New Dell Studio 17 announced (Studio 1745/47)

Yes I am having the same issue, I just got the midnight blue since I hate the black chainlink. I am not sure if this is a big enough issue for me to return it but I do hear the same snaping you hear I assume. I just open mine closer to one of the ends.

 

Well the laptop is getting returned. I just found a dead pixel after running a pixel checking program.

I do not know if I will reorder from Dell again, yes you get a lot of value for your money especially with my EPP but at the end of the day the quality is not there (or so I have experienced.)

This will be the forth machine I send back from Dell, I am really disappointed because I finally thought I got a good one. I was also quite happy with the performance and style of the new Studio 17, I am going to have to think long and hard about this.

Am I the only one to be this unlucky with Dell?

 

As I've been busy playing with my new 1745, I haven't had a chance to update this thread

I got the laptop on the 17th. Opened it and was instantly impressed by the build quality. Everything feels sturdy, no flexing in the casing or keyboard, speaker covers are in their correct place etc.

I'm really loving the 1080p screen. It's just so good.

Backlit keyboard was probably the best £30 I have spent.

It's taking me a while to get used to the trackpad. Like someone else said, it likes to stick on scrolling mode, but I find it to stick more on "move" mode. When I try to replicate move mode I can't seem to do it. I will attempt to figure this out later tho - I'm probably just not using it right.

Love the slot load drive and multimedia buttons along the top.

Battery life isn't as great as I had hoped. However, I have heard that li-on batteries require a few full charges before they obtain their maximum capacity.

Seems fast. Haven't tried any games on it yet though, but this is mainly a development laptop and it runs all the programs lightning fast that I've tried.

Very happy overall!

 

Thanks, the only reason they'd know I've opened it is the Arctic Silver on the heatsinks, instead of their paste. Not sure how much attention they'd pay if they were to ever take it apart themselves.
The keyboard is working just fine now, I don't think the engineer put the keyboard surround on correctly, so the top row of keys were getting stuck underneath it.
I'm going to have to cancel the replacement laptop now, It pains me to have to tell the techs that the problem has sorted itself.

As a side note, I wouldn't take one of these apart unless you are very comfortable doing this kind of thing!

 

For those interested (updated first post) with the current reviews about the studio 1747:

If anyone has found another review, please give me the link and I'll update it on the first post of this thread.

 

ok now i am totally pissed off. My box was supposed to ship yesterday, it has been in the boxing stage for 4 days now. I spoke with my sales rep last night at about 5 oclock last night eastern standard time. At that time he told me dont worry about it, IT WILL be shipping out and WE WILL make our EDD. Well i wake up this morning and now the EDD is updated to 12/30. What in the hell is going to take another 10 days in the boxing stage, my shipping is next business day so none of this is making all that much sense to me. I have never bought a Dell before and never will again. Just need to vent!

 

I feel for you; this really s*cks..

Just to make you feel a little better: think of the nice things you're going to do with the money you didn't spend on this laptop because it's cheaper than others with the same specs!

 

Haha, very true. I wish I could tell them where to stick it, but the price is just too good!

 

here is a quick update:
My status now says that it is shipped. I called to get the tracking info and got the number from customer service. Now i have a quick question. If my delivery is next business day and it shipped today why would Dell have it marked as 12/23/09. Would not the next business day be monday the 12/21? I called fedex to find out about the package but they said that they dont have the tracking number, but to try back at around 8:00pm when all the packages are picked up. I guess Fedex should be able to give me a definite day that it will be here. I really hope that when i do get the computer that i never have a problem and have to deal with Dell again.

 

Has anyone got Ik8fangui to work on a 1747 with win 7 home premium?

 

wow Dell amazes me more and more. On my shipping info from Dell it states next business day, which they gave me for all of my troubles. I talk to Fedex and found out that DEll did not ship it next business day that they shipped it 2 day, so they lied to me, I am in the service business and if i ever treated my client the way i have been treated my company would never survive.

 

I guess, the laptops are cheap/specs, compared to every other company - for a reason :/...

 

Wow, those results are pretty great. Is this 3dmark06 and at what res? Also, this re-enforces my believe in going in and putting in ArcticSilver, even though I am not having any particular issues right now.

 

Drivers:
ATI - http://game.amd.com/us-en/drivers_catalyst.aspx?p=win7/windows-7-64bit
Mobility Modder fro ATI - http://www.driverheaven.net/modtool.php
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=437800

As long as you are careful and don't mess up the screws, overdo on the paste or break something, your warranty should be fine.

 

They are no cheaper then say comparable Asus or HP. Both of those are also having issues. It's the name of the game, shove high end parts in mid-end system and sometimes you get lemons.

 

I could not find another laptop that's comparable even that's a bit more expensive (not outrageously so though).

My requirements were as follows:

1. i7-q820 upgrade capability (I was willing to compromise on this).
2. 1080p good quality screen (absolute requirement).
3. No major overheating issues.
4. Decent mid-tier video card (faster would be better).
5. 3 hours minimum battery life.
6. No more then 8.5lbs, 17". That was frankly too much already as it was.
7. Dual HDs (again, was willing to compromise here, but really wanted 2 HDs).

There is no laptop other then Studio 17 that meets all these qualities. Alienware comes close, but it's heavier for smaller screen, has terrible battery life, has worse throttling issues then the Studio, and has no capability of 2 HDs. It does have much better video card, and I believe throttling issues will be resolved by a bios update.

Sager 17" meets the above requirements... except it has completely dismal battery life, we are talking 1hour here. That is just not acceptable.

XPS16 meets and exceeds all above requirements except for couple things.

1. It has overheating issues still. They are less with new i7 cooling redesign, but still there to an extent.
2. No 2 HDs.
3. Considering 1 and 2 above, it still costs $500 more.

HP Envy:

1. Screen is meh.
2. Overheats.
3. Only 1 2.5 HD but can have 2 x 1.8 HDs. 1.8 non-SSD drives are smallish in capacity and slower then 2.5s.
4. Battery life without the slice battery sucks. It weighs 8 lbs with the slice battery.

Asus G51J:

1. Screen is meh.
2. Battery life sucks.
3. Overheating galore.
4. Build quality is meh.
5. Pretty much same weight as the Studio with smaller screen.
6. Blue Screen issues.

HP dv7t

1. Screen resolution is only 900p.
2. Battery life is mediocre.
3. Video card is even weaker then 4650 (not by much though, and probably could be O/C'd).
4. Build quality seemed a bit better then the Studio, at least on the keyboard flex part.
5. If not for 1 and to lesser extent 2/3 I would have gotten the HP most likely.

The above is basically why I got the Studio. I could have spent another $500 if I found a system that met the requirements and had better build quality. However, there is nothing on the market right now. I would have loved to see XPS 17 or HP Envy 17, but that's just not there. I was seriously considering Alienware M17x for a bit, but that thing is just too freaking huge. It is build like a tank though.

 

That was 06 running at 1280 x 800.

 

What overclocking settings did you use? That's very very good.

 

My laptop was ordered on the 4th of December 2009, No updates on when it will be delivered no one can provide me not even a delivery date... all I'm told is that there is a part that is on back order... I know which one and its the screen but Dell customer service does not seem to know what is and isnt available....

has anyone ordered around the same time frame as me with the 1080p truelife screen and camera and have been told when they would get it? or have gotten it already???? anyone out there please!!!!

24-6100 Studio 17 Notebook (Studio 1745)
1 310-0173 Airborne Documentation, System Exchanges,Factory Install
1 312-0158 85 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
1 313-4783 Integrated High Definition Audio 2.2
1 313-8043 17.3 inch Full HD (1080p) B+RG LED Display with TrueLife and Camera
1 313-8151 Black Chainlink
1 313-8867 8X DVD+/-RW Dual Layer Drive
1 313-8969 ATT Built-In Mobile broadband with GPS
1 317-1637 ATI MOBILITY RADEON HD 4570 512MB
1 317-2212 Intel Core 2 Duo T9600, 2.8GHz, 1066Mhz, 6M L2 Cache
1 317-2341 4GB, DDR3, 1066MHz, 2 DIMM
1 330-1152 Intel Centrino 2 Core Duo Processor
1 330-4433 Backlit Keyboard
1 330-6222 Windows 7 Label
1 330-6371 DELL RESOURCE DVD,BACK-UP, Win 7,1745
1 341-0178 500G 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive
1 410-1883 ADOBE READER 9.0 MULTI- LANGUAGE
1 410-2186 McAfee Sapphire MUI, 24-Month
1 412-0360 Soft Contracts - Banctec
1 412-1397 No Productivity Software requested
1 420-6436 PC-Restore, Dim/Insp
1 420-6576 DELL WELCOME,Software Dimension/Inspiron
1 420-7938 Dell Connect 2.1
1 420-9100 Dell Dock Consumer
1 421-0092 DELL-DOWNLOAD-FLAG
1 421-0187 Dell Support Center Software 64 Bit 2.0
1 421-0323 Windows Live Search,Multiple User Interface
1 421-1009 Dell Webcam Software 1.4 Application Kit
1 421-1362 Dell Software,Roxio 1.0
1 421-1582 Cyberlink Power DVD 8.3 Playback
1 421-1737 Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English
1 430-3272 Intel 5100 Wireless-N (1x2) Half Mini-Card
1 430-3496 Dell Wireless 365 Bluetooth Module (2.1)

 

did you order the 1080p true life screen

 

Got call from dell Tech support they are saying that the mother board is on back order???? they gave me a part number and when I google it I come up with 0 matches.
spoke to Jaspree from tech support and she gave the part number of
pcd 080 la_5151 p revision 1

 

I ordered it a week earlier, so not exactly same time frame. Got it on the 10th of December.

 

In the US and ordered on November 23rd i7 w/ 1080p screen - original delivery of 12/18 revised at 12/29... waiting

 

I really feel like i got extremely lucky here. I also ordered on Nov. 23rd, with all the parts that were said to be back-ordered, and the original EDD was Jan 1st. I received my laptop on the 9th of December. And so far, zero problems, and i really do love the thing. Actually, i had one minor problem - the right CRTL key was half popped out, but i just snapped it back into place and all is well.

I really hope you guys having issues get it all worked out and end up as happy as me with your purchase. This is a really great machine with a beautiful screen.

On another note, what temps are you guys running at? I seem to remember other people's temps being a bit lower than mine and was a bit concerned about my CPU temp, although the laptop itself never gets hot.

My CPU idles at about 50 degrees, though the cores themselves always show a few degrees cooler than that. GPU idles at about 42.

 

With further use I have developed another issue, when I go to full screen (in internet explorer) a few seconds later the screen just goes black. If that does not happen when I try to exit the full screen the screen goes to black.

Once it goes black there is nothing I can do except do a hard reboot, I can do ctrl alt del but that doesn't even work! the screen will just go white and then back to black.

So far because of that problem I had to uninstall and reinstall the video and touch pad drivers. :/

Anyone else encounter this problem?

 

About to order one of those and scoping the different configurations. The laptop will primarily be used for online poker and running PostgreSQL databases as well as some normal browsing/media stuff. I'll most probably be installing an Intel SSD on it. Gaming isn't super important for me, although it'd be cool if it could run some newer games.

So I'm trying to decide if I want to spend the extra euros on the more powerful (i7-820QM) processor or 6GB of RAM or both even. The processor especially adds a hefty sum to the total. Do you think I'll regret it if I'll choose the less powerful alternative? BTW I don't realisitcally expect to be using this laptop for more than 2-3 years, which is my usual update cycle. What about the RAM? Keeping in mind the things I'll be doing with it, how much will I benefit from bumping the RAM from 4 to 6 gigs? Adding memory I suppose I'll also be able to do later down the road if I want to, as opposed to switching the processor.

Here's a link to my "What notebook should I buy"-thread where I more specifically go over what I'm looking for in a laptop:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=5574601#post5574601

Thanks.

 

I hope they will soon add the option of a 3 ghz core 2 duo, since most programs that I run can only use 2 cores. Also a better graph card should definitly be put in very soon. I mean, you can already buy any asus G series laptop which will probably have a better graph card for the next to 2-3 years compared to what dell will offer in their studio laptops. I understand its their mid range line but with al the upgrading possibilities their prices can go up to 1500, and in that price class an old ati just doesn't sell it.

 

More questions:

1. The "Express card slot" - is this where I can jam my Intel SSD in (2.5" SATA) and it will work normally?
2. In some pictures the laptop is laying flat when opened, and in others the bottom of the screen part of it sort of protrudes so the back of the laptop doesn't touch the table. What's up with this? Am I just retarded/looking at pictures of different models or does it have something to do with the configuration? How big a battery you chose to go with it?

 

I also have no idea about this battery thing. It's like watching those 'dell studio unpacking' videos on youtube, some have a battery which lift up the laptop in the back for better airflow, others are just flat. I think you should just ask a dell salesman when you order your laptop by phone (which you should definitly do, to try to get some discount).

 

Yes it depends from the battery.
The 6-cell battery does not raise the laptop. The 9-cell does.
It's that simple.

 

I'm hoping it has something to do with whether you choose the 6- or 9-cell battery. I wouldn't want the back to be lifted and I'm definitely going for the 6-cell battery as the battery life is completely meaningless to me.

Edit: Well there we go. Thanks c-mattic.

 

I never had any problems like that. Haven't read of it anywhere either.

Were you using a different video driver? Any other drivers you added?

I'm planning on reordering as soon as the 1080p screen is available again. My 1720 is driving me crazy after using the 1747. I feel like I'm moving in slow motion and games look terrible since I can't use the higher settings.

 

Look at this thread from Dell forums: http://en.community.dell.com/forums/p/19310587/19612534.aspx#19612534

 

As long as battery life is not too hugely important you should be fine. I can get 4 hours with 9cell doing some web browsing and light office tasks, so you should be able to get 2.5 probably off it.

For Intel SSD - system has 2 2.5" hd sockets. One is populated with hard drive you would get with the system, the other would be empty. You should be able to "theoretically" put in a drive into second socket, except Dell is not selling the 2nd drive caddy/interposer parts!

 

Wow. All those dead processors to save some money on the power supply. Seems pretty stupid on dell's part.

 

called up dell again. wanted to get a status update especially after reading that someone here on the forum got their laptop already.Waited for 2 hours just to talk to a live person, Finally got a hold of someone and they were clueless and then requested to speak to a supervisor the Dell supervisor now is telling me it's not the motherboard that's on back order but it's the "313-8043 - 17.3 inch Full HD (1080p) B+RG LED Display with TrueLife and Camera " AND the 2.8Ghz processor. I asked him why did the previous agent tell me that it was the motherboard, now he is telling me its something different.... NO response... who do I believe...
I managed to record the conversation since I keep getting the run around on a delivery date. "maybe a week maybe more we cant make any promises" If the part is back ordered I completely understand but at least give me an ETA of when Dell is supposed to receive it or when I'm supposed to receive it.
The supervisor (prapik) told me to call back in 24- 48 hours to find out if they had a status of when dell should receive the screens and processors. if in 48 hours there is no update I am sorry to say I will have no choice but to contact the BBB.

 

Agreed that seems like the stupidest thing they could do.

I am just going to return the 1747 and spend a few more dollars on something I hope is more reliable than Dell. So far four returned systems because of hardware and other techincal issues.

 

We know they are out of screens and bluray drives since both of them are unable to be purchased now.

Why isn't Dell sending out emails on delayed systems? Have you signed up to get emails on this purchase? I have to sign up for it on every order I place since it is done by order number and not by customer.

When you get the email saying that your order has been delayed it states on the bottom: If you do not wish to wait, you may cancel your order by emailing us at [email protected] or by calling 1-877-868-3355.

I'm afraid that this type of delay isn't uncommon for custom computers. Especially when new hardware has been released and everyone is upgrading. It sucks that it had to be during the holidays! But they can't build the laptops when they are waiting on parts from the supplier.

Lots of people are angry. There are a lot of postings everywhere about the problem. But in the end it won't make a bit of difference. Dell will still do business the same way and sell just as many computers. I've seen it happen time and again. Been stuck in the same situation a couple of times and I still come back and do it again. They know that they provide a specific product that meets our needs.

 

Wow, that is very disturbing. Kinda glad I haven't pulled the trigger yet... Has anyone with a 1747 (i7) received a 130W power supply? I wonder why an underpowered supply would kill the CPU? Seems like it would just go into a reduced speed mode, and not fry...

 

This is why I bought 130w PSU from ebay. It's only about $25. I probably should have gotten the 150w even.

 

Dell won't admit this is happening. Go to the XPS forum, there is a huge giant thread on throttling issues with XPS 16 i7. One guy there wrote an app Throttlestep that will disable throttling but you must have 130w psu minimum for that. A few people had their laptops go "dark" during various testing of the issue, mainly when switching from battery to PSU when running heavy tasks (with regular setup and vanilla 90w PSU).

Edit: Btw, I think I am going to return my system. The gaps and "pop" of the material around media keys and somewhat mushy keyboard are driving me nuts and gaming performance is just not there when not overclocking. I've been having some stability issues with o/c and don't feel like going the whole Arctic Silver route. Hopefully an XPS or Studio 17 update will come with Intel Arrandale refresh come CES. Oh, and the most annoying thing is the lack of the caddy for 2nd HD.

 

Which 130w supply did you get, the PA-13, or the slimline PA-4E ?

 

Yeah I am just going to return the laptop I have already had two drivers fail plus the dead pixel. This is the forth machine from Dell that has been faulty in under three months. I do not know if I have bad luck or if it is something else but I can no longer trust Dell to deliver a proper product to me which is a shame I really liked the 1747 .

I am actually extremely upset with the situation and Dell is not doing much to help except telling me to return and reorder the product. I think it is time to spend a few extra dollars on a Toshiba with equivalent specs (even though I hate Toshiba as well.)

Anyone have any other ideas on what laptop to look at with similar specs to the 1747? The i7 is a must, I only found one other laptop with that processor. Any help would be great, thanks guys!

 

There is none. I posted a shortlist that comes close earlier in the thread, depending on your requirements. I personally wanted faster proc, dual drives, 1080p screen, no major overheating issues, 3 hours minimum battery life, no more then 8.5lbs, 17" with battery. That's why I got Studio 17". Issues seems to be quality control, IMO, well, that and PSU. You got issues with molding around screen, issues with plastic around keyboard and media screen. Then there are the usual cpu paste problems and other issues.

 

The answer is "yes" . I got both and both seem to work.

 

Wow, what does this actually mean? That the second socket is useless? The SSD won't work if I put it in there? People in the SSD thread said inserting and installing it should be easy.

 

I just received my new 1747 with the best screen and i7 processor. Had system for a few days. System woke up during the night and stayed on. In the morning screen was black and would not respond. Reset by holding the power button in. 7 beeps of death. Did some research online and found many reports of this problem. Called Dell to get a refund. They gave me the standard canned response of a bad batch of motherboards but could not tell me what the problem exactly was and how a new motherboard would not have the same problem. I'm getting my money back and will keep an eye on this issue and wait until a known fix is released (not this bad batch garbage). And also shop around of course. Currently waiting for RMA email. It's a shame too because the system was real nice. Awesome screen. Very disappointing. Many hours of transferring data lost.

 

That sucks. Read a few reports on the issue as well, seems that it could be related to the underpowered PSU.

 

Had my system almost a week. It is an I7 with lesser screen. Keyboard isn't as solid as my old Dell. Feels like cheap plastic with flex. So far I like the speed. Fan is pretty quiet but comes on when just websurfing which is annoying. Mine will not come out of sleep in the morning so I have to have it hibernate. To the left of the mouse pad gets pretty warm when gaming but overall the system seem to handle the heat well. CPU runs around 45 when surfing and has gotten to around 70 or so gaming for an extended period. HW monitor won't tell me the gpu temp. Assembly/airflow temp runs 39-43. World of Warcraft at native runs 60+ fps maxed in most places with no shadows but Dal. and Wintergrasp where it averages 35.

 

You need a caddy and an adapter to put a drive in the 2nd slot. Dell is not currently selling the part by itself, only with additional hard drive. So you could replace the main drive with SSD, but you couldn't put it in as additional drive, due the part availability issue.