It's A Sunshiny day with my new 1520; review + pics

As promised here are the pics from my new 1520, some are kinda fuzzy, my camera sucks.

Screen pic:


Keyboard:


Non-flash screen shot:


Non-flash casing:


Flashed Casing:


Further back:


Back shows how the 9-cell sticks out:


Right side, shows how the SD card I use for ReadyBoost sticks out:


Desktop shot:


A very happy me, with my new notebook:


Interlink Bluetooth Remote:


How the remote looks in notebook:


Finally a little Unreal Tournament 2004, fully maxed settings, lovin:



Since there are so many other fairly comprehensive reviews, I will keep this short. I am very happy with my new notebook, the color is exactly as I hoped, not to bright, but also not too dark, which I did happen to fear more. The screen is a 1280 screen and yes it is the glossy version. I notice no graininess to it and if there is any, I personally just don't want to know. Ignorance is bliss as they say.

The webcam gives amazing shots off, and is quite easily the best webcam I have ever personally experienced. My desktop cam was always plagued with light issues, but not this one. It even has face tracking, pan and zoom, and various fun stuff to play with. I was talking to my friend from New Jersey on this yesterday and we actually had quite a bit of fun with some of the extras included for the cam.

The T7300 proc is almost never maxed out, and with the amount of multitasking I normally do that is suprising. I did order the system with 1 gig ram, and noticed a significant increase in performance once I turned the machine off and installed the 2 gigs of ram that I had purchased for this a couple weeks ago. I don't know how much good or bad my SD card does, but it is a high speed card and does not stick out too bad, so I figure why not leave it in. I have noticed some pretty large page files at times when I am heavily multitasking, so I imagine it is helping.

So far the only game I have really played is Unreal Tournment 2004, I set every last setting in the graphics control panel to max, meaning AA, AF, that kind of thing, then set my res in game to run native to this machine, and set every last setting on high. I consistently held 70+ fps, with some slight dips into the 30-40 fps range. All still quite acceptable. On that note, I can't wait for UT3 to come out.

The sound quality on this machine is amazing for a laptop. I am not going to compare this to a high end sound system, but for a laptop this has got really good speakers on it. The included Creative headset does not feel like the really cheap ones out there, but I am sure is not quite as good as the high end expensive ones. I have however tried them out, and found them to be of very good quality, comfortable in the ear, to me they had really good sound. I am actually debating using these headphones instead of my iPod headphones when i listen to it.

As far as customer service goes from Dell, I had a wonderful case manager who most of the time told me everything I needed to know, and also got me a few things. First thing was the remote issue many people had, I mentioned it to her, and no arguments just a order number back. Then I found some people were receiving a free messenger bag for having issues, and I felt that with everything I had went through that I should get one as well. Once again a simple email to her, and she took care of it.

In conclusion, I am quite happy with my purchase, just not Dell's performance. It took me a little over 2 months to receive a laptop from Dell with my original order being a 1505 that got delayed many times. Now I am actually kinda happy it got delayed because I ended up with this machine which is I am sure a superior machine. The overall build quality is great, no flex to this machine at all. The performance is amazing thanks in part to the dual core with some love going to the 2 gigs of ram. The HDD is my only disappointment, I apparently can't really get by with a 80 gig, but I knew that from the start, and have had plans to upgrade that by years end. Either way I feel this is a great laptop especially for people on the move. While it is heavier then some, that also lends towards its build quality. The Magnesium Alloy frame makes this one sturdy notebook and gives me quite a safe feeling that it will withstand the rigors of being toted around everyday in my schooling.



I hope this helps some of you in your decision to get one or not. As well as may help some of you in knowing that while sometimes you have to wait for something, in a case like this I found it well worth the wait.

 

grrrr the formatting I had done completely went out the window. Oh well enjoy anyways...

Edit: I went back through and hit enter a few times between stuff to try to show where it should of been new paragraphs, looks a little better.

 

Nice! good to hear you're satisfied

I can't wait for UT3 either

 

From what I heard, it is going to hit the PS3 first. If that happens I will be so mad!!! At least give us a demo....

 

Yaay! more reviews! I cant get enough of them. Especially pics!

 

did you get the 100 credit oto?

 

actually I decided to wait until my free bag has shipped just in case they decide I got to greedy...lol As soon as I see it shipped you can bet I will be on the trail of the credit, or at least a $100 coupon. Between the coupon and the 15% off thing they give you with your notebook I could afford to buy a new digicam from them...lol honestly would rather have that then the money anyway.

 

Congrats, mine arrived today too. Mines red and it looks awesome. i'm loving it so far, mine is slightly grainy, but not noticeable unless I get really close to the screen (1680*1050). No noise out of the headphone jack.

Have fun with your lappy I know I will.

 

Sorry Dell1520, I meant to say thank you to you as well. At least one person found my review to give them some happiness. And that alone makes it worth it to me.

 

Glad you like it. How's the ixoft working?

 

thanks for the pix!

 

well I haven't been able to find a program that gives me accurate readings of Dells funky equipment here. But as for the reason I bought it, It seems like the fan almost never kicks on, I had to run 2 instances of seti@home, and hold my hand over the fan outlet before the fan kicked up speed and that was with the cores reaching 60C from speedfans reading. As soon as I pulled my hand away the cores cooled right back down and the pad was fairly warm throughout the top, but the bottom was considerably cooler. The biggest thing to me was comfort with the laptop sitting in my lap and it has performed this flawlessly, except for the heat buildup of having something sitting on you period, but you just can't escape that. So overall I am satisfied with it, and take it with me when I go places. When I went to starbucks yesterday I even took it there, it slides in and out of my case logic sleeve with the laptop, its fairly thin, and does what it should, so why not.

 

That's what I've heard, it makes a difference when it's actualy on your lap. Good to know it's working, I guess I'll need to get one .

 

Would you mind telling me how to use ready boost?

 

thx a lot awesome pics =P

just one more question: how long does the battery (9cell, fully charged) last when surfing on the internet and doing office applications?

 

Once you stick in a compatible sd card then it should come up automatically. The thing is that the sd card has to be fast enough to use it. You can hack to get it to work but it might slow things down.

 

great review. i wish somebody from the us could have shipped one from me, so that i could have 2gigs of ram and t7300 but i guess thts more difficult than getting the 123 nuke deal. neways mine arrives tomorrow. have fun!!

 

its so nice to hear you finally got yours Liquid, you've certainly waited long enough.

on a side note, none of the customizable colors are looking quite like what i expected from the Dell shots, and I'm pleasantly surprised by your sunshine yellow...

kind of makes me regret ordering black, but i'll stick by it.

 

Man, I wish I had got the Yellow instead of the Brown now, it looks much better than I thought it would

 

The autoplay feature will popup, and the last option is "Use for ReadyBoost" If you are going to buy a card, opt for at least a 150X I got this one for $20 or so from newegg.com and it's a transcend card with a lifetime warranty which is nice since I am sure it will eventually go bad due to flash's limited write/read life.

It actually greatly depends, I usually have music going too, but in all honesty I would say around 4 hours. That was with wireless and bluetooth going. Obviously slightly longer without bluetooth, with less processes... you get the idea. I use am multitasking quite a bit so I think 4 hours isn't bad at all. Especially considering your average battery lasts 2-2:30 hours. The stick out of the 9 cell actually is nice. It helps give you a spot to grab underneath while carrying the laptop open.

to everyone else, sorry i haven't answered questions quicker I had class. Thanks for the props, rep would be nice . I also wanted to get these pics up so we have at least one yellow laptop to see the real color. Dell should have done a much better job of showcasing the real colors. I probably would of ordered green had I known it was the shade it was, but I am quite happy with the yellow. I have heard the brown is much darker then it looks. Black is well black, same with white. I haven't seen any pics of pink yet, and I can't remember if I have seen blue or not. But I have heard it's a little darker then people had hoped. At least this is here for reference now.

 

Is the general consensus this isn't grainy because it is the 1200??? I really don't know what to go with. I'd like the extra space...

 

It may be grainy, I just don't see it, so I say it's not.

Either way, it is quite possible that this is a new round of screens, possibly even from a different supplier. This may make it to where I have a different monitor then others.

 

Well I was more concerned with the resolution as I'd like the 1440, but your screen looks pretty good, so I might be willing to deal with the 1200

 

If you wouldn't mind me asking, is the remote you are holding the complimentary remote? If so, what is the item number. I tried talking to someone tonight at Dell and I was not able to convince him to give me a remote.

To anyone, if you have the person's extension as well as the item number of the remote, it would be greatly appreciated!

 

The Dell infrared remote does not stick out at all and has the Dell logo on it. The item number is FW331 .

 

nice review I'm excited to get mine tomorrow

 

The remote I got was the Interlink remote. No one was able to get the other remote that we were supposed to so I opted for the bluetooth one and they gave it to me free. If you can my case managers name was Mallika Khambaty. Ask for her, she is amazing!

 

Liquidx,
Do you have Mallika's extension? Do you also have the product number for this remote?

 

My Dell rep from chat sent me the one I mentioned above with very little argument, and was really great about following up with me to make sure I received it and that it was correct. I really didn't want the Bluetooth one because A) I don't have Bluetooth, B) it sticks out and the Dell one doesn't, and C) I've heard the Bluetooth remote drains your battery faster.

 

It does drain your battery faster, but only if it needs charging. I do have bluetooth, and I am much happier with the fact that I don't have to worry about line of sight.

Matt check PM

Chesie, thanks.

 

I think your chances of getting a free remote are tied to how much the profit margin on your particular order is.

I.e. If you havent maxed out all the possible discounts, they have some wiggle room.

If you're getting a $1900 system for $1200 because of clever discounts, rebates, and string pulling, you are less likely to get even more stuff for free, I think.

 

Good point mty.
I just got a $50 gift certificate for my troubles with the Customer Service. Since the remote is the same price, I may just use it to get the remote.

 

Do the 6 cells stick out?

 

possibly MTY, but I honestly doubt the people in India know what the profit margins look like....

Thats cool Matt, I would still see about getting a remote.

VJM, no they do not.

 

Hey, what program displays all that info on the desktop in your first picture? Is that a Vista thing? Thanks.

 

that is the vista sidebar, the ones that are showing info are the iStat ones mostly. You can get them when you use vista, just open the add gadgets thing, and then search for iStat. The rest are just ones I found looking through the gallery.

 

Hey, for someone who's had issues with Dell's Customer Service, do you think you could PM me the name, extension, e-mail, or whatever you can about the rep you had who was so helpful? I've already spent hours on the phone after an order got cancelled and accomplished nothing, and it would always be nice to be able to say, "someone gave me your name as a very helpful service rep," etc.

Thanks either way.

 

I think she is gonna kill me for giving so many people her information. I will give you the info I have. From there good luck. For anyone else, I don't know her extension, I just emailed her and she emailed me back.

Since people want to ask, and I doubt it's confidential:

Mallika.Khambaty
Rep ID # 104743
Case Manager
ABU Customer eCare
Dell Inc.

Email addy:
[email protected]

That is all the info I have.

 

Thanks again, Liquid!
If this works, I may have to buy you a beer!

 

Free beer is always good But since I doubt you live near Michigan, how about some rep? That's free for both of us . That is only if you feel I deserve it. I never want undeserved rep.

 

Great pics and review, thanks for sharing! I ordered a Vostro 1500 a couple days ago, can't wait to get it...

what's that "15% off thing"? Is that a coupon they send with all laptops and, if so, what products can you use it for? I'm asking because I'm planning to get a Dell 22in monitor, 15% would be a cool discount...

 

Rep is deserved for sure. Thanks a bunch.

Going to send off an e-mail in a few minutes, and I'll let you know how it goes. You may have a lot more coming if I can get a good deal, haha.

 

rep is always good Good luck.

Here is the exact wording:
Save 15% on select electronics and accessories.
small print: Enter this coupon* code when you order. Offer valid 05/27/2007 through 08/03/2007.
* See P.22 for important details.
Ok, I better get rep for typing all this out....lol...j/k
P.22: Coupon: Electronics and accessories coupon offer valid 05/27/2007 - 08/03/07. Offer excludes smart phone, gaming consoles, Tumi bags, entry displays model numbers E177FP, SE197FP, SP1908, SE198WFP, E228FP, and E207WFP, projector bulbs, and ink, toner and paper. Offer does not apply to, and is not available with, systems or items purchased through the online configurator, refurbished items or spare parts. Coupons is required and cannot be combined with other offers, discounts or other coupons. Limit five Electronics & Accessories items per order. One coupon per customer. Coupon is for one-time use only. Not valid for resellers and/or online auctions.

Thats alot of typing... But there you go verbatim.

 

Thanks Liquidx, my Vostro's supposed to ship on August 15th, so I won't get that coupon. Hopefully I'll get a coupon that's as good, we'll see...

 

I am quite sure you will, this looks like just a magazine that they send out to everyone. It's not like a physical coupon.

 

Can someone please explain to me how in the world Dell is "building" my Tagus messenger bag? lol

 

I already received my laptop in the mail. It's a 1420.

Do I have a shot at getting a complimentary remote if I ask? Is it compatible with the 1420 as well as the 1520?

 

It all depends on where you ordered it? If it was early, then possibly, and hop on trying now. If not, then most likely not. The Bluetooth remote is not model or even brand specific. It just works with any bluetooth computer.

 

I ordered July 6, and my laptop has bluetooth.

Do I have a shot?

 

honestly, I am not sure, I would try at least 3 seperate reps and see what happens. Quite possible, make sure to mention the forums as well as reviews you read saying the remote was included and that you just noticed it wasn't there. About the best I can give right now.