S-XPS 1645 Throttling Info. and Updates

[atlstang]

Just added a results section above the faq. Post your results/logs and i will add.

[Tenax]

Where do we search/monitor for Dell's official response/solution?

[semblance]

Dell is aware of this issue and are working on it.

Link please.

[Zlog]

Dell is aware of this issue and are working on it. A similar problem with some other models has been resolved via a BIOS revision.

No one has been banned on the Dell forum nor have any threads been deleted (unless they violate forum TOS, just as is done here).

The thread to follow is this one, if you care to keep track.

No offense, but you have a very canned response. I'd like to think that you have enough intuition to know that when a big company says "we're aware and working on it" it really means "We'll get around to it if we have to."

I'm gonna be blunt here. Dell doesn't have to. They wont. They aren't. They'll likely never. They have our money, they have their return policy to protect them from the majority of us sending our units back.

The only thing we have left in our favor is repercussion, i.e. we all have a PROBLEM with our notebooks, and they are all under warranty at this time. If this starts costing Dell A LOT OF MONEY, they will respond.

What do you as an owner need to do? Call in, and stay on the phone with tech support until they decide to replace parts. Let them replace those parts, then tell them the problem is still there. Keep doing this until the problem goes away, which will likely be never. Eventually Dell will realize "Oh shoot, we thought these chumps would like the smell of our farts but we were wrong."

That being said, I plan on making my first call on my next day off.

[quietCat]

No offense, but you have a very canned response. I'd like to think that you have enough intuition to know that when a big company says "we're aware and working on it" it really means "We'll get around to it if we have to."

I'm gonna be blunt here. Dell doesn't have to. They wont. They aren't. They'll likely never. They have our money, they have their return policy to protect them from the majority of us sending our units back.

The only thing we have left in our favor is repercussion, i.e. we all have a PROBLEM with our notebooks, and they are all under warranty at this time. If this starts costing Dell A LOT OF MONEY, they will respond.

What do you as an owner need to do? Call in, and stay on the phone with tech support until they decide to replace parts. Let them replace those parts, then tell them the problem is still there. Keep doing this until the problem goes away, which will likely be never. Eventually Dell will realize "Oh shoot, we thought these chumps would like the smell of our farts but we were wrong."

That being said, I plan on making my first call on my next day off.

Just want to inform everybody that if the laptop is defective you can still legally return it and get a refund despite of any returns policy.

Legally, I think the laptop can can defined as defective at this stage.

Send back those laptops!

[unclewebb]

A similar problem with some other models has been resolved via a BIOS revision.

Can you post some further information and actual testing to back that up?

The Latitude E6500 that motivated tinkerdude to write a 59 page pdf still throttled like crazy during his last test.

Does anyone know why he stopped complaining? I'll give you a hint. NDA.

Muzzling people that complain is not equivalent to fixing the problem.

[atlstang]

you really think he got hit with a NDA? if thats true, then that is why we must try and spread the word to many people. Hopefully reviewers will catch on, if they ever review this laptop. Making it to widespread, limiting dell's options and hopefully they will just fix it.

I know some are unsure. But they had to know this was a problem some point down the line. A good engineer would of known from the start that this was possible, nevermind what they should have caught during testing. Most likely made a calculated risk at one point, thinking not many of us would notice theyre selling a premium laptop that doesnt perform. Really the 4670 etc means nothing being so crippled to many of us.

That why i made this thread, and hopefully we can spread the word. To those that already have the laptop, and to those thinking of buying it. Show them our findings and let them come to their own decisions. Do this enough and i would think reviewers etc will catch on in time, to spread the word even more. Spread it to enough people, and the option to "contain" the issue wont be on dells list.

quiet is right, ive emailed the engineers that i am supposedly in contact that are "capturing" the laptop for any updates they can tell me. If nothing comes from it or the answer is another run around, im probably going to try for a full refund for this laptop. Even though we have uncle webbs solution, still feel cheated and will rather go without a laptop for a while.

I really dont think many of us would of jumped on this laptop and bought it if it had a warning about this issue.

Help me build this thread guys as its our thread not mine, let me know what i should add/change/clarify. Im doing my best to remember all the details from the 2000 post investigation.

[MarcusSwe87]

Can 150w adapter harm your components more then a 130 adapter? do we have any info on that ?

[Nightshade72]

Can 150w adapter harm your components more then a 130 adapter? do we have any info on that ?

90W, 130W, 150W doesn't matter. The adapter is not forcing the notebook to run at 130 or 150W.. it only makes it available if it needs it. the device DRAWS power FROM the power supply, it's not pushed from the power supply.

In my opinion, putting a 150W power supply has less risk than the 90W since we have already seen that the 90W is being run pretty close to it's capacity. It is a function of the bios and onboard circuitry on the laptop to limit the amount of current consumed.

You can't make a laptop that only needs 80W consume 120W. Likewise, it is a bad thing if you can't provide the power required, if it requires 95W and you can only provide 85W, bad things will happen.

The only thing that can be really bad is if you use an adapter with wrong voltage, unclean power delivery (spikes, sags etc... IE knockoff adapters instead of genuine dell or at least high quality replacements)..

Because this issue has a known remedy, I am actually thinking that Dell may step up and fix the issue. With Throttlestop the issue is resolved. All they would need to do is move that functionality into the bios. They can see the wattage of the PSU in the BIOS.. so dependent on what PSU is installed, different throttling routines or power profiles are applied.. Can be done pretty easily but will require them to develop it, test it and then release it. Since it is the holiday season, I don't think they will get to this till mid January..

[Risco]

Just had an interesting conversation with a Dell rep. It seems that you can request a 150W PSU with the Alienware 15X. However they still won't say there is an issue.

14:42:17		ME	Initial Question/Comment: Are the XPS 16 still shipping with a 90W PSU?
14:42:22		System	You are now being connected to an agent. Thank you for using Dell Chat
14:42:22		System	Connected with Bhanu_Koduru
14:42:27		Bhanu_Koduru	Thank you for contacting Dell Sales Chat. This is Bhanu, your Sales Advisor. Please give me a moment while I review your query. In order to Help you better can you provide me with your email address and Telephone number in case we get Disconnected I can
14:42:53		ME	Email is and number is
14:43:43		Bhanu_Koduru	Hi
14:43:52		Bhanu_Koduru	Let me check for you
14:44:07		ME	thanks
14:45:43		Bhanu_Koduru	Yes , it is
14:46:31		ME	I have read there is an issue with throttling wit this laptop due to not enough power. Is there a timescale on when this will be fixed?http://en.community.dell.com/forums/t/19312160.aspx
14:47:13		Bhanu_Koduru	There is no issue.
14:47:27		Bhanu_Koduru	If you are looking to buy today I will arrange a call back for you from my sales support very soon and you can speak to him and place the order , Is that ok with you ? My Account manager will explain you in details and process the order for you
14:47:59		ME	I am considering the order. However you do not have the blu-ray or Wireless N option?
14:49:59		Bhanu_Koduru	Yes, at the moment there is no option for these component, Still let me check for you whether we can provide or not
14:50:04		Bhanu_Koduru	Basically what do you want
14:50:52		ME	It needs blu-ray, wireless N and 500gb hdd + 1920X1080 resolution
14:52:04		Bhanu_Koduru	Blu Ray ROM or RW drive do you want
14:52:17		ME	Blu-ray rom
14:54:00		Bhanu_Koduru	Ok..Let me check
14:56:46		Bhanu_Koduru	Yes, I can arrange for you in my tool
14:57:42		ME	Ok, is there a way I can request a 130W PSU with the machine?
14:58:26		Bhanu_Koduru	No
14:59:41		ME	Without that option, I must decline on the potential order. Dell are clearly aware of the issue http://en.community.dell.com/forums/...px?PageIndex=1 but are refusing to acknowledge it. I dont have confidence in ordering currently.
15:02:38		Bhanu_Koduru	You mean Power Supply AC Adaptor
15:02:43		ME	i do indeed
15:03:58		Bhanu_Koduru	On this model we dont have the option but we can give 150 W in Alienware M15 x
15:04:35		ME	I believe the 15X is considerably more expensive isn't it?
15:05:19		Bhanu_Koduru	Bhanu_Koduru pushes page, http://www1.euro.dell.com/uk/en/home/Laptops/alienware-m15x/pd.aspx?refid=alienware-m15x&s=dhs&cs=ukdhs1&~ck=mn
15:05:29		Bhanu_Koduru	Here is the latest laptop for you
15:05:39		Bhanu_Koduru	with prices and specs on your screen
15:07:03		ME	Ok thanks, I will look in to it. Feel free to ask a representative to call me. best on my mobile.
15:07:14		ME	you have been helpful, thankyou.