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

I started having the same problem after I upgraded from Vista to 7. It turns out that the HDMI audio is controlled by the NVIDIA video card driver. I was able to resolve the issue by downloading a new driver from http://www.laptopvideo2go.com/, but the fix came at a cost. I was unable to adjust screen brightness. To me, the screen brightness was far more important, so I reverted back to the dell-supported driver and have been connecting my computer to external speakers through the headphone jack when it's hooked to the TV. Hopefully dell will provide full support for a newer NVIDIA driver soon. Best of luck! By the way, this is a windows 7/nvidia issue, not a studio 14z issue - I've seen plenty of other people complaining about this when searching for answers.

By the way, you should be able to hear the audio through your laptop speakers at least. You may have to change your default speakers with your HDMI connected through the sound menu on the control panel.

 

Has anybody had any luck using a fan control program in Windows 7 64-bit on the 14z?

I would like to tweak the fan settings a bit. I've tried Speedfan, which couldn't detect the fans, and i8kfangui won't run in Windows 7 because the driver is unsigned.

Anybody have any tips?

 

The newest drivers directly from nvidia.com work just fine under Windows 7 64-bit. No need to mess around with hacked-up driver versions that cause issues (such as no backlight control and power management).

When you hook up the HDMI cable to a TV, you'll need to change your audio output to the HDMI connection as well. You can do this my right-clicking on the speaker icon, selecting 'Playback devices', and then selecting 'NVIDIA HDMI Out' and choosing 'Set as default'.

 

I hate to have to bump this again but since I didn't get an answer I'll try one more time...

There's been a workaround posted to get the unsigned driver for i8kfangui working in Windows 7, but now the program is telling me that there's no supported fan sensing chip in the laptop. Does anyone know if the 14z is just incompatible with i8kfangui or know of any different fan control program that will give me direct control over the fans?

 

Yeah, I have the same problem

 

I believe you can install the Nvidia "performance" and "monitoring" plugins that should report everything you need to know. I will try it later.

Update:
Nah, you can monitor temps and system info but doesn't allow you to change fan settings (on either cpu or gpu).

 

Yeah, I also tried installing Nvidia system tools and the cooling sliders are greyed out. Lame, looks like fan speeds are can't be altered. Thanks for trying though.

 

Question about physical memory usage...

It is always over 40% no matter what is open. Is this normal? Any ideas on how to get it lower?

 

I've had my Dell Studio 14z for about 5 months and this is my favorite laptop I've ever owned (and I've had over 10). The keyboard is easy to type on and the 1600x900 screen is awesome and really bright. Graphics performance is good enough for me, and I put in an Intel X18-M 80GB SSD. It boots up to Windows 7 64-bit in around 30 seconds which blows me away. I've read a lot of complaints about the touchpad and I have had a few times where it's annoyed me. This might seem crazy but I think you have to make sure your fingers are really clean when using it, small amounts of oil or water on my hands can make a really big difference.

I do have one problem with this laptop though, and I was wondering if anyone had any suggestion? When watching youtube or other video, the audio will glitch a little bit (stutter or small amount of static) every now and then. I am using the latest audio driver from Dell's website for Windows 7 64-bit.

Thanks all, this forum has been invaluable to me, led me to this laptop and gave me the info I needed to swap out the HDD.

 

Hi gang, long time no chat.

Still lovin' my 14Z. It's been a great laptop. But, I started having a problem and I thought I'd run it by the collected wisdom here.

Out of the blue, for no apparent reason, one evening when I fired up my laptop -- plugged in -- I got a message that it didn't recognize the AC Adapter and that it was plugged in but not charging. This made no sense because it was plugged into the same Dell AC Adapter I've always used, the one that came with the machine. The little white light on the laptop above the AC Adapter socket is off, too.

So, I go on the Dell site, I to everything they suggest (including upgrading the BIOS to A04). Nothing worked. I contact tech support and, long story short, after well over an hour, I hear from a supervisor that this is a known BIOS issue, and that it will be resolved by a BIOS update the end of January or first of February.

So, I have a couple of questions: first, has anyone else experienced this? Second, has anyone found a solution? And third, any idea why this would start happening all of a sudden like this?

The thing that annoys me is that Dell cannot tell me why it happened; only gave me some nonsense about the battery being in a pre-charge mode, but no explanation how or why that would happen. I had not downloaded any software, updates, etc., for well over a week before the problem started. I can't figure out anything that would have caused it. Plus, I have to say I'm pretty annoyed that I'm expected to essentially just wait and do nothing for almost a month.

The computer will work when plugged in, even with the battery out, but it's really slow and sluggish (the dialogue box says this will be the case, and it's right.)

Anyway, just thought I'd check in here since so many of you have so much experience with this stuff.

Also, I did a search of this thread and the site but didn't come up with any other threads directly on point, so please forgive me if I missed a previous discussion of this.

Thanks for any advice anyone might be able to offer.

 

Hey all what's up? First poster here whoo! Just got my 14z and I am curious if it is possible to drop a T9550 in this thing.

Here are my specs

T6600
900p
500gb 5400
3gb
Nvidia 9400M

 

It's possible but have you considered the "P9500" (or P9600/P9700) if you want the ultimate cpu?

Frankly, while these 6M cache cpu's are monsters, they also gen heat, even the P9500. The P8600 seems about the sweet spot, esp. for "value". The P8 series will generally run cooler and for everyday use, it will seem just as fast.

The real question is if you can drop in a quad-core or an X9100 cpu, though I wouldn't recommend either one.

 

Thanks for the reply, so a chip with 1066 fsb will work in my system that currently has a chip with 800mhz fsb? And P8xxx series is recommended?

I asked about the T9550 only because it's accessible at newegg.ca(only option) I can't seem to find any other retailers in Canada that sell mobile processors. Anyone know a place?

 

I'll take a stab at it, as this *should* be simple to solve...

The first thing I'd suspect is that your wireless internet is crapping out. Troubleshoot by connecting straight to your router with an ethernet cable ("wired"). If your "video streaming" is magically solved, then the issue has something to do with your wireless signal and/or router (which is a whole other can of worms).

I doubt it's your sound or video driver (or hardware).

 

Mobile cpu's are relatively rare (retail wise). You can a) talk to your local pc shop (who will also install it for you) or b) ebay.ca

Most mobile cpu's (new and used) are traded on ebay. Also check the "marketplace" forum here.

You'll need some $$$ for the P9 series (currently $350+ USD) but probably just $150 or so for a P8 series.

A quick mobile chip comparison HERE

Btw, installing a new cpu on the Studio 14z is a REAL CHORE!

 

I have not seen this, though I would suspect that the ac plug is not making good contact with the laptop. The plug seems loose even when new, poor design I think.

I do NOT trust Dell Tech support to give you any "truth". A "bios issue" is hard to believe as there would probably be MANY more people with this problem. They usually just want to get you off the phone.

If you don't have another 14z adapter around, ask Dell Tech support to send you a new adapter (they are cheap).

Also (carefully) remove the battery for a couple of minutes then replace.

Make sure your power source is good/clean/normal. You could try different plugs or another location (like your office).

I didnt know it would run without the battery! That's unusual for a laptop.

 

So, I reformatted to windows 7 recently, and for some reason the media keys stopped working with itunes when it wasn't in focus (the most forward window). I'm positive it used to work before the format, and I'm wondering if I fixed it earlier and just forgot how to?

 

Hello, I'm interestred in buying the Studio 14z..... but I really want a SSD drive.


How much money would a computer store charge me to replace the HDD with a 80GB Intel SSD (or Samsung, or OCZ)?


Thanks.


Also, how are the speakers and sound? (I would be getting the default High Definition Audio 2.0 since I'm not sure how well the soundblaster card will work with Linux).


These are the specs I want to get for $1184:

COLORS Black Chainlink
PROCESSOR Intel® Core™ 2 Duo P8700 (2.53GHz/1066Mhz FSB/3MB cache)
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English
OFFICE SOFTWARE Microsoft® Works 9
WARRANTY AND SERVICE 2 Year Basic Service Plan
HD DISPLAY 14.0” High Definition+ (900p) Bright LED Display with TrueLife™ and Camera/Facial Recognition SW
MEMORY 5GB Shared Dual Channel DDR3 at 1066MHz
HARD DRIVE Speed: 320GB SATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) with Free Fall Sensor
EXTERNAL OPTICAL DRIVE Dell 8X eSATA DVD+/-RW External Drive
BATTERY OPTIONS 74 Whr Lithium Ion Battery (8 cell)
WIRELESS CARDS Dell Wireless 1397 802.11g Half Mini-Card
SOUND OPTIONS High Definition Audio 2.0
KEYBOARD Back-lit Keyboard
VIDEO CARD NVIDIA® GeForce® 9400M G

 

Replacing the drive in the 1440 is easy... pop off the keyboard trim, remove the keyboard (two #00 screws), remove the drive cage (4 #00 screws), remove drive from cage (another 4 #00 screws). Re-installation is the reverse. Now, I did see instructions for a 14z with a different model number, and they weren't as easy. How much would a store charge to do it? I dunno. But if you know which end of the screwdriver to hold, you can probably do it yourself. The only hard part is getting the keyboard trim off without scratching it.

The speakers... well, it's a laptop. They're *far* better than my old 13" macbook unibody, but they aren't gonna be confused with quality speakers or headphones.

I'm not enough of an audio guy to comment on the sound, other than to say that the IDT software is lousy. Wouldn't keep SRS turned off so I turned on the "disable all enhancements" option in the windows sound control panel. This, of course, wouldn't apply to Linux anyway.

 

I didn't realize Dell soldered a GB of ram into the motherboard.. wow what a really dumb move.

I was wondering why I was forced to choose between 3GB (one less than I'd like) or 5GB (one too many). The Studio 14z is really nice and I was tempted to get it, but settled for the Inspiron 14z when I realized I didn't need a backlit keyboard or a GPU since at most I may stream HD movies via Hulu.

'course now I'm watching the VAIO Y-series since for its price it is better than what I can configure the Inspiron 14z for.

Maybe Dell will drop that soldered memory one day.

 

Thank you for the info.


*sort of off topic*

I just saw that the regular Studio 14 has the Intel i3/i5 processors now: http://www.dell.com/us/en/home/note.../pd.aspx?refid=laptop-studio-1450&s=dhs&cs=19


obviously it's not as thin or light, but the specs look very good..... the options right now only have a 7200rpm HDD, but the "Design" page says SSD, and it also says it will have the i7 with DDR3 1333MHz SDRAM, 900p screen, and blue ray drive..... so I might wait for a few days for some better options.

 

Any Windows 7 64bit Alps drivers with multitouch around for the 14z?

 

i don't see the Studio 14z on Dell's site anymore...?

waiting on the core i5 refresh for the 14z...

 

Me too. I wonder if they'll lose the NVIDIA 9400M G and just go with the Intel GMA HD for a thinner model.

 

Seeing as the 9400m is not compatible socket-wise with the new Core i3/i5/i7 and nVidia hasn't announced a new chipset or refresh of the 9400 for the new Core i3/i5/i7 (as far as I know) If and when Dell refreshes the Studio 14z's with the i3/i5/i7's they'll have the Intel integrated graphics and maybe (one can hope) so kind of discrete graphics shoved in the same/similar thin-and-light body. That would be awesome. Love the form-factor of the Dell Studio 14z.

 

even the current version is great for it's size and weight. since arrandale came out, i'm hoping the refresh is sooooon. the addition of a core i5 and an updated discrete graphics card would be killer.

i'm in need of a laptop within the next month or 2 that i can travel with for work, so i'm itching to pull the trigger.

 

I'm sorry..... I really misspoke there and I incorrectly and lazily worded what I meant to ask..... I guess I was tired and not thinking straight. A total brain fart. (and thank you for being polite to such a silly question)


I'm aware that the NVIDIA 9400M G is an integrated graphics card, and other discrete cards like the G 210M used the 9400M motherboard (MCP79) and its shared memory for things like Hybrisd SLI and Hybrid Power (such as the Studio XPS 13 which I just bought and returned).


So with the new Intel GMA HD built into the i3/i5 using integrated shared memory and replacing the need for the 9400M..... I guess what I meant to say was that I wonder if they will with use NVIDIA for the addition of a possible discrete card (instead of ATI like in the Studio 14), and if they do stay with NVIDIA for any added discrete card to the 14z, then I wonder how the Hybrid SLI and Hybrid Power would work using the Intel GMA HD instead of the MCP79?


So I didn't mean to ask if they would keep both integrated graphics cards in the Studio 14z (a pretty stupid question and possibly one of the dumber thing I've said in a forum thread in a long time)..... I guess I wasn't thinking.


My bad, sorry for the confusion.




I did see that the Sony CW uses the i3/i5 and the additional discrete NVIDIA G 310M card: http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs...98552921644659494&N=4294954315#specifications

 

No sweat, happens to all of us!

Yea the Intel "HD Graphics" of the i3/i5/i7's probably wont be compatible with ATI/Nvidia discrete cards for any form of "Hybrid SLI" but if Dell does include a discrete ATI/Nvidia video card in the new refresh of the Studio 14z it'll have switchable graphics most likely, so we as users would have to manually decide at any point in time if we want to use the integrated Intel GMA graphics for more battery life or the ATI/Nvidia discrete (assuming they put one in) for more power at the expense of battery life.

I really do hope Dell pops in a discrete video card in the new 14z. For something thin and light like this probably a nVidia GT 210/220/310 or whatever they call them nowadays, or the ATI 4670 (or maybe they'll go with the new 5-series like 5630 or whatever).

 

Thanks for being so polite, if you look at my post above this one I had gone back and edited it while you were replying to it, and I had thanked you for being polite to such a dumb question. I also edited some other parts to make a bit more sense.

This would actually be better for me since I use Linux. The Hybrid SLI/Power does not work with the NVIDIA Linux drivers and I don't believe they plan on fixing it.

Yes, and if it has an option in the bios to choose then that would be super cool.


The only negative about this for me at the moment is some reports of problems with Linux and the i5: http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=NzkwOA

I also saw a thread in Ubuntu forums where people couldn't get graphics to start.

 

Can I ask your thoughts on the 14z's display (and which display you opted for)?

 

I got the 900p screen. Worth every penny. It's a little blueish, but color calibration fixes that nicely. Viewing angles are good, black point is nice.

Displays differ, but if anyone wants to give my color profile a shot, http://dl.dropbox.com/u/3923725/Spyder2express.zip

 

Aside from resolution, is the 900p supposed to be better than the 720p?

 

I haven't seen the 720p display. The 900 is the stuff though; bright, spacious, and sharp.

 

Does anybody know if (and when) Dell is going to refresh the Studio 14z with the newer Intel CPUs? That's the only thing keeping me from buying this laptop.

 

same here. hopefully the refresh is soon. c'mon Dell!!!

 

Question (14z with Windows 7 x86)...

At night I use Win7 to "sleep" my 14z (lid is open), works great, but it will only wakeup by pressing the power button (which is annoying).

I cannot get it to wake up with the keyboard, touchpad or bluetooth mouse. I have the "USB wakeup" option on in the bios and checked all "Power Management" tabs for every device that has one, making sure the "allowed device to wake" is checked.

Anyone else able to wakeup?

 

Sometimes it'll wake up just from opening the lid, sometimes it needs the power button. I've given up on figuring out why.

 

I have kept silent on these forums and have not visited since I last bought an Asus G2S 17" laptop.. it was nice.. expensive and in the end way to much to consider it a "laptop".. so now it is about 2+ years later and I have bought this dell.

I dwindled my choice between a macbook pro 13" and this. The price was not a sticking point for me.. it was the hardware that kept me. I wanted something better than 1280x800 resolution at 13", I wanted an expresscard slot for the impending usb 3.0 spec, eSata for all my hard drives, a true hdmi port and most importantly a PORTABLE laptop, not a 15" or 17" slab of metal. Apple totally missed the mark with their Macbook Pro 13" imho.

So lo-and-behold Dell releases a 14" notebook that matches and exceeds the MacBook Pro 13" sub-DVD drive and not only on features but they even matched the MCP79 nvidia chipset of the motherboard!!

Needless to say I am gracefully running OSX on my 14z, minus secondary audio out and no HDMI-audio out.. (Also those sleep issues some of yall are having.. well I don't have them)

Apple you had me at hello, but then you spat in my face and then I said hell no.

 

ditto. The sooner it's released the sooner they get my cash.

 

Dell has relesased a new inspiron 14 with i3/i5 processors which has almost the same dimensions as the Studio14z and with an optical drive to boot.

Its called the inspiron 1464.

http://www.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/inspiron-1464?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19

I think it is impressive except for the iffy intel graphics but you can upgrade to a dedicated HD 4330.Though with the upgrade it is more expensive than the Studio 14Z.

I dont think dell will be able to make a thinner Studio 14Z than the current one with dedicated graphics better than HD4350 and the i5 processor.

After seeing this i decided not to buy a new Studio 14Z and insted ordered a refurb from the outlet. Do you guys think i Made a good decision and got a good deal?

I ordered a Studio 14z with 5GB DDR3 :


System Price : $579.00 INC Shipping and Tax after coupon for a certified Refurb.

Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home PremiumMemory
Integrated Memory - 1 GB
4 GB DDR3 SDRAM 1066MHz (1 DIMM)Hard Disk Drive
500 GB SATA Hard Drive (5400 RPM)Video
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M GCertified Refurbished
Certified RefurbishedHardware Upgrade
No WWAN Option
6 Cell, 56WHr Lithium-Ion Primary Battery
Standard Keyboard
125V Power Cord
Silver palm rest
65W AC AdapterLaptop Screen
14.0 inch (720p) Bright LED Display with TrueLifeSoftware Upgrade
Windows Live
Microsoft Works 9.0
Facial Recognition Version 2.3
64BIT Operating System DVDWeb Camera
Integrated 1.3M Pixel WebcamNetwork Interface Card
Dell Wireless 1515 802.11a/g/n WLAN half Mini CardSystem Color
Chainlink Black Base
Studio 14z - 1440 Laptop, No internal DVD or CD DriveProcessor
Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T6600 (2.2GHz/800Mhz FSB/2MB cache)

 

I'm trying to decide between Dell 14z and Sony Vaio CW (with I5) for software development and maybe hosting a small database server. Would appreciate your comparison between the 2 laptops.

 

Question about physical memory usage...

It is always over 40% no matter what is open. Is this normal? Any ideas on how to get it lower?


Also what kind of battery life do you get with the 8cell? I leave it on the second to lowest brightness and get about 3.5 hours.

 

About 6-6.5 Hrs on 3rd brightness while surfing. Good stuff.

 

Wow I guess there is something wrong with my battery...

 

go install this then restart and see what the battery wear shows up as.
my battery is 2-3% wear.

 

It is 8.2%. I've had the laptop since December. Is this normal? Should I contact Dell?

 

Hello and thank you for your comments. My apologies for my delay in responding. computer issues.

Anyway, I agree with you. The initial Dell Tech Support person I spoke with had arranged to send me a new AC adapter. Then I got a call from Dell about 15 minutes later, from a supervisor, telling me about the BIOS issue. The only reason I believed him at all was that he said he could confirm it was a BIOS issue and NOT the AC Adapter (or AC socket in the laptop) because the laptop will remain powered up when plugged in but with the battery removed. It gets very, VERY slow and buggy, but it does stay on. Also, the CPU is at 100% with nothing open or running; only the usual background stuff. The Dell supervisor said this was another clue to the BIOS Issue. Maybe be BS but I don't have any ammunition to contradict him, unfortunately.

However, other than this, it acts to me very much like a loose connection between the AC Adapter and the AC socket in the laptop. I can turn the plug in the socket and sometimes, eventually get the charging light to come on and get the battery to charge. But, it's very spotty and there is no pattern to it.

I agree also that, while I love everything else about the 14Z, the placement of the AC Adapter socket and Adapter design is horrible. It is constantly getting knocked by various things. I'm hoping eventually I can find a compatible model with an "L" shaped plug that will hug the body of the laptop, rather than sticking out like the original does.

Also, in looking at the spec's I found online, it does look like they did one thing right with the AC socket: it appears that -- unlike previous laptops I've had -- it's not soldered onto the MB, but is a separate unit attached to the MB by a cable with a plug. This should make it very easy to replace, in the even that ends up being the problem. I hope.

I'll keep at this, and appreciate your input. I'll report back once the problem is resolved (thinking positively.)

 

Did you buy it as a refurb? If you did then it is normal. My laptop was a refurb but i was lucky to get a really good battery. Also, do you usually run it on battery or AC? If you usually run it on battery (everyday) and charge it then its normal.

 

I bought it new and I use the battery probably every other day.

 

Its normal. I use my laptop every other day and its mostly on the AC hence the battery doesn't have much ware-n-tear.