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    1520 Bios

    Discussion in 'Dell' started by uber fragger, Sep 20, 2008.

  1. uber fragger

    uber fragger Notebook Enthusiast

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    I just noticed that Dell released a Bios update for the 1520 (A09) and I still have A00, which is what it came with. Is it absolutely necessary that I upgrade my bios? What exactly would it help?
     
    uber fragger, Sep 20, 2008
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  2. nizzy1115

    nizzy1115 Notebook Prophet

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    If you read the details on the update on dells website it says what each version updates.
     
    nizzy1115, Sep 20, 2008
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  3. mgh_a1

    mgh_a1 Notebook Evangelist

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    Generally speaking it is a good idea to keep your bios up to date. This helps insure compatibility with future products as well as occasionally correcting hardware issues that you may have been experiencing. While this particular bios update was directed to people with Nvidia graphics cards, you should still consider it otherwise.

    If your computer is working 100% fine however, I wouldn't necessarily worry about it.
     
    mgh_a1, Sep 20, 2008
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  4. uber fragger

    uber fragger Notebook Enthusiast

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    I do have an nVidia 8600GT but I noticed it wasn't on Dell/nVidia's list of affected PCs. I've heard the Bios update makes the fans kick on sooner and therefore makes the battery life shorter, not necessarily a good thing. So does anyone have a 1520 that has noticed their laptop being cooler with the update?
     
    uber fragger, Sep 20, 2008
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  5. Apollo13

    Apollo13 100% 16:10 Screens

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    You can control the fans with software from within Windows as well as at the BIOS level, so if A09 causes the fans to come on sooner than you'd like, you can always control it yourself (ex. through I8Kfangui).

    Updating the BIOS is generally recommended - A04 or one of those added support for Penryn CPU's, for example - but if it's doing fine now, there's no pressing reason to update. I'm still on A07 just because I'm happy with performance now and haven't bothered to update.

    One other note - while the BIOS is being updated, the fans will kick on at full speed, probably faster than you've ever heard them run before. This is perfectly normal.
     
    Apollo13, Sep 20, 2008
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  6. uber fragger

    uber fragger Notebook Enthusiast

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    Alright, I suppose I will update sometime soon, thanks for the help guys :)
     
    uber fragger, Sep 21, 2008
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