Precision 7530 & Precision 7730 owner's thread

Also getting stuttering with C-states on with new bios. This also didn't solve my power problem (which I believe is a little bit unique).

When using the dock, most times at boot it is setting my "Turbo Boost Power Max" to 5w (should be 60w I believe). This causes the system to do "Power Limit Throttling" and turning this beast of a machine into a 0.8ghz paperweight. When using AC power directly, there are no issues and it boots properly at 60w.

New dock still hasn't shipped, but hopeful that it resolves my problems!

 

Can I perform the dock update while using it or do I loose external video etc during update?

 

The update forces a reboot after which the firmware update starts

 

Does anyone know if is it possible to buy a bigger battery for 7530? I'm currently getting around 2 hours and thinking about upgrading the battery I'm okay without HDD. I wanted to order initially with big battery but in that case the whole configuration was too expensive. Thanks!

 

Prospective 7730 buyer needing some answers that not even Dell can provide before I buy.
Currently I have an ageing M6700 with the e-port replicator while in the office and a couple of battery slices that I use a lot when not near an AC source during the day.
Q1: Do any of you use an external battery like the Dell Power Companion 6 Cell 18000 mAh (WCKF2)?
Dell has not been able to tell me if this is compatible with the 7730
Q2: Have the TB dock issues been resolved yet? It seems I'm still seeing some posts on this
Q3: My M6700 battery slice acts also to prop up the computer to make it easier to type - how is the 7730 for typing since it can't be propped up in this way?

I'm considering getting the 7720 which Dell now offers that will save about $1K over the 7730 + TB dock + external batteries that I'd need to by since the 7720 can use my existing dock and battery slices from my M6700. Thoughts on is this worth it to jump into the USB-C thunderbolt dock world of precision mobile workstations?

BTW - I usually just run office apps and email, but a few times a week I have to crank up SolidWorks CAD or do some graphics intensive post-processing of fluid simulations as well as graphics stuff with Photoshop, so I can definitely use the extra GPU and CPU horsepower over my now way behind the times M6700.

Thanks - John

 

Thunderbolt dock issues are not resolved but we have a workaround (disable C states in BIOS --- does increase power utilization) — hopefully this is temporary.
The M6700 battery slice cannot be used with the 7720 even though that machine does have an ePort connector on the bottom. The ePort dock will work but the battery slice will not.

Also, I doubt that the power companion will work. Or rather, I suspect that it will work but because it cannot output enough power at one time (180W+), the system will throttle heavily like it does when a low-powered AC adapter is connected. I see that some earlier Precision 3000 and 5000 series machines are on the compatibility list but there are no 7000 series machines listed, and also, the few Alienware machines that are listed are small ones.

 

Just got my 7730. Right away, I noticed that one of the cooling fans has a clicking sound :-( Upon rotating the laptop, the sound changes, and is definitely the fan physically striking the enclosure in which it is contained.

I purchased the laptop with Pro Support, so I could have them come fix it, I suppose, but I was not impressed with my last visit from pro support - the technician was very new (I may have been his first visit), and stumbled quite a bit taking things apart and putting them back together. Even now, I'm not sure all the screws are in the right place with my 7520.

My question is, should I simply return the laptop and order another one? Or have support come and fix it? Having to fix a brand new laptop does not seem kosher to me.

 

I found it https://www.dell.com/en-us/work/sho...thium-ion-battery/apd/451-bcgi/pc-accessories

 

Yes it is. In fact you can use the rewards cash from laptop purchase to offset larger battery price $142.63 (saved me $45) and then resell the smaller one on ebay ( what I plan to do).

 

Bleh. If it were me, I would contact Dell on this but tell them that you are only interested in a full system replacement. If they won't do that for you then return the machine and re-order it. :-\
The reason is, I'm pretty sure you can't take the fans out anymore without removing the entire heatsink assembly (unless this has changed from the 7720). That means the technician is going to have to apply new thermal paste for the CPU and GPU, and if this is done haphazardly (not by someone experienced), then you'll probably end up with a system that runs hotter than it did before service.