Does A01 motherboard mean they sent you a refurb M1330?

I ordered two (both within the last two weeks) and received both with A01 (as shown under the memory slot).

This could mean one of two things:

a) Dell is still trying to shift A01 inventory and using it
b) Dell is deceiving us by sending refurbs/returns from outlet as new...

Which one is it?

 

If it is a refurb, it will say "refurb" on the bottom. Got my refurb last week and it had the A04 motherboard.

 

dell is deceiving you . i suggest calling an attorney. sue them. you should write letter to michael dell too.

 

I thought A01 referred to a revision number, not that it was new or refurbished. That number along with others is common on hardware.

 

I meant the motherboard version is A01. I thought all new M1330's were getting A04 montherboards?

 

OTL...my newest replacement is still A01 and a little bit CPU whine...and I jsut typed an email to my Dell rep. to ask for a service call...But overall my latest replacement is almost perfect!

 

Hey, alexzeon...A bit off topic, but what's with your XPS's logo on the lid?

 

Just a sticker...symbol of "the Principality of Zeon" from Japanese animation "Mobile Suit Gundam"

 

So I guess they are still putting A01's in new units?

 

I would say so, as my SSD was produced on Nov 25, which is very new...

 

Where on the motherboard is it printed ? What panels/parts do I have to remove to get to it ? Is there a way to check the motherboard revision through software ? (Shipped with BIOS version A06)

 

Hmm thanks... I guess my second one has to go since the whine is really bad.. and the lid doesn't close fully... rest of the issues I can live with.. hopefully I will get one of the new A04's...

 

They are definitely still shipping the A01 motherboards (in the US at least). Mine was just shipped Thursday December 6 (I received it yesterday) and it has the older A01 version. This after I was "assured" by Dell tech support that ALL m1330s in the US were shipping with the newer A04 version! Dell is great at one thing for sure...telling their customers what they want to hear even if it's not true.

 

My newest replacement which came on monday also has the A01 motherboard and little bit on whine other than that it's perfect. It did have slight wobble but i fixed that by bending the base a little now it sits perfectly.

Mine definetely doesn't look like a refurb and was shipped from Ireland.

I have another replacement on order for the whine but just thinking shall i just leave it. My first replacement had the a04 motherboard but also had the wobble and whine so i ordered another.

 

I have a refurbished unit with an A01 revision board an A06 BIOS.

I must be one of the lucky ones because I have none of this whining sound I've read about. When I am working on the laptop in a completely silent room, I can hear nothing. About every five minutes or so, the system fan kicks in at its lowest speed for about a minute. It's barely audible. But no whine or high-pitched noise that I can hear at all...

 

There should be a software method but I don't know it.

Basically remove the panel that accesses memory at the bottom. Remove the first memory stick and you will see it there.

 

Looking at my other M1330 which has A01 but no whine.. I think the better way to find out if its a new build is the noise from the DVD.. the newer builds make almost no noise on startup and hitting eject with no disc makes no noise.

 

Where did you hear about no noise on disc eject? You can't get any newer than mine...delivered yesterday (US) with overnight shipping....it makes noise on eject with and without a disc. So I wouldn't say that's necessarly true.

 

I'm posting from my M1330 that makes absolutely no noise when the eject button is pressed (with no disc in)... as in nothing happens at all...

I think that would make it true?

Very little noise on startup too... It's a Matsu****a drive..

Your's probably came from a different source, my second (which was newer, delivered friday does have the noise and all the other issues I mentioned)...

 

Not necessarly...you even said yourself that you have a newer model that makes all the noise you have mentioned. So I don't beileve that no noise = newer. I do beilve that no noise = a certain brand dvd drive. Like you said...you even have a newer one with the noise.

When I get to my m1330 I'll post the brand DVD to see if we can make any sense of this!

 

Hmm.. you're probably right.. All I'm saying is that I have a new M1330 which has no noise when DVD eject is pressed... whether its new or old.. its definitely better than the noisy version... hopefully the replacement for the noisier M1330 will be a better one...

 

This is weird praneeth...My drive is a MAT****A_DVD+-RW_UJ-857G (probably the same as yours). I too have the A01 MB. I wish I could get this drive to shut up on eject....it sounds so cheap and terrible and not to mention LOUD. What ever you do make sure you keep that drive (swap it if you ever get a replacement)!!! Let me know the exact model of yours.

By the way my A01 also has a faint whine...so yet another reason to keep your!!!

 

I say don't let a technician open your computer. Also my a04 whines. So not worth it. Hopefully my new one (comming this week) will be perfect.)

 

Hey sorry .. i mixed up the manufacturer between my two systems.. the drive that makes no noise on eject (with no disc in) is:
HL-DT-ST DVDRW GSA-S10N hmm
which based on some googling looks like the same as in the MBP...

I'm not replacing this system... this one has A01 but it's quiet and has good build quality... It's the second one that I am returning and re-ordering....

I'm wondering if processor speed has anything to do with the whine .. this one is a T7250.. the whiny one is T7500 both A01....

 

Had this M1330 for one week - its my 5th from Dell since August. (first two were Inspiron 1520's and then i moved to M1330'). So far this one is pretty good. Bios is versionA06--don't know what MB is. not sure i care right now as long as it works. if something develops then i'll check the MB. aside from keyboard sticking (probably due to my fast but inaccurate typing) this is working well.

I'm glad I waited it out with Dell. Personally, I don't think Dell would deliberately mislead clients. But if they told you one thing and you think its a deal breaker then call them on it. My experience is that they have been receptive to their issues. will keep forum posted.

 

This is my second T7250.....both have the whine, although the second not as bad. However, my first system didn't really develop the annoying whine for 5 days or so. Keep us posted.

By the way, does anyone know what benefits the A04 MB has over the A01 besides the "potential" whine fix??