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

There's always the Macbooks.

 

Macbooks lack the higher res screen though.

 

i just checked it out at BB and it looked great. It felt more solid than almost all the other laptops there, although there was definitely some flex on the lid. Other than that it was rock solid. The back of the notebook was cool also.

 

hey all,

I just picked up a stock 14z from Best Buy as I wanted a smaller laptop to compliment my larger Asus machine. Everything seems great on the 14z except that I ran a dead pixel checker (I know I shouldn't have done this lol) and on an all red background I have one stuck dark pixel, just slightly off center. On a white background it shows up as a very light green pixel, though it is very hard to see as green against the white background. I doubt I'd end up seeing this in very many real world situations so my inclination is just to keep it. If I do decide to exchange it though, do you think BB will swap it out for one dark pixel? This is the first laptop I've ever purchased from BB. Thanks in advance for any replies.

 

There's no chance to put a Intel wireless card in it, isn't it?

 

There's no reason they shouldn't, unless their return policy specifically mentions a dead/stuck pixel policy. With Newegg, you can't return a monitor for that unless there's 5 or more faulty pixels (the most idiotic policy ever), but I don't think BB has anything like that.

No, the nVidia chipset does not play well with Intel wireless.

 

I think everyone here should know that it appears that the bestbuy LCD panels are different than the Dell.com panels. It looks as though the bestbuy 720p is of a lower quality than the Dell.com 720p. More info can be found in this thread:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=395586

My (Dell.ca) panel has a HardwareID of SEC5441 - no complaints, beautiful panel.

Zer0N1nja (BB) panel is LGD018B - Ze0N1nja complains of columns visible on solid colours. Maybe like a moire effect??

 

I dont know if ZeroN1nja's unit is typical, because LG usually makes high quality screens. If he posts pictures, I'll believe his model has a faulty screen. But I dont think everyone who buys a BB one will have a faulty screen. I mean, I used the BB display unit, and thought the screen might have been brighter/better than the Studio 1555 right next to it.

 

anyone can post a photo of a 14z with 900p lcd ?
i'm curious to see this resolution in a 14"

thanks

 

Yes it would surely require input from other BB customers and Dell.com customers to substantiate anything. I agree it is more likely that he has an atypical (flawed) panel.

 

There is a screen shot of the 900p already on this thread. Hopefully photos coming soon. I'll take one now of my 720p (just to prove that my living room is messier than my desktop )

 

Which page of this thread?

 

Seriously? LAZY

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=5027474&postcount=303

 

Here is a photograph of my 720p 14z. There is a moire visible in the photograph that is an abberation from my camera (Canon A95), it is not visible in real life.





Off-axis viewing angles example, and you can also really see how glossy things are:





Interior chainlink:





Exterior black chainlink (yes, it has an affinity for finger prints):

 

welp so I exchanged my first 14z that had the stuck pixel for a new one and this one's display is great, however, there is a small chunk of plastic nicked off by the side of the left speaker. Aargh. Am I just being too picky here, or should I swap it out again? The speakers both sound fine in terms of audio quality.

 

Sorry if this has been covered at some point, but does the touchpad on this Dell allow you to scroll vertically like the current Studio 15 and several other models?

I tried on the red Studio 14z that Best Buy currently has and it wouldn't allow me to do that, nor could I find the program that activates the Dell Touchpad settings.

 

Unboxing vid posted to youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HzQuuDTrSA

 

Can you not just call Dell and have them come and replace that bit of he laptop? If everything else is great, that would probably be the best option for such a small fault.

 

I've decided I'm being way to anal about the small blemish and will just live with it. Computer is fantastic really. It's not a bad idea to call Dell if it continues to bug me down the line.

 

dell won't replace ANYTHING at fault on a new laptop, they will insist on returning it to them and building you a new one, I've already been through this lol. It might be worth you time to complain to them though cause they can give you at least 50.00 off for the blemish if your willing to live with it.

 

Quaid, how glossy is the black chainlink top? Is it a mirror finish? How much of a finger print magnet is it? I've been think about getting the spring green but I'm warming up to the chianlink black photos I've seen and saving $40 USD is also nice!


VVarwick

 

i dont mind the outside chainlink, but the inside looks horrible IMO. Can someone upload more pics of the inside so I can try to save $40?

 

I handled a Studio 15 with the black chainlink lid at Best Buy, and it was most definitely a fingerprint magnet.

 

'Very' on both accounts.

 

Thanks for the info. Looks like I'll spend the extra $40.

 

As a Studio 17 owner I can testify that the coloured tops are very UN-magnetic when it comes to fingerprints.

I've had to clean dust off my 17, but never prints. I highly recommend the paint job and the backlit keyboard

 

Windows 7 question folks. Unlike when I put the RC on my Asus, I just installed on my Studio 14 and when I go to adjust the monitor settings my highest resolution isn't listed as an option. Anyone else run into this problem?

 

Have you downloaded the Windows 7 driver from the Nvidia site yet?

http://www.nvidia.com/object/geforce_notebook_win7_x64_186.03_whql.html 64-bit

http://www.nvidia.com/object/geforce_notebook_win7_186.03_whql.html
32-biy

 

WOW! You were not joking! I just got back from BB and the black chainlink that I saw on the 15" is mirror reflective. I actually really liked the Ruby Red on the standard 14z at BB. I thought it would be too feminine for me, but to me it is more "power tie" red and will look really good in a corporate setting.

jcll03, If you are OK with the glossy outside you should be able to save the $40. I was the same with the inside photos, I did not like the inside chainlink. But the photos really over exaggerate the gray inside chainlink. In person you really have to look close to even see the chainlink pattern on the inside as well as the outside.

 

Yep. No luck so far. The highest resolution is still not the native resolution (720p).

 

update: used the dell driver cd to reinstall the driver and that worked just fine.

 

Is it possible to have a photo of the studio 14z with the 8 cells battery?
I would like to know if the 8 cells battery is not too big.

thanks.

 

Trentmil, both batteries fit inside the body, so they look the same from the outside.

 

There is a separate thread titled "14z pics" or something similar. That will give you a good idea of size. The 8-cell weighs more than the 6-cell, of course, but as mentioned they are both identical in appearance.

PS- did anyone else notice the external battery indicator? That is a first for me.

 

Dell's been using external battery indicators for a while now. My Studio 1535's battery came with one last year, as did my friend's XPS M1330 the year before that.

 

ok thank you. This studio 14z looks more and more good!

 

i ordered a 14z on may 28th. the first day it was announced, and it's just been steadily delayed, the estimated delivery date was originally the 1st of july.then it changed to the 10th, down to the 8th, to the 16th and now it's the 23rd.

i'm just curious if anybody has actually gotten one of these things from dell yet?

 

i got mine....... well its for my wife... anyway depends after the initial orders there are certain cpus that are backordred you may have chosen one of them... or if you ordered a different wi'fi card

 

Alright, the reviewers should be getting their 14z models by now, shouldn't they? Where are the reviews????...Could those who have already gotten theirs list some pros, cons, and other thoughts on the 14z after you have had some use on it?

 

+1 Where are the full reviews? This guy on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HzQuuDTrSA

says he'll probably have a review up by the end of the week. Personally, I'm really tired of waiting, and I'm looking at other options.

 

the power adapter is now back-ordered. that's what's delaying my order at least... ugh.

 

Read the thread. A few of us have received our 14z's. We already gave our impressions. We even offered to do any tests that people wanted to see, they just had to describe how in detail. If you had read the thread, you would know that. Some people's children...

 

I'll be ordering mine in august, so I don't care waiting one full month for a review

I'm not getting one right now for a few reasons :
Doing an internship during summer and they provide a computer.
Building a solid bank account for the semester
Hoping Dell will have some kind of discount before class starts(?)

Funny how I don't mind going back to university because I know I'll have this toy

 

I know the subject has pretty much been dropped, but I wonder if Dell, not only to cut cost, removed the optical drive so that they could make the larger 8-cell battery fit nice and flush? On the much larger Studio 15, the 9-cell sticks out of the bottom which makes it looks pretty ugly and more bulky to me.

If so, I like the idea of the 14z being able to have a large 8-cell battery and still be nice and compact.


Just a thought...



VVarwick

 

Anyone with an 8-cell who want to weigh it? with and without the power adapter. Same with the 6-cell.

 

8 cell is not that much more weight. I will weigh mine when I get home and post the weight. Did anyone get the exteranl DVD burner with the order... its priced at $99 on Dell's site but you can get an off brand locally or at tigerdirect for about $50 bucks... should I go to Dell and get theirs or go to www.tigerdirect.com

 

99$ seems quite a lot for a DVD drive... I'd go for tigerdirect

I bet they have bluray drives for around 130$

 

Hey guys. For those of you that have the laptop with the 8 cell, do you think you could do a battery test for me?

http://batteryeater.com/download.html

Go here and download the test software and run the "classic" mode which should let us know what the battery life is when running a constant workload.

Thanks guys.

 

I previously ordered the 14z with 900p screen and backlit keyboard as only additions for 784 dollars.
Later, I couldnt stand that I was going to get the "chainlink" design... horrible!

Soo.. I was able to cancel the order 8 days after I ordered the original one, added 900p screen, backlit keyboard, 8 cell battery and got the ruby red cover with the plain silver palm rest. (I didnt need the wireless N since G works just fine and it is more marketing than anything if you only use it for wireless internet, except for the range).
Other specs were all base options.
I also got all of this for 822 dollars, which includes the tax and free shipping, out the door!

Normally it would cost a lot more but I signed up for college classes for free, went through dell university and got 56 dollars off (or 7% off), and since my initial total came out to 804 dollars, I was able to get free 3-5 day shipping.

So really, its like getting a free 8 cell batter just for adding the ruby red cover.
Not bad at all for this laptop.

 

I recently ordered this laptop, and I know for a fact I ordered 3gb memory. But the order status on dell lists it as 2gb memory. Is this because of the 1gb soldered into the laptop? Or is this a mistake?