Dell Precision M3800 Owner's Review

This has come up many times in this thread already. Yes, from a hardware standpoint the two machines are identical EXCEPT that the XPS has a GeForce GPU and the M3800 has a Quadro; there's been speculation that the GeForce might actually be clocked higher, but nothing definitive from actual machines yet. Other than that, MOST XPS builds include Win 8.1 Core whereas the M3800 always includes Win 8.1 Pro, MOST XPS's get Enhanced Premium Support whereas the M3800s always get ProSupport, and the M3800 at least in the US includes an AC adapter dongle to allow you to use AC adapters with Dell's standard-size tip with the system (which has a slimmer tip), as well as a USB to Ethernet adapter, whereas the XPS includes neither of those unless you add them as accessories to your order. The differences between the support options for an individual user seem pretty minimal (ProSupport seems to guarantee a North American support rep, though it's Enhanced Premium might also), but for a business there are advantages to having ProSupport coverage especially if the rest of your systems have it, like a single point of accountability throughout any troubleshooting/repair.

 

Whats up with the Canadian pricing? Dell wants 4000$ for the m3800: Dell Precision M3800

Can I expect this to come down? FWIW the XPS15 pricing is exactly the same in Canada and the US, so they are only screwing us on the m3800.

 

Thought this might be of interest to some:
Ubuntu on the Precision M3800 - Dell TechCenter - TechCenter - Dell Community

Well, we have the clock speed on two of the pre-release M3800; we just need someone to grab the clock speed off of an XPS with GPU-Z.

Mind, that can often be tweaked in software.

My premier page shows the option of ditching ProSupport, and the sales reps in the SMB channel should be able to downgrade support as well.

It's usually about a $100 option, and well worth it IMO, but not everyone will agree.

At least as showing on my premier, those are "accessories" as well; the page is oddly configured while they're free only lets you select one or the other; I'm going to have to get my rep to fix the order if I end up getting one.

 

The first generation quad-core i7s were execrable chips; they are the original Nehalem core and slower per core at the same base (non-turbo) clock speed as the 1st-generation dual-core i5/i7 because the latter are actually a tock release (Westmere) and have significantly better turbo (and thermals/power use generally.)

Waiting for the M3800 to come up as refurb might be another option for him; although it's not as big a difference as with the Latitudes, the refurb discounting is generally better on business-line systems.

I it is disabled on the 4570K/4770K ... not that the unlocked multiplier desktop chips are an issue in high-end laptops, although at the low end the Haswell based Pentium and Celeron chips also lack it ( ARK | Intel® Pentium® Processor G3220 (3M Cache, 3.00 GHz) )

It also requires BIOS support. If there's no option in the BIOS, one would hope it's enabled by default; I didn't see if the option was there one way or the other.

 

Not all Haswell cores have VT-d turned on, so best to check individual processor spec's.
For example, the i7-4702MQ does not implement VT-d, while the i7-4702HQ in the M3800 does

 

I´m very interested in the M3800, but I need Win7! So my question is: is it possible to use a second hdd (here SSD) in the mSata port from the 61W model (with the 500GB HDD)? If so can I boot Win7 from this SSD?

 

The M3800 comes with Win7 on it by default (with a USB key containing Win8.1 Pro that you can install if you want). I believe the mSata comes as the boot drive and the normal sized SSD (if you get the 61W model) is your second drive.

Isn't it odd that there aren't really any details reviews of the XPS 15 out there yet? The m3800 has only been out a week so there not being any m3800 reviews makes a little more sense. I want the m3800 but I'm a little concerned about the talk of there still potentially being wireless issues on the new XPS 15 (and therefore also on the m3800) like there apparently were on the previous XPS 15. I've seen some people here say that they've heard that the latest Intel drivers are fixing the issue but it would be nice to see something slightly more definitive.

 

Here in Germany there are only 2 Versions with Win 8 buyable an the cheaper version with a 2,5" HDD (500GB+8GB). So the msata must be the second drive!

 

I don't see why not. Dell will not ship a dual-boot configuration, but you should be able to create it yourself. You can have two versions of Windows installed on two separate drives, or even on a single drive: just reduce the size of the main partition (you can do it in Windows) and create the second partition. If Windows 7 doesn't come pre-installed in your country, call your Dell representative and inquire about the Windows 7 downgrade.

 

Isn't it possible that the different configurations are set up differently?

Even if the mSATA drive isn't the boot drive, you should be able to wipe everything and set it up yourself.