New i9300... had a few questions...

Hey guys!

I just got a new i9300 and had a few questions.

1) Did I get a decent deal? ($1425 + shipping)
Here are the specs:
-Pentium M 760 2GHz
-17" Wide Screen XGA+
-512MB Dual Channel DDR2
-256MB nVidia GeForce Go 6800
-100GB HDD
-Windows MCE
-DVD Burner
-Intel Pro 2200 & Dell 350 Bluetooth
-9-cell Battery
-128mb Memory Key
-3 Yr Premium Warranty (At Home Svc, Nights Weekends, Accident protection, etc.)
-Dell 720 Printer

2) I know it only came with 512MB of RAM, but I was planning on upgrading once it got here. Newegg has the Kingston 1GB SODIMMs that everyone seems to like from the reviews on NewEgg. I can get it for $90 each gig (planning on upgrading to 2 gigs)...They also have a Mushkin 2GB dual channel kit for $160...Would you guys recommend either one? (They also have G.Skill 1GB SODIMMs where I could get 2 gigs with S/H for $135. A few reviewers said on Newegg they have the i9300s and they just popped them in and the BIOS automatically set up the dual channel.)

3) I was planning on getting a TV Tuner as well. Would you guys go with the Dell Angel one or maybe a Happauge, etc.?

THANKS!

 

Thats a nice deal on your i9300. As for the ram, i personally have kingston which works great but I have seen people go for the trancend brand because it's the cheapest (was about $75/stick) and does the same thing . Not to sure about the TV tuner. Hope you like your brand new i9300!

 

Thanks for your reply jordansport. I went on the Transcend website and it looks like it's about $90/stick direct from their site. Is there a diff site to get it from for $75? Thanks

 

Also... do you have the 6800 card as well? If so, how is the gaming experience with it? Thanks again!

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820208312

$79.50 after rebate.

I have the 6800 card as well. I play WoW, Battlefield 2, Counter-Strike: Source, and F.E.A.R.. Everything plays well on HIGH settings but games like FEAR (which is the most demanding game out as of now) I lower the settings a bit to get smoother gameplay. I bought my i9300 in Sept 05 for about $1,800 shipped with the following specs: 1.86 ghz, 512mb ram, 80gb 5400 HD, no truelife, 6800 go, 3 year warranty, 3 year accidental coverage. I think you'll enjoy your new machine.

EDIT: Found cheaper RAM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820221206

 

This RAM would be a little more expensive, but it is trusted here so far. I know alot of people have bought this RAM off newegg and are happy with the results.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820208312

It also has a $10 mail-in rebate...but only 1 per household.

 

Ok, I think I will go with the Transcend RAM then. USAFdude... in your opinion did I get a good deal on the system?

 

Looks like it. I got my setup for like 1450 including shipping etc. So you actually got a better deal than me.

Congrats!

 

depends on what games you play. WOW is flawless. BF2 I play mostly everything on High or near High. However, if you play BF2: Special Forces then expect to set stuff on medium and on some stuff low to get decent frame rates, I dont know why but it doesn't play very well on high settings.
Everything else you should be fine on high settings. NFS: Most Wanted looks spectacular on my Dell.
Happy playing!

 

dh, you, USAF and I all have basically the same 9300. I bought mine with 512MB and immediately ordered 2GB Transcent from Newegg as listed by USAF above. I paid $151 three weeks ago so their price has gone up, perhaps temporarily.

I paid $1,301 for mine with a one year warranty. So your price with 3 year looks good to me.

I am considering a TV tuner and will probably go with the Fusion Gold HD: http://store.snapstream.com/fusionhdtv-gold-usb.html

Very satisfied with my computer. I made an image of the drive when it arrived, then reformated and reloaded Windows. Others have just removed the various bloatware programs and that will work just fine although it still leaves the two hidden Dell tools partitions.

Good luck, and have some fun!

 

Once I upgrade to the 2 gigs though I should get decent framerates on BF2:Special Forces as well right? (even with the high settings)

 

Guys, also one more question... Upgrading the memory doesn't void your warranty, right? (I went with the Transcend, it's in the mail)

 

My bad for doing this in 3 posts.... I had one more question though: Was the light leakage problem only with the WUXGA screens? I got the WXGA+... have there been problems with that? Thanks again guys!

 

Laptop memory is made for changing, no warranty void as a result, but you may want to keep your old memory for awhile in case you have to return the laptop!

Two gig will handle any current game very well.

I have the XGA+ with slight leakage, but not enough to notice. I think they all have it to various degrees.

 

Just received my new I9300 today! It is a beautiful laptop. I do have some light leakage at the bottom of the screen and notice that it looks like at certain angles, something is "pinching" areas at the bottom of the screen as well. It's not really noticeable though, so I'm happy! I love the keyboard. I have big hands and find it great! I'm installing BF2 as I'm typing this, can't wait to play it. I'll post on how it looks when I'm done. Only complaints would be the thing at the bottom of the screen, the white plastic on the sides, and they put my Centrino sticker on crooked!

Quick question: how do you get the scroll bars on the touchpad to actually scroll? Thanks!

 

Guys, another quick thing. I notice that the machine is running a little bit sluggish. Probably from all the crap Dell preloaded it with. Should I reformat? How hard is it getting all the drivers back on? Thanks again!

 

yes reformat. to get the touchpad scroll to work download the driver from the dell website.

 

Finished the reformat... very fast now. I am working in a quiet room right now and hear a hissing or whining noise on and off (very faint). Does anyone know what this is? Is it a part that can be replaced? Also, which driver is it on the Dell site for the scrolling? Thanks

 

Just wondering but when did you order your i9300? I wanted one but they don't sell it with the 6800 anymore.

 

abcdefg,

There are some that were available throught the Dell outlet store...but not for very long. Alot of people wanted it.

 

That noise you hear are the hissing cockroaches from Malaysia left in your case by wacky techs over there. Or it could be the small cooling fans.

Get familar with the Dell downloads for your computer using your Service Tag. The touchpad is here: http://support.dell.com/support/dow...&typecnt=1&vercnt=2&formatcnt=1&fileid=149404 That driver was updated 1/11/06 by the way.

 

Purchased from a Powerseller on eBay. I was skeptical at first about such a big purchase on eBay, but it was a great seller. I'd only buy such a big item from a Powerseller though. The ship date on the original invoice was Dec 10th.

 

Hey guys: I left the notebook running idle for about half an hour and when I came back the computer was still running but the screen was off. How do I get it back on. I read hitting the power button once does it and you have to wait a minute... but still nothing. I tried using the touchpad, still no luck? Thanks