New Dell Studio 15 withIntel® Core? i5-540M (2.53GHz, 4 Thread, turbo boost up to 3.06GHz, 3M cache)

How many people received this laptop? I wonder how's the heat issue. On the 1557, there seems to be complaint about heat problem.

Wierd, the i5-540m is no longer available

 

i5-540m still avilable.............

 

it will be my next laptop probably...

 

As an option to select? I don't see it.

http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=us&cs=19&l=en&oc=dndobn1&s=dhs

 

Dell india has it

 

Sorry avilable on indian website.

 

I've got the Studio 1558 with the i5-540M and there are no heat troubles here. Having said that I haven't really done a proper gaming session to test this machine's limits, but at idle and using the computer for day-to-day tasks I have absolutely no complaints about heat. The processors used in the 1557 are far less energy-efficient and as a result produce buckets of heat.

And just for your info, i5-540M is still available in Australia too...

 

i5-540M is 32nm die

The processors used in the 1557 are not 32nm they are 45nm die

THATS A HUGE Difference.

 

Interesting...everyone in the world has it except the country that design the chip...hahaha

 

interesting fact

 

What is the battery life? 6 cell or 9 cell?

 

You should be getting an additional 1 1/2 to 2 hours with the 9 cell.

 

Check all the media i got damage DVD of win 7 but it is replaced by the dell in 3 days after complaining.

 

What about the heating issue? Is your graphics card sufficient to play HD movies in full resolution?

 

No heat issue

 

Any comment about the performance of ATI Raedon HD 4570? What application have you tried yet?

 

Considering that the Core i5 430M is faster ! than a T9600 2.8Ghz Core 2 Duo with 6MB cache

The Core i5 540M should easily be faster than a 3.06Ghz T9900.

Both the 540M and T9900 max out at 3.06Ghz but the 540M shows up as 4 Cores or 2 Cores and 2 threads so it should be about 40% faster.

 

I have a question for the guys who just received their new studio 15''. Do you have got Studio model 1557 or 1558. I heard that Studio 1557 had four air intake vents. Later Dell upgraded it to reduce heating and now Studio 1558 has five air intake vents.

Could you check once? When you received your machine?

 

No i have not checked yet. Can u tell me how will i check

 

I have the 1558. There are 4 vents on the bottom and 1 going out of the back side of the laptop.

 

Hi guys, I need your help. I played around with the specs on Dell Singapore's website for these two versions of the Studio 15 and for the life of me, I can't see any difference at all in specs and yet the pricing for both are different:

Price SGD2,300.54
Operating System Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium 64bit (English)
Processor Intel® Core™ i5-540M Processor (2.53GHz, 4 Thread, turbo boost up to 3.06GHz, 3M cache)
Memory 4GB (2GBx2) 1333MHz DDR3 SDRAM (Work at 1066MHz for Intel Arrandale CPU)
Keyboard Dell(TM) Backlit Keyboard with Touchpad (English)
Video Card 512MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4570
Hard Drive 500GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive
Optical Drive Internal 8X DVD+/-RW Combination Drive with dual layer write capabilities
Audio Solution Integrated CREATIVE Sound Blaster(R) X-Fi MB Audio Software Solution
Wireless Network Card Dell 1520 Wireless-N Card
Bluetooth Module Dell(TM) Wireless 365 Bluetooth Module
Batteries 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
Camera Bezel with Integrated 2.0MP Web Cam
Display 15.6 " Full HD(1080p)WLED (1920 x 1080)Display with TrueLife™
Power Supply 90W AC Adapter

Price SGD2,277.58
Operating System Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium 64bit (English)
Processor Intel® Core™ i5-540M Processor (2.53GHz, 4 Thread, turbo boost up to 3.06GHz, 3M cache)
Memory 4GB (2GBx2) 1333MHz DDR3 SDRAM (Work at 1066MHz for Intel Arrandale CPU)
Keyboard Dell(TM) Backlit Keyboard with Touchpad (English)
Video Card 512MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4570
Hard Drive 500GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive
Optical Drive Internal 8X DVD+/-RW Combination Drive with dual layer write capabilities
Audio Solution Integrated CREATIVE Sound Blaster(R) X-Fi MB Audio Software Solution
Wireless Network Card Dell 1520 Wireless-N Card
Bluetooth Module Dell(TM) Wireless 365 Bluetooth Module
Batteries 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
Camera Bezel with Integrated 2.0MP Web Cam
Display 15.6 " Full HD(1080p)WLED (1920 x 1080)Display with TrueLife™
Power Supply 90W AC Adapter

Is there something I'm not seeing here? Can you guys see if there's any difference between the two to explain the difference in pricing? Thanks.

 

Perhaps I'm blind but I do not see any difference between the 2 systems. Could be different discounts?

 

Nope. No discounts used whatsoever. I'm glad I'm not the only one NOT seeing the difference between the 2 systems.

 

What about bundled software? McAfee Security Suite subscription, or maybe warranty is different?

 

Nope. Both warranty and bundled software are the same:

Price SGD2,300.54
Software Microsoft(R) Works Include Microsoft(R) Home & Student 60 Days Trial Pre-install
Dell Service: Hardware Maintenance 2 Years Complete Cover Accidental Damage Protection
Palmrest Option Silver Palmrest
Dell Service: Remark Dell's Terms and Conditions apply
Dell Service: Remark Great Technical Tips & Information available 24x7 at http://support.ap.dell.com
Dell Service: Remark Laptop Batteries Carry One Year Warranty Only From Invoice Date
Carrying Cases Belkin DFD Messenger - Midnight Blue Electric Blue (up to 15.6")
Item Included in the System Break the seal sticker
Item Included in the System Directship Info Mod
Item Included in the System Power Cord (MY/SG/HK)
Item Included in the System Dell(TM) PC-Restore Included
Item Included in the System Mod Specs Info (Singapore)
Item Included in the System Regulatory Label
Item Included in the System Shipment Mod
Item Included in the System Discount is only valid if the corresponding upgraded item is selected above.
Item Included in the System Limited time promotional offer only. No further discounts apply.
Item Included in the System Integrated Fast Ethernet 10/100/1000
Item Included in the System 34mm ExpressCard Slot, (DOES NOT SUPPORT PC CARDS)
Item Included in the System System Media Kit
Item Included in the System System Drivers
Security Software McAfee™ Security Center (Multi-Language) - 15 Months Version
System Documentation System Documentation (English)
Optional Notebook Colour Kits X
Microsoft OS Labels Windows® 7 Label
Adobe Reader Adobe Reader (English)
Label Options Intel(R) Core(TM) i5 Label
Freight Charges NB-OS-CTO Handling&Insurance charges(Singapore)
Delivery Charges Inspiron(TM) Delivery Charges (Singapore)
Other Software Dell DataSafe Local Backup Basic
Dell Services: Dell Remote Access Dell Remote Access, free basic service
Ctl 1st LTO 2
Dell Services: Datasafe Backup Service Dell Online Backup 2GB

Price SGD2,277.58
Software Microsoft(R) Works Include Microsoft(R) Home & Student 60 Days Trial Pre-install
Dell Service: Hardware Maintenance 2 Years Complete Cover Accidental Damage Protection
Palmrest Option Silver Palmrest
Dell Service: Remark Dell's Terms and Conditions apply
Dell Service: Remark Great Technical Tips & Information available 24x7 at http://support.ap.dell.com
Dell Service: Remark Laptop Batteries Carry One Year Warranty Only From Invoice Date
Carrying Cases Belkin DFD Messenger - Midnight Blue Electric Blue (up to 15.6")
Item Included in the System Break the seal sticker
Item Included in the System Directship Info Mod
Item Included in the System Power Cord (MY/SG/HK)
Item Included in the System Dell(TM) PC-Restore Included
Item Included in the System Mod Specs Info (Singapore)
Item Included in the System Regulatory Label
Item Included in the System Shipment Mod
Item Included in the System Discount is only valid if the corresponding upgraded item is selected above.
Item Included in the System Limited time promotional offer only. No further discounts apply.
Item Included in the System Integrated Fast Ethernet 10/100/1000
Item Included in the System 34mm ExpressCard Slot, (DOES NOT SUPPORT PC CARDS)
Item Included in the System System Media Kit
Item Included in the System System Drivers
Security Software McAfee™ Security Center (Multi-Language) - 15 Months Version
System Documentation System Documentation (English)
Optional Notebook Colour Kits X
Microsoft OS Labels Windows® 7 Label
Adobe Reader Adobe Reader (English)
Label Options Intel(R) Core(TM) i5 Label
Freight Charges NB-OS-CTO Handling&Insurance charges(Singapore)
Delivery Charges Inspiron(TM) Delivery Charges (Singapore)
Other Software Dell DataSafe Local Backup Basic
Dell Services: Dell Remote Access Dell Remote Access, free basic service
Ctl 1st LTO 2
Dell Services: Datasafe Backup Service Dell Online Backup 2GB

You guys seeing anything different there?

 

Hello

Can some one please help? Does the Studio 15 still have the touch sensitive keys at the top of the keyboard? Also, does anyone know if the i5 540 models will be in the US

Thanks in advance!

 

I just received my 1558 and it does NOT have the touch sensitive keys.

 

vents for air intake: number of windows from where air does not comes out. More intake means better cooling.

vents for air out: number of windows from where air goes out.

 

Thanks for the info! I just bought one with the same exact specs. (except for the hard drive) How do you like it? I had an XPS 16 before and was so un impressed with the RGBLED screen and battery life I returned it. Hopefully I'll get better battery life with this one. I went with the 9 cell battery.

 

So far am really very pleased. I started having concerns about the 1920x1080 on the 15.6" WLED after reading some posts and comments about Icon and Text size. But, for me, there is no problem. I Sized the Icons down to medium and left the dpi at the 125% and the Desktop works great for me. Web browsing has become an adjustment as the web pages don't stretch to fill horizontally, so while the browser window can be full screen, the page itself will still be more vertically oriented than "page filling".

Last night was the first time I had the fan kick on for any extended period and it really wasn't that distracting - although I can see that keeping it clean will prolly have an impact.

I'm still kicking it around - not much time to play with a young child at home wanting attention - and even though I am not a gamer or a heavy CPU/GPU load user, I want to get some of those stressing apps and put it to some load tests to see if any of the XPS 1640/45/47 heat and or throttling issues are there as well (I think the 1555 may have some similar or related issues).

All in all I am still quite pleased with my purchase and the price (€858,80 total).

 

Very nice! Im really excited to get this. Thanks for all the info.

Did Dell ever end up putting a hard drive activity indicator on the unit? Caps lock led?

 

No and no.

 

No-------------

 

The information in this thread is very interesting so far, I'm grateful for that, but I'd like to see some actual tests about how hot the GPU (still the ATI HD 4570, I see) can get when running 3D games at full performance (say, something like Street Fighter IV or Dragon Age to throw out some random examples).

The new processor is nice and all, I understand, but the graphics card is what particularly worries me. If the rest of the components produce less heat but the GPU still possess problems, because of bad ventilation or circulation or any other design issue, that won't exactly make me a happy camper if I choose to buy this machine in the medium term.

Even if the results have improved though, it doesn't really change the fact that Dell has taken far too long to resolve the issues affecting a significant chunk of their laptop line through several revisions and models, not just one or two.

Thanks in advance for your cooperation.

 

@Souther - I was running Tales of Monkey Island last night on my Studio 15 w/ATI card and the GPU was hanging out around 65c, which I think is okay but the fan was certainly louder than I was hoping for. I plan on giving the laptop a run through WoW later this weekend to get an idea of heat & noise level. So far, I think it's on par with heat as my Inspiron 1520 w/nVidia 8600 part but I don't recall the Inspiron being as loud.

Update: So, running WoW and playing Dalaran (most laggy zone). Getting around 30 FPS @ native resolution (1920x1080), custom detail. (Looks amazing on the LED backlit monitor). Using GPU-Z to measure temperature & fan speed, the GPU hit a high of 72c, which I believe is acceptable, although seems high, and the fan was running @ 600 RPM at its highest. Inspiron heat was no where near the Studio. The nVidia 8600M hit a high of 61c, running a bit cooler than the smaller ATI chip in the Studio. Noise level on the Inspiron is quieter than the Studio. Seems the slimmer profile and airflow design on the newer laptop is not as good as the Inspiron.

 

Hi guys.. I am looking for a laptop for my wife and the studio 15 with i7-720qm looks like a very nice option. Could anyone tell me whether the design studio painting is a sticker or an actual paint ?

P.S, how do you know the exact studio model (1557 or 1558) ?

 

I believe the 1557 is for the i7 models and the 1558 is for the i5 processors. Im not familiar with the sticker/paint. I would guess its some sort of sticker/skin.

 

Have the Studio 1458, 14" with i5 and a design studio image and the image seems to be one with the material if that makes sense. Definitely not a sticker or anything that feels like it could be peeled off. Hope that helps!

 

Thanks guys!!

 

Guys I have a confusion. I am planning to buy a Dell Studio 15.

How much will be the difference in the performance of core i5 430M processor against core i5 540M? Other than some light weight applications I am going to play 1080p HD Blu Ray and no gaming.

What will I loose in terms of performance if I choose i5 430M to save some money?

 

Wait for the refresh to 6MB L3 cache or 8MB L3 cache

and for the 5xxx series ati card they use half the watts of the current 4xxx series cards.

 

There is always going to be something better and faster down the road. Intel hasnt even announced a refresh yet and that doesnt mean Dell is going to jump on them as soon as they come out. Dell has been on the 4570 video card for a while now. Might be some time before we see an update. If you need a computer now, go for it. There isnt that much of a difference between the 540 and 520.

 

Oh thanks, but I am going to opt for i5 430M (not 520M).

 

not worth. for USD 1200 you can get the XPS 16.

 

The thing is, I want to upgrade HDD to 500GB 7200rpm, RAM to 4GB, screen to Full HD, Optical drive to Blu Ray, warranty to 3 years.... and after this nothing comes cheap

So, I want studio 15 with i5 430M processor instead of any faster one. Because in my opinion, this system will not only runs cooler but should also be able to play 1080p HD Blu Ray movies. This is what I am looking for.

Do I make sense? Is it worth buying Studio 15 with i5 430M processor?

 

I partially agree on this one. The xps 16 is very nice but the battery life with the 1gb video card is horrible. Your lucky to get two hours with this. Kind of defeats the purpose of a portable computer. I had one last December and shipped it back. The RGB LED was nice but the colors were all off the charts. Needed to be tweaked out. Never mind the monitor blew out on me within 48 hours. You can get a nice studio 15 with an i5 for around 1,000 - 1, 100 hooked up. Im going with the Studio because of battery life and $$$. I hope this works out better than the XPS.

 

Unless you absolutely need the space, I've read the 320GB 7200rpm and the 500GB 5400rpm are pretty close as far as use/performance. I have the 15-520M with the Full HD screen but not the bluray drive and mine runs pretty cool and quiet.

 

Tbh, I was hoping for a 5650. That's probably going be in the 17 inch model. Still going to wait and see if the chassis gets a refresh.

 

Hi,

Great forum - first time poster but really appreciate the quality of the posts!

I'm thinking about getting the Studio 15 (Dell UK have some interesting offers which expire in 2 days!). Do you have any suggestions as to whether I should go for the:

- i5-430M (2.26Ghz, 4Threads, turbo boost up to 2.53 GHz, 3MB cache) with the 512MB ATI Mobility RADEON HD 4570 Graphics Card

or

- i7-720QM Mobile Processor (1.6GHz, turbo up to 2.8GHz, 6MB L3 Cache) with the 1GB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5470 Graphics Card

On paper it seems like a no brainer, both the i7 and the 5470 should be better. However, I've read quite a bit about the i7 throttle issue and its not clear to me how much better the 1GB 5470 is v the 512MB 4570. Ideally I would like to do some gaming.

Any comments would be very much appreciated.

Thanks!

 

a 5xxx card on a dell studio 15???

A great news
Waiting for Dell India to upgrade the video card..
By the way, is it upgradable to 5650 or something higher???