Dell Studio 1555

when i do a clean install of windows will I need the vista product key? and if so where would i find it?

 

As long as you use the "Operating System" reinstallation disc that came with your Dell, then you will not need any product key and you will not have to "Activate" the OS once installed. A Dell install key is already installed on these Dell disc. As long as you are installing it back to a Dell computer, it will not ask for the key. There is a key word, I think it is "DELL" programmed and hidden in the BIOS. If this key word is present in the BIOS, the Dell OS reinstall disc bypasses all of the registration and validation crap.

If you try to use your Dell OS reinstallation disk on a non Dell PC, it will install, but on first boot will tell you the key is not valid for this computer and will make you enter a new key.

Also just an FYI, there should be a product key sticker on the bottom of your laptop. But again, you will not need this key if you are using the Dell supplied reinstallation disc.

One note, you WILL need a copy of all the drivers to install after you reinstall the OS. I suggest downloading them to a flash drive from Dells site before you do the clean install so that you have them. At least download the NIC or Wifi drivers so that you can then download the rest after you have the network working again.
VVarwick

 

they finally shiped me the correct screws

 

Hey wts up with the ACPI TZ02 temperatures...it reaches up to 90C while gaming while everything else remains normal...is it some kind of error?..any ideas?

 

Think that is a sensor either on or next to the GPU. Mine hits high 80s when looping 3dmark.

 

3D Mark 2006 score: 4050
SM2.0 score: 1473
SM3.0 score: 1713
CPU Score: 1789


What did you guys score?

 

Hey guys,

I just wanted to point out a solution to a problem I was having with the Dell Studio 1555. When I was connecting an external monitor it was giving me black bars on all sides of the monitor.

To solve this problem you need to:

1. Right click your desktop
2. Select Personalize.
3. Select Display settings (at the bottom of the window)
4. Select your external display (probably display 2). You will know it is selected when it has a blue border around the display.
5. Select advanced settings
6. Click the Catalyst(TM) Control Center Tab
7. Click the ATI Catalyst Control Center button
8. When it asks you which Control Center you would like to use select advanced and then click next.
9. Open the tab called DTV (HDMI)... this will probably be called something different if you are not connected with HDMI. This tab was located below the Notebook Panel Properties tab.
10. Go to scaling options.
11. Slide the slider all the way to the right (overscan 0%).
12. Click apply and this should solve your problem.

Figured I would point this out in case someone runs into this problem. It freaked me out for a bit because I thought the video card may not support 2 1920x1080 resolution monitors. Thank god that is not the case. Sorry if someone already pointed this out... didn't want to read through 200+ pages

 

Hi everyone.
I ordered a 1555 about a week ago and as far as I know it's en route to be delivered August 6th.
Really looking forward to getting this, so much that I've read trough this entire thread actually
In my anticipation I'd like to thank all of you for the info I've gotten from here, but if anyone could help with a couple of more things, that would be great.

I'm planning to buy a SSD to put in it, and use the stock disk as an external disk with the eSATA port. As far as I've been able to find out, the motherbord should support sata-II/sata-300/whatever you prefer to call it, but a sales rep told me in the chat-thingy it only supported regular sata (150MB/S) can that be true? (I'm getting a Corsair P128, so I will "need" to go beyond the limitations of sata-1 =)

And, will the Intel 5300 help wired connections as well? I usually wire my computer to the intranet when I need max bandwidth anyway.


Also I found it kind of funny that my 3 year old XPS M1710 actually outperform this one in graphics and gaming graphics on the vista "benchmark." (5.9 and 5.6 respectively) It's running an nVidia GeForce GO 7900 GS. I'm guessing this sort of card would be practically given away by now, but is it really better than a newer card like the radeon 4570, and if so, why wouldn't they just use an older, cheaper, but better card? (Not considering the "memory parity error" BSODs and the occasional screen distortion if I leave my computer on for extended periods of time )

Again, thanks for the help, and from what I've read here I'm really happy with the choices I made, except for not getting a backlit keyboard, but I guess they don't make those for Norwegian keyboards.
Went for the P8600, 512mb 4570, 4gb ram, blu-ray and 1080p display.
One last thing, is it a hassle to buy a replacement adapter and power cord from dell? I'll be going to a university in the US as an exchange student this fall, and would be nice to get an adapter that fits the power plugs "natively."

 

Does anyone know the model of the webcam?

 

just did a clean install of vista 64 bit and everything seems to be working fine so far. I've only installed 6 drivers.

-intel wifi link 5100
-moble graphics 4500HD
-synaptics touchpad
-integrated webcam driver
-dell quickset
-wireless 370 bluetooth minicard

what else do i need? what do the dell system utility do? one is called system software and the other is vista power settings.

Do you guys consider the dell webcam central software bloatware or is there a program better to use? im supposing my webcam works since i installed the driver.

 

I called Dell to modify my order and it was too late. The rep told me to go ahead and order the one I want with modifications and they'll give me a full refund of my first order (gave me a case #). I am now getting the 5300 wireless card and the backlit keyboard! Neither are necessary..but it was killing me not to have them!

 

The Intel 5300 chip is only a wireless card. The wired connection goes to another card, Broadcom NetLink Gigabit Ethernet.

Getting replacement for the power cord and adapter should be really easy.

 

Hi I recently contacted Dell regarding replacing my laptop due to a (yeah one!) dead pixel, which credit to them they are doing. I had put windows 7 on it, but am wondering should I reinstall Vista, I mean it doesnt invalidate my warranty having windows 7 on it does it?

Regards

 

No it does not invalidate your warranty. I too have installed Windows 7 and have a few dead pixels, but they are replacing the display regardless. The tech rep knew I had Windows 7 as they remoted into my machine because at the same time I had a problem with my optical drive

 

Ah great news, many thanks!

 

Hi what driver can i use for the synaptics touchpad with windows 7 64 bit?
The vista 64 bits driver says it cant be installed.

 

I can't see a windows 7 driver on the synaptics site; so I guess you might just have to wait until they release one.

What happens if you try to install the vista 64 driver in compatibility mode?

 

Windows just says he cant use this driver so that aint a option. Will have to wait then.

 

Dell dock...Still driving me nuts.

 

Gonna try it right now...Which problem do you have with it?So i can report you if i also have.
Sorry but searching through 230 pages is not easy.

 

Thanks =)
Now if someone has tested SATA-II on the studio 1555 I'd be grateful to know the results

I think it was a CPU usage problem (15%)

 

It constantly uses 15-20% of my CPU clock cycles, even when its just sitting there. Reduces battery run time quite a bit, and makes the fan go off when idling. Restarting it brings the CPU useage down to zero, but in 5-10 minutes the problem returns. Its maddening, as the Dell Dock is the best docking software I've used so far, CPU issue aside.

 

You sure you're using the 64-bit version of Dell Dock? When I downloaded it from delldock.com, it gave me the option of 32 or 64 bit.

If you're having trouble with the 64 bit version, you might want to try 32 anyway.

 

I just had a look in task manager, its the 64 bit version. Weird, when i download they didnt give me an option though. Where did you see the 32 bit option?

 

Up and running for almost 2 weeks now, with Win7 RC 64bit. Quick question regarding the webcam? I have the drivers installed and all, but I haven't yet installed the Dell software.

Is there a better option available, or should I go with the dell software. Also, while we are at it, is the dell software bloatware?

 

I tried the DellDock and it doesn't seems to have these problems, so it may be the 64 bit thing...

But... how many MB of Ram should it take?I have a lot of ram used by the delldock, sometimes it reaches 50 MB!!

Where can i find the info about the version that i have installed??

 

If you open up task manager (ctrl+alt+delete) it will have a *32 next to it if your running the 32 bit version on 64 bit vista.

I still dont see an option to download a 32 bit version, where is it?

Mine is only taking up 10mb of memory (under private working set), i dont know why yours would be taking 5X as much.

 

50MB is not a lot of RAM. A few pages open in Internet Explorer will use 50MB of RAM, and to the best of my knowledge there is only one version of Dell dock.

 

I just trashed Dell Dock. I got Objectdock instead, based on recommendations i found on an older thread on this very site. Much much better, no CPU useage issues and it uses less RAM too. Its only using 8700kb of memory, even set to maximum quality settings and "i paid for RAM so use it" mode. Love it.

 

also had the same question. Is the Dell Video Chat bloatware and is there a better free alternative?

 

hi ,
i got my S1555 and it is shipped with vista basic x32. .
is it possible for me to change it to Win7 later?

 

Yup. It will support any version of Windows 7.

 

my laptop arrived today. havent opened the box yet though.

 

Received my Studio 15 laptop last week but have already encountered a couple of problems. Will appreciate it if anyone can help.
1.) Whenever I'm playing music on the laptop and I close the lid, there is some sort of audio glitch that I can hear. It does go away but the glitch also occurs when I reopen the lid and it can be frustrating at times!
2.) When I first got the laptop I decided to reinstall Vista to get rid of all the bloatware. However, there is an icon to safely remove the DVD drive! I've tried reinstalling Vista several more times but to no avail. Although I've partially hidden it, I would prefer it just to not be there.
3.) I hear a clicking sound every so often (assuming that it's my WD hard drive). Is there a solution to stop this from happening?

Thanks!

 

i didnt know the 9 cell battery was so huge. oh well. at least it adds a little ventilation.

 

i also notice this, it's like a stuttering.

 

It's normal for the audio to cut out for a second or so if it's playing while you open or close the lid.

 

can someone please tell me how to figure what company made my HDD?

 

Pop off your bottom panel and read the label.

 

Easier to open up device manager. Right click on your computer in the start menu, and hit properties. Device manager is on the left hand side.

 

Is a big difference between Intel 5100 and Intel 5300 Wi-Fi cards?

 

I already explained it a few pages back, to put it simply unless you have a super-high speed internet connection (i'm talkin 200+mb/s) than no, it wont matter. The 5100 lets me use my full 15mb/s connection speed no problem.

 

Thanks, because right now Dell offer only: Intel® WiFi Link 5100 802.11agn Half Mini-Card and Intel® High Performance Wireless-N Card.
I think that Intel® High Performance Wireless-N Card is 5300.

 

The 5100 has a max bandwidth of 300mbp/s, the 5300 has 450mbp/s. Also the range is slightly improved with the 5300.

 

Do I just need the 5100 wifi driver for connecting to the internet? Is the broadcom driver important to install?

 

No I believe that you do not need the broadcom driver if you are going to connect with wireless. The broadcom driver is for your LAN port. I'd probably install it anyway.

 

You need the 5100 Wifi Driver to connect to the internet wirelessly because the driver is for your 5100 WLAN card. You need it in order for it to work.

Yes it is important to install the broadcom driver. This is the driver for your wired connection. You need it in order for you to be able to connect via a Cat5 or Cat5e wire. I would highly recommend installing it because if theres no Wifi network you won't be able to connect via wire.

 

hey everyone. i just got my Dell Studio 1555 today. i was wondering if anyone knew where to get the webcam facial recognition software? thanks.

 

Link removed by Mod.

See this thread for information on how to obtain the software.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=352993
Enjoy.

 

ARGHHH!!!..dell india just changed its options for screen resolutions to include 900p(25USD more) and 1080p(45USD more)...damn!!...not tht the 720p is bad..