---> OFFICIAL: Dell STUDIO 14z Owner's Lounge <---

To those still waiting fo a Studio 14z: Keep waiting, you will be rewarded.
I ordered mine on June 1 as soon as I read the press release dated May 28th. After numerous delays and 2 cancellation I finally got delivery on 7/24 that is 54 day of wainting. Can anyone beat that?
Now it is here and I am very happy. Still not as happy as I would like to be since with all that delay they still mess up my order. I ordered the balck chain-link. I received the black but not the chain kink. Would like to talk to dell about it but I use my wife's dell acct to buy so they wont talk to me without her. Got to find a way to get the midnight blue and the chain-link.

 

FYI - to those who have discussed undervolting, the thread being discussed is here: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=235824

Regards

 

I guess I'm that guy. At least I'm exceptional

As update, customer service continues to amaze me. I still haven't received a confirmation on my corrected order. The order showed up on my account last night and the was canceled this morning. I haven't had time to wait on hold, I mean call customer service...

On the bright side, at least I have a stock 14z until I get the unit I ordered/paid for.

 

I didn't see any option for plain black either when I ordered mine or just now when I checked again. Is it a matte black or glossy black?

Has anyone else noticed that the external eSATA DVD drive keeps disappearing and re-appearing from the customization options? Sometimes it's replaced by the USB drive, and other times there's no DVD drive offered at all. I ended up having to call and the sales rep had to really search for it since it wasn't showing up initially for her either. She ended up finding it, added it to my order and it was shipped to me today (my 14z isn't scheduled to be delivered until the 12th however).

Still on the subject of the eSATA drive, has anyone else ordered one and had some time with it? If so, what are your impressions in terms of the eSATA connectivity and the overall design?

 

For some reason, when I would build it under the HOME section it would only have the eSATA external drive. Through the EPP section it only would have the USB external drive. You can ultimately build your 14z in the EPP section, and then try to find and add the eSATA drive by searching the main Dell website. The discount should still be applied at checkout.

On that same note: the USB drive was $99 under EPP but while under the HOME section, the eSATA drive showed for $120.

I ordered mine without either. I checked and the last time I actually used a cd/dvd drive was almost a year ago. I know, WOW. Surprising. And here I thought it was a necessity that was regularly used. So instead, I added to $99 I would have spent on the drive to my 5GB upgrade that was only $175 after that difference.

BTW, you can find an external dvd/cd drive for around $60 on NewEgg or TigerDirect.

 

well I didnt get the eSATA so I cant tell you about the connectivity, but it looks pretty cool. I got the black and its going to match it nicely. Its pretty slick.

 

ok get this I ordered 2 of the EXACT same configurations of the 14z and one of them shipped, but the other is still in production. How does that happen? I'm currently on hold trying to get this crap figured out. I'm really excited for one of them, but it's gonna go to my twin bro because he's going to school before I am :/

EDIT: apparently the other one is in the "final stages of production." I'll take that with a grain of salt.

by the way, I got this optical drive in the mail a few days ago from newegg, and it looks pretty solid. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...&cm_mmc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel-_-Content-_-text-_-

 

UPDATE: Just called to check the order status and it says it's in production and in the BOXING STAGE. Where according to the recording, it's where the system has already been built and finished and it is just about putting it inside a box along with manuals etc and getting it ready to be picked up to ship.

I'm hoping that at this stage I'm SOMEWHAT clear of the delays people have been getting while still in the BUILD STAGE.

Delivery date is still estimated for August 5th.

 

You know, I was driving home earlier thinking to myself...we're mostly all here for one purpose (the forum I mean, life...we all have our opinions on that one haha), actually 3: 1) trying to get as much info as possible before placing an order. 2) placed the order and just talking about possibilities once it arrives or 3) received the order and having problems with something.

So my question is, I believe the majority of us are on #2: What happens after we receive our order? We will probably go on about our lives remembering the times where you would message with strangers from around the globe about this one piece of technology. Or on the other hand, we will find ourselves once again trying to get questions answered regarding headaches the system gives us.

But in all sincerity, if that's the case, I hope after we receive our notebooks, we never have to talk to each other again

No seriously. Maybe about other things or how well our system is doing, but i'm hoping not about Dell problems haha

 

I installed Ubuntu 8.10 on my 14z. I currently have it set up dual-boot, with Vista on an 80gb partition and Ubuntu on the rest (minus the restore partition). I decided to keep Vista on the system in case I had any hardware issues. I didn't want Dell telling me that I'm running an unsupported configuration. I originally tried Ubuntu 9.04 but that locked up on me, so I went with 8.10. So far, the only problem I've encountered is trying to find a video driver for the nVidia GPU.

And yes, I believe there is a 16gb recovery partition.

 

Long time lurker first time poster here, ive read this whole thread and figured it was time to post something =). ordered my 14z on the 24th, dell messed up the billing. finally i did a re-order, re-billed after a 2 hour dell phone support runaround, got the new order # on the 27th, i got an email today saying it was in the boxing stage! est. ship date is the 11th? but if its going to ship in the next two days i cant see how that is going to be that long. how long does the boxing stage ussually take? ill update my sig with system specs soon =)

 

If anyone wants the slimmest external DVD drive on the market, I thought I'd post this: Pioneer is releasing one in August for about $80 USD. It's not SATA though.

http://hothardware.com/News/Pioneer-Debuts-UltraSlim-DVRXD09-DVD-Writer-For-Netbooks/

 

Just wanted to point out that the speed (or more precisely, frequency) of the processor is not the deciding factor. Yes, it was important 10 years ago when people had a Pentium II 233 MHz vs 300 MHz. Now the trend is to add more cores to the CPU, that's why Intel is no longer stressing the actual clock speed (GHz). Even more, with the next generation of processors coming this fall and next year, the clock speed in many cases will be reduced (!), but because of more cores (4 or even 8), the processors will perform better. So, you might have a 2.0GHz Core i7 CPU which will easily outperform the older (current) 2.4GHz ones. What I'm trying to say is don't look at the GigaHertzs

From what I've read and heard so far, only 700p screens are from LG. I guess 900p should be fine.

 

Lexus, the TESTING STAGE is before the boxing stage right? at least i would hope so haha

 

I believe the Mobile i7-based processors that will be introduced in systems in the next few months will actually be in the 1.6 - 1.8GHz range actually, yet they are supposed to offer better performance overall.

 

Hehe, very true. Usually, after the laptop is released, these threads keep going for a year or two with some activity every week. So yeah, the owners meet here Normally, all the issues are ironed out by that time or known as unfixable/hardly fixable defects (like, say 8400M overheating in m1330). But I hope we will not discuss defects here. Here's to the 14z to be the best one in the Studio line so far! For some reason I'm very optimistic

 

So, anyone tried the webcam, say chatting in Skype? How's the video quality?

 

Yes, I believe so.

 

The Studio 15 would like a word with you.

 

I knew you'd say that!

 

Uh oh...

 

That's the best reasoning I've heard for this forum so far.

 

for the record one of my orders went straight from in production (called and that's what they told me) to shipped a few hours later. no boxing/testing/whatnot. Also, according to fedex, it was picked up in Reno.

 

It just got real!

 

Oh, its goin down

 

The webcam is really nice. I only video chatted once or twice with it and my friend said it was clear and fluid. The microphones are very good quality as well.

I read this question earlier but I'm too lazy to find and multi-quote it..
Yes, Windows 7 supports chiral scrolling.

 

I think the 14z is one of those products that can build a certain amount of user community/loyalty. I've had mine a couple of weeks, no problems with it, and I'm still hanging around.

 

It SHIPPED! Must have just shipped because I checked its status about an hour ago and it had not yet. Still waiting for a tracking number but now I can expect it to arrive either tomorrow or Saturday!...Hopefully tomorrow.

 

yeah, you definitely got a lemon .

 

While we were discussing working habits for Malaysia earlier today, I found this thread: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=403436

And being that I got the BLACK CHAINLINK...if they make this for the 14z I might buy it: http://www.zagg.com/invisibleshield/dell-studio-15-cases-covers-skins-shields.php

Here's the demo video of it: http://www.zagg.com/support/demovideo.php

Not sure on the colored 14z's, but it might give it a semi-gloss. Just wondering if fingerprints stay on it or not. But hey! at least it won't get scratched

 

Update: Today, on the day my system was originally supposed to ship, the status has changed to shipped, and it gives an estimated delivery date of august 1st (3 days earlier than it was supposed to come) .

Seems like good news for anyone worried about delays.

 

Today has been one h*ll of a roller coaster in terms of delivery dates for me. This morning it gave me the 14th as the due date. After I called them this fell back to the 11th, which is what the website still puts on as estimated delivery. But I just checked the website, and it claims to have shipped. According to FedEx, it's due to come in on the 1st!

That being said, how good are FedEx about delivering on time? Do they usually get it in on time?

 

I ordered at the same time and mine is due at the same time. It's odd how this is working out.

 

Nevermind, not worth the hassle I rather design a custom skin for the lid and have it produce by SkinIt.com (once they accept the 14z IF they ever do )

 

I've had several different types and sizes of shipments sent to me via FedEx, and can't recall the last time items were not delivered on the said date. Though I think they once arrived 8 minutes after the proposed "BEFORE 3:00PM".

 

It says that it's military grade. What does that mean in the context of plastic shells?

 

Probably that bullets will ricochet...

 

Well at least when we go into the battlefield we will be content that if they start shooting at you and you're carrying your notebook...well let's just say, the notebook may last more than you and at the very least, you won't have to send in the notebook to Dell for repairs

 

I ordered mine on the 8th and it's still saying it should be here by August 10th..

 

My question is...how many hours does it take to box up a notebook with a few papers and cds and tape it up?

 

I dunno - oddly enough mine just leapfrogged that stage. Maybe the first CS who told me it was already flying in from Malaysia wasn't lying.

 

I believe these 14z notebooks are new models aren't they? Weren't they just introduced at the end of May? Not sure but I think that most people (whether ordered early or late July) are receiving them within the last week of July and the first 2 weeks of August. There's some sort of pattern here...

 

Mine did the same (skipped) but with the TESTING STAGE... OH MY...that doesn't make me feel to comfortable

 

if yours wasn't tested and mine wasn't boxed - i think we're both in trouble.

 

...

 

Mine also went straight from in production to shipped and now that I think about it, that doesn't sound too good...haha.

 

i wouldn't feel comfortable noting a pattern because a pattern would mean that both of my identical orders would ship out the same time. One shipped today and the other still has an estimated date of 8/10. Absolutely no idea why one would arrive 10 days after the other.

 

I have an occasional flicker (not very often, but still noticeable), and I think I got a Samsung screen (when I check in Device Manager->Monitors->Generic PnP Monitor->Details->Hardware Id, it mentions "SEC", which I think is Samsung)

 

i typed up a little rant yesterday when i got my second delay notification on my 14z. it definitely pissed me off. i ALMOST cancelled the order. the 2nd delay required me to authorize Dell to continue with my order or otherwise be cancelled automatically. so i called in and the rep told me that my laptop was already built! just a few minutes ago i checked my order status and it says it has SHIPPED! (hallelujah). estimated delivery date is this Saturday. that's only 3 days off from the original date given to me (see quote above)! so what the hell is up with Dell scaring me with these delay notifiactions!? i have a feeling the phone call might've squeezed my order into the Fedex truck right before it left, haha.

oh Dell, what are you trying to pull? maybe this is some new method to deal with customers or something. bad news, more bad news, then: Hey, you're new laptop will be delivered in 2 days! haha

well i'm a happy camper now. Lesson 2 B Learned: Dell's delays are some bull and always be sure to call!

but if i get a SHIPPING delay notification...i swear...

 

The Zagg Shield material was originally developed for the leading edge of Blackhawk rotor blades. The military was worried about sand chewing up the rotors in the first gulf war so this was the solution. From what I've heard it increased the flight time on a set of rotors by a factor of 10. Should be good enough for our laptops. =P

I had one of these on my iPhone 3G (actually it's still on there, but it's my girlfriend's phone now) and I would do the key scratch demo all the time. The stuff is amazing.