£1200 - Dell Studio XPS 16 - with ssd?

[Izi]

I have £1200 to spend on a laptop; the Dell XPS 16 seems to be the best option at present.

I need the laptop for Developing programs (some light gaming, video editing, office work). I used Visual Studio mainly for dev work. I read that HDD speed makes the biggest difference in terms of performance for VS2008, so I want a laptop with SSD.

The Dell stuido XPS 16 comes in at just over £1200 for one with the 256GB SSD.

Couple of questions:

1) Does anyone have any alternatives to the Dell?
2) Are there any owners here of the Dell XPS 16 with SSD?
3) Whats the best way to get a good deal on a Dell? At the moment it has £300 off until the 2nd, so am I going to find it harder getting more off?

 

[julianhj]

£1200 seems like an awfully large amount of money to spend on a Dell. I say this having spent just under £700 about six months ago on a Studio 15. I've been very disappointed with the overall quality of the product and particularly with the level of customer service.

Dell deals are like DFS in my opinion. There's always a sale or an offer, and you can always haggle the price down over the phone when ordering. www.dmxdimension.com runs a list of the various offers current for Dell systems.

 

[Izi]

Studio and Studio XPS are different I believe.

If people can suggest alternatives I am open to suggestions. I just can't see any others which match spec/price?


Thanks for dmx link, extra 5% off!

 

[Izi]

This is the spec:

Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T9600 (2.80Ghz, 6MB, 1066MHz)
Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium SP1 (64 BIT) - English
Microsoft® Works 9.0 / English - (Does not include Microsoft® Word)
Black Leather back cover : 16" (inch) Truelife 1080p Full HD RGBLED Edge to Edge Display
4096MB 1067MHz Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM [2x2048]
256GB Solid State SATA Drive
1Yr Premium Warranty Support
Primary 6-cell 56 WHr Lithium Ion battery
Internal DVD+/-RW (DVD & CD read and write) Slot Load Drive including Software
1GB ATI® Radeon™ HD 4670 graphics card
Intel WiFi Link 5100 (802.11 a/b/g/n 1X2) 1/2 MiniCard
Dell Wireless 370 Bluetooth Module
No integrated TV Tuner (MLK base)
Accessories
No Security/Anti-Virus Protection - English
Services & Software
No Accidental Damage Support
DataSafe Online Backup 2GB 1 year
Also Includes
N09X1603
Studio XPS 16 Order - UK
English - Documentation Studio XPS 16
Datasafe Local 2.0 Basic
Studio XPS 16 Resource DVD (Diagnostic & Drivers)
90W AC Adaptor
No Carry Case
1 Meter Power Cord (3 Wire) - UK
Internal UK/Irish Qwerty Keyboard
1 Year Premium Warranty Support
2.0 Mega Pixel Integrated Camera with Facial Recognition Software
Wireless Label (Intel Wireless Cards) - Core 2 Duo

 

[bushmins]

Dont forget that 1gb 4670 is only DDR2, so its only really an equilivant to a GeForce 9600M GT, and you can get 9600GT laptops for £500.

You can get a lot better graphics card for the same price if you shop around.

But if its not for intence gaming then it should do quite well. Nice with the solid state HDD.


I was going to buy a Dell but then i found some more specilised places to buy from.

 

[Izi]

Dont forget that 1gb 4670 is only DDR2, so its only really an equilivant to a GeForce 9600M GT, and you can get 9600GT laptops for £500.

You can get a lot better graphics card for the same price if you shop around.

But if its not for intence gaming then it should do quite well. Nice with the solid state HDD.


I was going to buy a Dell but then i found some more specilised places to buy from.

for example?

to be honest, I havnt had time for gaming in the past year, so I dont see myself having time moving forward. Its just nice to know if I decided to load up and old game it will work nicly.

Its much more a work machine, so build quality and duribility are more important.

I am still open to some suggestions; I am going to buy this tomorrow if no one comes up with any gooduns

I am not sold on 'dell', not at all, just from what i can find it seems to be the best deal. Sonys are around the same price with out the SSD.

 

[ninja2000]

The 4670 has a lot more grunt than a 9600m. I have owned both (msi gx720 & sxps 16)

The sxps is a great laptop with one problem...HEAT!

Build quality is great
Performance is top notch
Looks good
but damn does it run hot. This is mostly due to the poor thermal design.

I put AS5 on the cpu and gpu, undervolted the cpu and raised the back of the laptop up and it still runs hot.
The touchpad is almost unusable and the palm rests are scorchio when gaming. You could also fry eggs on the underside. I havent tried a notebook cooler on it but then I dont see why you should need one on a main stream laptop.

If this is used purely as a desktop replacement then I think you can overlook the heat but dont expect to use it on your lap without cooler or laptray

 

[Izi]

The 4670 has a lot more grunt than a 9600m. I have owned both (msi gx720 & sxps 16)

The sxps is a great laptop with one problem...HEAT!

Build quality is great
Performance is top notch
Looks good
but damn does it run hot. This is mostly due to the poor thermal design.

I put AS5 on the cpu and gpu, undervolted the cpu and raised the back of the laptop up and it still runs hot.
The touchpad is almost unusable and the palm rests are scorchio when gaming. You could also fry eggs on the underside. I havent tried a notebook cooler on it but then I dont see why you should need one on a main stream laptop.

If this is used purely as a desktop replacement then I think you can overlook the heat but dont expect to use it on your lap without cooler or laptray

that bad?

Is that only wen gaming though?

 

[hiroofheroes]

I've had a studio xps 16 for a month now, with similar specs to what you've posted without the ssd, but with blu-ray combi drive.

Not used it for gaming, but seems solid enough (other than a bluescreening issue with one of vistas automatic updates) even if due to its design the rear exhaust vent is most obstructed by the open screen. I've used it paired with a zalman zm-nc2000 since I've got it though so it's no real biggy.

What annoys me is just how easy it is for the power cord to work its way loose, it doesn't really 'connect' snugly. I guess its to prevent you from pilling your laptop off a desk if you trip on the cord, but in day to day usage its more of a pain than a blessing.

 

[Izi]

What annoys me is just how easy it is for the power cord to work its way loose, it doesn't really 'connect' snugly. I guess its to prevent you from pilling your laptop off a desk if you trip on the cord, but in day to day usage its more of a pain than a blessing.

i've killed to laptops tripping over the power cord and snapping the power connection. each time i was told because it was connected to motherboard it was going to cost more than it was worth to fix - might be a blessing for me.

does anyone one else have any alternative suggestions, or do people think the xps is the best option?

 

[bushmins]

I've used it paired with a zalman zm-nc2000 since I've got it though so it's no real biggy.

Does that cooler suck or blow?

The 4670 has a lot more grunt than a 9600m.

I wouldnt say its a lot, theres a post around here somewhere where a guy replaced his GeForce 9600M GT with a Mobility Radeon HD 4670 due to heat problems - check it out.

If you are not going to game then thats a lot of money to spend, but of course its your choise. Ill be gaming so i went up market a bit, trouble is i cant really say where i got it from. I did a lot of looking around, but i will admit Dell was the first place i looked at but definatally not the last.

 

[ninja2000]

I cant currently find a better alternative and i go through a lot of laptops. If it ran cooler this would be the perfect laptop.

With regard to the heat, it gets hot regardless of gaming or browsing. Whilst browsing the areas that get hot are the touchpad and underside plus front edge in front of the touchpad.

During gaming the palmrests also get hot.

Dell put too much effort into the looks, the rear vent gets blocked by the screen and the internal temps run high. I had to undervolt my cpu and apply AS5 to stop it downclocking.

Everything else about the machine rocks.
Also I do not suffer with a loose power adapter plug

 

[Izi]

did a lot of looking around, but i will admit Dell was the first place i looked at but definatally not the last.

you can name a manufacturer?

 

[Izi]

Well, i ordered the XPS 16 this morning.

standard except bluray + 256gb SSD. When i get it I will post some pics, but i can imagine it won't come quickly - items never do for me!

 

[ninja2000]

mine only took 5 days (which included a weekend!) I couldnt believe the speed. Hope you get lucky like I did but your SSD might slow your order down

 

[Izi]

I was told there is a 9 day lead time on the SSD's... oh well, good things comes to those who wait right?

 

[ninja2000]

Yeah, definately! I am still waiting for SSDs to become affordable in 256gb drives, long wait I guess

 

[Izi]

Yeah, but it was only £240, which isn't too bad considering the extra wack it will give me developing websites.

I will quickly earn that back by the time i save

 

[Lister]

i thought performace wise SSD were just the same as normal Hds?
But are a lot more expensive. The big advantage been of course, their weight and run a lot cooler.

 

[Izi]

i thought performace wise SSD were just the same as normal Hds?
But are a lot more expensive. The big advantage been of course, their weight and run a lot cooler.

no;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJMGAdpCLVg