Dell XPS 17 (L702x) Thread

[fmarka]

Thanks. I guessed the hdd light and speaker placement would be something most power users would notice right away. The speakers are pretty good for a notebook though.

I had moved things around to use the XPS on my desktop, but the screen just isn't good enough for watching movies and doing graphics work. My 19" VGA-connected ViewSonic has a much better picture. I did buy an HDMI-to-DVI cable for the notebook so I could have both screens, or just the VS one. But it looks like I'll be using my 8-year-old P4 XP tower for a while yet.

That's tough news about the 555M and XP drivers... Maybe there's some hacked ones out there somewhere I can try. Although XP seems to run very well in a virtual mode on the XPS; I haven't noticed any deficiencies so far.

Cheers.

XPS 17 L702X | i7-2630QM | 8GB RAM | GeForce GT 555M | 2 x 750GB HDD | Backlit keyboard

[ray4jc]

I have been using the laptop since april. its a great one.
suddenly i feel a lag in the whole system. the videos, games and even the audio suddenly struggles to keep up.... tried restoring windows too.. still having the problem.
the main problem is that when i restart the PC ... it goes down but doesn't start automatically.. i have to turn off manually use the power button (the sound inside appears when i do tat), then have to restart it myself.
feel like its a hardware problem.
any ideas? how to fix this issue?

This sounds like it could be a bad hard drive or a virus/spyware.

When you say tried restoring Windows, what exactly did you do?

i would suggest running the boot time diagnostics to rule out hardware problems

When the DELL logo appears, press F12 immediately. Select Diagnostics from the boot menu and press Enter.

[Turbot]

Hi,

Two days ago I received my new XPS 17. Specs: I7-2630QM, 4gb ram, Win 7 Home Premium, GT555m 3GB, 1080p (AG non 3d), 2 x 500gb harddrives.

I am experiencing a couple of issues:

1) Running on battery, I notice that the screen occassionally flickers. This means, the whole screen flickers black momentarily, on an irregular basis.

2) Again, running on battery, mp3 playback stutters. This happens on different software, and files from different sources. For example, if I am playing back an MP3 in iTunes, at different points along the file, the sound will distort momentarily. When I play back the same file, the next time it will distort, momentarily in a different place.

According to HD Sentinel, the harddrives are perfect and report no errors. I am wondering if the laptop has an issue with it's internal power supply.

3) I had to turn the smart gestures off from the track pad. It would seem that, resting my left hand near the track pad would result in strange behaviours when I used my right hand to move the pointer - eg. zooming in.

Beyond these issues, the machine seems fast and stable so far.

Has anyone else experienced similar issues.

BTW, comparing the 1080p non AG display to the 900p touch screen display, there is no comparison. Colours look pretty good, uncalibrated. Skin tones are a bit unnatural, but that is the only place where I notice any issue. I'm guessing, once calibrated, these too will look good. So if you're reading this wondering what display to go for, I'd give a thumbs up for the 1080p AG non 3d display, which in the UK and Ireland is only available if you request it.

[antipesto93]

Hi,

Two days ago I received my new XPS 17. Specs: I7-2630QM, 4gb ram, Win 7 Home Premium, GT555m 3GB, 1080p (AG non 3d), 2 x 500gb harddrives.

I am experiencing a couple of issues:

1) Running on battery, I notice that the screen occassionally flickers. This means, the whole screen flickers black momentarily, on an irregular basis.

2) Again, running on battery, mp3 playback stutters. This happens on different software, and files from different sources. For example, if I am playing back an MP3 in iTunes, at different points along the file, the sound will distort momentarily. When I play back the same file, the next time it will distort, momentarily in a different place.

According to HD Sentinel, the harddrives are perfect and report no errors. I am wondering if the laptop has an issue with it's internal power supply.

3) I had to turn the smart gestures off from the track pad. It would seem that, resting my left hand near the track pad would result in strange behaviours when I used my right hand to move the pointer - eg. zooming in.

Beyond these issues, the machine seems fast and stable so far.

Has anyone else experienced similar issues.

BTW, comparing the 1080p non AG display to the 900p touch screen display, there is no comparison. Colours look pretty good, uncalibrated. Skin tones are a bit unnatural, but that is the only place where I notice any issue. I'm guessing, once calibrated, these too will look good. So if you're reading this wondering what display to go for, I'd give a thumbs up for the 1080p AG non 3d display, which in the UK and Ireland is only available if you request it.

those issues are weird, i would say power issue, but the sound issue sounds more like a DPC latency issue?
DPC Latency Checker

[DougHo63]

1) Running on battery, I notice that the screen occassionally flickers. This means, the whole screen flickers black momentarily, on an irregular basis.

Has anyone else experienced similar issues.

Sounds similar to what I and some others have experienced when using a newer Intel graphics driver (such as 2342 and 2361) direct from Intel's web site instead of using the older Intel graphics driver (2321) from Dell's web site. Seemed to be connected to being somewhat idle and/or mouse movement. So in other words, try sticking to Dell's 2321 Intel graphics driver.

[fmarka]

Given the lack of a visible activity light on the XPS 17 (in normal use), does any know of a good-looking LED indicator that sits in the system tray?

I've tried a few: FloatLED, DriveGLEAM, Hard Disk Indicator... but some of them are very 'Win95' with poor icons, or floating which I don't want.

Any other suggestions? If only DELL would make one just for us

Cheers.

[hauraton]

Hey!
I have Dell 702x 2720QM with GT555M 3D display. I really love this machine but already have an issue with it.
When I go out of sleep mode the screen doesn't turns on and it starts beeping every 20-30 second. Can't do anything. Helps only reboot. Any suggestions?
THX

[Sam_A_1992]

Hey!
I have Dell 702x 2720QM with GT555M 3D display. I really love this machine but already have an issue with it.
When I go out of sleep mode the screen doesn't turns on and it starts beeping every 20-30 second. Can't do anything. Helps only reboot. Any suggestions?
THX

Turn your display to 60hz then try it. This is a common problem with 3d displays as it cant resume from sleep at 120hz.

[neoknip]

Two questions:

Have you been overclocking at all?
Have you dusted out the fan grill since purchasing the system on April?

Seems like your system is overheating... could be the above reasons. Could also be anything from moving to a hotter location, summer season, etc.

I haven't been overclocking it.
and i haven't dusted the fan grill since purchasing.
If its getting hot.. shouldn't i be able to feel it? the thing is it gets hot whenever i play game.. but that has never been the problem since recently.

Also i noticed.. even in the game... i noticed the lag occurs msotly when there is video.
I haven't changed my laptop position till now. is there any way i could find the problem (i.e if it is hardware issue or heat problems?)

[neoknip]

wow, thats weird, the only time i have experienced this was once with a faulty usb hub extender thing, and once when using a HDMI > DVI cable (Every time it was removed it froze)

i would chek the temperatures to make sure nothing has come loose (so make sure you are not going over 80c etc....
possibily try with individual memory sticks
and make sure the hard drive isnt damaged with bad sectors or anything

I dont use the HDMI to DVI or usb hub extender.

can u please tell me how to check the temperatures? and what abt things getting loose? wat does that mean?

I did full hardware diagnostic. It couldn't perform 4 tests on one my external HDD. should i check the system without the that HDD?