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

DPI Scaling in vista fixes any problems you'll have

 

i really think the high res screen separates the 14z from the others. biggest reason i got it.

 

DPI scaling doesn't work as it should, especially in Vista. It's better simply to zoom the text in applications that support that (MS Word, Adobe Reader, web browsers). Windows 7 is much better with DPI scaling, but then there's no reason to buy a higher resolution screen and use DPI scaling, defeats the purpose of hi-res, IMHO.

 

I didn't get the 900P screen, thought I would miss it, but after having this thing for a few days I have to say I think I would've been worse off with it. while I agree that some users definitely could benefit from it (for games or video editing), it's most certainly not a requirement nor the best part of this laptop. I had a 1440x900 screen on my 1520 and while it was nice, things where kind of hard to read sometimes, so having a 1600x900 screen on a 14.1 incher probably wouldn't suit my needs well.

regardless, after having this for a while and dualbooting vista/win 7 I want to make some comments:

1. First off, I love this screen, event he 720 P seems so much more crisp and well lit, even at the dimmer settings. I feel the finish too, and the inside of the laptop including the battery bay is a great design.

2. This thing is a little tougher than I expected. Even though its plastic it's really well built and its already taken a few knocks greatly.

3. I bought the best buy model (T6500, 8 cell battery, wireless N, etc) and was able to get a nice DVD drive for another 70 (I missed the special). For around $800 this laptop is speedier, more portable, lighter and better on battery life tha nmy 1520 in everything besides the highest graphics rendering options.

4. Battery life and heat. THANK GOD. Most laptops I use, regardless of makers, eventually tend to get real hot on the lap. I've had this 14z in bed, on my lap, desk, etc, and its never even gotten unbearably warm. Now that I've undervolting it I've been checking to make certain that there's not something WRONG because it's become so cool. I love it.


So far I've been loving the laptop, a few issues in the beginning with what seems to be sticky keys, but I think there was just something under the keys as I haven't had that issue since. The drivers work well, though I feel like I could probably do more with the touchpad if I knew what I was doing.

In windows 7 I now get a windows rating of about 5 hours battery life at 90% of the battery on power saver with Wifi on and my screen dimmed, on vista I think its around 5 and a half or 6, and without wifi on its about 5 1/2 on 7 and near 7 on Vista.

Who needs a MBP?

 

How do I know if I got the 8 cell battery?

 

rmclock, battery info, 74wh

 

when i turn off wifi, my power usage actually goes up, according to rmclock at least. any suggestions?

 

Actually I want to use a DVD drive on my desktop through Ethernet connection.
Hopefully I'll be able to install Windows XP from there. But as Zak Skjaveland said there is no audio support for Window XP, and it is realy bad.

 

I use Virtual Machine on my Dell GX620 desktop and it works OK.
For some reason I still can't treat it as a normal PC. Probably it is just a prejudice. I may want to give it a go if I fail to install Windows XP on my notebook (or if it won't work properly).

 

Let me explain my setups I've tried in the past. I previously had a dv4t, but I realized I would like a better graphics card and so I got a dv5t with a Nvidia 9600 GT. It played games pretty well, but it choked on the newer titles with higher resolutions. The other problem was that it was really hot and near impossible to have on your lap, which was not good for me since I am a writer. So I got a netbook to compliment my DV5t.

I then realized that I really want to have a better performing computer over all, so I thought about getting rid of the dv5t, but I knew that I couldn't just make due with my netbook. So I settled for a 14z for moderate portable power + a desktop for the ultimate power.

I would have just used the netbook on the go if I had only had a higher resolution screen. My recommendation to you is spend 3/4 of your money on a desktop and 1/4 on a netbook/cheap laptop. That way you'll have a much more powerful desktop and still have mobility. That's what I would have done if I only had a $1000 to work with. I had closer to $1500 to work with including the sale of my laptops.

Anyway, that's what I would recommend. Build a powerful desktop for $700-750 and buy a nice netbook/laptop for $250-300. (though I'm not sure what your U.S. dollars translates into AU dollars)...

Good luck! I hope whatever you get you are satisfied.

 

Something really strange I've noticed, someone let me know if it's just my 14z. Try this:

1) Use the keyboard
2) Immediately try to move the pointer with the touchpad

On mine there's like a 3 second delay before the touchpad picks up anything. Anyone else got this problem?

 

Touchpad responds immediately for me...

 

does not happen to me

 

Happens to me, but only for a second

 

Ok it's probably because I tried installing generic Alps touchpad drivers. I put the Dell ones back and it's normal now. But it's stupid how they took out swipe for back and forward and corner tap zone functions. It's there in the generic one..

 

Yes! Got it all working now. Tap zones and back/forward swiping with no delay. Up yours Dell Had to mess around with registry configs. What a pain.

 

Does anybody have a link to Dell Webcam Studio?

I reformatted and can't seem to find a version that works with the 14z.

 

Does anyone have any ideas how I could get one of these into the UK?

This is the perfect laptop for me but: 1. Dell don't sell this in the UK, 2. Dell US will not ship internationally, 3. they seem to actively prevent delivering to those mail fowarding companies such as Borderlinx and Bongo etc...

I don't know anyone in the US personally.

I need one soon. My next choice would be Macbook Pro 13 or Thinkpad T400s but they are much more expensive and don't offer all the features I want.

I really want: hi-res screen 1440x900 at least, 13"/14" display, 9400m chipset, and some good port selection such as eSATA and expresscard. Any alternatives? Are there any other stores that sell the 14z with the 900p screen that I could order from?

Thanks for your help.

 

How much would you guys pay a retailer for a 14z lid that had a glowing Dell logo instead of the stock sticker kind?

Dell charges $50 for the rubberized color lid. The lid in question would have a regular solid finish.

 

Hi SZQ

I too got problem trying to buy Dell 14z from United States, buying from there is more expensive for me because from the currency rates and the shipping cost.check dell 1450 as your alternative choice, the appearance is almost the same to dell 14z but the internal spec is totally different, http://www1.ap.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/laptop-studio-1450?c=my&l=en&s=dhs&cs=mydhs1&ref=homepg

 

Thanks for the suggestion Pepero, but the 1450 is also unavailable in the UK.

 

nothing a glowing lid is not important to me.

 

Does anyone have the link for the alps driver?

Vista is to a high degree resolution independent. There's a little checkbox so you can turn on XP scaling for older apps that aren't completely well coded for vista. The thing with the high res screen is simply text size. I don't like having to strain my eyes to read the text. All the major web browsers have full scaling but I don't like having to do that everytime I go to a new site. The OS UI scales and shows more detail to balance it out. I guess it's all preference in the end though. Small text+screen estate or slightly less screen and more readability. In the end it's still an amazing screen.

 

just got my 14z and I notice a slight wave in the keybord. e.e. its not level any other with this issue?

 

DPI Scaling does not work fully, even in some standard windows apps. Change your DPI and then open up the administrative tools where you can change your partition sizes. The text at the bottom of one of those screens is cut off slightly.

This is just the first example I could think of, there are worse ones to be found.

The thing is, for most apps and therefore what most people will use their machines for, DPI scaling works fine and wont pose a problem.

 

Finally received my 14z!

And I cannot wait until October for Win 7...I only have a copy of the 32 bit RC, so I'm being patient by stripping my new machine of its Dell bloatware.

Post more thoughts as I tinker with it, but I have to say I'm smitten with the puppy already.

 

I just got my 14z today but everytime I unplug any usb device, the 14z BSOD's on me. Anyone experience this problem or know a solution?

Edit: Here's the error if it helps.

Problem signature:
Problem Event Name: BlueScreen
OS Version: 6.0.6001.2.1.0.768.3
Locale ID: 1033

Additional information about the problem:
BCCode: 1000007e
BCP1: FFFFFFFFC0000005
BCP2: FFFFF80001FC6B81
BCP3: FFFFFA60017D5798
BCP4: FFFFFA60017D5170
OS Version: 6_0_6001
Service Pack: 1_0
Product: 768_1

Files that help describe the problem:
C:\Windows\Minidump\Mini082609-01.dmp
C:\Users\xxxx\AppData\Local\Temp\WER-70668-0.sysdata.xml
C:\Users\xxxx\AppData\Local\Temp\WERB9DC.tmp.version.txt

 

Hey , I'm eyeballing this as well got a few question for you but first, good news for you. THE FREE DVD DRIVE PROMOTION IS BACK JUST NOW! check this link out, i'm sure bestbuy will take care of you since you just bought it

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?id=pcmcat190000050001&type=category

If u dont mind me asking, I'm looking at the BB one as well, how is the noise level in a perfectly quiet room? and I'm used to having 4 GB DDR 2 ram how is this one running with 3 GB of DDR 3 ram? I know you can make it 5 but that 4 gb stick is 300 bucks now..........

 

How is this thing handeling 1080p video, for example .mkv or similar? Smooth sailing?

 

Right now I'm in a quiet room and I'm struggling to hear it at all. It stays very cool, especially now that I've undervolted it, and it runs excellently at 3 gigs of ram. I have both windows 7 ultimate and Vista 64 running gorgeously, and without wifi and low power I would get about 6 - 7 hours in Vista, 5-6ish in windows 7. Can't wait for them to optimize the windows 7 drivers even more.

 

Can a few people screencap your windows experience rating? I just saw someone else's from like 10 pages back and it was significantly different from mine. Overall I'm a 5.3 with processor and gaming graphics being lowest. Make sure you post what upgrades you have if they aren't in your sig.

 

Hey, thanks for the response, both my 14z + free pioneer external HD is ready for pick up, with stupid california tax comes out to be 768 bucks, but at lest the dvd drive is free so that saved me around 70 bucks right there. You gonna get yours?

 

has any one had any luck getting the web cam to work in W7 64? I have tried to download the dell webcam software adn the driver but I cant get it to work? any help would be appreciated.

also what drivers are you using for video? my windows experience is 4.4 for video.

 

Hey guys. Back (again haha).

I don't know what happened but just last night my 14z started crashing with BSoDs. I believe the first time it said something about SQL or something along those lines. And then it would do the dump crash and physical memory thing and reboot itself.

It started happening while I had open about 3 different youtube videos (but only one playing). It locked up and the sound kept repeating (like a scratched music cd) while the BSoD did it's thing prior to rebooting.

After the first reboot, all the taskbar items HADN'T loaded yet and then it gave another BSoD but this time it didn't give me a description at the top like the first time. Rebooted and then did it about 2, 3 more times before I finally restarted it and booted into the dell repair section and ran a memory test. I eventually fell asleep before it finished. This morning I woke up and didn't use it. Nonetheless, when I get home later on today I hope it stopped doing it. Not sure what it could be. Any ideas?

I did install 1 important and 2 recommended updates yesterday evening. That's about all that was new on the notebook. It gave the BSoD about 5 hours AFTER normal use though. I also noticed my Adobe Illustrator program started acting funny about an hour prior to the BSoD.

I checked and I have Windows Vista 64-bit and BIOS A01. I'm thinking it might be one of the updates that might have messed something up but not sure if I should uninstall them or try downloading the latest BIOS from Dell.

Any suggestions?

 

After having the laptop for awhile, here are some things that are bothering me:

1. "Windows has encountered a problem and needs to close" -- I've been getting this problem when launching programs that use audio, like streaming content online, iTunes, and games. The audio totally turns off and shows an "x" in the volume icon. The only way to fix it is to right click the volume icon and click "Playback Devices." I tried re-installing the audio drivers but that didn't work.
2. "Disable Touchpad / Pointing Stick when external USB mouse is present" (found in the Dell Touchpad settings) -- I use a USB mouse and this option works as it should... Until I close the lid. It's irritating when I'm typing, but my thumb accidentally grazes the touchpad and causes the cursor to move and click somewhere else.
3. This strange popping sound when booting up. I don't know if it's coming from the HDD, speakers, or something else... But it's starting to worry me.
4. Dell Webcam Studio not working correctly. After reformatting, I downloaded the studio again but it always says that my webcam couldn't be detected. It works fine when video chatting on AIM and Skype, though.

Anybody know any fixes?

 

I had the popping sound after I installed windows 7 it went a way with an audio driver update from dells site. I cant get webcam studio to work in windows 7 and am also looking for some help with that

 

My ratings on windows 7

 

I installed latest vista updates yesterday and this morning my laptop was shut down. When I turned it back on, it says it crashed... I then browsed the net for 20 mins and got a BSOD. I used system restore to remove the updates I installed yesterday and havent had any BSOD yet..

 

there an update required on the dell website to support the latest vista updates

 

Everything sees to be working fine when I turned on the 14z today. No crashes. Haven't changed anything. I am currently downloading Vista SP2 for 64bit and will be installing shortly...it might contain updates that fully fix this issue.

 

I came on here just now to report the EXACT SAME THING. The only things that have changed from yesterday to today is that I installed the Windows updates and I set up my Dell Datasafe account. Everything else is exactly the same. But, for the first time since I've owned the 14z I'm getting the BSoD.

I'm still running Vista, by the way.

Very frustrating!

You all have been a great source of information and inspiration. Any suggestions for this one? Gracias in advance.

 

I use Windows 7 RC 64-bit and I haven't installed the webcam drivers at all. Windows uses the built-in OS driver, which works nicely (I only tried it in Skype, but it works and the quality is very good).

For video, I first installed the Dell drivers, and then the latest from nVidia's web site (had to modify the .inf file for that).

My windows experience index is 4.5 because of the gaming graphics. The processor miraculously jumped from 6.0 to 6.1 for some reason.

 

So, if I understand correctly, people get BSOD only on Vista. Anyone with Windows 7 who got a BSOD? I'm just curious.

 

I actually came back to post that I'm getting the BSoD now as well. Mainly when I wake it up from sleep. This just started happening today. And yes, I'm running Vista. I do recall having to install an update this morning though.

Problem signature:
Problem Event Name: BlueScreen
OS Version: 6.0.6001.2.1.0.768.3
Locale ID: 1033

Additional information about the problem:
BCCode: 1000007e
BCP1: FFFFFFFFC0000005
BCP2: FFFFF8000204D3AA
BCP3: FFFFFA60017C77D8
BCP4: FFFFFA60017C71B0
OS Version: 6_0_6001
Service Pack: 1_0
Product: 768_1

Files that help describe the problem:
C:\Windows\Minidump\Mini082609-04.dmp
C:\Users\Domonick\AppData\Local\Temp\WER-37299-0.sysdata.xml
C:\Users\Domonick\AppData\Local\Temp\WER7E43.tmp.version.txt

 

You mean IRQ, not SQL? Or did you actually install the Microsoft SQL database server and the error message was about it?

 

bingo! Same with me: when I wake it up from sleep, and when I turn it on for the first time.

That looks like the same message I've gotten.

Ran the windows update Tuesday and everything seemed fine.

Yesterday the BSoD started. Happened again this morning.

I've also noticed that, when Windows does finally load, it takes about 10 times longer than it used to, and then all my applications run very sluggishly.

I stuck with Vista because I saw so many people on here having issues with whatever beta version W7 they were installing, so figured I'd wait until the official release.

Guess maybe that wasn't so smart, after all.

 

That's also the reason I stuck with Windows Vista.

I guess I'm going to try installing Windows Vista SP2 this afternoon.

 

Thanks for posting. Do you know if it is possible to remove the foil at the back of the display?

How much clearance is there between the back of the display lid and the actual display panel? I'm wondering if it's possible to install a flat antenna that has 1 mm thickness without it bumping into the back of the display panel.

Thanks again.

 

The BSOD is due to the latest windows vista updates. What I did is use system restore and restored to an older backup (before the update) and havent had any BSOD since then. I also installed the latest bios updates(A03). Havent reinstalled the vista updates again yet..

 

1mm antennae should not be a problem at all. The webcam wires go straight along the center behind the lcd. There's also thin foam cusions that are placed in various areas on the display lid. Keep in mind that I've basically cut out a hole in the center of my lid, filled it with a clear version of the logo, used tons of glue on the backside, and I haven't had problems with the LCD not fitting or anything. You should have more than enough room to do whatever you intend.