Vostro 1500/1700: Are the exhaust fans reliable/durable ?

Wow, maybe I should really install vista and update those drivers. My GPU are always idling at 61. BTW are you using the latest BIOS from DELL? I'm inexperienced in flashing my BIOS so I'm still using A00 since I got my laptop last July.

 

Flashing the BIOS nowadays is child's play.

To be on the safe side disable UAC, Anti Virus, and any other programs running in the background you installed, i.e. Spyware programs etc. Windows Defender is ok.

Double click on the BIOS update. Follow the prompts, and it will do it's update, then reboot the system. And that's pretty much it. You really need to update the BIOS because it specifically addresses GPU overheating issues.

If your planning on reinstalling Vista use the drivers from Windows Update. Then tell us what your temps are. They should be much lower.

 

I thought it was recommended to flash your BIOS outside of windows and through DOS? And are you using the latest BIOS A09?

 

That was the old school of thought. Now computer makers are putting out a Windows version. Within the last 6 months i've updated my T60, Vostro 1500 and 1700 all from Windows and not one problem. All you do now is double clik the BIOS icon and follow the prompts.

Vostro 1500 is currently at A06 and the 1700 is at A07.

1700 BIOS A07 Link http://support.dell.com/support/dow...-1&impid=-1&formatcnt=1&libid=1&fileid=252219

 

Alright. Thanks! I'll reinstall Vista and see how everything goes with the temps.

 

So I used HWmonitor, Rivatuner, GPU-Z, and Everest to monitor my GPU temps and all of these programs gave me different readings. HWmonitor and GPU-Z reported my GPU to be at 47 on idle whereas, Rivatuner and Everest reported 57 degrees roughly 10 degrees higher. Which program am I suppose to believe?