Ekard: Sorry to hear you're having problems with your notebook. If you would like to hear from someone in support, please send me another comment with a way for us to contact you.

Thanks.

While I am excited by these new offerings, I must admit that I am concerned by them as well. The reason may be slightly off-topic but I wanted to voice it nonetheless: Where is the OS choice?

Lately it seems like Dell has been working towards providing the customer with more options of OS, with a very brief Vista-push-back-to-XP followed by a limited selection of Ubuntu offerings. By unveiling new machines that only run Vista, Dell is sending an uncertain message to its customers. In the past year I have purchased 3 new laptops from Dell, and because I wanted to show support for Dell's drive for Ubuntu I have been budgeting to purchase a 4th -- to "put my money where my mouth is".

However, this leaves me in a dilemma: I do not want to purchase a computer that is already obsolete simply because it has Linux preloaded. (Of course, every computer is obsoleted every month or so anyways, but these will be even more so.) To show a more obviously genuine interest in your customer's choice for OS, what steps are you taking for these new computers to be purchasable sans Vista?

A few things I'd like to see in the months ahead with these inspirons:

1. Nvidia 8700m GT, that's 8700m GT. A step up from the 8600m GT

2. HDMI port

3. Choice of black keyboard.

4. 7200 RPM HD(s)

I'm waiting for at least 1,2,&4 before buying 2 1720 models.

 Docking port would be nice also.

Fantastic new machines, but very hard to order today!  The website keeps sending me back to the beginning of the build process and is moving pretty slowly.

 My question is this:  On the new Inspiron 1420 and 1520, I have selected the required options, yet the blu-ray drive is not available at the optical drive selection screen . . . Does the dvd-rw drive have blu-ray support that is not listed?

Hi.  I will likely be purchasing a 1520 in the next couple weeks as I get ready to start law school.  I noticed that the battery screen no longer offers the options of purchasing additional batteries.  I would really like to be able to order two 9 cell batteries with my notebook like you used to be able to do.  This option also exists on the brand new M1330 which it makes it a little more bizarre as to why its not included for the 1520.  Also, do you know if the 9 cell battery alters the dimensions of the notebook, or is it the same size as the other batteries?  Thanks.

Some great new offerings all around. ^.^

 I can't wait until I get a job(Still in high school, but I'll be a senior this coming school year) so I can afford a new laptop(Currently using an Inspiron 8100 my dad gave me because it wasn't needed at his office anymore).

 Also, I would like to note that there is a new desktop system being offered with Ubuntu pre-installed(Don't know if you announced it yet, I haven't been keeping up). It's a gaming system.

 Concerned: I don't really get where you're coming from... I mean, I don't think a computer would be obsolete just because it has Linux pre-loaded. It may have some draw-backs but only because there(according to the manufacturers and programmers) isn't enough interest in Linux or enough people using it. They do have a point, but people aren't going to just get interested in Linux, they need to do their part as well.

 Anyway, it's great that Dell's offing Linux PCs now. I, myself, would like to see operating systems go back to when they were just a front end to something like DOS. I mean, there are still some features that are nice, but the OS itself doesn't need to do all the stuff that it does. It should be, in my mind, the most basic piece of software on the computer. And it should be the software that is on the OS that does the advanced stuff.

That's just my opinion though. ^.^



 

@ Mohammed Tahir Taj, these laptops are available on the UK website at the time of writing*.

Unlike any Linux based Dells.  I still fail to understand why a new product range like this can be launched internationally complete with song-and-dance launch events, but an operating system choice has to be hidden away on the website and made only available to the US (and on two older laptops).

*except the US gets "flamingo pink" and we have "bubblegum pink".  Weird, I would have thought bubblegum pink was more of a US thing, and flamingos are native to Europe, but not North America. The Spanish also have "rosa chicle" - gum pink.   Go figure.

ps I agree with Blue about bluetooth.  How come every mobile has it but no laptops?

Oh my. The 1520 Is Mine. Nobody Else can Have It.

Or maybe a 1330. Will it Geta 8400GT?
 

The new Inspiron notebooks are near perfect, except for one glaring flaw.  No DVI!  The 1705 has it, but it's replacement, the 1720 dosen't.

I would have bought a 1720 yesterday if it had DVI.  I'm going to be connecting my notebook to an external monitor for 8 hours a day, and I want to make sure it looks it's best.  I just don't want to settle for a VGA connection when I've been using DVI for years.

I wonder how on Earth Dell overlooked this one critical feature, when everything else about these systems looks so solid? 

When is an updated version of the XPS1710 due?

It'slooking very dated relative to the others in the line right now. 

Blue said:

Avid Reader... Rock on. Thanks for answering Blue's question for me. Glad you like the blog. If you have any ideas on how we can make it even more useful, drop me an e-mail here.

Thanks again! 

Wow, I just asked for color options at the tablet pc thread on the 25th, and on the 26th, Dell announces color options!  This is like fast food. :)  In fact, pretty much all my requests have been answered, except the tablet part.  I'm in love with the M1330, it has everything I need . . If there was just a tablet version with the same config, even if it was a few $100s more, I'd be ordering right now.  Otherwise, my 4 year old laptop is still surfing the net fine. :)

Team Dell, thanks for listening to us, this is definitely a great first step in the right direction.  So XPS tablet = 2009?  Is it too early to request Montevina and Vienna? ;)

P.S. Heh, I can see another guy explain the new laptops in the background window.  Very busy day at Dell.

Kevin: I wish it were as easy as you describe. :)

Glad to see you like the M1330... can't say much about the Tablet PC at this point, but it will be here well before 2009. I'll blog about it when we're ready to share the details. 

Mr. Menchaca,

 While I have your attention... The new XPS notebooks... Summer or fall?

TIA.

i would like to re-iterate what Ben said: ...is there any info you can provide about these comments?

Ben Jesuit said:

It would be very nice (read: necessary) if your new Inspirons, had HDMI ports on them and also, in the 1720's case, 7200rpm hard drives.

Another feature that I would like to see is a 512MB RAM Graphics card that does not cost an arm and a leg to get.

Other than that, they look good, add those and keep the price comparable to the competition and they will be a winner. 

Whwn will Windows XP be available?  If you don't know or can't say then just tell us that.  This blog is getting redicuous that only select questions are picked for answering.  The XP question has come up by several different posters in this thread and other threads and you are not answering any of them, as if completely avoiding the XP question.

Frankly, I don't understand why people get all excited about color choice. Remember the ill-fated colour inserts that Dell tried to sell for palm rests on the Inspiron 8000?

Color is no substitute for reliability. At the end of the day, if the machine is not reliable, it does not matter what color it is.

Here's hoping that the new models (which are noticeably absent from the Small Business category) are more reliable than their predecessors.

@jeffro & @ben jesuit

 as far as #4. 7200 RPM HD(s), Dell is offering 160 GB 7200RPM SATA HDD drives on the 1420 and the 1520.

No idea why its not being offered on the 1720...hmm

Hi,

I am planning to buy 1520 within one or two weeks. Any reviews available about the product?

I agree with lots of posts out here. Why only vista as os.. not even Vista ultimate!!!!!

Any reports about rigidness of the laptop ? That is one of my major criteria.

Lionel Menchaca - I didn't expect anyone to respond to my smiley-infested dream computer post, so thanks!  I really like the idea of this blog, I used to send my opinions through Dell surveys but they seemed ignored.  Heck, they're *still* recommending Windows XP on the O/S video learn more up here in Dell Canada. :)

I always figured making a tablet was as easy as adding a swivel to the LCD base and changing the screen, but eh, I'm not a computer engineer.  I am, however, a teacher-in-training who hates having to close and open my laptop every time I bring it to class.  I think that's how I broke the LCD hinges on my current one.  At the same time, I still want to have fun with my laptop but a lot of tablets out right now are professional-oriented without much power.  So I think Dell could really lead the way with an XPS multimedia tablet. :)

These Inspirons don't seem to come with Turbo Memory? I thought that was part of the advantage of Santa Rosa?

Is it easy to add Turbo Memory later, or wait for the next model... ?

 

I agree with most of the comments made in this blog. Dell has taken the right step but has missed out some essential parts for example, there is no HDMI port which i was shocked because if you look at other laptop firms such as Sony they have HDMI port on their FZ series which is similar to the Inspiron. Another mistake is Dell has not given the freedom to choose different operating system except the default windows vista home premium. i would prefer a selection of operating system especially windows xp professional which is the one i am currently or Windows vista ultimate or even ubuntu.

I hope dell can rectify these problems because as i need a new laptop i am thinking of the dell inspiron 1520 but to choose the operating system of my choice not a default. If we ring to the sales can they give us a choice of what operating system we want on the system?

Finally a question that arose many times in other websites...is the new inspiron made from plastic just like the 6000 and 6400 or is made from the same magnesium alloy as the Latitude or the Precision range? can someone in dell clarify this for me...it would be really helpful because that is one of the reason of purchasing a laptop.

I'm definitely interested in the Inspiron 1420, but it doesn't seem available here in Europe at the moment (only its biggest brothers with 15" and 17" screens are). Why? Will it arrive at a later date or am I just out of luck?

Well, if it will become available here, I will buy one for sure.

With all the talk of new systems and with individuals on various forums talking about the various discounts that they receive (students, business, education, government, etc.).  Is there a discount for AARP members.

Hi I strongly second the need for DVI /HDMI !

totally unacceptable to have only an vga-out on a e.g. 1920x1200 screen.

7200 rmp HD's can be 3rd party, hdmi is kina hard...

i would have bought an 1720 yesterday but not without HDMI

 ....

alex


 

Where is the OS Choice?

I would have bought a 1521 the day it came out, but I'm waiting for it to be offered with XP.

Will the 1520/1521 support hardware virtualization/paravirtualization (Intel VT or AMD Pacifica) in the BIOS?  Can it be enabled?  This is a critical capability for my next purchase.

Thanks in advance!

Who is the manufacturer of the 256 MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT Video card, an optional upgrade on the 1720? I've searched and looked over reviews, it appears several companies make these. Unable to locate anything further on the Dell site.

Thanks

Please comment on when Windows XP will be available.  There are at lease a half dozen posts on this page and you haven't given any update.  Since you are moderating these comments, you must be reading them.  Choosing to ignore the XP question altogether makes it seem like you don't care.  Please update us!

Thanks for adding the option to get two 9 cell batteries on the 1520!  Now could you just add the same option when you buy it through Dell University?  I don't mean to complain, but sometimes its a bit frustrating when the options are different for the same product when you customize through differed parts of the website.  Thanks in advance!

I live in Canada, am an experienced PC/Windows user (using many apps other than IE and Office) and have 3 issues...

(1) OS Choice - Windows XP optioon for the new Inspiron notebooks is a must. I did order a 640m six weeks ago, both because of great reviews and because I had the option of Windows XP.

(2) LCD Delay - I canceled my 640m order today because of repeated manufacturing delays regarding the LCD, plus there was no updates from Dell unless I wasted my time listening to musak waiting for a CS rep. Now, I suspect the same LCD-related production delay applies to the new Inspirons as well. I walked through an order process for a (potential) 1420 but both LCD options (XGA and WXGA) show the same warning about production delay. Very discouraging. I guess I just can't own a 1420 within 2 weeks.

(3) RAM - How can Dell force Vista on the customers while offering a basic configuration of only 1GB of RAM? Simply irresponsible! Vista occupies 512MB just to be in the mouse-tracking loop, and won't be productive with 1GB of RAM.

- Will the 1520 be available with NON-Reflective (TrueLife) screen?

- Why is there no option to buy a spare power supply??

I'm in Australia, and I like the new features in the 1520 & 1720, however I don't understand why Dell have chosen to not make Vista Ultimate available on these models.  Can someone from Dell please explain this (my account manager can't)?

As a business user, I want Ultimate primarily for the security (Bitlocker) and a bit for the multimedia features which some users require and which aren't in the Vista Business. Also, for some reason the option has been removed to purchase a second power pack.  I could do this with the 6400. Why doesn't Dell want me buying an extra power pack?

About a month ago, I got a 6400 with Vista Ultimate, 256MB graphics card and extra power pack, but can't get the equivalent config now.  I wish I could.

Any possibility of additional colors?

I really would like an orange one...

I currently have the Inspiron 1705 with the NVidia 7900GS video option. From what I understand the new 8600 GT chip is actually a downgrade.

When will dell offer the Nvidia 8700 (with DVI )or higher video solution on the Inspiron or XPS line?

I will buy immediately when this becomes available.

 

Don't know if other people are experiencing this but on Dell.ca (in Canada) the options offered on the new inspirons seem to be changing every day. At first Bluetooth wasn't offered (see Blue's comment) and customer service at first said it "wasn't offered" but eventually a useful agent explained that the chip must be backordered and will eventually be available. Then Bluetooth comes back and now Vista Ultimate is gone and customer service says "its not offered on this machine" without an answer as to why it was offered a day ago!?!? Shouldn't they know this in order to provide good service. I was basically called a liar.

While I love the ability to build my own notebook at Dell, it is very frustrating to have a moving target as you evaluate the options available..not to mention the unknowledgeable customer service people.

If anyone out there has an explanation and a good reason for me to come back tomorrow to see what options are added or removed, let me know.

I currently have the Inspiron 1705 with the NVidia 7900GS video option. From what I understand the new 8600 GT chip is actually a downgrade.

When will dell offer the Nvidia 8700 (with DVI )or higher video solution on the Inspiron or XPS line?

I will buy immediately when this becomes available.

Where is the DVI port on the inspiron 1520 (1720 too has no DVI connector)? You get analog out of any dvi-i port but no digital out of an analog port. Was it the costly DVI->VGA adapter (which would have to be put into the box) that brought you away of a DVI port built-in?

If the 1520 had a DVI connector to hook up my 20" Dell TFT it would be more than near perfect for me...

Then a LED backlit display @ 1680x1050 and it would be perfect :)

I just ordered an inspiron 1720 with the DELL standard 160GB 5400 rpm HD.

I am buying a seagate Momentum 7200.2 300 ASG of 160GB and clone the DELL disk to my new one and use the original DELL disk as the secondairy internal backup disk. That way I have two internal disks, one 7200 rpm for production and one 5400 rpm for backup. Nice and easy.

And, cheaper than if I would have bougt it like that from DELL, which you cannot do now.

Problem solved.

I have just called someone from DELL support and asked her what 7200 rpm harddisk is supported in the Inspiron 1720. She told me that their information states that both 5400 rpm and 7200 rpm HD are supported and that there is even a 5400 rpm Phyton disk available. When I asked her for the partnumber so I could order it from DELL, she -to her amaze- could not find the partnumber.

I told het that if she could verify that the 1720 supports the seagate momentus 7200.2 model ST9160823ASG which I intend to buy and put in the 1720 in order to replace the standard DELL 5400. She will check and come back with an answer day after tomorrow.

Also, she will check if the 1720 motherboard will support the SATA2 burst mode of 3Gb that the Seagate disk offers.

Furthermore, I asked her to let me know what 7200 rpm disks DELL advises/sells for the 1720, and when they will become available so I can order them from DELL, in case no 3rd party disks are supported. 

So, all in all, I am curious what answers I will be given. I'll keep you all posted.

Dear  Lionel Menchaca, Digital Media Manager,

 My Inspiron 1520 just arrived!I'm quite happy with it but there are still some features needed to be improved. The weight, no option for choosing os and hdmi port is not in this laptop. I have another problem which is the 2 MP integrated camera is not functioning. I believe is the drivers problem. It's not shown in device manager and when I try to install it, error occured. I try to contact dell with my service tag but they said my service tag is not in their database...Gosh...I really need your help here. Thank you.

Why no XP option for the 1520 or 1720?  Vista has proven to be buggy, unstable, plagued with driver issues, and 10-30% slower in DX9 games. I can site numerous review websites that trumpet these proven experiences with this OS - HardOCP, Tom's Hardware, and Legit Reviews to name a few. Like many many PC users and IT professionals, I am waiting for at least the 1st or 2nd service pack for Vista to embrace it. This is a year or so away.  That leaves me the option to NOT purchase products that only have Vista as an option. I realize their may be legal or logistic or assembly line issues for only having 1 OS (on preloaded Hard Drives?), but this choice is costing DELL at least one sale as I am indeed in the market for a Laptop and would buy one of these today if they offered XP MCE or PRO as an option.

As a result, I am forced to use a competitor that does offer XP in essentially an indenticle product - Santa Rosa, 8600m GT, etc.

Which is unfortunately sad as I have always enjoyed the service and prior customability of Dell products. 

Cheers!

Ted

I agree with Ben Jesuit 100%.

The only must-haves holding me back from purchasing either an Inspiron or XPS laptop today are...

Just got a call back from DELL support:

The reason no 7200 rpm disks are currently offered are because of pure logistic reasons. 3rd party 7200 rpm disks are supported, so I will order one (the seagate momentus 7200.2 model ST9160823ASG) from another supplier than DELL. SATA 2 is supported.

Rgrds,

Kees 

In the UK, don't bother ordering a 1720 if you want it within a month.

When I ordered, I was told to expect delivery within a couple of weeks, now they put it back another month. 

I paid over £100 for shipping - now they offer that for free.

Dell, why do you hate your regular business customers so much?

 

What the heck was Dell thinking not including DVI...?   This is a step backwards.

I work for a software company and most of us have inspirons (lots of 9300 and 9400's).   All of our people have separate 20" Dell LCDs which we use as a second display.

I'd really like to pick up a few of these new 1720's, but there's no way I'd buy one without DVI, because the analog signal looks like crap on these LCDs.

 

1) The lack of Vista Ultimate is baffling to me. It cannot be that hard to add it as an option. I really like the new Inspiron line (specifically the 15.4" 1520s) But I just won't purchase a new laptop if it doesn't have at least business or, preferably, ultimate. Reasons include networking capabilities, security, and feature set. What gives Dell? Give us our options!

2) Ouch. The $700 option cost for the blu-ray drive seems a bit steep to me. I think they'd have a bunch more sales of the option if they could bring it down to say $499. The unit cost can't be THAT high, that they need to charge $700. It has to be dissuading a lot of people from selecting the option. The $499 is great, because it is right beneath the psychological barrier of 'I'm not going to pay $500 for x!"

 3) Why no option of a T7700? Sony has it.

4) The whole emphasis on 'hd screen' seems gimmicky to me. Laptops have had 'hd screens' for quite some time now, strictly in resolution terms. I know Dell is speaking to the new capabilities to play the hd formats, but still ...

 In general, I'm pretty excited about this new line. I'll watch its evolution over the next month or two in terms of what options / pricing arise. I think the current hard-drive promotion is great (and it's nice to see a 7400rpm 160gb drive - this beats 90% of the hard drives offered by dell's competitors). I like the video cards offered.

 If the blu-ray price drops a bit, and I could put on vista ultimate, I'll probably be buying one sometime this year.

Windows XP on Inspiron 1x20s!

I've had my notebook for a few mnths now and between upgrades and such it's now fully spec'd out.....Dell XPX 1710, 160gb 7,200hd, 4gb Ram, Nvidia 7950gtx, 2.33ghz T7600g with BluyRay drive. And I've Vista Ultimate on it.  It's wicked......I couldn't be happier with the performance playing games and movies. Everything turned up to max and the 17" is perfect.

I've had a sneak preview of the new XPS 1730, it has the Nvidia 8700m GT 256mb card and would you believe it a raid also. Can take 2 Sata's which I think is excellent plus a HDMI port...standard VGA port is gone and it also has only 4 usb ports. It looks great with the lit keyboard but I wouldn't be changing my graphics for the 8700m GT as it's just not up to much really. The 7950gtx is everybit as good and better for most games and anyways if it's gaming your into DX9 will be around for quite a while yet...... best wait for the 8800gtx out next year.

To buy an inspiron 1720 in Belgium i would pay 500 € more than the same configuration in France, what a good marketing !!! Dell France do'nt deliver computer in Belgium of course, you need an adresse in France !!!

STOP BEING A BEDFELLOW OF MICROSOFT.

Please put on a 8700GT with 512MB!

 I was very interested in the 1520 with the 1680x1050 display, but the specs on that display are poor -- it's the worst of Dell's offerings with the lowest contrast ratio (300:1) and the lowest brightness (only 200 nits).

 The 1720 has a killer display at 1900x1200 but that's over 2Meg-pixels and a little 8600GT with 256MB is going to have a difficult time driving that display.

 I think a 1720 with 1900x1200 with an 8700GT 512MB would rock.

 

Dell said they are refunding my postage of £100+ which is good. Although they are offering free postage on most in UK now anyway.

Hopefully one day soon I will get use my new notebooks. 

Why the heck don't they let you get Windows XP? I am actually getting 3 systems, all 3 of which will be wiped and have Windows XP installed.

A friend of mine bought a Toshiba laptop with Vista - we installed XP only to then find they don't have ANY drivers for XP. Now he has a useless brick. At least Dell have the drivers.
 

Supply the XP drivers for the 1x20s and I'll take care of the rest. I have licenses for both XP Home and Pro. 

Sorry to hear your story, Matt. I knew it already: delays, delays, delays. Dell is hyping up their its new lines without having the production capacities to meet demands.

. . . In the U.S., second-quarter shipments rose 7.2 percent according to IDC and 5.9 percent according to Gartner, helped by aggressive competition and demand for laptops. Desktop shipments continued to decline.

The introduction over the winter of Windows Vista, Microsoft Corp.'s latest operating system, had minimal effect on demand, Gartner said.

Hewlett-Packard Co. kept its position as the world's largest maker of PCs and extended its lead over Dell Inc., which was the largest until late last year. IDC put HP's worldwide market share at 19.3 percent, while Gartner had it at 18.2 percent, while the firms put Dell at 15 percent to 16.1 percent respectively.

So... Do you want to sell more and more laptops, or do you want to suck up to Redmond? For goodness sake, even the new name "Vostro" sounds too close to "Vista" to be decent.

The UAC, in its typical disruptive manner, keeps asking, "Do you really want to install Windows Vista now?"

I'm being such a fanboy here, but, what the hell:

 :) Dell just added the option of Vista Business on the Inspiron 1520! :)

Can Ultimate be far away? I will keep on watching - I, sadly, mean this in a literal day-to-day checking the website sense - hoping. Don't stop here Dell! Give us our options! You will be rewarded with our (or, to speak only for myself, "my") purchasing power.

 Keep up the additions / tweaks. Drop the Blu-ray option price! Add in Ultimate. Soak up additional revenue by offering the T7700 (hell, charge a boatload for it - enthusiasts will pay for it, that's basic profit maximization from micro 101) Give the poor souls still enamored with XP their option! :)

please....im begging you....

let me choose xp... 

 or at least provide the drivers for it and i will do all the work myself...

Hi,

I am an Indian guy, currently in Korea. I am planning to buy Inspiron 1520 laptop from korea. Can I get windows vista and other softwares and manuals loaded in english language instead of korean language. Secondly the warranty that I will get will be local or international warranty.

Hello,

I received my Dell Inspiron 1721 this week.  I, like many others here, have a requirement to support Windows XP.  There are many applications which will not run on Windows Vista yet so people like myself must support XP.

I went ahead and wiped the system and installed Windows XP.  Now that I can't get proper drivers, I am going to have to give this system to my customer with their applications working properly but without many of the system features including the video driver or sound driver.

Not supplying the Windows XP drivers for a new system when people cannot upgrade to Windows Vista is really bad business.

Please supply the Windows XP drivers for all new systems at least until Windows Vista has been out for several years.

 -Kyle

The Dell salesperson indicated to me today that the reason behind the NO XP option is that Intel won't allow it, which would support the theory that MS has coerced intel into forcing OEMs to sell their "santa rosa" products with Vista.  All of the computers left with an XP option are napa-based, however I have seen a couple santa rosa systems being sold with XP as "vista-ready"

As for Dell's role, not much they can do about it. Obviously the people who HAVE to have XP are a fringe group to them (they have probably all posted here) and won't affect their bottom line much.

So good luck everyone getting all of those legacy vista drivers that you will need, because it looks like companies are starting to lag on XP drivers for current hardware.

I ordered a 1520 system July 8 th

Delivery estimate was 7- 10 days at time of order. Web says delivery estimate July 23 . Calls to Dell customer reps have delivery estimates of July 27 to August 22... I need the PC for school mid August even that is really late. I cannot wait so long.

Dells customer reps should be telling people before they purchase that delays are so long, then I could have decided to wait or buy elsewhere. Now I have waited this long and the delivery date keeps getting longer.

NO ONE seems to want to commit to any kind of real delivery estimate. I used to tell people how good Dell was now I'm getting totally turned off of Dell and wish I could turn the clock back to July 8 with the delay knowledge I have now.

Does Dell have an Ombudsman I can talk to about my complaint?.....Thanks Mike

btw:

If my 1520 order is delayed because of some component(s) why can't they talk to me and maybe we can substitue and get it done quicker? That way I can decide to wait or substitue.

eg. if it's the screen, I can probably live with a different one......Mike

I'm another one who is going to have to pass if no XP option is available.  Not for myself -- I'd probably run Linux -- but for my mother, my father, and any other close friend or family member who asks me what to buy.  And they all ask me what to buy.

My mom is ready to buy today, and my dad will be within the next six months.  I don't use Vista myself, and I can't support family members or friends on an OS I do not use.

Dell needs to figure out some kind of option.  If I absolutely have to buy XP separately for each of them, I will -- but I need drivers!

I've been happy with Dell and I hate to go in another direction, but I surely will if Dell gives me no choice in the matter.

Windows XP drivers for Inspiron 1520:

-- Go to www.dell.com. Click on "Support" tab.

-- Click on "Drivers and Downloads" under "Option 1: Most Popular Selections".

-- Click on "Select Model" green button.

-- Select "Notebooks", ... blah blah..., to get to Inspiron 1520. Choose "Windows XP". Click on "Find Downloads".

-- There are 21 items to download, including "important" stuff like SATA, Wireless Communications and Video Adapter.
 

Go at it, folks (especially Kyle above). I found them, but don't know if they are for real or complete (like most people, I'm still waiting and waiting and waiting for some delivery date in the far future). Let us know how things work out.

Hello Dell,

 why no DVI support on the Inspiron 1520 ?

Dell,

 Please make the 160GB hard drive at 7200RPM available for the Inspiron 1720!!!!! Please tell me when you can do that.

I'm trying to replace my Inspiron 8500 with a new high spec laptop, but am rather reluctant to buy another Dell for several reasons (listed as gripes below).

A dream laptop (ie. that I would part with hard earned money for) =  Core 2 Duo, 2.0+ GHz, 2GB DDR Ram, 256MB or 512MB ATI Raedon graphics card (NOT SHARED), 100+ GB HDD, 17" widescreen high resolution (WUXGA) MATTE screen (can easily live with 15.4"), Wireless N networking, bluetooth, AC adapter (with NO recognition software), external keyboard with built-in USB port. 

GRIPES listed below here (so you can stop reading if you want)

The number one gripe is the horrendous glossy screens that appear to be standard accross the industry nowdays. These are absolutely awful to work with because of massive amounts of glare and reflections (It's like being back in the eighties when PC monitors had shiny glass screens). Marketing these as anti-reflective is simply deceptive. Although this problem is not exclusive to Dell and I can't consider any laptop from LG, Fujitsu, Sony, Asus or Acer for this reason. People who use their laptops for computing all day rather than as an expensive mobile DVD player DON'T WANT HIGH GLARE SCREENS !!

Gripe number 2 is the nVidia based graphics cards that seem to be in every high end laptop. These brand cards DON'T fully support the OpenGL graphics libraries even though they claim to and despite some being marketed as OpenGL cards, THEY ARE NOT. We use OpenGL libraries a lot in our programming and to get things displaying correctly on an nVidia based card you have to disable all of the graphics hardware (which negates the point of having a graphics accellerator in the first place) or you have to draw everything twice just to be sure it will appear on screen = awful frame rates.

The 3rd gripe is the Dell AC adapters that from experience are totally unreliable due to the adapter recognition software that is built into them. This recognition system usually fails after 12 months and as a consequence renders the battery completely unrechargeable and steps Pentium based processors down to their lowest operating speed (I'm on my 3rd adapter in 4 years). It would be much more useful if an unrecognised Dell adapter would still recharge the battery albeit whilst the machine is turned off rather than prevent recharging at all.

Whilst I want a PC based laptop, I'm currently leaning towards a MacBook Pro and running it under Windows XP Pro, mainly because of the nice matte screen (big plus), nice design (not all work laptops should look like boring bricks), but I am hesitating because of the nVidia graphics card (big negative). If it came with an ATI Raedon option I'd buy it today.

Hey folks, Do you think the long delays are applicable to the Inspiron 1x20s alone? Go look at the customer gripes about the XPS M1330 and other Dell products. Big hypes across the board, and no delivery. Extremely pathetic.

Disappointed before my Dell Inspiron 1420 even arrives

I placed an order for a Dell Inspiron 1420 on 12 July, believing that Dell was trying to produce a more versatile product at a reasonable price. I was very excited as I placed my order online and eagerly anticipated receiving my first laptop. Well, it is now 31 July and I am still waiting. After several hours with "customer support", and having gone through 4 or 5 departments and maybe 7 people I have still not received any options as to what I can do to expedite my order. I am told the part causing the delay is the LCD monitor, but I have not been given any alternative other than to wait yet another week for my laptop to be shipped (6 August). That's a whopping 3 and a hallf weeks after I placed my order. I will only get it another 3-5 days after that, so I would end up having to wait 1 month for a simple laptop to be delivered. And Dell's response? Sorry, not our problem and you can cancel and re-order your laptop if you want. What?!? If I do go ahead and cancel my order and have to wait again for a laptop, I will certainly not choose Dell and would rather pay a little more and go with a ThinkPad, HP or even Apple. I have been told by the Order Modification group that because I ordered through the Educational group that they do could not handle any request to change the LCD to something that would ship faster. Yet this is the group that the customer support and post sales support say I must contact. A word of caution to Dell. If you do not look after and support the students of today who will be the business leaders of tomorrow, you will not only reduce the number of students buying your product, but also the number of businesses tomorrow. I am a patient person and will try and give Dell the chance to do the right thing, but my patience and opinion of Dell is wearing thin.

XP Drivers.

I have a licence for XP pro and was planning on installing it to my new 1721 and found that there are no xp drivers avil.  WHY is this.  VISTA Still has a crap load of issues minus the huge system requirements it has.  The same system running on XP wld run 3 times better then with VISTA just from OS system load alone.  

Please Offer the XP driver set for the 1X20 and 1x21 series Inspiron's.  I can totally understand and respect not selling the sysetms with xp pre loaded but give us customers a choice of which os we want to use in the end.   

I ordered an Inspiron 1720 on July 10 and was given August 09 as delivery date. OK, not fast as lightning but acceptable. Now they advise me that delivery has been pushed back to September 14, more than two months after my order.

Is there anyone with similar experience? What are the reasons given for these extraordinary delays?

 Thanks in advance.

I ordered a 1520 on 7/11 and my ship date just got pushed to 8/28. I was told the color of my order (midnight blue) was delayed.

Can someone explain to me why this is happening?! It is quite rediculous.

OK GUYS.  Do some net searches.  I have found the drivers for win xp (32)  all so far but the BCM2045 ( Bluetooth) and the Modem drivers for win xp.  Everything  else i have been able to find ...

You may want to note that the ATI express x1270 is actually labled on dells site as AMD Express x1270 ATI does not have drivers themselves for this chip avl as of yet. 

if anyone has the Bluetooth Drivers for xp or the Modem that wld be excelent Otherwise i have made this 1721 XP comptatable.  ( WIRELESS TOO )  just took 2 days to do it.

I will check this thread over the course of the next few weeks if anyone comes across the bluetooth or modem drivers drop a note / link here if you need links for the drivers i used drop a note and i will be glad to link them all .

JKSJ 

Absolutely pathetic. Production and delivery are all screwed up. Dell has been intentionally misleading the customers.

The following is from a Sr. VP at Dell regarding the XPS M1330. I find that it is full of hot air -- and late in coming. I can imagine the same "problems" apply to the Inspiron 1x20(1)'s, but I can't help asking myself why a similar "explanation" is not expressly given for the Inspirons. Anyway, if you have ordered a colorful Inspiron for school in September, you may want to cancel the order and go get a laptop somewhere else.

XPS M1330: What's Going On?

Alex Gruzen, Sr. VP—Consumer Product Group

... we have found the production ramp more difficult than we expected -- let me take a few minutes to explain the process. Before we begin shipping products to customers, we build a sizeable number of units to test our manufacturing process and to help flush out any issues that may impact our ability to build in volume. These test builds are a fraction of what we expect to build at full production. Once we start building a larger number of units, we may see issues that pop up in only one or two of them, but which require larger volumes to reveal themselves.  Since it's hard to tell if the issue is an isolated one or if it will affect a large number of units down the road, we investigate each one thoroughly. When that happens, it slows our build process.  

One example of this is the painting process. Right now, Tuxedo Black is the only color that is consistently meeting our quality standards. That's one reason why some customers are getting their orders before others. The finish on the XPS  M1330 is similar to a custom paint job on a car, but with one additional complexity -- on a car, typical viewing occurs from several feet away. With a notebook, the typical viewing range is much closer... sometimes a foot or less. This requires a different level of attention to detail.  Why do I bring that up? There was no problem painting hundreds at a time.  But as we increased the volume, otherwise manageable factors like dust contamination caused our successful yields to decrease.  Adding to the complexity, the Crimson Red and the Pearl White colors require more coats of paint and more touches to create the finished product -- that means there is more opportunity for dust contamination.

All this ultimately results in fewer finished parts from the paint line than we expected.  You may have noticed on Dell.com yesterday we discontinued the Pearl White color. The reason is that we are just not able to produce the kind of volumes of high quality produc