Precision 7530 & Precision 7730 owner's thread

I also have the same 4K IGZO screen (also LQ156D1). I didn't notice mine is really grainy. However, the colors are not at all homogeneous, especially the light colors. It has a lot of shadows on solid light backgrounds that are visible even when directly in front of the screen at a distance of about 50cm.

I think this screen model suffers from huge and random quality problems. I had already asked for a replacement of the screen, the new is not much better. My old Dell Latitude 7480 had a better screen than this one, while the 4K option of the 7530 is supposed to be high end. Simply disappointing.

If a good screen is needed for your use, ask for a refund. That's what I should have done, it's too late now for me.

 

Yes, the good screen is important for me as I do a lot of photo editing besides my development work on my machine.
I am fortunately still in my 30 days and will surely return it for refund. Just had a word with Dell and they said they are sending a replacement on Monday. It is going back if that has the same issues too.


Any suggestions on other options btw? I got 7530 because of the upgradability it offers as I like to keep my system for at least 5 years. The Thinkpad 52 has a glossy screen and suffers from heating issues. Precision 5530 is essentially an XPS 15 with Quadro Graphic cards and Xeon processors.

 

There's the HP ZBook 15 G5. Much more expensive, though, but also much more beautiful.

Or you could take a look at the (*holds breath*) MacBook Pro 15“.

Otherwise you might consider closing the laptop screen and getting a 4K HDR colour-accurate UltraSharp P-series monitor from Dell, for your photography. 90% of notebook screens don't cut it for the sort of pro work that photographers need.

 

ZBook is expensive for a windows laptop and MacBook offers zero upgradability (one of my friend is actually trying to get away with MacBook 2018 because of keyboard issues). I am planning to get a monitor but I also do a lot of work on the go.

I guess I'll wait for Dell to change the screen and see if that helps. It is going back if it is not for sure. Why the hell dell can't use same screen/matty coating as the XPS for their 15inch 4K laptops is beyond my understanding. .

Thank you for the inputs. Appreciate it!

 

It's a stretch I know... Since you observed 6W obviously it is possible for the machine to run at this level.

A bit of a pain but you do have the option of purchasing an aftermarket screen of your own choosing and installing it on your own. Just about any 15.6" eDP screen should work, including glossy ones which may be better for photo work (if you don't have too many bright lights in your environment for glare). I can't recommend a specific model, you'd have to look for reviews or something. The screen is actually really easy to remove and replace, I've done it a few times on the 7510. (You will be able to watch the technician do it on Monday, you just remove the bezel and a few screws and you're done.) Totally understandable if you don't want to go that way, it's a bit of work, research, and expense that arguably shouldn't be necessary after all...

 

hmm, I see. Wasn't aware that aftermarket 4k screens are compatible with 7530. Thanks for the suggestion. I'll see once Dell installs the new screen and how it goes.

 

In order to change the screen on my own, to which specifications should I pay attention to? Is the type of connector enough (eDP, 40 pins for 7530)?

 

Many new screens, especially the high-refresh-rate ones that are meant to go in 'narrow bezel' laptops don't have screw holes for you to install them in. Cases in point are the LG LP156WFG-SPB2, the AUO B156HAN08.2, and the BOE NV156FHM-N4K probably won't fit, or might need some modification.

Make sure you select a screen made a little earlier, before the bezel fad set in, like the B156HAN07.0, for instance.

 

Glossy displays *will* appear more sharp than matte displays - this can be jarring if you're moving from glossy to matte. I had this issue when I move from 1080p glossy to 1080p matte.

The 4k matte display however is better than 1080p matte.

I have some light bleed (or shadows?) issue on my 7730. Fortunately, I mostly work in very low brightness mode (in linux 2-5% of the maximum). In low brighness, the light bleed goes away, blacks are black, I don't see any grainyness (apart from videos). Sharpness is fantastic, the desktop background appears painted on.

One other thing you should try is boot off a linux mint MATE edition USB stick and see if the grainyness issue is still there. Just to confirm that this is not an OS issue. Very easy to make a linux mint MATE edition USB stick. Instructions: https://linuxmint-installation-guide.readthedocs.io/en/latest/burn.html

 

Thanks, yeah already running elementaryOS in a VM. Will boot up using a usb to see if that makes a difference.