---> OFFICIAL: Dell STUDIO 14z Owner's Lounge <---

I've been looking for a new laptop for university. Narrowed down my choices to two specific: Asus U80V and Studio 14z. But since the U80V went MIA, I'm probably going to order a 14z in the next few days. I just got a few questions:

1. I'm in Canada and going to order off the Canadian website, is it possible to get a backlit keyboard with my 14z? (Canadian website doesn't offer it in configs )

2. Does the Sound Blaster X-FI software offer a noticeable improvement over the default audio drivers?

3. Is the external dvd drive option from Dell really worth the $120 CAD or will any other drive from retails stores like BestBuy suffice

4. How is Windows 7 RC's compatability with this machine at the moment? I'm not stoked about going back to Vista even for 1 sec after I started using W7 back when beta launched.

Sorry if these are repeats questions, I'm don't have that much free time on my hands to go through 175 pages of posts.

 

answers in bold above - for next time, search is your friend.

 

If you phone up and place your order you can often get things that are not on the website; I'm betting the backlit keyboard is one of those things. They just remove it from the website to stop a lot of people asking for it when supply is short.

 

I was able to get the backlit keyboard for 25.00 6 days ago by calling dell canada

I talked to a fellow named Bilal and he was excellent to deal with very helpful.

So yes the backlit is available in canada.

 

6 business days?!?!?! Wow, that's fast! I suppose the initial delays have all been sorted out. I'm thinking I'm going to have to place an order very, very soon (just need to save a little more dough).

Backlit keyboard in Canada via phone order?!?! Today is the best day of my life. It would be better if I were ordering the 14z....

YARR!
}:^)~
Qapt'n Qorrupt

 

to be clear I ordered the 14z with backlit 6 days ago I havnt got it yet. so as of 6 days ago you could get the back lit in canada

 

I was able to order the backlit keyboard for my notebook over the phone, not sure why they took it off when you configure online.

 

I'm baaaaacccckkkk!

So here's the low-down:

1-Realized that 24-48 hours before shipping, the status (by phone and online) of your order tends to go hay-wire and it gives delays etc, but in the end, it is delivered on the date it said it would be.

2-I received mine Aug. 5th and I must say, I am satisfied 99.8%!!! Great notebook! The 900p screen is GORGEOUS!

The 0.2% of cons are because of: 0.1% = got 2 BSoD. One like the day I first used it (can't remember but it had something to do with SQL or something). The second BSoD was something having to do with paging files.

Besides that, no more BSoD. I'm assuming these BSoD aren't totally because of hardware issues (Dell) but more because of software issues (Microsoft/Vista).

And the other 0.1% is because of the fingerprint-loving BLACK CHAINLINK lid! That thing is insane for fingerprints and madly in love with them that holds on to them. The first week I kept trying to clean but being that I use the notebook, fingerprints keep getting on it. Second week+, I dont really pay attention to them anymore so it doesn't bother me. I'm hoping I can find a place where I can get a custom-designed skin for it though sometime in the future.

3-The 5GB are great! I'm able to open up Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, Lightroom, Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, and Live Messenger and have NO MAJOR LAG whatsoever as I work with all these programs. Oh, pretty good also for being that on IE im on youtube listening to music (IE minimized so cant see the vid).

On that same note, I had described when I joined this forum that my 2002 Sony VAIO Desktop would literally take 4+ minutes to boot up Photoshop (not including loading the 2000+ fonts; that would take another 2-3 minutes).

Now, with the 14z, it takes no more than 4 seconds to open up Photoshop with all fonts loaded and ready to use! Talk about a drastic positive change in productivity!!!! Which explains the reason of my absence from NBR: from day 1 that I received this notebook I've been busy transferring files from the desktop and have also been using the 14z for hours and hours on a daily basis. That being said, no overheating issues and the fan only gets to that high-pitch speed, that people described, when it needs to and for no more than 2 or so minutes.

LOVE IT!

Anyone have questions etc feel free to ask.

Hope you all enjoying your new 14zs! Hello to karan and lexus btw!

EDIT: The screen is awesome! It is extremely bright also (good thing). I noticed that the screen IS USABLE in the outdoors when you have the screen set to the highest setting on brightness. Indoors, I rarely even put it to half the full-brightness. Usually only a fourth of the way.

Back-lit keyboard is also awesome! VERY useful. People have talked about how the light leaks in some areas, but to me it doesn't bother me. I actually like it like that as it gives this nice creative look to it; not just a boring lighted key.

Battery life is great! When I first disconnect the power (well actually after a minute or two), it says 4+ hours left of battery life. Not sure what the actual time is but I've had it down to about 15% and it still said about an hour+ left of battery life. So it's great!

 

Welcome back! Glad you are liking it too!

 

How's yours doing?

 

Welcome back michael, glad to see that you're here for more than just reporting problems . I report most of the benefits as you, with none of the disadvantage - no BSOD's because I switched up to vista and not too many fingerprints on the outside because i got the green lid - which looks awesome by the way.

 

Hi michaelf. I'm impressed with your review, but was wondering one thing: what's the memory usage of all of those open apps?

On the battery life...

I've heard that it's possible to get ~6 hours out of the laptop by placing it in powersaving mode. This could be useful if you're away from an outlet for an extended period. I am planning on a second battery for just such occasions. Being 100% adapter free is a great feeling. Kudos to dell on fitting the large battery in the unit without the bulge!

 

Not sure on how to check the memory usage... =/
If you know how let me know and I'll give it a go.

On the battery life, yes, it lasts a long time with no extra bulge. I believe there is something else besides that powersaving mode. It's something about dell extended battery life or something. It's a feature that you can access when looking at the status of the battery by pressing the fn key with the battery icon. Supposedly it helps out more.

 

Is this a diss being thrown back on me for what I had mentioned 3 weeks ago haha

And glad you had a good system. Think my BSoD were software related with Vista because I was doing several things at once with all those programs opened. But it only happened that once. The page file if not this one was also probably because I hadn't rebooted my system in several days and had been working with large files etc...

 

It's doing very well, I like it a lot! The keyboard functionality could be better, but other than that no real complaints.

 

What do you mean by keyboard functionality?

 

Wanted to mention for those of us using win7 and missing the volume visual controls with quickset - the inspiron 1545 version of quickset works perfectly fine with mine, as fragilexx mentioned in his other thread which can be found here:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=409615

enjoy gentlemen, and direct all thanks to fragile who found them in the first place.

 

Probably the easiest way to get a general idea of memory usage is to note the physical memory percentage at the bottom of the task manager before opening the apps, and after opening the apps. This will let you know the % change and should give you an idea of memory consumption.

Of course if Windows swaps some of that memory to disk, the rating may not be that reliable. However with 5GBs, I don't think that would happen (at least I hope it wouldn't!)

To open the task manager, right click on the taskbar at the bottom of the screen and select 'task manager'.


I'm loving the battery life (the idea of it anyway). I've been looking over the 13" macbook pro review, and noticed that it was getting ~8 hours! After doing some reading, it seems that this rating is for activity just above an idle state with many features turned off. The life drops significantly when doing anything remotely strenuous (including listening to music).

Is the 14z the same? Is the ~6 hour rating only with very light activity? Or can you actually use the thing and expect this life.


YARR!
}:^)~
Mon Dieu, Capt'n!

 

Did anybody who lives in the US order the 14z with the WWAN option? I'm curious where in the LCD display they put the integrated antenna, and what the part number for the antenna is.

 

What other laptops you compared in this price range and form factor. I have been very confused between this and the Vaio NW 180 or NW130 and now also considering Lenovo U450p. This is primarily for my wife to do general browsing, music and videos. I am very uncomfortable about not having built in optical drive for when i need. I got the BB option with free Pioneer drive but have not opened the laptop. My budget is between 650-850. The HP DV4t i can get a higher processor P7550 and Blu Ray , Tuner etc for $850..Not sure about the value in the BB config which is lower than about $150 for same specs on Dell's website....

 

I'm probably going to sound absolutely crazy for this, but if there was a Studio 13z, I'd buy it in a heartbeat. I don't know what it is, but laptops above 13.3" just seem too large to me. I know this is an ultraportable and all, but I really hope they make a 13" version sometime soon since I need a new laptop.

 

Worked for me.

 

You should take a look at comparison pictures. The 16:9 makes it much smaller than you think. It's basically sized similarly to a 13" Macbook with the only difference being about an inch wider.

 

the 16:9 form factor makes a difference, it should be pointed out. it feels much smaller than it actually is when you're carrying it.

 

So I finally got a hold of the Sales Resolution department yesterday. They're going to take back the second 14z they sent out and send me a back-lit keyboard for me to install. Best part of it all is the keyboard shipped today!

I love this laptop so far, I just wish dell's support staff wasn't so obtuse. There is no reason it should take 2+ weeks and 2 laptops to get one part correct. The only other option I could see was to RMA both laptops and go get a MBP.

Here's to hoping they actually send me the right keyboard!

P.S. Karan, you might have a gdgt user around a little while longer. =P

 

Do you have any links? I've been skimming the thread, but haven't seen any on the pages I've looked at.

 

EDIT: Agreed: the difference in size is almost insignificant. Here are a few pics i took comparing the 14z to a 13" MacBook and a 13" Sharp. The 3rd and 4th pics are of the MacBook sitting on top of the 14z.

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/zN6mNKk1ajUMiQjKqk7NTw?authkey=Gv1sRgCOelpL74gKPQEw&feat=directlink

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/78w31IyLAeO136HAhXFf3A?authkey=Gv1sRgCOelpL74gKPQEw&feat=directlink

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/gpi8yIpjsbl2FE8KdzKr9g?authkey=Gv1sRgCOelpL74gKPQEw&feat=directlink

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/KtQC8xDTnkDyS_Xb-zNolQ?authkey=Gv1sRgCOelpL74gKPQEw&feat=directlink

 

You do sound crazy, as the 14" Studio 14z is almost exactly the same size as the 13" Macbook white. In fact the macbook white is actually bigger in dimension (though slightly thinner overall).

There was a picture comparison earlier in the thread with a macbook on top of the studio 14z. Honestly there was an insignificant differences in size. The studio 14z was ever so slightly wider -- and notably quite a good deal less high. See for yourself (for some weird reason, the poster resized them to tiny thumbnails):











original post: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=5187176&postcount=1547

YARR!
}:^)~
_____ Corrupt

 

This would explain why 13in sleeves fit and larger ones are loose. I'll have to look accordingly.

 

That was me. I resized them because someone complained about my posting full size pics inline so I tried to redo as thumbnails but clearly messed that up.

 

No worries. I liked the larger pics. The content of the pics is golden, though. It's easy to think that a 14" is larger than a 13" notebook, but the pics show otherwise. If you notice, not only is the aspect ratio different, but there's less bezel on the 14z as well.

If dell made the screen thinner, this notebook could be just as thin as the macbook as well. Of course, the thicker screen may be for increased durability. Either way, the size differences are negligible.

YARR!
}:^)~
Capt'n _______

 

well, i mean:

1. In addition to missing standard indicators (HDD activity, Wireless, Bluetooth), there are no indicators for Caps Lock, Num Lock and Scroll Lock. Well actually, since the NumLock and ScrollLock keys are physically missing on the keyboard, Dell would have to place only the CapsLock indicator. They chose not to.

2. There are at least 2 useless keys and one of them is very annoying. The first useless key is the dedicated optical drive's Eject key on the top right. All it does is ejects the disc from an optical drive, which is not even present in this computer! It's only for the external drive, and placing a special dedicated key on the keyboard for that is not wise at all.
The second useless key is the right-click shortcut key between the right Ctrl and the Left Arrow. If you are doing serious typing (word processing, programming, etc.) this key gets accidentally hit all the time when you try to use the Ctrl + LeftArrow to move the cursor left word-by-word. I can't tell how annoying it is, to see that instead of the cursor moving left, a menu pops up and stays there until you hit Escape! Arghhh. Serious business class computers don't have that stupid key there, but the right Ctrl is followed directly by the LeftArrow. But well, this is not a business laptop.

3. The lack of the Numpad "virtual" keys, where you can press Fn + certain keys to type numbers. This is important for me, since I use software that has shortcuts on those Numpad keys, which is now impossible to use, so instead of keyboard shortcuts I must use the standard menu with a mouse

4. The column of keys (Del, Home, PgUp, PgDn, End) on the extreme right is very uncomfortable to use. Well, at least one has to get used to them, which is kind of hard. For me coming from Inspiron 8600 and Latitude D630, that's a huge change.

Other than this "simplified" or "dumbed down" keyboard, the laptop is very nice

 

You can also see how the Studio 14z (14") compares to the XPS M1330 (13"):
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=5173477&postcount=1431

So, don't worry, the Studio 14z is even shorter (but slightly wider) than a 13" laptop

 

Has anyone been able to upgrade their hard drive in their 14z yet?

 

I think it would be nice if dell 14z got those edge to edge thing for the screen

Do u think Dell USA accept order from Australia?

 

Yea I upgraded the hdd to an intel ssd and the processor to the intel t9900 the laptop is fairly easy to take apart and upgrading the hdd is really only removing three screws and lifting up the keyboard. Be careful if your is backlit as you might pull the backlit wiring.

 

Has anyone made a guide to upgrading the hard drive yet? I searched on google for like 30 minutes and couldn't find anything whatsoever. Which screws do I need to remove? I took out like 10 screws on the bottom thinking that that was how to do it, but it obviously wasn't.

 

Has anyone undervolted thier laptop with the p8600 and if so can you post your temps. As i said in the previous post i upgraded the processor to the
t9900 3.06ghz c2d and these are my temps after surfing the internet for about 15 min

Core 0 = 35 C
Core 1 = 39 C

under stress for about 10 min

core 0 = 66 C
core 1 = 69 C

just curious because i believe someone said they undervolted the p8600 and said there temps were somewhere around the 50 C idling

 

Also, has anyone been able to add two-finger scrolling functionality to their 14z?

Sorry if this is a double post, wanted to make sure people saw my second question...

 

This should walk you through it

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/studio1440/en/sm/hdd.htm#wp1192085

 

The temps after undervolting on my P8600 are:

Idle:
Core 0 = 36 C
Core 1 = 37 C

Stress:
Core 0 = 58 C
Core 1 = 59 C

 

Does undervolting have any effect on performance?

 

No, undervolting does not impact performance one jolt.

Basically, the processors are made on mass, but due to the manufacturing process some can operate on a lower voltage than others. Rather than adding a rather lengthy amount of time to the production process, they are typically set to a moderately high (but safe) voltage that all of them will function on. The process of undervolting simply reduces the voltage your processor runs on. It does not underclock your processor (unless you tell it not to use certain multipliers during the undervolting process).

 

What is the battery life like after undervolting the P8600 and running the laptop in powersaving/balanced mode?

If it's true that it doesn't impact performance, a cooler, quieter, longer running laptop is a win-win-win scenario.


YARR!
}:^)~
QuickPost Corrupt

 

For those that are interested in reading up on undervolting, but not keen on wading through 180 pages of posts, for your convenience, here's a link to the undervolting thread:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=403364

.. and here's a link to the undervolting guide:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=235824

Also, a tip. I find it easier to search this forum using google. To search the keywords "undervolting 14z" type this in your google search bar:
"site:notebookreview.com undervolting 14z"


YARR!
}:^)~
HoHumCap

 

I miss the status lights for HDD, bluetooth, and wifi - those were useful. As far as numlock and scroll lock are concerned, without the full numeric keypad numlock is useless, and scroll lock is archaic anyway for 90% of people, I've never used it in my life. I agree that the eject key is mostly useless but I like the menu key - I'm not too big a fan of the mouse on this thing.I can see how the lack of a numpad can get seriously annoying but I prefer having a separate one for entry like that, and I find the column of keys quite useful once you get used to them - I almost never used to use them. Just my 2 cents.

 

Thanks!

Anyone have word on whether or not you can enable two finger scrolling on the 14z?

Does anyone know if you could upgrade your keyboard to a back-lit keyboard if it didn't come with it? I imagine you'd just have to switch out th keyboards. But where could you buy a back-lit keyboard? Dell.com? Probably not.

 

I don't think there are drivers for the Alps touchpad that allow that - but it does allow chiral-scrolling, which I like much better.

You can buy a backlit keyboard by calling them at the least , it's just one extra wire that you have to plug in.

 

I just installed windows 7 on my 14z but I can't get windows to recognize the 9400M G video card. It says "Standard VGA". I tried installing two different versions of the driver from Nvidia.com. I am downloading dell's Vista 64-bit driver now... Anyone have a fix for this?

 

I used dell drivers without any issues.