Dell XPS 1640 w/4670...is it worth the upgrade?

Hello,

I currently have an ASUS G50V-A2 and am looking to sell it to get a new Dell XPS 1640 with the new graphics chipset. I have only had the ASUS since last October, but I am always wanting a new laptop every 6 - 12 months and this Dell has caught my eye.

Looking at the specs they are similiar, but the Dell does have a few upgrades to what I have:

2.66GHz processor (Asus - 2.53)
Vista Upgrade to Windows 7 (Asus - no upgrade)
1920x1080 (Asus - 1680x1050)
ATI 4760 (Asus - Geforce 9700GT)

But the Asus does have 2 x 200GB 7200RPM hard drives which I stripe for speed and the Dell only has a single hard drive option.

The questions/concerns I have are:

1. Is the ATI 4760 video card that great for gaming? I know on paper it is, but how are the mobile ATI chipsets compared to NVidia?
2. I have read complaints about heat issues. Is this widespread on this model or are these just a few lemons?
3. How is the build quality? I had two xps 1530 in the span of two weeks which I returned because of poor build quality (tight USB ports, bulged out keyboard, bulged out camera, aluminum was shocking me) and cancelled the order. I expect with the XPS line that they will be as close to perfect as humanly possible.

My current ASUS play all the newest games that I want (Crysis, Modern Warfare, Fallout 3) with no issues and does get hot, but not unusable as the laptop almost never leaves my kitchen table. And the ASUS build quality is spot on too,

I would like to give Dell another shot and the pricing on the upgraded models seem nice, but I don't want to sell my current ASUS just to get burnt again by Dell.

Thanks,

Carsen

 

don't waste money on another laptop when your current one is still running and still has decent specs, unless you are a millionaire and can afford it

or if you hunt for a laptop @ Dell outlet which has the specs you like...

new laptops lose their value fast...

 

I don't have money to burn and it usually only costs me between $200 and $400 to get my new laptop after selling my old one...so I am willing to accept the hit.

What I really want to know is if the new Dell XPS line is as good as the specs make it sound. I would be giving up a good laptop and I expect to be getting a better laptop.

Thanks again,

Carsen

 

Carsen,

The only way it's worth it is it you get the Dell SSD 256gb HDD, IMHO. The other specs just aren't enough of an upgrade.

The XPS 16 has one or two known hotspots....mine, just delivered yesterday, got extremely hot under the touchpad with minor use. I'm not even talking about gaming or movie watching. And I'm talking hot enough that you feel like your skin is getting burned when you leave it on the spot for more than 10 seconds. Not just "oh, that's pretty warm."

As far as the GPU chipsets, check out notebook review's very recent articles on Nvidia vs. ATI chipsets and see where each falls.

 

which power setting are you using? i found that happened to me also, but when i switched to balanced or power saver, it was not as hot.

 

I'll try to switch my power settings around....this was happening plugged in, so I didn't check my power settings much. If I can reduce the temps by 10 degrees fahrenheit with just tweaking power settings, I'll be very happy.

 

1. Is the ATI 4760 video card that great for gaming? I know on paper it is, but how are the mobile ATI chipsets compared to NVidia?

4670 is I'd say between 9700m GT and 9800m GT. I can play Crysis: Warhead on 1280x720 with everything on Enthusiast and 8x AA (click my sig for video proof) with no lag. Do yes, it is an awesome card.

2. I have read complaints about heat issues. Is this widespread on this model or are these just a few lemons?

Obviously if you play games on your lap in a thin laptop it will heat up. Anything less is plain ignorant. Just get a cooler or put a book under your laptop.

3. How is the build quality? I had two xps 1530 in the span of two weeks which I returned because of poor build quality (tight USB ports, bulged out keyboard, bulged out camera, aluminum was shocking me) and cancelled the order. I expect with the XPS line that they will be as close to perfect as humanly possible.

Build quality is awesome. Resembles a Macbook Pro in some ways, with the screen and position of the speakers, etc. Good position of USB ports, lots of space. Optical drive is good. I dunno what to say. Nothing sticks out, stuff are round, feels good over all. I love it.

 

Well, the USB ports are kinda tight.. but the build quality is excellent. It does get hot under the touchpad. But just put a cooler and you're fine.

 

why don't you invest the $400 you spend every year on a half decent mATB build? since you only play games in the kitchen (not really needing the mobile aspect), and mobile GPUs are much less powerful than their desktop counterparts

i have a list of parts, you can probably get a 9800GT with a microATX(small) build under $500... $200 for a decent 24" screen, and you have a rig that can play anything at 1680x1050

your current 9700 can probably last at least a few more years playing new games at 800x600