Owner's Thread: Dell Inspiron 7000 series

Sounds odd (granted if you compare from the same physical location in the house).

See here for my findings when I compared wired to WiFi: http://forum.notebookreview.com/del...-dell-inspiron-7000-series-2.html#post9403404

Might be something you need to get a hold of DELL to get sorted.

 

Yes can be extended any time before your initial 1 year runs out.

 

Ordered 20th, dispatched on the 24th and arrived 31st. Tracking was pretty good and included text updates.

 

Hmm ok, when abouts did it leave China?

My tracking has been like this since it was able to be tracked...nothing has changed and no updates via text or email either :/

Image Below

 

I looked at the HP laptop as well and I liked it, although I liked the Dell a little better. The i7-4700MQ is a nice processor and should give you the full 8 threads but will also draw a lot more power (more heat and lower battery life). I also think the laptop will be heavier.

 

Well I'm not sure if it left China the same day it left the factory, but mine arrived in the UK on the 30th and was delivered to me the next day. It arrived in Lutterworth (just south of Leicester) and was then handed over to UK Mail from then. So going by my estimate I'd your tracking may update on Monday/Tuesday.

 

Ah ok, well lets hope so, thanks for the insight

 

Hi all. What's the screen quality in the downscaling? Of course I mean the full HD panel.
Can anyone tell me if it's possible to play at 720p resolution without much loss of visual quality? This because the 750m is not future-proof to play at 1080p resolution. Thank you.

 

I actually had the HP Envy Touchsmart 15t-J000 (Same thing but with Windows 8 not 8.1). The HP is defiantly powerful for it's price in my honest opinion. the hybrid drive option gives it a nice combination of speed and storage space, but you'll still be able to swap it out for an SSD if wanted. In my opinion I feel if you game the better processor would be better. I had to return my HP twice now, first because they configured it wrongly, and second because the audio would stutter when listening to audio while the charger was plugged in. After my second one I was looking into the Dell, but ultimately decided not to because of the downgrade in performance, the textures touchpad, and the lack of travel in the keyboard. Also, whether your get the 768 or 1080p display on the HP, you'll be getting a TN panel while the 1080p display on the Dell is IPS. This was really tempting for me also, but then the Dell was rated very low in screen brightness and many people started posting about dead pixel problems. The Dell has an aluminum lid, is magnesium on the inside, and the bottom is plastic. For the HP, only the inside keyboard chassis is aluminum and everything else is plastic. I reordered the HP because I am not able to exceed $1000 and I was able to get a 1080p screen, 1 TB Hybrid Drive, Intel Core i7 4700Mq, 8G of ram, backlit keyboard, and AC WLAN and Bluetooth (I'm not sure if the Dell has AC WLAN and Bluetooth, but it's a couple times faster than regular.) I got all that for like $800 before tax and at the end it was like $930.

Edit: From having the Hp Envy Touchsmart, I can tell you that the battery life is not good. The most you'll be able to get out of it is like 6 hours. But you'll usually end up getting like 4 out of it. From the reviews I see of the Dell it has better battery life, but one of the reasons why is because of its weaker processor.

 

I can't seem to get a proper tracking on the Dell website. Also, UPS keeps saying "UPS could not locate the shipment details for your request. Please verify your information and try again later.". The Dell website seems screwed up, if I update the order status page I get all different kind of tracking numbers, the order number changes and I get shipments from 2 years ago... Hasn't anyone had this issue before?
I will contact Dell by phone on Monday, let's see what they say.

 

Is there a config of the Envy with a 1080p display and a GT 750M? I couldn't find one, only with the GT 740M... which seems to be up to 20% behind the DDR3 GT 750M, performance-wise. Considering the GDDR5 version appears to be another 10-30% ahead of that, I'm not sure the quad-core CPU is going to make up for the difference in GPU power. But I'm no expert, so please correct me if I'm wrong.

I think you might be mixing up the 768p and 1080p panels on the brightness here. The 1080p panel was measured at 267 cd/m² by notebookcheck (that's well above average), while the 768p one only managed 165 cd/m² according to laptopmag. The 2 posts on pixel issues have me a bit concerned as well, though.

 

Thanks for me telling me about the screen brightness on the laptop. Also, I didn't realize you were getting the version of the Inspiron with the dedicated graphics and I the SSD, probably because I was not able to and I don't play games so I probably had myself in mind. But now that I know you're shelling out for the top config, go for the Dell.

 

Well, I'm not Arriba, but the $1200 config he mentioned should come with a dedicated GPU, so yes.

@Arriba, keep in mind that for gaming, an SSD mainly helps reduce loading times. It won't really improve your frames per second; you'll want a good GPU (graphics card) and CPU (processor) for that.

 

Hello,

@Akvavit: I'm about to buy the 7537 model but I don't have access to an SSD version (buying from France). So I wanted to swap the HDD straight away once I receive it. You said you installed it with no problem, could you please quickly describe how you did it? Did you clone the HDD image or did you do a fresh re-installation (if so how given there is no ODD)? What additionnal hardware did you use (cables, caddy etc.)?
Thanks a lot!

 

Thanks for all the replies, very helpful since I'm not very tech savvy.

So, the Dell has a better GPU, correct? DDR5 > DDR3?

Dell Inspiron 7000 Series: NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 750M 2GB GDDR5
HP Envy: NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 740M Graphics with 2048MB (DDR3? It looks like)

I think this may push me to buy the Dell, since I already like the 256GB SSD. Even if the CPU is not quite as strong in the Dell.

 

We are in exactly the same boat. I ordered the same day and was sent out the same day aswell. Still nog ups tracking possible

 

The Envy 15t-j100 is available with a 4GB DDR3 750M, with the 1080p screen and 4702QM. HP ENVY 15t-j100 Select Edition Notebook PC (ENERGY STAR) | HP® Official Store

 

Ah, yes, I overlooked that. I don't think it's available where I live, though... But that changes things.

In that case, I'd be curious to know what's gonna be more beneficial for gaming - the quad-core, or the GDDR5. Of course it'll depend on the game, but I'm having trouble finding solid numbers showing the differences.

 

i didnt want my dad to find out lol

 

Unbelievable. If you ask me, they haven't ship anything yet...

 

Have you called them?

 

I just did. They said the package was shipped on the 26th, but the tracking number will start working as soon as the package leaves China and gets to Europe (I am based in Italy). In August I ordered another laptop (which I eventually returned) and its tracking code started working almost immediately even if it was shipped from China too. Also, I received it in about a week.

 

They told me exactly the same. We'll just have to wait and see. Your estimated delivery time was the 6th aswell? I'm from holland, hope it's going to arrive soon.

 

I ordered mine on 14/10/2013 with a estimated delivery date of 29/10/2013.

There was no tracking information so I called to query about my order and told them I will cancel if it doesn't arrive by the next day.

It was a co-incidence that my laptop got delivered the next day...

 

What date dit you get it eventually?

 

30/10/2013

 

Up ... please answer

 

All I can say is I am sooo close to just cancelling, the Dell support is absolutely horrendous, I'm always being transferred, left on hold or being told they'll call back within 10-15 minutes which ends in me calling the next day because they did not...

 

Hi Aldo!

I had a 2.5" external bay from MSI laying around, so using the migration tool provided by Samsung I just cloned the drive that came along with the laptop + think it took about 90 minutes or so.

From there it was just a matter of swapping the two drives, following the manual, and less that 5 minutes later, I was booted into Win 8 on the SSD.

 

My ups tracking code finally works!

 

Hi Akvavit,

Thanks a lot for your answer. Would you advise doing it before or after upgrading to Windows 8.1? I guess it doesnt matter.
Just to clarify, you plugged the MSI external bay to your PC on the USB port right?
Given there is no ODD, how does the Windows recovery process work? Can you create a recovery installation on a USB key? How do you reinstall Windows should your PC completely crash? I understand you can boot from a USB key with Win7 on it for instance, but what about the specific Dell drivers?

One last question: I read the touchpad was very poor, do you confirm that?

Thanks again!

 

Notebookcheck just published the English version of their review of the 7537: Review Dell Inspiron 15-7537 Notebook - NotebookCheck.net Reviews

And on that note,

According to the review linked above, it's quite good.

EDIT: @below, I assume you mean Google Translate, and its output is not always comprehensible.

 

there was always a English version windows translated

 

Does someone already have some experience with a sleeve for this laptop? Looking for an -basic- tight fit sleeve.

Btw +1 for some testing the msata port !

 

I just ordered mine. Looks like this acer is going to on ebay or amazon trade in...it served me well. That is if this dell is what it is cracked up to be

 

Just to understand the progress, where is it currently? Saudi Arabia? Still not working for me...

 

I don't understand how they think they can get it from China to my location within the 2 day period they have left...

 

Its in my country and ups is on its way to my home as we speak. Wont be home today sadly so Will probably get it Tomorrow. Hope yours is coming soon aswell!

 

They dont, they have two days to get it from the closest AirPort to your home. The tracking code starts working when they unload it on european or american soil!

 

HI everyone, m kinda new to this forum.
I have been planning to buy a new laptop and thia one suits most of my needs. though, i have always wondered on its gaming capabilities, can anyone comment on its gaming capabilities . Thanks in advance.
I m talking abt the i7 1080p 8 gb ram model.

 

I just ordered my Dell Inspiron 15 - 7537 (1080p, 8GB ram 1TB HDD).

Firstly I'm really dissappointed with the delivery. The site said 8th november, I ordered mine, then I got an email with estimated delivery of 15th of november. A day or two extra is okay, but a week!

Secondly, I really hope someone succeeds with mSata!!

 

Has anyone else with an Inspiron 7000 series done any WiFi testing?

I have the 7537 (4500U, 1080p, 8GB, 1TB) version, and it seems to have the same poor WiFi performance as the L521x XPS 15. Using the 7260-N on 2.4 GHz in my bedroom I can't get speedtest.net download speeds higher than ~20-25 Mbps. My L521x with a 7260-AC card also running on 2.4 GHz N performs the same. My old XPS m1530 with a 4965AGN draft-N card pulls 58 Mbps consistently right next to the L521x and 7537, also on 2.4 GHz N. The router is a Belkin N750. The 7537 also sees the same lower number of available WiFi hotspots as the L521x, compared to the much longer list on my old XPS m1530. The internet connection is Verison FiOS 50/25, which ends up being more like 60/35 service.

The notebookcheck review of the 7537 mentions that the WiFi is a bit weak, but I was hoping that it would be a big improvement over the L521x after all the hassles with that laptop, and 600+ pages of discussion in the owners lounge here.

 

And finally, the UPS tracking code is live: currently in Netherlands, scheduled for delivery on the 8th.

 

I had thought Dell would've learned from the L521X WiFi debacle.

There's a paragraph on gaming performance in this review. You won't be playing intensive games in 1080p on this machine, but it's a decent performer for what it is. At 1366x768 resolution, it can handle most current titles in medium or higher settings.

 

For such a small screen 720p for gaming is a reasonable resolution, so that's good news!

 

Actually the testing shows its the right machine for 1080p gaming as long as you're okay with low-medium settings. That's the whole point of going ddr5 not ddr3 like the asus and many other machines

 

Don't worry, mine said the 11th of Nov but came on 30th Oct.

 

You're right. When I said "intensive games", I wasn't exactly referring to "low-medium settings"... but I should've phrased that better. Yes, it should handle 1080p just fine if you turn down the settings, largely thanks to the GDDR5 memory.

Now, I wouldn't say resolution is the "whole point" of GDDR5. There's potential for significant performance increases even at lower resolutions, as evidenced by the Tomb Raider comparison (+36%). That said, this varies per game. Metro: Last Light shows no such advantage. I wonder why that is?

 

I don't like the sound of that although Akvavit got decent results earlier in this thread.

Any other owner(s) out there who would like to post their results or have any input regarding WiFi?

 

Yeah i overstated that a bit but the whole reason I went with ordering the dell instead of the asus is because the ddr3 looked more than adequate for 720p or 900p gaming but the ddr5 gives it enough boost to where it looks like I can top 30 fps in most games at 1080p with medium settings (maybe not crysis 3 intense sections...)