New zepto, delivery and Bios update?

My 6625WD should be dispatched today, and I have a few questions about the BIOS for when it arrives. I have opted NOT to have an operating system installed - I have my own copy of Vista Ultimate 64 bit.

1) How can I find out whether the newest version of the BIOS is installed?
2) Do people recommend I do install the newest version if it isn't already installed, in light of problems people seem to have had with it?
3) Does it make much difference if I do stuff to the BIOS before or after installing the OS?
4) I have been told I need to enable AHCI, for unknown reasons (something to do with the hard-drive/turbo memory I think). Can anyone help me do this as I have never even entered the bios before!
5) Any idea on when I can expect my Laptop in the UK if it is sent by UPS today?

My spec will be as follows:

15,4" WSXGA+ 1680x1050 - 6625WD (100308)
NVIDIA® Geforce 8600M GT (800104)
2.20 GHz Intel® Core™2 Duo T7500 800MHz (120627)
2GB (2x1024) DDR2 667/PC5300 SODIMM, Zepto (130121)
200GB 7200rpm SATA Harddisk Samsung® (140036)

6) I've read tonnes of stuff about the whole 2GB/4GB RAM already, but STILL haven't found a definite answer to this question: Will I see any improvement in games or other intensive applications if I installed 2x2GB RAM instead of the 2x1GB I have above, bearing in mind I do have 64Bit Vista Ultimate??

Thankyou so much! I just want to make sure I know what I'm doing when my laptop arrives!

 

First, my 6024W was delivered to my home in UK about 24 hours after leaving Zepto (ie about 3.30pm) but I think I was lucky to have a van doing some afternoon deliveries since the package got to the nearest TNT depot at lunch time. I don't know if Zepto now automatically send out tracking numbers of you still have to ask for it.

You need AHCI enabled if you have got the Turbo Memory option because TM needs the Intel Matrix Storage Driver which gets installed by Vista if AHCI is enabled before OS installation. It is possible to change to AHCI after OS installation but there's a procedure to follow to get the right driver installed before you make the switch in the BIOS. If you want to enable AHCI then first you need to enter the BIOS by pressing F2 while the BIOS splash screen (big Zepto logo) is displayed. Check what BIOS version you have. It's probably the latest but don't immediately upgrade if it is not until you have got things working with whatever is supplied.

Then cursor right to the Intel menu and press enter. Then down to the ICH Sata Pata control sub menu and press enter. Then select AHCI configuration and change it to enabled. Also enable DFOROM (Robson) support if you have Turbo Memory.Then press Esc a few times to get to the top menu. While you are there you might want to visit the boot menu and check if it shows optical drive first and HDD second. Then save the changes. (All this is based on my 6024W BIOS which, I believe, is very similar). I actually have the HDD as the first boot device and use F10 to select boot from the optical drive (not sure if the same key applies on the 6625WD).

As for the 2GB <> 4GB question, Vista will use the extra RAM to pre-fetch files which it thinks you might want to use, so frequently used applications tend to open much faster. However, pre-fetch means that there about 5 minutes of HDD activity after you boot while Vista fills up the spare RAM. However, the more RAM you have then the longer it takes to hibernate because it all gets written to the HDD. However, resume seems to be quite quick.

Hope this helps,

John

 

Thanks for taking the time to write such a detailed response

With regard to selecting the optical drive first in the boot order, should I change it back to HDD first once I've installed windows?

Finally, I don't actually have intel turbo memory - there is no harm in enabling DFOROM and AHCI is there?

Thanks again.

 

On the 6625WD the AHCI option is in the Advanced menu, and not hidden away like on the 6024/6224W

 

By reading the responses about the 011 BIOS I think it would be a good thing to downgrade it to the 008 so that you get the best first impression .
And by having the 64 bit Vista and over the 3GB limit I wouldnt be suprised if for example games would be faster when you can fit the sticks with so much more. And the longer hibernation time, dont worry, its still not that long (~2 min on my 6625).

And I think youll get the lappy by tomorrow or the day after that

 

Hopefully it won't be the same for you, but my laptop a couple weeks ago took longer to get here than others have experienced. I got the shipping notice on the Thursday, but it didn't arrive until the following Tuesday. I am not sure why but it didn't seem to move anywhere for the whole of the weekend.

If you haven't already received it, the UPS Shipping Notification e-mail should actually state when it is due to arrive.

Have fun, it's a great machine.

 

Thanks - its good to hear something positive about the 6625 after a lot of negativity! I can't help thinking I may have timed my purchase a bit badly though with many xmas deals likely...
I got a tracking number and it says scheduled delivery for the 19th which I'm a bit disappointed by considering £30 is not cheap for freight...I would have expected more than standard delivery. I hate waiting for something you know is in the post!!!

 

So far, I love it. Must admit, I haven't given it a full shakedown yet, but with the stuff I have done, I've been very impressed.

I know what you mean, but the trouble is, you can end up just chasing deals all the time. And of course, the longer you wait, the more likelyhood there is of hearing rumours of the next great model that will be coming out in just a few months time, so then you don't know whether to go for that deal you had been waiting for, or whether to wait even longer!

That's disapointing. I wonder if Zepto have changed their delivery policy, as that's exactly the same length of time it took to get mine delivered. I thought I had just been unlucky so didn't think more of it, but if it's the way they are doing things now, like you say, you expect better for £30.

 

We have changed shipping company from XP/DSV (which used TNT or DHL) to fully using UPS.
UPS is slightly more expensive but gives us better possibilities when it comes to arranging shipping and RMA/pickups around the world, and also gives us better tracking possibilities for both us and the customers. The standard shipping (3-7 workdays worldwide) is £30 at UPS, and the more expensive Express (1-3 days worldwide) is about £60.
Also UPS gives us the possibility of COD shipping (Cash on delivery), which we did not have the possibility of beforehand.

So far I've only experienced 1 pickups (out of 15) go wrong with UPS, and that was the first one i arranged which was mistakenly made wrong by me We had about 4-6 pickups (out of 15) go wrong with XP/DSV, where it was not us making the error.
As we are growing we can't afford for failed pickups, so it's better in the long run to pay a slight bit more for a more effective shipping service, than pay less and have customers having problems with the pickups.

 

Thanks for the explanation, I guess it makes sense. Do you use the standard service or express service for RMAs? The reason I ask is because if you just use the standard service, then that could potentially mean that the customer will be without their computer for an extra 3 weeks on top of the time it takes to diagnose/repair the computer itself.

Yowsers! No wonder you looked elsewhere.

 

Well normally the shipping time with standard shipping is 3 work days within Europe but up to 7 work days to Asia ect.
To be honest I don't know which is used as I'm not that involved with International support anymore.

 

well at least there is a chance it'll get here on saturday