XPS 15 (L521X) Owner's Lounge

16 Gig here, so 2x8

 

And you have the Wi-Fi problem, right?

 

Have you or anyone else have another wifi card to try?

 

Check your PM box.

Sent a note this morning.

Who wants to test the new BIOS? Send PM for the SkyDrive link, please.

 

Thanks Bill!

 

Sorry, didn't realize i was on my newer account. Posted below with my original account.

 

Big problem. Big big problem. Seems as if my Network Card doesn't cooperate very well with my two main internet providers. Worked fine on Verizon Fios but throttles between 11mbps and 0.54mbps on AT&T U-Verse and another local internet provider. SOS HELP

Someone please PM me or quote this post so I'm notified when/if it has been answered thanks.

 

Nope, sorry

 

I have been waiting to order a Dell XPS 15 from the UK site for several weeks but we are not getting the same models as the US market which is really dissapointing. I want the 750GB and Blu-ray version but that option is not available. The Indian online chat guys and phone support is abysmal to say the least. I would never recommend to any of my procurement managers or other companies due to these Indian guys who make up information and then dissapear when you question them on it.

I had one fool tell me the 750GB + Blu-ray model would be available within 24 hours. Then another tells me its 3-4 months away and now someone says it will be next week! Crazy, I don't know what reputation Dell have but so far they seem pretty incompetent.

 

Mmm, well I have an spare card that I can try. I hope I am not unfortunate with the wifi issues too!

 

Thanks, trying it right now. One interesting thing I discovered. If I take out the secondary RAM module (the one next to the CPU, not the hard to get to one), the palm rest stays much cooler. I wonder if the heat from that RAM stick is interfering with the CPU/GPU.

N

 

I just tried the following with regard to the Wi-Fi:
- XPS 15 speedtest:
download: ~1 to ~18Mbps
upload: Steady at 3.7Mbps (limited by internet provider)

- USB Ralink RT5370 (china, 5USD including shipment):
download: ~60Mbps
upload: 3.7Mbs (both limited by internet provider)

- Other Dell laptop Latitude E9510:
same as USB Ralink.

All tried at the same spot in the house (same floor as the D-Link Wireless (DIR655 router).

 

Disable bluetooth, how is it then?

 

About the same, a bit more stable towards ~18Mbps. Tried 3 times with each device.

 

Yeah I use all those too, they're great, I'd really like to do a two finger right click, rather than having to use the integrated button though - I know you can do them on other similar synaptics touchpads, but there's no option for it in the dell synaptics drivers Anyone tried Synaptic OEM drivers?

 

If anyone has one of those USB wifi dongles you can use that to test right on the XPS 15.

 

I can see the vertical lines between pixels. It is really hard to describe and impossible to photograph. I might end returning it because I doubt I can get Dell to replace the screen. On pictures/video it is not really noticable, but surfing the web or typing a paper it is really bad. Text looks pixelated and not as crisp as it should.

I have a 22" 1080p screen that I am typing this on and I do not see that. Matter of fact I have looked at several different full HD monitors of all sizes and haven't see this. My coworkers too have confirmed that I am not crazy and seeing things. I thhink there is definitely something wrong with my screen at least.

 

Have you changed the colour setting. The XPS 15 ships with Splendid Colour as default.

 

@bill - ill try the update if you want.

 

I have. That just helped the color issue. This is different, it is like it can see the pixel grid. I have never seen this on a monitor before.

 

I can confirm the issue, too. The pixel grid is noticeable on screen (on a light background it's easy to distinguish some vertical lines made by pixels, even with the splendid setting turnes off). It's hard to explain, it looks like a screen with a very low pixel density...

After a short amount of time with the xps turned on I can also hear the fan going, even if the PC is idle. At this point it's not really bothering me, tho.

 

Did a side by side test in a room ...I have an Inspiron 17R se and a XPS 15

The best the XPS15 could do was 1.5mb the Inspiron 17R SE was 16.4

I tried the beta driver it made no difference.
The question has to be asked what is Dell going to do to fix the problem..
Waiting for the Dell rep to reply

This same problem is being reported in the Australian broadband forum Whirlpool.
So it is affecting a few of the XPS15 laptops so it is not an isolated incident

Just spoke to dell support and all he told me was update the bios.I told him the bios number on the xps and he said there is a newer one..I looked and there is nothing .
What a joke

 

Exactly what i am seeing. I kind of want Bill to chime in here. It could be a lot of different things and I don't wanna jump the gun on a return if they can simply warranty out the screen. Everything else on the XPS is great.

 

That is really bad, what is Inssider telling you about the connection?

 

Hi Bill, I've had similar issues with throttling and 3dMark etc., if you're sending beta bios info to these guys, could you please send to me also?

 

So we have throttling, poor wifi and now grainy screen too (let's forget ODD noise, maybe not so annoying) . This is frustrating, I really need a laptop and I'd really love this one, but everyday another issue comes out!

I hoped the new BIOS could solve throttling and hopefully wifi, but it can't fix the screen...

Sent from HTC HD2 with Tapatalk

 

I am not sure how to read it but it tells me in the same room as the router the rssi is -41
In the room i use it jumps up and down between -60 to -50

 

Lower the better for rssi. Can you run both laptops in the same room with Inssider and let me know if they have the same rssi?

 

I will just have to go out will do it later today

 

No probs, its 1am in the UK so off to bed. My laptop will be here tmoz, although it depends if my old man drops it off as being delivered to his. I can't collect as have a busted foot currently!

 

Think you could do a little video for us? Maybe an un-boxing and quick look?

 

Mmmm...maybe it's the gorilla glass. Do you mind looking at the screen very closely with the laptop turned off? see if you can see lines that could represent the pixels you mean?

Coz I do see vertical and horizontal lines in my TF201 when turned off which I attributed to the gorilla glass, but not on my XPS15 (fortunately).

 

There's no way. Gorilla Glass is on tons of devices--tablets and phones--and there hasn't been this complaint before.

The Wifi and screen issues sound exactly the same as people reported on the old XPS 15z. (Slow/bad connection, grid on [1080p] screen)

 

That thought crossed my mind. If it was related to the gorilla glass, I would lean more towards a problem with the bonding, but I think it is just a bad batch of LCD screens. Or at least that is what I am hoping.

 

You would think they would learn and/or the sourcing issues would be solved by now.

Anyways, for those that are experiencing the grid effect, post your screen type, you can get it from support.dell.com. A few that aren't experiencing can post as well to compare. Maybe we can narrow this down for Bill.

Mine:

6985X

LIQUID CRYSTAL DISPLAY..., 15.6FHD, WIRELESS LOCAL AREA NETWORK CARD..., , AG, ASSEMBLY..., AU OPTRONICS CORP...

 

anyone tried the new BIOS yet?

 

That's why i asked the person with the grid problem to try looking at the screen when it's off to see if the grid remained. If it remained, then I suppose it has to do with the glass, no?

 

Just ordered the new Dell XPS 15, i7-3612QM 3.1Ghz, 16GB DDR3 1600Mhz, 512GB SSD, Blu-ray Drive, NVIDIA GT 640M 2GB. Thanks Dell-Bill for keeping us all updated! Thanks to you I felt confident placing my order despite the known issues. I trust that you will continue to work to get them resolved. Looking forward to the delivery!

 

I've had my XPS for about a week now and just saw my first stuck/dead pixel, too. I contacted support and they said they would have a technician come by to replace both the motherboard and LCD/display within the week.

 

To everyone with the screen problem:
There is an extra topic for this problem. I still hope there is a solution for the grid...

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=677227

 

Hmm I have tried looking at the screen with the PC turned off but I can't see anything that looks like the problem I have described. I tried under direct light, in the shadows, even under the duvet ( ), with glasses or without glasses, but the screen is uniform.

It would be interesting to see if it's only a bad batch or a widespread problem, I'm already getting used to it tho and to be honest, at least this morning, it was bothering me much less than yesterday.
But I would be more than glad to know that my screen is just faulty and to get it replaced with a new one, especially as I will need to call Dell customer support anyway to ask for a replacement for my keyboard (my left shift ket is a bit bent and is struggling to register some light pressure).

As soon as I will be back from work (UK time) I'll try to take a picture with my camera.

Bill, do you have any insights on this issue? ( I would have loved to send you a PM to ask for the beta BIOS aswell but unfortunately my PM are not enabled yet )

 

Any promising results with the new BIOS and throttling anyone?
Particularly interested in fan speeds with light work (word, surfing) and the whole experience with gaming for an hour or two. Especially civ5.

 

I've been trying the new BIOS for about an hour this morning. Fan noise is minimal at "normal" load. It spun up for 5 seconds while unpacking an episode of a series, but was completely quiet for the duration of the episode.

While playing D3 for 40 minutes I noticed a tremendous improvement in performance, I think D3 is quite CPU-intensive, and the new BIOS has cured the problems I had earlier. It's still not as good of a performer as it's Samsung counterparts (Z5C and Z7C) but that's probably on account of the lower resolution of the Z5C, and 650m DDR5 of the Z7C.

During gaming the fan noise is of course quite loud, and I might get a cooling pad for the longer sessions. But the new BIOS is a tremendous improvement.

All in all - if we can get a fix for the wifi-problem I'm quite happy with my purchase - especially since I managed to get my order in before the raised the price by about $200 (in Sweden).

 

Thank God there are good news!
1) Did you try to run some software to monitor fps or CPU clock during your gaming session?
2) you still have the wifi issue, am I right?

 

Nice. Thanks for sharing. I'll try some measurements when i get home from work today given that bill has send me the link by that time.

 

No sorry haven't had the chance to. In the synthetic Benchmark 3dmark06, my CPU score was still around 5500.

I just did a quick install and got some D3 in before hurrying off to work. I'll see if I can get some more time with it when I get home.

edit: I haven't been able to see if I still have the wifi-problem, but will report as soon as I get home.

 

If someone could forward on the link to the new bios to me in PM, I'd very much appreciate it!

 

Good news!!

I received my system this morning, and as everyone has been complaining about, I have TERRIBLE wifi reception!! I'm used to download at 1.1 mb/s on full speed where I always have my laptop, and I'm currently downloading (from the same server but obviously not at the same time) itunes and it's only going at speeds of around 22KB/S, that's about (quick math) 500x SLOWER than with my M1530!!!!!! HUGE letdown! Definite dealbreaker for my if nothing can be done about it.

 

Thank you very much for your reports, really appreciate.

When do the good news come??

 

@bell sorry to rush you mate as I know you are dealing with the BIOS issue but the wifi is pretty poor. Not something that you expect to get through this far without being noticed.

Either this is a design issue or a hardware issue. Doesn't seem to be software but surely it can't be hard to replicate in your offices.

Any updates would be greatly appreciated because at the moment my wirless card is useless except within 5m of the router which I may as well use LAN