Dell XPS M1330: Discuss

[GilesGuthrie]

BASE: Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T6400 (2.0GHz,2MB,800MHz FSB)
OPERATING SYSTEM: Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium SP1(64 BIT) - English
HARDWARE SUPPORT: 1Yr Premium Warranty Support
COLOUR CHOICE: Midnight Blue & 0.3 mega pixel Camera for White-LED Display
LCD: 13.3" UltraSharp™ WXGA (1280x800) White-LED Display (300 nits) with TrueLife™
BIOMETRIC IDENTIFICATION: Biometric Fingerprint Reader
MEMORY: 4096MB 667MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM [2x2048]
HARD DRIVE: 160GB Free Fall Sensor (7200RPM) Hard Drive
GRAPHICS CARD: Integrated Intel® Graphic Media Accelerator X3100
OPTICAL DRIVE: Fixed 8x DVD+/-RW Slim Slot Load Drive, including SW
PRIMARY BATTERY: Primary 9-cell Lithium-Ion Battery (85 WHr)
BLUETOOTH: Dell™ TrueMobile 355 internal Bluetooth Module - European
WIRELESS CONNECTIVITY: Dell™ Wireless 1395 802.11b/g Mini-Card - Europe
POWER SUPPLY: AC Adapter 90W - 3 Pin

£804.02 including VAT & Delivery.

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So, I've been thinking of getting a netbook. Spending £300-ish on a 10" device such as the Samsung NC10 has its appeal, but I am concerned about its actual functionality. When I'm at home, it would suffice for internet access, and that'd be about it. It would save me going upstairs to the desktop. But when I'm out on the road, I'm not sure it'll be enough of a machine.

And then, I went into the Sony Store, and saw their Vaio P. What a beautiful thing. As an object of desire it's almost without peer. But it's £850. I could afford it, and if I'd had a bottle of wine inside me instead of just a glass, I probably would have bought it. But reading up, it's a bit of a dog, and so I dodged a bullet by leaving it in the store.

So it made me think: what could I get for £850 that had a proper processor, a proper screen, and 4GB RAM. Preferably weighing less than 2Kg. I found myself at the Dell store, looking at the XPS M1330, a 13.3" notebook that weighs 2Kg (with the 4-cell battery). It's very well-reviewed, and the above spec is where I'd be looking to go with it. It'll primarily be used for internet access, and photo pre-processing. I have a spare Lightroom and Photoshop licence. I'll obviously need a case for it, but since that's an aesthetic/practical consideration, I'm happy to keep my own counsel on that.

Thoughts? This will not supplant the Photomonster (who's build thread has gone quiet for budgetary timing reasons).

 

[TB]

What am I missing that I just spec'd this:

BASE Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T6400 (2.0GHz,2MB,800MHz FSB)
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium SP1(64 BIT) - English
HARDWARE SUPPORT 1Yr Premium Warranty Support
COLOUR CHOICE Midnight Blue & 0.3 mega pixel Camera for White-LED Display
LCD 13.3" UltraSharp™ WXGA (1280x800) White-LED Display (300 nits) with TrueLife™
BIOMETRIC IDENTIFICATION Biometric Fingerprint Reader
MEMORY 4096MB 667MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM [2x2048]
HARD DRIVE 160GB Free Fall Sensor (7200RPM) Hard Drive
GRAPHICS CARD Integrated Intel® Graphic Media Accelerator X3100
OPTICAL DRIVE Fixed 8x DVD+/-RW Slim Slot Load Drive, including SW
PRIMARY BATTERY Primary 9-cell Lithium-Ion Battery (85 WHr)
BLUETOOTH Dell™ TrueMobile 355 internal Bluetooth Module - European
WIRELESS CONNECTIVITY Dell™ Wireless 1395 802.11b/g Mini-Card - Europe

for £722.14 - not including tax & ship. Does tax and shipping on it run £80?

I built it out of the Small Business version, by the way.

Edit: Never mind. I just added it to the basket and it show up as £850.46.

 

[bergauk]

If you can opt out for a different integrated gpu I think it'd be a fine laptop. The Intel X3100 is really outdated and should be avoided if you can. If the option for an Intel 4500M HD is available go with that. Also. I'd suggest heading over to www.lenovo.com to take a look at their products. I believe the Ideapad lineup could suit you very well. I have an Ideapad Y530. With basically the same specs you showed above. And it cost considerably less than the Dell I was looking at with the same specs.

 

[TB]

Giles, maybe you've already used this, but it looks like you can plug in Coupon Code MNL4D5R5RLP$L2 for 10% off of your Home & Home Office version (it wouldn't go through on my Small Business one).

Down side - it expires on the 18th.

 

[PAPPACLART]

I just bought one of these for my GF, second hand at £625. I had exactly the same idea in mind, but the NC10 was just not good enough for my GF. She wanted a slim, light, stylish laptop with dedicated graphics and a DVD drive. The Dell came up the best value and ticked all of her boxes. I researched for 2 months.

The Spec is totally overkill for her, but should last a good while

X7800 2.6ghz core 2 extreme
4GB 800mhz RAM
LED screen
200gb 7200rpm
nvidia 8400gs
3G sim slot
9 cell battery


Where possible, avoid the 8400gs GPU as they have a problem with overheating, and they fry the motherboard. This has happend many times to people, and some folks are on there 3rd/4th Laptop within a year because of this. Mine has had the cooling mod done to it, but this does not solve the problem, just takes the chance of self destruction lower. The GPU still runs between 55 and 65 without using any graphically intensive tasks. As the laptop is for my GF, she does not play games, so I am hoping the GPU should be fine. (other than photo editing)

If you check ebay, you can get some great deals on refurbished ones, some that come with a Dell 3 year Warranty. Though lots of these refurbs are likely models that had the faulty GPU. Also, the first production run of these laptops, the build quality was not so good, i.e. gaps in fitting so many were returned. Eiter way, you should be happy with a refurb, and you can save a few £100s over buying direct from Dell, as well as getting a better spec for you money.

 

[GilesGuthrie]

Giles, maybe you've already used this, but it looks like you can plug in Coupon Code MNL4D5R5RLP$L2 for 10% off of your Home & Home Office version (it wouldn't go through on my Small Business one).

Down side - it expires on the 18th.

Yeah, it won't be before 18th!

What am I missing that I just spec'd this:
for £722.14 - not including tax & ship. Does tax and shipping on it run £80?

I built it out of the Small Business version, by the way.

Edit: Never mind. I just added it to the basket and it show up as £850.46.

Prices are all over the place. I'm sure I specced the same box yesterday for £900! Shipping will be £50+ VAT, and VAT is 15%.

If you can opt out for a different integrated gpu I think it'd be a fine laptop. The Intel X3100 is really outdated and should be avoided if you can. If the option for an Intel 4500M HD is available go with that. Also. I'd suggest heading over to www.lenovo.com to take a look at their products. I believe the Ideapad lineup could suit you very well. I have an Ideapad Y530. With basically the same specs you showed above. And it cost considerably less than the Dell I was looking at with the same specs.

Lenovo are only selling "S" series IdeaPads in the UK. The only 4GB models are ThinkPad W & T series in at least 15" size. Although I run a T42 at work and have been very happy with it, it's too big and expensive for my needs. They start at £1,473.

Thanks for the info on the graphics, although since I won't be gaming beyond Vista MahJongg, it's not an issue. I just need something that can show photos.

I just bought one of these for my GF, second hand at £625. I had exactly the same idea in mind, but the NC10 was just not good enough for my GF. She wanted a slim, light, stylish laptop with dedicated graphics and a DVD drive. The Dell came up the best value and ticked all of her boxes. I researched for 2 months.

The Spec is totally overkill for her, but should last a good while

X7800 2.6ghz core 2 extreme
4GB 800mhz RAM
LED screen
200gb 7200rpm
nvidia 8400gs
3G sim slot
9 cell battery


Where possible, avoid the 8400gs GPU as they have a problem with overheating, and they fry the motherboard. This has happend many times to people, and some folks are on there 3rd/4th Laptop within a year because of this. Mine has had the cooling mod done to it, but this does not solve the problem, just takes the chance of self destruction lower. The GPU still runs between 55 and 65 without using any graphically intensive tasks. As the laptop is for my GF, she does not play games, so I am hoping the GPU should be fine. (other than photo editing)

If you check ebay, you can get some great deals on refurbished ones, some that come with a Dell 3 year Warranty. Though lots of these refurbs are likely models that had the faulty GPU. Also, the first production run of these laptops, the build quality was not so good, i.e. gaps in fitting so many were returned. Eiter way, you should be happy with a refurb, and you can save a few £100s over buying direct from Dell, as well as getting a better spec for you money.

Interesting that you followed the same path. And thanks for the graphics info. That's an add-in option, right? I'm not planning on speccing additional GPUs as I don't need a battery hog that fries my computer and adds £100 to the price!!

Thanks for the comments folks.

 

[PAPPACLART]

Yeah, it won't be before 18th!



Thanks for the info on the graphics, although since I won't be gaming beyond Vista MahJongg, it's not an issue. I just need something that can show photos.



Interesting that you followed the same path. And thanks for the graphics info. That's an add-in option, right? I'm not planning on speccing additional GPUs as I don't need a battery hog that fries my computer and adds £100 to the price!!

Thanks for the comments folks.

The intergrated GPU that ships with the Dell is fine and is allot better than previous generations of intergrated graphics..of course, as long as you do not play any games and as for showing pictures, it will have no problems. Thankfully, yes, the dedicated GPU an option, though if you found an XPS M1330 for a good price that has an NVIDIA GPU and bought it with the idea to take it out and replace it, sadly this is not an option as I thought of doing this too but discovered after I had already paid for the Laptop.

If you do a google search online, you will likely come accross forums where many discuss this laptop, the problems/fixes etc.

Good luck

 

[TB]

Yeah, it won't be before 18th!

Thankfully there are plenty of sites out there that post updated codes when they come out. There will be another deal in the future.

Prices are all over the place. I'm sure I specced the same box yesterday for £900! Shipping will be £50+ VAT, and VAT is 15%.

I have, and I'm sure you have as well, priced out plenty of computers on Dell's site. The prices are different each week (actually, you found the magic date - Tuesday's ) as one week they are pushing a larger hard drive and the next week RAM, etc. Decide what's most important, find a good price and jump on it.

Happy hunting!

 

[Tornado]

The M1330 is most likely now on clearance from Dell, so you should probably act somewhat quickly if you want to grab one before Dell removes it from the lineup entirely. I've actually had a bit of seat time with the 1330 (my friend picked one up a couple of days before I got the 1710), and they are pretty slick design wise.

 

[GT4 genius]

Sorry to dig up an old thread but I thought it would be better than starting a new one. I'm thinking of getting a new latop when Windows 7 comes out and I'm wondering what this XPS M1530 would be like? Is it the same as the one Giles asked about but with a 15" screen?
Also the one priced there only has a 2.0Ghz processor, only 3Gb of ram and 128mb graphics card. I'll be using the laptop for a Ubuntu virtual box as well as running browsers and mat lab type programs at the same time, so are these specs good enough? Also are the overheating graphics card issues ironed out now or are they still causing problems?
Finally will there be a drop or an increase in laptop prices when come October 22nd?

Thanks for any replies. 👍

 

[GilesGuthrie]

Toronado was right, Dell deleted the 1330 around three weeks before my budget came in. I ended up buying the Studio XPS 13, which is a lovely piece of kit.

I'm running Windows 7 RC on it at the minute, and it's allocating around 1.1GB RAM for running the base system. 4GB is definitely worth the extra cash over 3GB, and make sure you get one of the 7200rpm free fall drives. To me, processor upgrades offer poor value.

I think that vendors are desperate for Windows 7 to come to stimulate sales. I can't see the market sustaining a price increase, but I also don't see prices falling markedly through the balance of '09.

 

[Tornado]

I'll level with you: There is absolutely no reason to get a M1530 anymore, to the extent that I am amazed Dell even sells it at this point. The Studio 15 outclasses it in every way. This one, for example, costs less than that M1530 but is better in every single measurable quantity. The only advantage the M1530 has is better standard tech support do to being part of the XPS line, and you can easily make that up by adding more coverage to the Studio 15.