M4800 Owner's Thread

Processor core limit on installing BIOS A09.

Hi all. I have a fairly new M4800 (i7-4910MQ, 16GB, QHD+) which I am very pleased with as a replacement for my previous Lenovo W520. It's a pity that the number pad shifts everything over to the left - but there's no proper workstation without a number pad any more so there we go.

That aside, I noticed today that Task Manager was only reporting 2 cores on the machine, and it seems that the BIOS update via the Dell System Client Update had set the Processor Core limit in the BIOS to 2. I have reset that to 'All' and it's all fine again. It had also turned HyperThreading off. My apologies if this has already been mentioned elsewhere - I am still working my way through the thread and couldn't find it on a brief search.

Best, Dave

 

one word of advice that it doe-sent like certain types of RAM i.e extreme versions if you are to use 32GB like myself buy crucial (apple compatible) I use Micron based all matched it didnt like 1886 if someone can suggest stable higher clocked RAM please do

it came with Samsung memory originally clocking at 1600 and CL being "11" (wrote 9 before my bad)

 

Thinkpad no longer thinks as it used to

 

I figured out a way to make the keyboard backlighting stay on longer or never shut off. Just install the Dell Feature Enhancement Pack v2.2.1 A00 and afterward you will find in your control panel a couple of new entries called "Dell Keyboard Backlight Settings" and Dell Keyboard Hotkey Settings". When you click on either of these, they simply open the "Keyboard" Control Panel and you will note that the Keyboard Control Panel has two additional tabs named accordingly. Please note that you must have Microsoft .Net 4.0 or later installed. Special note: Even though DFEP v2.2.1 does not specifically state that it works with Windows 8.1 (it just mentions compatibility with Windows 8) it works just fine on my 8.1 Pro x64 M4800. Here is a download link to DFEP v2.2.1 A00: Driver Details | Dell US You are given the ability to select keyboard backlight timeouts of Never, 5s, 15s, 30s, 1M and 5 minutes. Additionally it allows you to limit the keyboard backlight from lighting up unless an actual key is pressed rather than if the built in trackpad is touched.

 

Hi all...sold my MBP and got myself a Dell M4800 QHD...first entry intoWIndows...fine laptop but a pity on the lack of Optimus.
Windows 8 still has some way to go....but the hardware is great (and hoping more reliable than the MBP).

 

Strangely this happened again today without any BIOS update - although I have changed the hard drive for a lovely new 850 Pro so I wonder whether that is related. Has anyone else experienced this please? Any clues?

 

never happened to me so maybe you should reset BIOS to defaults before updating it? this is practice I took from thinkpad updates. they were harder and harder to update without issues as time went on, most including myself used ISO bootable cd's to do it, and just before doing it you want to reset all to factory defaults. just thinking.

 

Could it be possible that your coin cell battery isn't op to it's task anymore? Therefore "forgetting" any settings you might have made in the BIOS.

 

Yep that's certainly worth checking - I'll have an investigate. It would however be a little disappointing on a machine which is only 2 weeks old! Thanks

 

If you're lucky, it's just loose!