Couple questions on XPS 1330 and 1530

ajf

ajf

ajf

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Looking at a new laptop and not sure about couple things:
Probably going to get either an XPS 1530 or 1330. Not sure whether the smaller 1330 wold be better for portability. How big is the 1530 compared to other 15" laptops? I cannot find a size for it.
I have a Sony N Series at the moment and it is quite bulky really.
Is it worth paying for the CCFL or LED option on the screen?
Does the 7200rpm hard drive boost performance much over the standard 5400rpm ones?

Andrew
 
Don't bother with the LED display. I've got it on my 1330 and, while it's slightly lighter and thinner, it's not dramatically better to look at. Blacks look nicer and it's backlit more evenly, but it's not as stunningly bright as I expected. I had one with the CCFL backlight and it was already impressively bright (far brighter than my 630m).

Mine has the LED display and the 4-cell battery so it's quite nice a lightweight. The 1330 I had before it (for about a week) was CCFL and had a 6-cell battery; the current one is quite a bit lighter.
 
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Thanks for the replies. Might come down to how cheaply I can get the screen option then.
'TheVoice' - how long does the 4 cell last on your 1330?

Again, any thoughts on the higher speed drives?

Andrew
 
A faster RPM drive will make some difference but with the side effect that it'll produce more heat and battery drain. Given that the hard disk is situated to the left of the trackpad, and the alu keyboard surround gets hot to the touch after an hours use, I just hate to think how hot it would get with a 7200rpm jobby.

LED screens are meant to be kinder on the battery too. With my 9cell battery and a 1280x LCD screen I can get a max 5hrs out of my battery, using tweaked power saving setups.
 
ajf said:
Thanks for the replies. Might come down to how cheaply I can get the screen option then.
'TheVoice' - how long does the 4 cell last on your 1330?

Again, any thoughts on the higher speed drives?

Andrew
Click to expand...

Not sure actually, I'm reckoning 3-4 hours though for general (i.e. not demanding) usage, certainly if you change the Vista power scheme to Power Saver. Only had it a week (as of tomorrow) and it's been on mains power virtually all the time.

As for the HDDs, the 7,200RPM drives will improve performance a fair bit, but as mentioned, with the downside of more heat, power drain and noise.

Incidentally, anyone with a 1530 or 1330: Toshiba or Samsung HDD? My first 1330 had a Samsung and, although it sounded faulty (odd clicking sound), it was generally far quicker (as shown by HD Tune) and quieter in operation than the Toshiba my current one has. Going to phone Dell this week and try and get a new HDD sent to me.
 
My 1330 came with a Toshiba drive and it was more or less silent.
However I've now replaced that with a 320GB 5400rpm Scorpio - which is just as quiet, "feels" a little nippier and loads of space.
 
My M1330 has a 7200 160gb fujitsu drive. The laptop gets warm above where the hard drive is (to the left of the touch pad), but never hot even after a defrag. And it's virtually slient too.

Speed is great, certainly seems faster than my work laptop even with vista on it. The dual core helps too
 
Thanks everyone for the feedback. Hoping to order a 1330 shortly. Decided I would rather have the better portability.
Some nice ones on Dell Outlet so think I will go that route too and save a bit!
Most have 5400rpm disks but guess asabove I can swap out for faster drive if I feel the need?

Andrew
 
Kainz said:
LED screens are meant to be kinder on the battery too. With my 9cell battery and a 1280x LCD screen I can get a max 5hrs out of my battery, using tweaked power saving setups.
Click to expand...

What do you do on your laptop? I have got over 8 hours out of mine when using just Word and around 7 with a little browsing and other things.

I have a 7200RM drive and haven't had a problem with the heat from it with extended use. It gets a bit warm yes, but it's my first laptop so I don't know if it's excessive, but it doesn't cause a problem.
 
ajf said:
Thanks everyone for the feedback. Hoping to order a 1330 shortly. Decided I would rather have the better portability.
Some nice ones on Dell Outlet so think I will go that route too and save a bit!
Most have 5400rpm disks but guess asabove I can swap out for faster drive if I feel the need?

Andrew
Click to expand...


Dell outlet?

I am in the process of finding a new laptop, looking to spend around £1700 or so, figured I'd go with Dell.
 
Yeah, check dells website, you will see a link to the outlet. They are a lot cheaper from there. You have to know what you want and buy it there and then as they go like hotcakes.
 
FYI - doesnt look like the 1330's are available via the outlet (they arent even on the drop down box........of course this could change with different stock)
 
Amp34 said:
What do you do on your laptop? I have got over 8 hours out of mine when using just Word and around 7 with a little browsing and other things.

I have a 7200RM drive and haven't had a problem with the heat from it with extended use. It gets a bit warm yes, but it's my first laptop so I don't know if it's excessive, but it doesn't cause a problem.
Click to expand...
Very little. Its mostly used for web browsing, irc chat and watching movies when I cba to get out of bed :) 7hrs is scary - is that on a 9cell?
 
Just ordered a M1330 from OCUK with 4GB ram, hoping it will be here by Wednesday - already for my holiday to Aus ten days away :)

Mostly going to use it to store camcorder footage to start with, maybe try a little editing also, and mp3 storage also
 
You can get m1330 and 1530 from the outlet, they are just not listed. Just search under the inspiron section but be aware they go very fast
 
ninja2000 said:
You can get m1330 and 1530 from the outlet, they are just not listed. Just search under the inspiron section but be aware they go very fast
Click to expand...

Fair enough, every time I have checked the Outlet over the last few weeks there has never been an M1330 on the list (all15" or 17" TFT versions)
 
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