Dell Inspiron XPS Notebook Computers

[RiotoftheBlood]

I'm strongly considering buying one of these. There more I look, the more I want. It looks like they're actually fairly upgradable. Who has experience with them? Comments please.

 

[KaedesDisciple]

I ask the same question I ask everyone who considers a high powered notebook, exactly why do you want one? Not trying to discourage you, just trying to make sure that you have it clear in your head as to what you're buying and why. I hate to see people spend a lot of money on a machine and get the machine that's not quite right for their purposes at the time.

 

[bumbachief]

Some advice

Hi ya.

My cousin recently bought a mesh ultima or suin like that and have to say its pretty phat.

Just make sure when you do go for power you atleast get 256 Mb graphics, bluetooth, dvd burner, wireless internet, a gig of ram, built in webcam, large harddisk, ..... infact check out this link below.

http://www.itreviews.co.uk/h692-mesh-ultima-plus-3-4ghz-review.htm

Also be carefull when choosing the chip, type etc.

Oh yeah and forget windows xp, in my eyes windows 2000 still rocks on even 98 second edition.

Thx bumba

P.s. Not forgetting firefox web browser for certain and thunderbird mail app.

 

[gamejunkie]

If you don't mind carrying around a 20lb notebook. I've seen these things up close and they are HUGE. It's probably the only thing you can fit in a backpack. The powerbrick is the same size as a home pc's powersupply. The battery life is just nasty. I truly can't see anyone carrying this thing around with them for very long.

I look for the fastest machine in the smallest possible package. Checkout some ultralights and see how you like them. Especially the Fujitsu and Sony.

 

[Kunai]

The newest XPS (the XPS 2) weighs in at a shade under 9 lbs. It's lighter due to the Pentium M chipset installed. This isn't bad, considering that this is a 17" widescreen laptop. However, the XPS 2 is almost $2400 with the basic setup. If you want more RAM (highly recommended) or a faster HD with 7200 rpm, it's extra money that will inflate the final price.

If you want the original XPS, that thing is about 10 lbs... and it heats up really fast. I wouldn't recommend that one at all because of that fact. It uses Pentium 4, which is a desktop chip inside a laptop. Not only is it a lot larger than the Pentium M chips, but it won't have adaquate cooling systems like a desktop.

I agree with the others here... you really have to ask yourself if the investment on such a high-end system justifies the price tag. If you are going to use it just for games, then I would hold off on buying a laptop for a bit longer. Wait until the XPS2 drops in price, then buy it. If you are going to use the laptop to work on intensive graphic programs (like 3D Studio Max or Maya), and you absolutely need it on the go, then the XPS 2 might be the one for you. I have an Inspiron 9200 (they have upgraded the system to 9300 recently) and it runs well. I can use my graphics programs like Photoshop, Illustrator, Painter without any sort of lag, and games run pretty decent on the system. I was surprised that I could even run Doom 3... it doesn't run the best but I can at least play the game at a decent framerate on Low Quality.

 

[RiotoftheBlood]

Thanks for all of the replies so far.

I fully realize that this is something I don't need, and I won't buy it until I feel that I have the money to spend on it (which I'm hoping will be some time this year). Here are some uses I have for it:

* A second computer for the house. I was planning on building one for my basement, because I'd like to have one next to my workbench there. With the laptop, I could keep it there normally, and when I want to use it elsewhere, just disconnect it and take it with me. I have CAT-5 through the house, so I can run a cable through the floor to where I'd connect the laptop to. Also, if I want to use a PC in another room, I can take the laptop there and connect it to my DSL. I have CAT-5 jacks in all 3 bedrooms and the living room.

* Portable & wireless internet - when I'm on a long trip or vacation, it would come in very handy. In a hotel, I could connect it to the room's broadband system. This is something I need to look into more, though, because I don't know much about how Wi-Fi works, how much it costs, where I can actually do it, etc..

* Gaming on my TV. I have thought about connecting my PC to my TV to play Doom 3 there, but this is of course impractical as they are in different rooms. With the laptop, I can use the S-video TV-out capability, or possibly even the DVI-out (since my TV has a DVI input, although I'm not certain this will work, as the manual says it's not intended for PCs, but I have heard others say that it will work anyway). This is why I want the power of the XPS: it will run Doom 3, and probably Quake IV, very well. In fact, probably better than my PC (Athlon XP 3200+, 1 GB 512M x 2 dual channel DDR400, nForce 2 Ultra chipset, GeForce 6600
GT).

I will definitely get at least 1 GB of RAM. Only thing that sucks about that choice, well it's both good and bad, is that the 1 GB comes as two modules, and the board has only two slots. Of course this is necessary for dual-channel, but it also means that if I decide to upgrade to 2 GB in the future, I have to get rid of the two 512M modules. And the price difference between 1 GB and 2 GB is... $550. Ouch. It seems that it may be better to get just one 1 GB module now, but that's not listed as an option. I wouldn't have DDR, but I think it would still be sufficient for my purposes, and upgrading to 2 GB later wouldn't require me to sacrifice any modules that I already have. I wonder how comparable the overall performace of the machine would be of 1 GB w/ dual channel and two 512 M modules or 1 GB of non dual-channel with a single 1 GB module?

 

[shir0]

Just get an Alienware.

They rock.

 

[soulthug]

Just get an Alienware.

They rock.

Alienware area 51 is to die for. But so very very overpriced.
Buy an ANUS laptop!

 

[legendofspeed]

Just get an Alienware.

They rock.

Alienware is the same company as Dell if you didn't know...

Same as Lexus is to Toyota, Acura is to Honda, Infiniti is to Nissan, you get the idea

Alienware is just the higher (gamer) devision of Dell

 

[300wins]

Alienware is the same company as Dell if you didn't know...

Same as Lexus is to Toyota, Acura is to Honda, Infiniti is to Nissan, you get the idea

Alienware is just the higher (gamer) devision of Dell

Where did you find that out? I am just curious, since I never knew that.

 

[RiotoftheBlood]

I was looking at the Alienware M51, mainly after reading that it has "user-upgradable" video. However, it uses a Pentium 4. I'd rather have a system with a Pentium M, like the XPS, that uses much less power. Plus, the video in the XPS may also be upgradable; I found a very nice service manual on Dell's site, and it reveals that the video is a seperate board. A board with a proprietary format maybe, but still a board that can apparently be changed without extreme hassle. Dell was offering a video upgrade for a previous version of the XPS, so maybe it will do the same with the current Gen 2 model.

Just get an Alienware.

They rock.

 

[Kunai]

I'm wondering if my Inspiron 9200 has an upgradable video card... I'd like to go from my Radeon Mobility 9700 128 Meg to the Mobility 9800 256 Meg.

 

[Electroman]

These XPS notebooks must be perfect for those LAN party attendees who don't want to lug their box, monitor, and accessories around. And you should by all means get a Pentium-M processor. Even the P4 Mobile, as fast as it is, is just a heater that happens to also contain a CPU.

If it were up to me, and I love to LAN game too; i'd buy 2 laptops. One big huge desktop replacement for LAN'n and as a second machine, and a second ultralight laptop for travel.

Maybe someday ultralights will have solid state storage, and as during the 90's HPC boom, be totally self-contained and have no moving parts.

 

[legendofspeed]

Where did you find that out? I am just curious, since I never knew that.

I used to work at a Cyber Cafe and when the place was installing a new server for counter strike, my boss brought in his friend who works a Dell to help install it. He brought in like three Alienware laptops and I was like, "Don't you work at Dell?." He laughed and gave me the hush hush and said, "A lot of people don't know....but we're the same company." I was more . I didn't even notice till now, but I think he was pretty serious about Dell and Alienware being the same company considering this happened almost two years ago and I recall his laptop looking like these:

These laptops didn't come out till recently right? Maybe he had the prototype, nevertheless he was a really cool guy, I believe him

 

[shir0]

I thought you took a serious performance kick when you switched from a
p4 HT to a p-M? How would that make it more ideal for gaming?

 

[Kunai]

I thought you took a serious performance kick when you switched from a
p4 HT to a p-M? How would that make it more ideal for gaming?

You do get a hit, but not nearly as bad as before. If the laptop is unplugged, the Pentium M will reduce the processor speed to 1/2 for conservation reasons. There are programs where you can get the full power running regardless of it being plugged in or not. The processor speed is also a bit misleading, because people have said that a 1.6 Ghz Pentium-M can run as fast as a P-4 3.0 Ghz. I'm not sure how that works, though.

Anyway, the better laptops are starting to be called "desktop replacements", which is pretty true nowadays. This new rig of mine is very similar to what my mom has with a Pentium 4 setup 6 months prior. Of course, if you want a rig for gaming, it's probably better and cheaper to get a desktop. But riotoftheblood wants a portable rig with WiFi that handles gaming well, and the XPS 2 can do that. I'll tell you this much... after owning a laptop, I don't think I would ever own a desktop again. The laptop is much more convienent, takes less space, and there's nothing like taking it to a coffee shop and work on computer stuff while listening to internet radio. Best investment I've ever made.

 

[shir0]

I guess man, my friend's area 51 is a few pounds, but those xps's are heavy
aren't they? I sure as hell wouldn't want to carry around a 10 pound box in
my bookbag.

 

[RiotoftheBlood]

I never said it would be more ideal for gaming. What I was implying was that it would be more ideal overall.

I thought you took a serious performance kick when you switched from a
p4 HT to a p-M? How would that make it more ideal for gaming?

 

[Kunai]

The old XPS laptops are 9 lbs, the XPS 2 is 8.6 lbs. Still very low for what it is. The Area-51 lappys are listed at 10 lbs at the Alienware site.

Let me know if you end up getting the XPS 2, riot. I'm just wondering how nice it really is, but I'm very content with my current laptop. I'm just hoping that I can upgrade my video card through Dell in the future... I figure that I'd like to go from my Radeon Mobility 9700 128 Meg to an ATI or nVidia 512 Meg card down the road. I think the processor I have is good enough for me as-is, and I will upgrade to 2 gigs of RAM when prices get reasonable.

Oh yeah... forgot to mention what a marvel the Pentium-M is. If I'm not playing Doom 3, I can last at least 5 hours on battery just surfing, playing music and using simple programs. Maybe more... but that's the average. I think an Alienware only lasts less than 2 hours with the Pentium-4 chip, which was the reason why I didn't choose that brand. Really impractical with the battery life... especially if you can't access an outlet at certain places.

 

[RiotoftheBlood]

From what I've seen, it looks like your video probably is upgradable. The XPS1 came with the same video as yours, except that it's a 9800 instead of 9700, and I know that the XPS1 video is upgradable. According to the ad I have in front of me, The upgrade is a 256 MB card (it doesn't specify but I assume that it is also a Radeon 9800).

Can you elaborate on your Doom 3 performance some more? I would think that medium quality would run fairly well with that set of hardware (what resolution is your display and what resolution do you play the game in?).

By the way I asked Dell if I could order one with only a single memory module, and the answer was no. One of my coworkers told me that DDR2 requires two modules. I'll have to look into that. However, I did find someone on eBay sellig 2GB (1GB x 2) of memory for $450. From Dell, each 1 GB module is $400! What I may do is buy the XPS2 with the standard 512M, then buy the 2GB elsewhere and sell the 512 (or keep it as spare).

Too bad there aren't 4 memory slots like the Alienware model has.

The old XPS laptops are 9 lbs, the XPS 2 is 8.6 lbs. Still very low for what it is. The Area-51 lappys are listed at 10 lbs at the Alienware site.

Let me know if you end up getting the XPS 2, riot. I'm just wondering how nice it really is, but I'm very content with my current laptop. I'm just hoping that I can upgrade my video card through Dell in the future... I figure that I'd like to go from my Radeon Mobility 9700 128 Meg to an ATI or nVidia 512 Meg card down the road. I think the processor I have is good enough for me as-is, and I will upgrade to 2 gigs of RAM when prices get reasonable.

Oh yeah... forgot to mention what a marvel the Pentium-M is. If I'm not playing Doom 3, I can last at least 5 hours on battery just surfing, playing music and using simple programs. Maybe more... but that's the average. I think an Alienware only lasts less than 2 hours with the Pentium-4 chip, which was the reason why I didn't choose that brand. Really impractical with the battery life... especially if you can't access an outlet at certain places.