The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.
← Previous pageNext page →

    Dell Inspiron 15R Special edition (7520)

    Discussion in 'Dell' started by lucjuh8, Jun 5, 2012.

  1. Sarky

    Sarky Notebook Guru

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    52
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Thats a pretty decent deal, I guess it includes the 1TB hard drive, and potentially 32GB caching drive?

    I paid £474 for my i7, 720p screen and 750GB hard drive.
     
  2. Dandelionz

    Dandelionz Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    2
    Messages:
    33
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Hello everyone!

    I'm the happy owner of a fairly new (a few weeks) 15R SE (7520) which I saw at a frankly ridiculous offer on the Dell website, so snapped it up.
    Anyway, it's a pretty nice laptop, very nice in fact, but like many other people, I'm keen to put an SSD in it to make everything that much nicer.

    Being a new laptop it came with Windows 8 pre-installed (which for what it's worth, is also fairly nice, it's certainly not BAD that's for sure) and now I'm trying to figure out exactly how to install an SSD and get the Windows 8 installation across from the hard drive onto that without messing things up.

    For info:
    It does NOT have the mSATA option installed. Just the hard drive, and the BD-ROM.
    I DO have a caddy for replacing the internal BD drive with a 2.5" drive.

    Has anyone done this yet?... I'm sure loads of people must have, but I keep seeing conflicting information in various places about how to do it. Some saying that cloning the drive is best (which seems like a bad idea to me, given the different setup you want windows to have when running on an SSD rather than an HDD) and others say that you should be able to just use the Dell recovery media that it encourages you to write to disc/USB to do it.

    So... has anyone done it? I could use a reassuring pointer or two to at least convince me it's possible without a massive ball-ache!

    I'm working on the assumption that it should be as simple as:
    Take out BD rom
    Put in SSD with caddy
    Boot off recovery media
    ...somehow transfer Win8 to the SSD from the HDD?...
    Switch SSD and Hard drive (so that the SSD is in the main drive bay where the HDD was
    Done.

    ?
     
  3. jmsmuy

    jmsmuy Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    45
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Try speedfan, with the dell notebook option activated.
    It works for me!
     
  4. NewNotebookUser

    NewNotebookUser Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    6
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Hello,

    I am a complete novice, looking to buy my first notebook. I have owned PC desktops for a few years (so I’m not completely new to computers!), but laptops are a bit of a closed notebook to me :)

    Currently I am favouring the Dell Inspiron 15R SE, with the following specifications:

    Processor: 3rd generation Intel® Core™ i5-3210M processor (2.50 GHz, 3M cache)
    Video Card: 2GB AMD Radeon HD 7730M
    Memory: 8192MB (2x4096) 1600MHz DDR3
    Video Card: 2GB AMD Radeon HD 7730M
    Operating system: Windows 8 64bit, English
    Hard Drive 1TB Serial ATA (5400RPM)
    CD ROM/DVD ROM: 8x DVD+/-RW Optical Drive
    LCD: 15.6in High Definition (1366X768) WLED with TrueLife
    Wireless: Intel® Centrino® Wireless-N 2230 Card (802.11n + BT 4.0)

    This seemed to be a fairly good non-gaming specific laptop. However, after browsing the forums I have a few concerns:

    1) BSOD issues. It does seem that quite a few people are having problems with the switchable GPU. I’m afraid I couldn’t work out whether the latest BIOS and GPU drivers have fixed this issue, or if it is still ongoing for some users. Could someone perhaps give an update on this issue?

    2) The whole switchable graphics thing. This is a follow up to 1), but are there currently significant problems with compatibility between the two cards, and with programmes trying to use them. For example, if I tried playing an older game (e.g. 5 to 8 years old) that has previously worked on my current Windows 7 64 bit Pro desktop, would that have issues? I have read that some people have had problems with old games, etc. being unable to decide which card to run from and just crashing. Is this a significant and separate problem, has it been fixed with drivers, or can it be controlled by telling the laptop to run the older softward using the HD 4000?

    3) The operating system. Not to cause offense, but Windows 8, for all its advantages, is not my cup of tea (it may be a good OS – it just isn't for me). I would be looking to wipe the laptop and install Windows 7 64 Bit PRO (I will be getting my own version on a DVD, and it will NOT be upgrade or OEM). Has anyone done this before, and if so were there any problems? Are there any specific problems with Windows 7 on this machine (e.g. the BSOD issue, problems with driver conflicts, etc.)? Anything I should really be aware of?

    4) HD speed. Quite a few people are saying that the 1TB 5400 RPM is slow. Is this a significant problem I should avoid? I don’t mind things taking a bit of time to boot or load, but would I be looking at seconds, minutes or hours? Mainly this would be for switching on, loading word docs and browsing the net, though I might boot up some games from time to time too.

    To give a bit more detail about my needs, I will mainly be using for standard web-browsing/MS Words/watching movies/listening to music. However, I would also like to be able to play some games on it, but just a few hrs some evenings and not 10 hr straight sessions! I would most likely not be buying the latest and greatest games - I believe my most recent and demanding is Dragon Age 2, and most are a fair bit older.

    I will mainly be using it like a desktop (e.g. mostly it will be sitting at home, so portability is not so much of a concern for me), and just want something I can move when I move house a bit easier without sacrificing too much potential. I’m not too concerned with the monitor resolution as I may very well buy a cheap monitor to plug in if I find it an issue.

    Any advice, suggestions or details of other issues I should be aware of would be very welcome and greatly appreciated. If I’ve forgotten to include some vital information I’d be more than happy to supply further details.

    Many thanks in advance!
     
  5. e6bwhiz

    e6bwhiz Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    13
    Messages:
    172
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    1. Well, I'm not sure about that. I've been following this thread for over a month and don't recall anyone having a BSOD. I don't have any problems with it on this model.

    2. I don't think the graphics card would be an issue. If you have trouble playing an older game it would likely be involving compatibility with Win 7 or 8. I use Win 7 and have needed to try different compatibility modes to get old games to work. It's easy to adjust. Right click the game's exe file and choose the "Compatibility" tab. Check "Run this program in compatibility mode for:" and select different older versions of Windows. I think you know this, but don't expect to be able to run games on high settings. It does greatly depend on the game, but you will likely be playing most games in the low to medium settings. And I would highly recommend the 1920x1080 screen. If you are worried about graphics, why wouldn't you get the better resolution screen? Plus, you can fit much more of a document on the screen, so you aren't scrolling as much. You can more easily open multiple windows and multitask, because more information will be displayed on the screen for you to view at a single glance.

    Another thing to consider concerning the switchable graphics. It is not really two seperate cards trying to work together. The main card is the HD 4000. The AMD augments the HD 4000, so you can't use the AMD without the HD 4000. I've found it to work quite well, as others from other Dell models in other forums. The problems that I have read about involve CPU throttling and heat, but that isn't directly related to switchable graphics.

    3. This laptop was released with Win 7. I currently use Win 7. So no problem. The only thing I may be worried about would be if Dell still supports Win 7 drivers. Since they recently sold this laptop with Win 7 I think they will be offering the drivers for a while. I would still download and save them for later if needed though. Honestly I would be more worried about Win 8 working properly at this point.

    4. For what you said you want to do, the 5400 RPM drive shouldn't be a problem. Loading a Word document may take a fraction of a second longer. It may have more of an effect on certain games. Also multitasking time will increase, especially during drive-intensive operations.

    I do have a question. You said the model you are looking at has the 1TB drive, but the 720p display. Is this a refurbished model? Three of the four options on the Dell US website offer the 1080p display. The one with the 720 doesn't have the 1TB drive. Just make sure on what you are getting. I hate it when manufacturers say "HD" or "high def". The term is becoming meaningless. Make sure you are looking at the actual screen resolution on the exact model you want. Places like Amazon make it harder, because they often put generic product information below the item information and if often has conflicting specifications. Everyone is different, but for me I can't live without the 1920x1080 resolution.
     
  6. e6bwhiz

    e6bwhiz Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    13
    Messages:
    172
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    So far the only issue that I'm starting to try and figure out involves external USB hard drives. This model and the XPS 15 L521x may have a problem with drives randomly stopping. Meaning they go to sleep for a second, or it acts like it isn't connected or something like that. I've been having issues when transferring large amounts of data from one external WD Passport hard drive to another. I'll come back after an hour or two and I may find the Autoplay window has popped up. This is the window that normally pops up when first plugging in the drive. And, of course, my file transfer has stopped. When I'm running a data backup or copy operation I often set it to run while I'm sleeping since 500-900 GB of data can take hours.

    So, I'm still trying to figure this one out. I've changed every power option in Win 7 I can think of to make sure the drive doesn't go to sleep or stop running. I'm at a loss for now, but there are others posting on the XPS L521x forum also having external USB 3.0 drive problems. So, if it is important for you to have reliable large file transfer operations, you may want to consider something other than Dell for now.
     
  7. NewNotebookUser

    NewNotebookUser Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    6
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Hi e6bwhiz,

    Many thanks for your reply, and for taking the time to help out a newbie!

    I don't regularly backup my whole hard drive - in general I just have a few directories that I regularly backup. If it isn't too cheeky to ask, do you know roughly how much data can you transfer before encountering this issue (I'm guessing in an hour or so it is of order magnitude 50 or so GB)?

    The BSOD issues seemed to mainly earlier this year (July/August)t:
    dell inspiron 15r se 7520, BSOD, audio and video lag - Laptop General Hardware Forum - Laptop - Dell Community
    http://forum.notebookreview.com/del.../679254-inspiron-15r-se-7520-bsod-issues.html
    http://forum.notebookreview.com/del...5r-special-edition-7520-a-13.html#post8629711

    I got the impression that this problem was mainly related to the switchable graphics not working properly, and had been fixed by the later versions of the BIOS and graphics drivers. I just wanted to check and make sure that that was the case!

    Cheers again.
     
  8. e6bwhiz

    e6bwhiz Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    13
    Messages:
    172
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    No problem. Re-read my previous post because I think I was editing my answer when you posted this.

    Hard to say about how long exactly it was going before it stopped. It just happened again an hour ago, and it had transferred about 300 GB of data in a couple of hours, I think.

    Those are some interesting posts you linked. Well, all I can say is I haven't heard much lately. This is really not a gaming laptop, but I've played games fine on older laptops with older chipsets. Honestly, I've been using Dells for 10 years and I am super disappointed in what they have been putting out in the past 6 months. I don't know what the issue is. Cheaper component manufacturing, weaker quality control, less testing for new models. Hard to say. Like any other company, they are trying to be profitable in very tough economic times and I think their products have suffered for it.
     
  9. NewNotebookUser

    NewNotebookUser Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    6
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Hi Again,

    Sorry for missing your question and comments in the previous post!

    Your point regarding the switchable graphics is well made. I must admit, being a novice and not having spent a huge amount of time on this yet, I couldn't see what the problem people seemed to be having was. It may be that it was just teething issues of the new tech, and that it just required a bit of tinkering to solve whatever it was :)

    To try and answer to your question, I am looking at the Dell on the Dell site (brand new, not refurbished, 1TB one). I copied the specs from the list it gives you when you build the laptop, and it said "15.6in High Definition (1366X768) WLED with TrueLife". Sorry for being ignorant, but I don't know what 720p means, or how you can tell?

    Thanks again!
     
  10. e6bwhiz

    e6bwhiz Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    13
    Messages:
    172
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    No problem. The 720p just tells you how many horizontal lines of resolution a display has. It is still considered HD. When the big flat screen plasma and LCD screen TVs first came out many were 720. Now, most are 1080. If you don't know the difference consider looking online for comparisons or go to a store and compare. It's kind of like comparing an older TV with an HD TV. Lower resolutions will look blockier. Higher resolutions cram more pixels in the same space, so everything can be made smaller, and more can fit on the screen. That translates into more detail on movies, or more detail on text in documents, so you can zoom out on a document and read it must easier on a 1080 screen than on a 720 screen. I really don't like trusting when they advertise "HD" or 720p or whatever. Try to get a feel for resolutions and what will meet your needs. WLED is just the type of screen. TrueLife is a Dell term they've been using for years. Just a marketing ploy. You should google about resolutions and screen types for more information if you are interested.
     
  11. NewNotebookUser

    NewNotebookUser Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    6
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Thanks for the information! I'll definitely have a look in to this.

    Cheers again,
     
  12. Sarky

    Sarky Notebook Guru

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    52
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    The issue I've had with external drives (Samsung S2 1TB) is it does not work with the right USB ports, it powers up but isn't detected, but if its plugged in the left its fine. Yet when I plug in any other device (USB2 mind you, I only have 1 USB3 device) its detected and works.
     
  13. rugbierleon

    rugbierleon Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    6
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Hello all

    After reading the 97 pages, my 15R SE (i5,1080p,8gb,1Tb, no mSATA) is on it's way to Spain.

    The mSATA is not a concern since I already have a 2.5" SSD ready to be installed in the main bay.
    I have only read that @Musimaniac has moved the 1Tb HHD to the optic drive place using a kit (like this SilverStone SST-TS06B Slim ODD Conversion Tray for 2.5 inch HDD or SSD with USB External Slim ODD Enclosure: Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories ) that allows you to keep the dvd/br reader in a external enclosure.

    My questions are:

    1- May this procedure damage the HHD in the optical drive place in long term? (I've seen a coment here about it, but nothing else)

    2- Can you notice that the ODD has been removed after realocating the HHD? In some laptops you can use the OOD external lid in order to make it look as out-of-the-box.

    Thanks and happy new year for you all.
     
  14. Musimaniac

    Musimaniac Notebook Geek

    Reputations:
    2
    Messages:
    84
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    I used this one --> Leicke Universal HDD Caddy
    but it's irrelevant wich one you choose, they should all work perfectly. Avoid cheaply built enclosures (in fact, avoid the leicke caddy I bought) and you should be fine

    About your questions:

    1- I'm unsure about this point. If the caddy is well built and the hdd fits tightly inside the enclosure, there shouldn't be any problem.

    2- It's impossible to notice. the ODD external lid is removable and uses a standard mounting system, you can use it to cover the caddy without difficulties

    Happy New Year to you.
     
  15. Fairlyawesome

    Fairlyawesome Notebook Guru

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    59
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Hello all, I hope you don't mind helping with a few problems I'm having with my 15R SE.

    I've only recieved it recently, and have been playing around with it to see how it performs, but have run into a few troubles along the way. It seems to freeze up a lot, or just go to a blank screen. If I try to run a game there's a good chance it'll crash, or just fail to launch, GPU-Z can't get past the splash screen, 3DMark Vantage always crashes during loading and I have to restart. Stuff like that.

    I've tried updating some drivers via the Dell website, but I only encountered a new problem.. upon trying to install new AMD Radeon drivers, the screen will turn black, and stay that way until I force it to shutdown (I left it for 15+ minutes, so I don't think it's normal behaviour).

    All these little issues make me worry that something's wrong... which is a shame 'cause I really liked the look of this laptop - the specs were great for the price etc. etc.

    Anyone know what could be wrong? If it matters, I'm on Windows 8. Any help would be appreciated!



    EDIT: Just an update.. I seem to've fixed most the crashing problems. I did a full system reset and tried installing all the new drivers from the Dell website again. As for Vantage, turns out it's a common problem with Win 8 and there's a file you need to download to fix it, which has worked.

    However... there's one more small issue I'm having, which hopefully someone could help me with. It involves the switchable graphics (that old chestnut :p).

    Alright, so I'm comparing the graphics of the integrated HD4000 to my old laptop's Radeon 5470, which are of similar power. The switchable graphics card, the 7730m, should be much more powerful according to reviews and benchmarks.

    I installed Crysis to see how well it'd work (that's like the go-to benchmarking game :p), and the performance seems to be similar to how it played on my old laptop, which makes me think the switchable graphics weren't working properly.

    I go into Catalyst Control Center, and it tells me that Crysis is set to 'high performance', hm. I try setting it to 'power saver' - just to see if there's a difference - and run Crysis again. The framerate seems to be unchanged (that is, 25ish FPS on medium settings, 720P). Maybe my 7730m just isn't working properly?

    Then tried 3DMark Vantage, comparing my scores using 'High performance' and 'power saving'. This seems to work: high performance gives me a graphics score of 6210, whereas power saving returns the score 2672. That's more like it!

    That has only worked in Vantage so far though, is there any way to make certain that the 7730m is being used rather than the HD4000 in games?

    Sorry for the lengthy post, I'm just a bit worried as I keep encountering problems in my new laptops (I had to return a Toshiba before I bought this one due to it being faulty). Any help is most appreciated!
     
  16. doc_stew

    doc_stew Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    23
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    I've been having a wifi issue recently. When opening my computer from sleep, it literally takes 2 minutes for the wifi to auto-connect. Even if I manually connect to my home network, it takes 2 minutes.

    Obviously something got changed because it never used to do this. I've updated drivers to no avail. Anyone experience this or have any ideas for solutions?
     
  17. Musimaniac

    Musimaniac Notebook Geek

    Reputations:
    2
    Messages:
    84
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    @doc-stew : I don't know if it's the same problem, but returning home a few weeks ago a noticed the same behaviour when connecting to my home wifi network. I solved it (purely by chance) using the Intel connection settings panel.
    Open your wifi network list, right-click on you network and select "Proprierties". Go to the first tab (Connection) and check the last checkbox (it should be something like "activate Intel connection settings") click on the confiure button, and select the appropriate channel width. The default value uses mixed width, but I selected the 2,4 GHz band because I'm using an 802.11g wifi router. That solved it for me, good luck

    @fairlyawesome: with the windows 7 ati drivers, you can simply right-click anywhere on your desktop and select "configure switchable graphics card". This brings up an interface that allows the user to specify a "running mode" for an application. The options are: AutoDetect, PowerSaving and High Performance (the translation might be a bit off, but you got the idea). Keep in mind that those suggestion you give to the ati control panel can be ignored if the OS power settings profile force a determined behaviour. For example, if you set Crysis to always run in performance mode (ati 7730) and you are running a power saving profile with a parameter like this : "dynamic switchable graphic card -> Settings -> battery: force power saving graphics" then, whenever you're running from battery, crysis will be loaded on the Intel HD4000, regardless of your ati control panel settings.
    I don't know if any of this doesn't apply to windows 8, but there must be some way to manually set the card hidden in the setting.

    Happy New Year to Everyone
     
  18. Fairlyawesome

    Fairlyawesome Notebook Guru

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    59
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Hey, thanks for the reply.

    Well, after some more experimenting I think the switchable graphics are indeed working properly, I tested Dirt 3 and Guild Wars 2, and there's a very big improvement in framerate when I switch over to 'high performance'. Maybe my graphics card just doesn't like Crysis, hmm. Oh well, seems like every over game works properly, so I won't worry about that :p

    I stumbled upon another problem though, involving the wireless connection. I was gonna say you inadvertently fixed my problem with your response so doc-stew, but it's just happened again, so I shall ask about it!

    So during Guild Wars 2 I noticed the game would occasionally suffer from a 2-5 second lag spike. At first I thought it was just the game, but I pinged Google in the command line (ping -t google.com), and noticed that every now and then I'd see a 'request timed out'. Perhaps once a minute. This wouldn't be so bad for regular web browsing but in gaming it's a bit of a problem. I updated the wireless drivers, but the problem remained, then I tried your suggestion to doc (just to see if it'd work). It was okay for a few minutes, but I'm seeing 'request timed out' again. Maybe not as often, but still there!

    I'll try playing with more settings to see if I can determine the root of the problem.. I might try a USB wireless adapter and see if it still happens. Would you have any idea what's wrong, though?

    Thanks!

    EDIT again: So just an update, I've tried doing all sorts of things with the inbuilt adapter - playing with settings, following guides from various google links, installing all kinds of drivers. Still the same problem :(

    However, a USB wireless adapter works just fine. I might be able to live with a tiny USB adapter... but I'd rather the inbuilt one works properly. Any ideas?
     
  19. jtroud

    jtroud Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    2
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Thank you very much for your answer, I will check all that !
    regards,
    Lucas
     
  20. Musimaniac

    Musimaniac Notebook Geek

    Reputations:
    2
    Messages:
    84
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    That's interesting, maybe I have the same problem (or a variation of it). I'm playing borderlands 2 with a friend, over an Ad-Hoc connection between our computers. He owns an alienware M11, with an integrated Killer wireless card, and usually both cards performs well.
    The only problem is that the connection behaviour is very erratic. Whitout any traffic, ping is very good (1-5 ms), but as soon as we start the game and connect, latency starts to spike (we're talking 1-2k ms) with a few timeouts. Usually we switch connection (we change the ad-hoc host) and the ping becomes normal (in the 10-20 range). The overly srange thing is that the problem happens whenever we connect for the first time, regardless of who's hosting the network. We've tried everything we could, to no avail. Let me know if you find a solution that works for you.

    Also, I kept a ping in the background while I wrote this, and I lost 1 packet on 645
     
  21. Fairlyawesome

    Fairlyawesome Notebook Guru

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    59
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Hmm.. sounds similar, but I think your symptons are a bit different to mine :p My internet would have an occasional 'request timed out' whatever it's doing (downloading, gaming, or just doing nothing). Maybe your problem stems from a bug in the game itself.. do other LAN games work properly? Maybe you could try a wired connection (or USB adapter) and see if that fixes anything.

    I ordered a nano USB adapter, and if all works well with that then I can live with it ('cause other than the problems settings up - I do really like this laptop!)

    Okay, one final question I have! Is there a way I can disable touchcheck/palmcheck on the touchpad? It seems the Dell drivers have no way to disable it. I installed some generic synaptics drivers, and while the touchcheck is gone - it doesn't offer any options for multi-touch gestures or scrolling, etc.

    Thanks for the help so far, 'tis appreciated!
     
  22. jmsmuy

    jmsmuy Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    45
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Yes! Fn+F3

    Edit: Sorry, i missunderstood your question!
    When you open the dell touchpad settings, you have an option PalmTracking, you should turn that off for what you want
    cheers!
     
  23. IanC

    IanC Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    58
    Messages:
    343
    Likes Received:
    58
    Trophy Points:
    41
    Hi,

    Does anyone know what the model no and model name is of the LCD that is fitted into the 15r se FHD 1080p laptops.

    I have the HD version but I was wondering if I could swap it easily?

    Thanks in advance

    Ian
     
  24. Fairlyawesome

    Fairlyawesome Notebook Guru

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    59
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Sorry I'm not sure on the model number of the screens, I thought I could find out in Device Manager but it seems not :( maybe email Dell?

    Thanks for the reply, although I'm afraid the 'palmtracking' option yields no results. I tried putting the sensitivity slider to minimum, and turning it off, restarting,etc. Still didn't let me type+use touchpad at the same time. It seems lots of people are having this problem

    But! I found a forum post where someone discovered a fix for the problem: I can't use my Touchpad while typing - Laptop General Hardware Forum - Laptop - Dell Community

    I disabled a couple other things myself (disablewhentype_allarea and disablewhentype_enable to 0), and restarted, and it worked! Hopefully this'll help anyone else facing the same problem.
     
  25. mike_nbr

    mike_nbr Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    55
    Messages:
    214
    Likes Received:
    10
    Trophy Points:
    31
    Hey guys, I have short 4 questions and any help is greatly appreciated!

    1. Yesterday I saw A09 bios for 7520. It was not possible to download, but today the whole BIOS section in DELL downloads center is gone. Anyone have this new bios revision?
    2. I have OS on USB drive but I can't find boot from USB option using UEFI BIOS. It detects only my SSD drive. I have to switch to legacy mode to be able to boot from USB. Any workaround for that?
    3. My notebook came with Windows 8 by default, but I can't get used to that OS. So I wanted to install Windows 7 but during the first steps it asks me for some DVD drivers (?). The complete message is:
    "A required CD/DVD device driver is missing. If you have a driver floppy disk, CD, DVDm or USB flash drive, please insert it now. Note. If the windows installation media is in the drive, you can safely remove it for this step."
    I tried using Intel RST drivers (both iaAHCIC.inf and iaStorAC.inf) but no luck...I never had that issue before but it's also the first time I'm using SSD drive (Samsung 830 512GB). Any ideas? :)
    4. It seems that ATI switchable GPU is not working very good. Is it recommended to use DELL drivers for 7730 or newest (12.10) drivers from AMD site? Also when I try to enter switchable GPU in AMD control panel, nothing happens. Is there any application I can run in the background to check which GPU is active in particular moment?

    Thanks!


    EDIT:

    About 3rd question - I thought it might be related to USB 3.0 driver missing in Windows 7 by default. I will try with that driver now :)
     
  26. dellmatic

    dellmatic Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    3
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Hello 1st time post.

    I have ordered the DELL 15R 5520 i5 6gb RAM direct from dell due any day soon.

    questions / i hope you can answer.

    1) i know on the 7520 there is an option to add or change over a Daughter Board called the Msata Card controller. N7JHH part number

    Below review implies this can be done on the 5520, can someone confirm this ?

    Amazon.com: Inspiron 15R Notebook 5520: Computers & Accessories

    PS i am based in the UK ? how easily can i source the above part and will fitand work with the 15R 5520 ?

    second question

    the 7520 has back-lit keyboard, is the 7520 back-lit keyboard going to fit and work on the 15r 5520 ?

    btw before someone says why don't you just buy the 7520 well i didn't need the extra graphics card or cosmetic looks.

    hope you all can help thanks
     
  27. Fairlyawesome

    Fairlyawesome Notebook Guru

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    59
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Sorry, not sure about the first 3.. although personally I'm quite liking Windows 8 (contrary to popular opinion :p), perhaps you just need to get used to it. In the end it doesn't seem that different from Win 7 IMO.

    As for the graphics, I've been using the ones supplied by Dell (on their website), though I'm not sure if drivers from the AMD site would work also... One thing you can do to see whether the graphics are switching properly, is by running a game (or any 3D-intensive application), then unplugging your laptop to see if the framerate drops. The 'powerplay' settings by default would be set to save power when the laptop is unplugged (meaning it uses the integrated graphics). In games my framerate usually halves (or more) when I unplug it!

    Also, you could try GPU-Z. When the Radeon is inactive it will display the clock speeds at 300Mhz or something similar, and when it kicks in it'll go up to 700 or so... just going by memory here :p
     
  28. dellmatic

    dellmatic Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    3
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Hello 1st time post.

    I have ordered the DELL 15R 5520 i5 6gb RAM direct from dell due any day soon.

    questions / i hope you can answer.

    1) i know on the 7520 there is an option to add or change over a Daughter Board called the Msata Card controller. N7JHH part number

    Below review implies this can be done on the 5520, can someone confirm this ?

    Amazon.com: Inspiron 15R Notebook 5520: Computers & Accessories

    PS i am based in the UK ? how easily can i source the above part and will fitand work with the 15R 5520 ?

    second question

    the 7520 has back-lit keyboard, is the 7520 back-lit keyboard going to fit and work on the 15r 5520 ?

    btw before someone says why don't you just buy the 7520 well i didn't need the extra graphics card or cosmetic looks.

    hope you all can help thanks
     
  29. legoman7

    legoman7 Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    6
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    @fairlyawesome: Thanks for the tip on fixing the trackpad while typing, I've always noticed that.

    @michael_b: A09 is up now, has anyone noticed changes?

    Also, there is no option for stereo mix on in the Inspiron 7520. I'd like to be able to record directly off the soundcard. Anyone know how to enable the stereo mix?
     
  30. marcinkk

    marcinkk Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    1
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    hi, how to install latest graphic driver ati 12.10 or 12.11??
     
  31. gixer2000

    gixer2000 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    47
    Messages:
    151
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    my 15R SE is showing "Checking Media (fail)" on boot. it does finish booting but im not sure what this is and how to stop it. I did talked to Microsoft and they said its a hardware issue and I need to call Dell. Before I sit on the phone for hours I wanted to see if you guys had any ideas

    I think I have tracked my issue down to the ssd cache. It's now showing my ssd as a storage device but I have no clue how to fix it...

    Edit#2- I fixed the issue with my ssd but still saying checking media (failed) on boot
     
  32. mingocr83

    mingocr83 Notebook Geek

    Reputations:
    3
    Messages:
    95
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Take the network adapter from the boot order in the BIOS..after that, you will be good to go!
     
  33. gixer2000

    gixer2000 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    47
    Messages:
    151
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    I tried that but couldn't find that option. so heres what I did that worked but not sure if it's right
    peripheral device settings> changed UEFI boot mode. legacy option rom off....? it had legacy option on..
    Not sure if it's supposed to be set this way but it stopped the error and boots fast as sh!t !
     
  34. mingocr83

    mingocr83 Notebook Geek

    Reputations:
    3
    Messages:
    95
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Yup, it works too..basically with the Legacy ROM off you disabled the Network Boot Option, so no worries...also UEFI is more straight forward booting so is quicker..
     
  35. caesar_m3

    caesar_m3 Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    4
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Hi guys,

    First of all i want to thank you for all the info posted in this thread. ( please excuse my english -I have not written in English since high school).

    Anyway, I have two simple questions ( after reading all 99 pages - I GIVE YOU MY WORD ! ) :


    - Does anyone know if the 1080p display for dell 15R provides a decent quality for foto editing ??? ( photoshop , lightroom etc ) . There were some questions about this subject but no one answered. Now that some users gained experience with the Inspiron 15R ( with 1080p display !!! ) can anybody do a minireview about the 15R's display ? ( CONTRAST, Colors, viewing angles - i guess 15R is not equipped with an IPS panel ...)

    - Are there any amateur photographers among us? Did anyone use this laptop for editing photos? Can someone recommend Dell 15R for this purpose? ( I am basically holding my finger on the " BUY" button )

    Thanks for your support, much appreciated.
     
  36. CraftyUk

    CraftyUk Notebook Guru

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    68
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    caesar: I have a 1080p version and intend to use it for photo processing.
    It only came today and I'm still loading software on, but what I can tell you is that the screen looks very good, contrast looks good and it doesn't over saturate colours.
    The matte finish is definitely better than a gloss finish I think.

    Now, I have a question - what is the little white bit at the top of the touchpad for ?
     
  37. gixer2000

    gixer2000 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    47
    Messages:
    151
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    That is a light to know when the touch pad is disabled. If you press Fn+F3 it should illuminate and disable the touch pad
     
  38. CraftyUk

    CraftyUk Notebook Guru

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    68
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    spot on, thanks!
     
  39. mingocr83

    mingocr83 Notebook Geek

    Reputations:
    3
    Messages:
    95
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Man,

    I purchased this laptop a few days ago, is still on it's way..stuck on customs at the moment. I do plane spotting and amateur photo...I will load Lr 4 and edit some photos as a test...I will let you know..
     
  40. caesar_m3

    caesar_m3 Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    4
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Ok, waiting for your review. Thanks a lot.
     
  41. caesar_m3

    caesar_m3 Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    4
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Besides the display review subject, can someone tell me if I should order my 15R with a mSATA ssd ( 32gb option) ???

    I ask you this because i allready plan to change the 1tb hdd ( 5200 rot - to slow !!! ) with an OCZ 256gb SSD.


    Is it cost effective/ it makes sense to order my laptop with an mSata 32gb option and after that to swap the classic hdd with an ssd ( to a msata SSD + 256gb SSD) ???

    I ask you this because, from what i read, you cannot boot your sistem from the mSata 32 gb ssd ( it is only a caching solution - and you cannot instal windows on it ???? ) and I also don't know if it will be compatible/ useful in a msata sdd + SSD configuration ??




    Thank you all.
     
  42. gixer2000

    gixer2000 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    47
    Messages:
    151
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    You can boot from the mSATA but the 32gb is too small for the OS. I'm in the process of switching my mSATA to a 128gb SSD to install my OS onto and just use the 1TB 5400 as storage. That seems to be the best way from all the reading iv'e done.
     
  43. rugbierleon

    rugbierleon Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    6
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    I've just recieved mine. Have you guys installed windows from a usb? I'm a bit concerned about the usb 3.0 , it may cause problems before installing the drivers, no idea.
    Cheers
     
  44. gixer2000

    gixer2000 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    47
    Messages:
    151
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    USB3.0 is native in widows 8 so if your running windows 8 then it shouldn't be a problem. Windows 7 I have no idea about
     
  45. rugbierleon

    rugbierleon Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    6
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Finally installed W7 professional from a USB drive in one of the USB3.0 ports. No problem at all. I just had to change the boot parameter "legacy" in BIOS to allow the system boot from a usb device.

    It works great with my old ssd "ocz vertex II", much better than out of the box
     
  46. gixer2000

    gixer2000 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    47
    Messages:
    151
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    Good to hear you got it figured out. I'm waiting for my 128gb mSATA SSD to arrive so I can put my OS on that and use my 1TB as storage.
     
  47. jmsmuy

    jmsmuy Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    45
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15

    I did exactly that, and it's the best choice i have ever made (computer related of course :rolleyes:)
     
  48. gixer2000

    gixer2000 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    47
    Messages:
    151
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    My mSATA arrived today and I just finished setting mine up. So far it's awesome
     
  49. gixer2000

    gixer2000 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    47
    Messages:
    151
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    Does anyone know of any way to get better performance out of the graphics card? I ran a windows eperience index just to see what it looked like and the intel hd4000/amd radeon 7730m scored a 4.9. I know before I reinstalled windows 8 that it scored higher but can't figure out what needs to be changed to make it a little better. graphics card score.PNG
     
  50. thisjustanother

    thisjustanother Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    2
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    i just got the 15r se 7520 laptop model. loving it so far, updated some files and such from the dell website. one thing im wondering is, with the bloatware, what is and isnt safe to uninstall. i wish i could go through all 100 pages on this forum about this, but dont have the time lol.
     
← Previous pageNext page →