Dell Precision M3800 Owner's Review

That's some interesting word-smithing you're doing there. What gives you the idea that "coil whine" is a warranty issue, but "noise" is not? For what it's worth, I'm not sure either one is truly a big issue, but then maybe I'm just lucky, since I don't notice a problem with mine. [Shrug...]

 

How is everything going with yours? Everything still fairly smooth on Windows 7?

 

Dear jphughan,

Of course I'm aware of this possibilities (USB dongles, Wifi-Hotspot, etc.)

But as a matter of fact I got used to the comfort of having a 3G module inside the notebook, as I had it for the last 5 years now. And as SIMs are available I would have had preferred an integrated solution again.

Anyhow I did some research: In fact there are a couple of NFGG cards with both WLAN and 3G (and sometimes with GPS) available. But only full-size if with a SIM holder. Half-size are available only with 3G without WLAN.

From my point of view there are a couple of options:
- I will wait for a half-size card with both Wifi and 3G (I don't need BT anyway)
- I will try to extend an existing half-size card (Wifi+3G) with a SIM holder (beneath the card is plenty of place)
- I will replace the now used card (Wifi+BT) with a 3G card (incl. SIM holder) and use a Wifi-USB dongle (maybe stripped and built into the case)
- And of course the options you mentioned (smartphone, 3G-USB-donge, etc.)

As soon as I found a solution I will post it as I believe there are others with the same "desires" out there

Thanks,
Harald.

 

For those of you that did a fresh install of W7 and aren't having all of the crashing and freezing issues I'm having, what drivers are you using? Dell tech support told me to install these:

Chipset:

http://downloads.dell.com/FOLDER01733881M/3/Chipset_Intel_W74_X02_A00_Setup-TW6XT_ZPE.exe

Intel HD video:

http://downloads.dell.com/FOLDER01873601M/2/Video_Intel_A02_Win74_XMN11-SETUP_ZPE.exe

Nvidia K1100M video:

http://downloads.dell.com/FOLDER01916604M/2/Video_Nvidia_W74_A02_Setup-J57P4_ZPE.exe

But my M3800 is still freezing and crashing consistently. Yesterday I was watching a video in KM Player and the computer just froze, so I had to crash it. Often times when I close the lid, the computer doesn't go to sleep properly (the LED lights stay on), but is unresponsive, so I have to crash it. Really getting old..

I really don't want to "upgrade" to W8.1, but if this crashing and freezing can't be fixed, I don't think I'll have a choice..

 

Or just hit Fn+Esc :hi2:

 

Hi,

Just got my m3800 base model with win7. Does anyone know where I can download the latest chipset drivers? Nathand posted a link above but that was recommended by DELL and I read earlier in the thread that we should get the latest ones from the manufacturers themselves?

Thanks

 

For a chipset driver I wouldn't really bother. Intel makes it pretty hard to find the right ones anyway and that driver isn't frequently updated like GPUs or WiFi drivers. Dell's should be fine. :thumbsup:

If you're really determined to find it on Intel's page, I think it's called the Chipset INF Update utility or something.

 

Thanks, just ended up going to DELL's site and had them scan my system for updates. They had two chipset updates so I just installed those.

Anyone have an opinion on DELL protected workspace? I am downloaded avast. Not sure which is better.

 

Fwiw, I never use the scanner or the service tag filtering method. The service tag option can fail to show updates that may apply to your system (and show stuff you don't need), and the same goes for the scanner, which may not pick up things like touchscreen firmware revisions for which there might be updates. Plus frankly I hate the idea of installing applications or browser add-ons just to detect stuff when I can achieve an equal or better result by just selecting what I want to see manually.

Never heard of Dell Protected Workspace. I use Microsoft Security Essentials on Win7 (renamed Windows Defender in Win8 and built in) because it's lightweight, doesn't throw popups in your face, doesn't try to do everything and thus inject itself everywhere in your system, and of course it's perpetually free. It's not the most comprehensive protection out there, but for people who are smart and careful about what they do on their systems, I think it's plenty. If I were setting up a system for grandma, I might use something more robust like Kaspersky or Norton, the latter of which I liked in the early 2000s and hated in the late 2000s when it got bloated, but which I've read has since gotten a complete overhaul and remained a solid product -- at least the Anti-Virus package, perhaps not the Internet Security suite.

 

The versions originally available in December 2013