OS problem. Some of these Tier 1 tech guys are morons. Its well documented here and other forums about the Intel 6235 card having issues. I have tried ALL Dell drivers AND the official latest Intel driver, turned off power settings...everything. Told him this too and he still said its not a hardware problem. After he tweaked settings on the card through device manager, and the card restarted it refused to reconnect to my router so he reluctantly said he will send a tech out. THANKS....

Hoping that the new card will fix my random drops, incredibly slow reconnections after sleep awake and boot and overall poor stability.

Will update as soon as the tech replaces it.

 

Is it possible to run 2 external monitors via the mini display port connector? I guess some sort of splitter cable would be needed but I'm not sure if it would be supported? I'm currently running one external monitor (Dell 24") via a straight mini-display port to display port cable & it works well...

Must be able to run at 1920x1200 & 1680x1050 resolutions...

 

After contacting Dell Tech Support on Saturday, A "next business day" service call was scheduled to replace the display on my XPS 12. On Monday morning, I could open the - schedule directly with service provider - view/reschedule - link and see that the service was scheduled for sometime 9-5 Monday. The = online status - link has consistently shown parts on order, and the schedule directly has disappeared. I am hoping that I will hear from the service tech today so I can get an idea when the service might be. I have been staying close to home so as to be available when service can be done.

 

I was wondering the same thing and though I couldn't find a definitive answer it looked like the only way to do that is to run the second one via USB. Wish someone would prove me wrong!

 

A video distribution amplifier would be the place to look. I know they are available in DVI and VGA. Don't know about HDMI.

 

Here is my update:

Wireless STILL runs like crap. Gonna reinstall OS I guess?

Tech damaged my carbon fiber and didn't even put the antenna back on properly. What an .

 

Called Dell Support on Wednesday re: the display replacement service call, got put on conference call with the service provider who said that they had no tracking on the part. Dell may have dropped the ball on shipping, but picked it up and the part was here this morning. Tech came out and replaced the display. He did a good clean job of it.
Back to setting up the new toy.

 

First off, I'm sorry if this question has already been asked. Second, I just discovered this forum while searching for help, I didn't know it existed until now, awesome! I hate that my first post is asking for help though.

I have the XPS 12, i7, 128ssd. I haven't had it for 2 months. Something happened, and I got stuck at the Dell Logo screen (POST boot issue). Everything checked out OK per the diagnostics. Dell shipped me a bootable thumb drive with windows 8, b/c that seemed to the only option, start fresh, which i had no issues with. again i've only had it for a short period of time, so i'm not losing anything important. I cannot for the life of me get the machine to boot to the usb thumb drive. I've turned the Secure Boot off and that allowed me to change the USB to the first boot drive. still nothing. any ideas? Dell tech support hasn't been very useful unfortunately.

 

I also seem to be having the same issue you have. My wireless drops sometimes and is slow and unreliable at times. Not sure if it's because my home wifi sucks or it's the wifi card's fault. How did you contact Dell? Is your laptop still under warranty (when did you purchase it)? Did he replace the wireless mini-card?

Also, how did you know it was a hardware issue and not a software issue?

 

It's a hardware issue -- every laptop (from various manufacturers) with this particular wireless card has the same problems. If you go back a little in this thread, you'll find tops for adjusting the power settings to reduce the issue. Replacing the card won't fix the problem, because they're all like that. It's just a thing you have to accept with this laptop.

You can apparently solve the issue entirely by disabling wireless "n" functionality, but then you're left with wireless that works fine but is rather slow.

Again, if you go back in this thread, you'll find people who successfully replaced this wireless card with another. That should solve the problem, too.

 

When attaching an external monitor thru the display port to HDMI, the sound output is automatically muted at the 3.5mm audio jack and transferred to the HDMI device. I can not find a setting in control panel-sound to change this. Info appreciated, Larry

 

Hi,

I have just received my XPS12 (i7 - ordered about a month ago) and was wondering which, if any, of the various issues posted on here would affect me.

Fortunately, the wireless connection seems fine. However, the trackpad is causing me some pain. The issue I have is when you are scrolling through a page (2 fingers) and stop with your fingers still on the trackpad (say going through search results or on any website really - google or explorer) the page jitters. It's really frustrating because you stop to read but the page jumps up and down.

If I go into the cypress track pad settings and switch off palm rejection it makes no difference. I've also tried switching off buttons and gestures and played with the sensitivity (I have pointer speed high and touch pressure low otherwise it's just too slow) but these don't make any difference.

The version says 2.5.1.42.

Just wondered if anyone on here has had the same issue before I contact Dell - if it can't be fixed then it will have to go back

Other issues I am having (but haven't had time to investigate) are

- the screen dims when I'm using it and then doesn't go back to full brightness.
- fan noise is high (only notice this when in bed at night)
- browser choice keeps coming up after reboot.

Thanks.

 

The brightness change is an easy fix, just turn off automatic brightness in the metro settings, it's what causes it.

 

OK thanks, I've tried that and Dell also changed to auto dim power settings as well.

As far as the jittery trackpad is concerned, Dell support couldn't do anything (pc refresh, drivers, windows reinstall, bios flash) didn't help so sending engineer to replace it.

Fan noise still seems to be an issue after bios flash but will be able to tell more this evening when there's less background noise.

The other thing I've noticed is that even though I have the 2 finger scroll speed set as its highest in the touchpad settings that it's still really slow in the mail app and in "change PC settings" - fine elsewhere. Presume this is a Windows 8 thing but it's a bit crap. It takes about 5 swipes to move through the PC settings and there's only a couple of pages. I can put up with this though if the jitter is sorted.

Oh and finally, I ran a Dell diagnostic during this and it showed:

Network card: Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6235
Fatal Device error detected

even though network looks ok.

Thanks

 

OK thanks, I've tried that and Dell also changed to auto dim power settings as well.

As far as the jittery trackpad is concerned, Dell support couldn't do anything (pc refresh, drivers, windows reinstall, bios flash) didn't help so sending engineer to replace it.

Fan noise still seems to be an issue after bios flash but will be able to tell more this evening when there's less background noise.

The other thing I've noticed is that even though I have the 2 finger scroll speed set as its highest in the touchpad settings that it's still really slow in the mail app and in "change PC settings" - fine elsewhere. Presume this is a Windows 8 thing but it's a bit crap. It takes about 5 swipes to move through the PC settings and there's only a couple of pages. I can put up with this though if the jitter is sorted.

Thanks

 

Changing the trackpad is very likely to be pointless -- it's just a "meh" trackpad with rather poor drivers. Read back in this thread and you'll see that trackpad complaints are very common.

If your jitter is caused by phantom taps, then turning off palm rejection would resolve that. So, seems like that's not the problem. If it's the twitchy trackpad reading still fingers as moving a bit, then a replacement is unlikely to help, since that's just something the pad does. Worth a shot to have Dell replace it, though.

The guy Dell sent for me scratched the carbon fiber on the bottom while taking out screws. Once he was inside the machine, he'd clearly never worked on an XPS 12 before. Fingers crossed your guy is more experienced (and steady-handed).

I returned my unit partly because of the poor trackpad. The same machine with a Synaptics pad instead of a third-tier Cypress pad would be an instant buy for me.

 

@ horsey40, I use serial to USB peripherals and occasionally windows "detects" a "phantom" serial ball point HID which causes cursor and screen jitter. Look in control panel - devices and printers and if you see such, right click and remove it.
This is a long shot for "modern" set ups.

 

@larryrobbins Thanks for that but unfortunately can't find any such device.

Quick update on the fan noise. This only happens when its plugged in and is controlled by the System Cooling Policy in the Power Pan Settings - it's passive on battery and active when plugged in.

So the only issue I have now is the trackpad. It's not just the jitter that's the problem it's the inconsistency between apps - even the same website in chrome and explorer scrolls differently (2 fingers). This could be a Windows 8 issue I suppose.

If the replacement trackpad isn't a vast improvement then it's going to have to go back which is a real shame. The screen, speakers, build quality are all excellent and I've waited over a month for this (sold my MacBook air for it). BTW, my wife loves it and the trackpad doesn't bother her that much.

Anyone had experiences with trackpads on other Windows 8 latops?

Thanks.

 

@larryrobbins Thanks for that but unfortunately can't find any such device.

Quick update on the fan noise. This only happens when its plugged in and is controlled by the System Cooling Policy in the Power Pan Settings - it's passive on battery and active when plugged in.

So the only issue I have now is the trackpad. It's not just the jitter that's the problem it's the inconsistency between apps - even the same website in chrome and explorer scrolls differently (2 fingers). This could be a Windows 8 issue I suppose.

If the replacement trackpad isn't a vast improvement then it's going to have to go back which is a real shame. The screen, speakers, build quality are all excellent and I've waited over a month for this (sold my MacBook air for it). BTW, my wife loves it and the trackpad doesn't bother her that much.

Anyone had experiences with trackpads on other Windows 8 latops?

Thanks.

 

i think my main issue at this point is the cursor freeze. It does not make any sense but i get an occasional cursor freeze which is very annoying and i cannot get rid of. Wifi works like a charm for me, trackpad sometimes does respond to right clicks but other than that the xps 12 is a great machine. Any ideas about the cursor freeze?

 

I thought you might find this video I did regarding the XPS 12 touch pad and touch screen issue. I'd be interested to know if you find the earthing has an effect too.
Dell XPS12 Review ShowsTouch Pad and Touch Screen Electrical Earthing Fault - YouTube

 

I just purchased one. Super excited. For some reason it is delayed though. Should be with me by the end of the week!

 

I've had issues with techs not knowing what they're doing too. One time, a tech came by to replace the screen on my alienware m17x and he couldn't get the screen off for the life of him. He ended up trying to pry the glass (hard plastic really) off the screen and ended up breaking it and cutting his hand up really good. He spent half an hour bleeding out in my bathroom. Then proceeded to try and finish the job with bloody hands. Yes I did get him some towels and bandaids but he acted like it was no big deal. So I had Dell send in the replacement part and I did it without any hassle after spending 10 minutes reading the service manual.

 

I returned two units in a row (and then gave up and got a refund) because the touchpad became twitchy and non-responsive only when the unit was plugged in. On the first machine, replacing the trackpad and motherboard did nothing. So, yeah, I can confirm that at least two other units out there became basically unusable because of what sure seemed to be grounding/earthing issues.

 

Yay, my order shipped. Can anyone comment on their experience writing notes with this? What do you use? How convenient is it to just write with your fingers on OneNote?

 

My XPS 12 came with a trial of McAfee which is about to expire. I have previously used AVG free and had no infection. Been using a mac for quite a while now and wonder whether it is worth buying a subscription to McAfee, or removing it and going with AVG and windows firewall? or another freeware AV solution? TIA for opinions.

 

Just go with Microsoft Security Essentials. It's free, and good. Don't ... for whatever reason ... subscribe with McAfee.

 

Everyone has opinions in this area ...

I personally am a strong believer in a double protection system ... use both Norton Internet Security 2013 ( firewall / antivirus / anti everything ) along with MBAM pro ( Malware Bytes Anti Malware ).

Best protection is a tried and tested backup and recovery strategy along with both of the above.

 

Free ... yes it is now ... good ... effective ... well ... opinions vary.

 

Ive been using AVG MBAM and Spybot, and haven't had an infection in years

 

Quick update.

I had an engineer round to replace the trackpad due the jittering when you stopped scrolling with two fingers. He replaced it and it is so much worse. Now it just stops as you move it around. For example, on the desktop i have one window open (task manager) and as you move your mouse over this window it just stops.

Also, it stops when a process is using a bit of cpu. It's almost like the cypress software has to be active all the time just for the pointer to move. It's bizarre.

Had enough now. I was actually starting to enjoying using the XPS 12 even though the fan noise is too high, the wireless occasionally won't connect and the touchscreen occasionally stops working (especially in the Store). But now it just not usuable at all.

It's going back

 

Does anyone know a good docking station for the xps 12? I just need a couple more USB ports, video output, and Ethernet. The one on the dell site has received awful reviews.

 

Been looking myself want to get a good 27" monitor for it

 

I use a USB hub, an ethernet to USB adapter, and a display port to HDMI cable. This rig sits on my desk and connects up in seconds.

 

I'm running a 24" Dell monitor (1920x1200) via the mini display port & a 3rd Dell Monitor (1680x1050) via a USB 3.0 to DVI adapter (£37 off Amazon) which is plugged into a USB 3.0 hub which costs around £14 (Amazon). and I'm buetoothing the sound to a Microlabs FC330 via a bluetooth widget....I must say it all works very well....

 

Try microcenter and the auria 27 inch ( 2560 x 1440 ) for 400 bucks ... lots of lower prices 1080p monitors in the 200 dollar and under range ...

 

Yup ... you ain't the only one ... one usb hub and the other usb 3 internal connector going to a ( pick your favorite brand ) a Toshiba usb 3 2 tb external canvio drive.

 

How do you reformat? I use the online tool where you enter your serial key and it'll supposedly let you download Windows 8. First off, there is no serial key anywhere on the laptop, so I used a program that finds the key. I enter the key into the tool, but it says "this product key cannot be used to install a retail version of Windows 8". I don't want to download an ISO only to find out after reformatting that the serial key isn't accepted.

Any ideas? Thanks

 

This looks like what I'm going to have to do.

 

So I finally received my XPS 12 and I'm enjoying it quite a bit. There's a bit of a learning curve to Windows 8 though that's taking me some getting used to. I've had occasional issues with the wireless, but it's hard to say whether that's my connection (which has historical issues) or the laptop, but either way it's been quickly fixed. The touchpad definitely leaves a lot to be desired. Does anyone recommend a particular Bluetooth mouse to use with the laptop? I've found I just resort to using the touchscreen more often than not instead of dealing with the pad.

Finally, after playing with it a bit, I'd definitely like to get rid of some of this bloatware on the device. Would resetting this to factory settings get rid of the bloat or do I need to do a fresh install through a different means? Is there any of the pre-installed software you'd recommend keeping? I haven't looked through it all yet, but I doubt there's much I'd want to keep. Any other recommended installs?