XPS M1530 from Dell USA

Seifer

Laptops will be mandatory for my college course from next year so I've been looking into getting one. I'll be going to the US towards the end of June so I'm thinking of ordering it from Dell US and picking it up from a family friend while over there.
The model I was looking at is: XPS M1530
It should be more than adequate for college and capable of playing games for a good bit into the future.
What are people's opinion's on monitor size? I've been hearing from friends with 17" that they find them really heavy to lug around. Anyone think 15" is too small?
Also I was thinking of seeing if I could get the machine sans-Vista and just install xp using a copy I have? Any feed back on that idea?
I read the sticky about buying from the US. Is the only thing I have to take into accout, getting an adapter for the charger?
More questions to follow I'm sure

Voodu Child

Have you compared prices?

I haven't, but with the EPP and frequent 10% discounts that we get over here, I think you might be surprised at the difference. Dells prices in Ireland are pretty competitive.

Also read up on the warranty. Afaik, only the most expensive (3 year) warranty option is fully international.

Seifer

voodoo_child wrote:

Have you compared prices?

I haven't, but with the EPP and frequent 10% discounts that we get over here, I think you might be surprised at the difference. Dells prices in Ireland are pretty competitive.

The price of nothing in Ireland is competitive. There are huge gaps in the prices. The model I linked is just under 1000 euro. You won't find anything close to the same specs for that on dell.ie.
The warranty on the above is 3 year but it doesn't say anything about international so I'll look into it.
To add to my questions, is it worth upgrading to a 9-cell battery?

red_ice

should get an acer, forget dell. Acers are a brilliant build with the same hardware, never fail and are much cheaper. Not only that, instead of dells 200 odd quid for the 3 years extended warrenty, its 40 quid with acer.

I've sold on the guts of 10 laptops to friends and family (0% profit) over the last 2 years and havnt gotten a single one back.

Seifer

Did a bit of Dell chatting and the warranty in the above model is international so that's good.
Beyond that though they won't do anything none US. Anyone have a US laptop, how do you find the keyboard?

Seifer

From the Acer site: link
Could you tell me which model range would be close to what I outlined in my original post?

Voodu Child

Seifer wrote: »

The price of nothing in Ireland is competitive. There are huge gaps in the prices. The model I linked is just under 1000 euro. You won't find anything close to the same specs for that on dell.ie

I just built a model on the Irish site with identical specs and a 3 year warranty for €989 inc shipping. (using aforementioned EPP and 10% discount).

The US model you linked is €949 at current exchange rates. That doesnt include sales tax. Which will probably make the prices equal (depending on state).

?

Seifer

Can you link the model? What is EPP?
Tax is 7% is the state I'll be in, so it adds about $105.

The_Conductor

I have the 15.4" version- its lovely.
I'd have no hesitation recommending.
You have to get it with Vista (but you can install whatever you want on it yourself- and drivers are available for everything).

Seriously recommend paying the extra for the souped up screen.

If I was buying again, irrespective of the extra weight, I would in fact buy the 17" model. I know its over 6Kg- and battery life is reduced- but when time comes to upgrade thats what I'm going to get.......

Dagon

voodoo_child wrote: »

I just built a model on the Irish site with identical specs and a 3 year warranty for €989 inc shipping. (using aforementioned EPP and 10% discount).

The US model you linked is €949 at current exchange rates. That doesnt include sales tax. Which will probably make the prices equal (depending on state).

?

I don't know how you managed to do that, because for me that model comes to around €1500 on the Irish site!

I did however find it for 500 less on ebay, using an English supplier:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Dell-XPS-M1530-2-4GHZ-4GB-320HD-3YR-WARRANTY-Laptop_W0QQitemZ350065507123QQihZ022QQcategoryZ177QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

C.D.

I've got a 1530 myself and I'd almost suggest getting the 1330 if you are going to be carrying it around all day. If you head up to your local PC World, you can have a look and get a feel for the sizes. Also be wary that the 9 cell battery protrudes a lot (so much so I ended up getting a 6 cell). Would definitely recommend getting the 1440 screen as opposed to the lower resolution screen.

Voodu Child

Dagon wrote: »

I don't know how you managed to do that, because for me that model comes to around €1500 on the Irish site!

Ive already said how I got the price that low. Twice EPP and 10% discount.

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a170/vairish/Untitled-6.jpg

You can't see it but the rest of the spec should be roughly the same as the one in the OP. Ive upgrade the screen, ram, etc. And added the 3 yrs warranty. Might have missed something, but you can see yourself that the price is going to be roughly the same as the US price. So, like I said, the Irish prices can be competitive if you shop around.

Edit- actually, 10% discount looks to be 15%? The code is in the Bargain alerts forum.

Seifer

For anyone still confused as to what EPP is: link
How do you or I know my company participates in this? I remain sceptical and can't see how this build can be achieved for a grand. My budget would only get a 6% discount from this. Doing some rough calculations, 1500 - 10% = 1350 - 6% = 1269 which is 1993 US dollars. Please link the build and not a grainy photo.
Good advice about heading up to PC World, will do.

Dagon

voodoo_child wrote: »

Ive already said how I got the price that low. Twice EPP and 10% discount.

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a170/vairish/Untitled-6.jpg

You can't see it but the rest of the spec should be roughly the same as the one in the OP. Ive upgrade the screen, ram, etc. And added the 3 yrs warranty. Might have missed something, but you can see yourself that the price is going to be roughly the same as the US price. So, like I said, the Irish prices can be competitive if you shop around.

Edit- actually, 10% discount looks to be 15%? The code is in the Bargain alerts forum.

Ah thanks mate - so this doesn't appear until you add to basket:)

Very good deal I reckon - has anyone seen any other laptops online for as good a price? No need to go to the US or UK with a deal like this...

Seifer

The model I linked originally, including tax is about 1040 euro. Using the Dell 15% code takes 1500 euro (which is what it costs to make an identical system on dell.ie) down to 1275 and then 6% EPP takes that down to 1198 euro.
Am I missing something or am I looking to save 150 euro~ by buying from the US?

I can drop 200 euro by not getting the 3-year warranty which would make it better to get in Ireland. Are the warranties worth it / needed?

odin_ie

I was lugging around a Dell Inspiron 5150 for 3 years of college. It was a 15.4 inch screen and weighed a good bit, but last summer, I traded in for an XPS M1330, and I have to say it is the best move I have made re computers ever. People will say that a 13 inch screen is too small, but I have to say for portability and functionality, it simply kicks ass!!! I carry the thing everywhere with me and do not even notice it. For college, it is quiet, compact and slim, perfect for going to lectures, or even usint in the library, and even the keyboard is a decent size, so essays are a doddle. I went and got a Microsoft Bluetooth mouse to give the proper desktop feel!!!

The screen is great quality too, and I can run pretty much anything I want to games wise too, and I work in a gaming cafe, so I have a nice selection to test out the graphics card with!!! I would recommend a 13.3 inch to people in college or on the move a lot as it is handy to carry around.

(hopefully dell send me a wad of cash after this :D)

In other news, I hear that they are talking about ending the XPS range as it is hurting Alienware, but that is another discussion!!!

Overheal

Dell likes using aluminum parts in their builds dont they? My Dad has a 15.4" that feels like 2 bricks. Me on the other hand, I bought a 15.4" from HP; theres a lot more plastic to it but is half the weight. Still, I wouldn't want to try and carry around a 17" laptop; at that size it won't fit into a bookbag and will need its own carrying case.

The other thing to consider there I have found is Deskspace. If you're using it mostly for study than you might actually want a 12" laptop, if you need a lot of other books and papers out.

A final note: the smaller you get, the less performance-vs-cost there is. Simply put the size of the laptop should match how important it is to your studies.

The adapter you need will be easy to get. In fact before your flight back from the US you can pick one up at the airport.

Seifer

It dawned on me that there are mostly likely discount codes for Dell USA as well, which there are. So I just have to wait for an xps relevant one to come out and it will be definitively cheaper.

Overheal

discount codes are easy to google for. theres a few sites that collect them for you.

Seifer

Dell USA has an EPP too but there you have to have a member ID. I managed to find one online Shriners (lol)
You think I'll be able to avail of the discount without any trouble?