Inspiron 1520 owners lounge

as far as i heard the first line of inspirons should be shipping out today. well be able to get all of our questions answered tomorow.

 

I'm pretty sure the 8600m GT IS DDR3. The 512MB version comes with DDR2, but the 256MB comes with GDDR3.

 

I asked a Dell sales rep and he told me it was DDR3, but I have also been told by another rep that it is DDR2. They really have no idea what the hell they're talking about, so I guess we just gotta wait it out.

 

Anyone tell me if this one will be a good lap for the basic college necessity, internet browsing, and a few games every now and then? New to Notebooks, first one.

That setup should be fine for basic web surfing, word processing, and itunes. Just don't expect to be able to run any newer games. The Intel graphics will run older games like World of Warcraft, civilization, and counterstrike fine. Just don't expect to run newer stuff like FEAR, Quake 4, or halo 2 well or at all.

 

You're right about the 4 gig being unusable. Although if money isn't a concerns, upgrading to 4 gigs will allow your 32 bit Vista to run 2.5 to 3 gigs (the exact number seems to be varying depending upon different sources). Also, If you really want to take advantage of upto 12 gigs of ram, you can upgrade to the 64 bit version of Vista later (when its hopefully more supported.)

 

Yeah, so best just to get the lowest ram option from Dell and upgrade yourself to the 3gb mark at this point... that's the most cost effective

& I was assuming 4gb was the top supported amount anyway?

 

I work on computer and yes, with a 32bit system either xp or vista you are able to use 4gb if your motherboard supports it. But with 64 bit you allowed up to i believe 16 gb

 

I just researched GDDR3 (link provided) on Wikipedia, and it sounds pretty sweet. But is DDR2 really that much slower than GDDR3?

 

Actually the above is wrong. Yes, if you are using a 32 bit system you should theoretically be able to use 2^32 bits or 4294967296 bits or 4 gigabytes. Now...the problem is that XP and Vista 32 bits don't actually use all of this memory for some reason, but are limited to 2.5-3 gigabytes. With a 64bit system, you are allowed MUCH MUCH more than 16 gigabytes. In fact, you are allowed up to 2^64 bits or 1.84467441 × 10^19 bits which is about 18 EXABYTES!!! That's over 10,000,000 Terabytes of memory!

 

Lightflux let's keep our feet on the grounds for a while
I'm curious what difference will be between the 1520 (3DMark scores and FPS) and the 128Mb version of MBP. which one will be more powerful ?

 

Lol I was just having a lil fun I'd say the 1520 is probably the more powerful system considering that you're getting the 256mb version of the 8600gt (and I'm assuming that you're using a comparable 2.2ghz processor for the 1520 as well).

 

I don't know. Apple guys've always used something surprising in their machines

 

Everywhere that I read myself....I read that the 256MB 8600M GT is DDR3 while the 512MB 8600M GT is DDR2....

 

OMG !! with the FREE memory and hard disk upgrades and applying the $350 coupon, the 1520 now costs only around $1,000 !! bye bye MBP

 

too bad people cant use the 350 coupon anymore.

 

Yeah, that's what I always thought as well. The 8600M GT in the 1520 is DDR3 while the one in say the Compal IFL90, which is 512MB is DDR2.

I don't really see why this matter that much.

 

what do you mean? I used it today

 

yeah i saw the free upgrades and was mad when I tried seeing what the price difference would be between my current system and the new setup I would order if i could have, the dell site told me the coupon had already been used (meaning my previous order ). Has anyone received theirs yet? I am anxious to start hearing peoples reactions to their new lappies. I originally ordered a 1505 in may, then because of a million delays ended up cancelling that order and ordered the system below on the 28th, I was given a ship date of the 18th. I was given free next business day shipping and told that a request to expedite my order would be put in due to all the delays with the 1505. Wish I would of held out a little longer now though. Would have saved some cash on the 2 gigs ram I already bought to upgrade my laptop (is being shipped with 1 gig). Plus would have doubled my HDD size. Oh well, such is life when buying computer stuff.....

 

Hopefully that is the case.. all my research has led me to believe we're getting DDR2 and that 256 and 512 version come in both DDR2 & 3.

- - -

Does anyone know what is the largest hard drive capacity that 1520 can support?

 

whatever you feel like putting in it, it uses a sata controller, and win xp and vista both can use the largest drive you can find.

Alright bad news folks. Because I have had so many delay issues with my past order of the 1505 (cancelled in lieu of a 1520) i get periodic calls from my case manager at Dell to let me know the status of my laptop. Well apparently they are having a shortage on the LCD screens so there is a possibility of delays for everyone, I would imagine not the super high res ones, but the others all say "this may delay your ship date" on dell's website. So just wanted to warn you guys, you may be waiting for your new lappy.

 

from what I have read, the 512 mb on the IFL90 (the only system that I know has the 512) is a bit misleading in a sense where it's 256 with turbo cache up to 512. so the cards are the same with non-varying performance. and the ddr2 and ddr3 schpeal supposedly has very minimal performance difference.

 

My laptop was supposedly shipped. its got a dhl (Worst company ever, dell should get rid of them) tracking number. Hopefully sometime this week.

 

anybody have plans to use some kind of docking station with their 1520?

 

The 350 coupon doesn´t have importance yet. With the 225 coupon + free 160GB hd + 2gb of ram you obtain better price.

 

wait....are u serious? how does this make sence? im confused =\

was it that when u could apply the 350 coupon, they take away the free hd and ram?

 

the highest GF8600GT I have seen is in the acer gemstone, it has 256 onboard and up to 768 turbocache giving an effective(to a point) 1 gig vid ram. I dont know if its ddr2/3 didnt pay attention.

 

Hello! I ordered a 1520 today.

Does anybody know if the 8600m GT comes with 256Mb GDDR2 or GDDR3?

 

Most seem to think that it is DDR3 based on the "comparison" link at Dell's website here:

http://www.dell.com/content/learnmo..._inspnnb&~lt=popup&~series=inspn&~tab=details

The 22.4 for "graphics memory Bandwidth" (What units are those in anyway?) is what seems to have clued the technical people in that it is DDR3.

But there still seems to be confusion.

 

Ill be sure to post tomorrow if its dd3 or dd2 unless stella beats me too it .

Just out of curiosity how do i check? Ill be able to figure it out after a while but if i knew directly where to go i could check sooner

 

Download RivaTuner: http://downloads.guru3d.com/

I dont know why most say it's DDR3 - I hope it is but Dell has reassured me it is DDR2.

 

1521'ers allowed in this club? . Ended up springing for the cheaper AMD, since I didn't really need the power and would've rather spent the extra $100 on accesories

 

They're probably confused by the shared memory with the main DDR2 system RAM.

 

Yes they most likely confuse it with DDR2 memory on the RAM. Please remove DDR2 from your sig until people actually can CONFIRM IT IN PERSON!!!

You are misleading everybody!

The 256mb model is GDDR3, and the 512mb model is DDR2.

And GODAMN ITS NOT DDR3 !!!!!!!!!!!!! GDDR3 OK ? DDR3 memory is not even out yet for GPU's.

 

I'm planning on having a full review done by tomorrow evening to send to Andrew. I had the outline written last week, lol.

 

I have no idea how much longer I will have to wait

In response to the what are those units measured in question about the 22.4 bandwidth, it is Gbps or gigabits per second.

Wait, I just noticed in Stella's sig it says the notebook has arrived? you have it already? Come on tell us if its ddr2 or 3?

 

oh yeah, and dont get that confused with "Gigabytes" per second. 1000 bits = 1 byte, if I remember correctly. They just use that term to make things sound so much better then they really are. Kind of like the way internet companies sell their broadband. Your average consumer just knows: slow, fast, REALLY FAST...lol

 

well i just modified my order once again. I upgraded my processor from T7100 to the T7300.

 

how bad was your new ship date?

 

8 bits = 1 byte. Not 1000 bits, lol.

1000 bits is 1 kBit, but only 125 bytes.

 

It was August 6th but now it's August 7th. For some reason the delivery day moved up a day to August 8th.

 

Alright so I was off a little But it still is not proportional in the way that we think. Edit: (meaning bytes)

 

Hi

I have a few questions regarding the screen resolution:
- Is there a noticeably difference between the WSXGA+ and the WXGA+ (quality, contrast, viewing angle)?
- Will reducing the resoultion on the WSXGA+ while playing make the picture bad?

It would be nice to hear from someone with experience.

Edit: I've now read some older posts which were quite similar. But it's still interesting to hear your experiences with this excact model (1520).

2nd Edit: Just for comparison; a 1520 with T7300, 2 GB, WSXGA+, 9-cell and the most basic guarantee costs about $2300 in Norway with today's currencies.

 

that's a lot of money

 

Guys, my 1520 will be here by tomorrow!!! My computer is being shipped my DHL which I don't like, but whatever, it works!

 

hey larson, when did you order?

 

Mine's on the delivery courier as of 7:54am!

 

uh...I just missed my delivery. I never expect it to arrive this quick cuz I got 3-5 shipping and it was shipped yesterday.

 

Yeah. If you take the 350 coupon you lose the free 160gb hd and the 2gb of ram. A few days ago i configured (not buy) my 1520 and it cost 1400 aprox (with the 350 coupon). and 2 days ago when i cofigure it and pay it it cost 1271 with the same configuration.

 

could anyone tell me the dimensions of the 1520 with the 9cell battery - i've seen someone else ask the same question but i forgot where i read it and cant find anything with search. I've seen dimensions floating about but i dont think they include the size of the battery

 

Will this memory work out if I install it in the 1520 because I only ordered the 1gb of ram

CORSAIR ValueSelect 2GB (2 x 1GB) 200-Pin DDR2 SO-DIMM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Dual Channel Kit Notebook Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145157