Dell's XPS M1530 finally gets HD and LED backlit displays, just not at the same time

Got a hundred bucks to burn? Lucky you, 'cause that Benjamin will now take the stock 15.4-inch 1,440 x 900 display of Dell's XPS M1530 and squeeze in a full 1,920 x 1,200 pixel resolution. Toss in the optional $500 Blu-ray Disc drive and you've got yourself a sweet portable HD rig pumping Intel's Penryn at the core. Another $50 and you've added a presumably brighter, LED backlit display but you're now back to the original 1,440 x 900 resolution. Oh decisions, decisions.

[Thanks, Jonaid]

[kyle @ Apr 10th 2008 4:13AM]

1920x1200 on a 15" screen? that's crazy talk.

[cydonia @ Apr 10th 2008 4:46AM]

just be glad that you've never seen a 15" panel with 1920x1200. Makes you want to go blind after about an hour of internet browsing.

[Eh @ Apr 10th 2008 5:39AM]

Microscope not included.

[Rik @ Apr 10th 2008 7:27AM]

Actually I'm using it for half a year now (D830)... and even though you sometimes have to lean in a bit that disadvantage is more than compensated by the acres of desktop space you suddenly have...

Not to mention the ability to watch HD movies in native res :-) Ah yes... WUXGA is great, if only webpage designers and OS makers would tailor their systems to it a bit more...

[Jerome @ Apr 10th 2008 8:15AM]

Hey

I got my new laptop DELL D830 15,4inch screen with 1920x1200.

I have to agree that it is small.

I see problem surfing the web since everything is small, I sometime use ctrl +.

This summer I will be doing drawing, solidworks, PCB design ,etc. I should be happy :)

[foxdude0486 @ Apr 10th 2008 9:34AM]

I lub my d830's 1920x1200 display. With the quadro 140m video card, some games look really nice. :)

[Good_Bytes @ Apr 10th 2008 11:54AM]

You can increase the DPI in Windows... so texts and button etc.. are bigger (and higher resolution, not stupidly scaled)

[vdogg89 @ Apr 10th 2008 1:21PM]

i have 1680x1050 on my 15" lappy, and its making me blind. but dang i wish i had the higher res

[Deez @ Apr 10th 2008 4:26AM]

Wouldn't mind a blu-ray drive in the m1330. How would the battery be affected? I guess if I was to watch any BR through the hdmi, I would leave it charging anyway, so....ME WANT BR

[JP @ Apr 10th 2008 4:31AM]

Ah the irony. Shopping for a Dell from a Mac. (OK so admittedly Safari has the aqua radio buttons on Windows too.)

[TeddyLikesComputahs! @ Apr 10th 2008 4:35AM]

oh man, i thought this was the Dell's UMPC!

[roflercopterer @ Apr 10th 2008 4:55AM]

So will that be HD or "Full" HD?

[LostProphet @ Apr 10th 2008 4:58AM]

At least you get 1440x900 as standard, the only resolution I could get with mine (and still the only oen availible in the UK) is 1200x800 :(

[engadget @ Apr 10th 2008 8:10AM]

The higher res screens have been available in the UK for a while (1440x900 and 1680x1050) but they've taken them off again for the moment, supposedly whilst they rectify their supply issues. You can still grab machines with them from the dell outlet though.

[Michael Johnson @ Apr 10th 2008 5:04AM]

When will Dell put the x9000 chip in this laptop?

[Kevin @ Apr 10th 2008 5:05AM]

Super option .... You can get a laptop with an extreme screen upgrade, but they still will not let you have gigabit ethernet option even though it is relatively cheap just because their "marketing research" says nobody wants it.

[Andy Anonymous @ Apr 10th 2008 5:14AM]

Can someone please explain the appeal of glossy laptop screens? Unless you simply love ridiculous amounts of glare...

[Fred @ Apr 10th 2008 7:28AM]

Contrast appears to be greater on glossy screens, and it makes them look less grainy. All in all, they can make LCD look almost as good as CRT.

Apparently I'm crazy, but I prefer them to normal LCD screens.

[Jeff P. @ Apr 10th 2008 11:59AM]

I definitely prefer the glossy screen. On occasion I've got to use my laptop outside in the bright sun. With a glossy screen I can still make out the image. On my old laptop with a standard screen I couldn't see a dang thing. The screen would get so washed out that it was unusable. I've seen reviews that state just the opposite but I can tell you from experience that the glossy is way better. I prefer them for normal everyday use indoors as well. I find the screen appears a touch sharper and has better contrast.

[Blackster @ Apr 10th 2008 5:17AM]

no glossy screens for me please. they look like crap!

[akramuddin @ Apr 10th 2008 5:19AM]

hi
computer

HDD320

4GB

DVDrom

[francisco @ Apr 10th 2008 6:18AM]

Um one thing to point out. ALL LCD displays are HD. I hate how HD is tossed around.

[phaverkamp @ Apr 10th 2008 8:19AM]

Well yes a LCd that has a max res of 1280x1024 is HD but its not 1080p/1080i. Now take a Apple 30 in LCD which can do 2560 x 1600. Obviously much better than you average HD TV

[w00t @ Apr 10th 2008 7:40AM]

Of course, even the LCD screens on mobile phones are all full HD!

...Do you even know what HD is?

[phaverkamp @ Apr 10th 2008 8:20AM]

HD 1080p is 1920x1200 Show me a phone that has the res

[Trev @ Apr 10th 2008 6:41AM]

Death to glossy screens!

[fish99 @ Apr 10th 2008 6:47AM]

I would reply to the above comments but I can't see them due to the awful reflection on my glossy screen.

[Evan @ Apr 10th 2008 8:22AM]

This kind of BS is so typical of Dell.

I came very close to buying a Dell, but I couldn't upgrade the WiFi card if I started from the sale price (but I could if I started from the regular price!). So I waited for the next sale configuration, but they dropped the anti-glare option for the screen resolution that I wanted! (And now they seem to have dropped all anti-glare screens, why?) Later they added the WiFi card I wanted into the sale price model, but dropped the processor upgrade that I wanted (even though it was available if I started from the regular price!).

Considering the number of options Dell presents, they sure make it difficult to configure the combination of options that people want.

[Husar @ Apr 10th 2008 8:57AM]

Add a decent graphics card in this thing! (its meant to be an XPS) at least a 8800gt, or 9600... thats the only thing which has really kept me from buying this lappy.

[sg4 @ Apr 10th 2008 10:01AM]

husar, your idea is impractical and silly. go get an alienware if you want a 8800 in a 15". btw alienware is owned by dell :) for this weight class, you wont get any more graphics power - not that you really need it.

[Kunal @ Apr 10th 2008 10:01AM]

I really want to buy one of these for grad school, but two things are preventing me from doing so - lack of a great graphics card option, and this either/or screen mentality with regards to high-resolution versus LED backlighting. Perhaps I do not understand enough about screen technology to know why they can't just do an LED backlit screen at something reasonable like 1680x1050? Or if you want to go 1920x1080, why can't that be LED backlit?

[Cassini @ Apr 10th 2008 8:42PM]

"Or if you want to go 1920x1080, why can't that be LED backlit?"


As I'm sure you know, it certainly can be. We see that in Apple's 17" MBP. Glossy screen, LED backlit, 1920x1200. I don't see any reason why it couldn't be available in a 15" screen.

Why doesn't Dell do it? Well, either that trifecta really isn't available in the 15" screens, or they don't have access to enough of the panels to meet anticipated demand.

[Tony Rayo @ Apr 10th 2008 10:28AM]

That's why I dug my Sorny (my version was the first laptop in the Sony line to include blu-ray by default... possible just plain first). It doesn't have a 1080p screen (or 1920 by 1200/1080) as it's display, however it does include an HDMI port out (as well as others) as a 2nd display which is full 1080p. The solution works well for me and I often hook up my laptop, along with my 2TB external ethernet/USB/firewire at friend's houses to watch recorded/downloaded/copied HD material.

[TX_512 @ Apr 10th 2008 12:39PM]

is it me, or does the 2 mp camera on the LED screen seem kind of odd? if i remember correctly, the LED screens could only support VGA cams. hmm, maybe Dell finally fix that issue with this LED screen.

[MosquitoControl @ Apr 10th 2008 1:30PM]

Really? Dell dropped the matte finish screens?

Bah. I thought only big box stores sold glossy screens, as they look best in shops. Online now, too? Ug. Pain in the eyes.

[indiecognition @ Apr 10th 2008 2:01PM]

Love my M1530! Got the 1680X1050 glossy LCD as soon as they released it in January. Vista looked sooooooo pretty, but it came off after the first day of playing around. Have installed an OEM copy of XP and all the drivers are running perfectly, so if anyone needs I can help with that software. Even Audigy MB. A few of the XP drivers were tough to find, but it was totally worth the trouble.

The laptop is a tiny bit heavier than the 15" MacBook Pro, but kicks its ass in every other way. 2.4ghz core2 duo, 3gb ram, 256 mb ge force 8600M GT, bluetooth, WiFi draft N, 160gb SATA @7200, and even a 3 year at home service plan (part of a discount package). It set me back $1624, better than $800 cheaper than the 2.4ghz MacBook Pro.

I'm very pleased with the timing, although it's clearly even better now with the extra display options and progress like Penryn & Bluetooth 2.1

[Silver Surfer @ Apr 21st 2008 4:08AM]

I just took the plunge on a great Dell EPP deal on the M1530. At $1200+ off and 12 months to pay, it fit my needs.
What swung my decision was your post about the XP drivers. Can you give me more details, I see nothing on Dell, so I assume there is plenty of hunting to do and I could use the help.
It's been over a week since your post, any regrets with the laptop or the XP Pro drivers?
Thanks in advance!

[indiecognition @ Apr 21st 2008 5:10PM]

Silver Surfer,
I've had the m1530 for over 3 months, and have been running XP for nearly all of it. I saved a hard disk image of the original config with Vista, so it would be very easy for me to go back to that if I had an issue. But I'm thrilled with XP. It's almost criminal for Dell to screw the consumer by forcing Vista on us. Since I found all the XP hardware drivers, the only issue was that the computer would hang up while hibernating and not power down...found a microsoft patch, and even that's fixed (it turns out that XP doesn't expect to run on setups with 3gb of ram...so it needs the patch to know to backup all the ram during hibernation). Anyway, I've had zero issues since...if the computer shipped "perfect" with Vista, then it's even better than that now:)

Anyway, I think I have ALL the XP files I needed. I tried to keep track of them, but that was tough since some of the drivers on the discs that came with Vista worked...others were in a zip file someone put together for the m1530, and the rest I dug up myself. I'll put what I have onto a web site and give you a link tonight if possible...should anything be missing from there when I'm done, it's likely that those files are on the CDs that came with your computer and you should still be taken care of. could you e-mail me at [ ticallionmm AT gmail DOT com ] so I can send you the link without having people flood my hosting quotas? I can't promise I'll be done tonite...but give me a day or two and I'll make sure all the files I have are up and accessible for you. I'll try to label them to say what each file does, too.

Enjoy the XPS!

[indiecognition @ May 2nd 2008 3:16PM]

Ok, since I've been getting requests, I'll just put up a link to my XPS m1530 drivers and software for everyone: http://www.indiecognition.com/xps_m1530

Make sure to check out the tips and advice TXT file before you get started...and image your Vista installation as a backup just in case (there is a fully-functional free trial of Acronis True Image Home in the software folder on the link above, and it'll let you break up the image so you can burn it to DVD if you prefer that to one big file on a backup hard drive). Also, keep in mind that your config may slightly differ from mine...so I have Audigy MB software while you may have the X-Fi Sound Card instead. You should be able to find software for any hardware you have that I don't between Dell's support site, hardware vendor support sites, Google, and BitTorrent searches (www.bittorrent.com for DL software and www.torrent-finder.com for file searches).

Good luck, and enjoy your XPS!


***DISCLAIMER***
I am in no way affiliated with Dell, Microsoft, or any other technology vendor whose software or hardware are involved in running XP on the m1530. I'm not even a computer professional, and make no guarantees about the comprehensiveness of these drivers, etc. or the ease of successfully installing and configuring XP. That said, these are all files I needed on the way to getting my notebook stable, and some took me a while to dig up -- so I hope it is still a useful resource for others to have all of these files, links, and tips available in one place. I will try to be available when necessary for quick advice or other help, but can not promise any technical or moral support in liberating your laptop from the crushing grip of Vista:P But I can assure you that my notebook is running XP perfectly, so with these files and a little patience I'm sure yours will too.

[Nolan @ Apr 10th 2008 2:41PM]

might as well wait until they get led backlit with the higher res.

it will be pretty tough on your eyes in such small resolution on a screen of that size though

[Charlie @ Apr 10th 2008 2:55PM]

Why can't I have 1080p capability in a 20" desktop display? Darn you...

[Will Rosenbloom @ Apr 20th 2008 9:01PM]

Not to sound stupid or anything, but why is it bad to have 1900X1200 on the Dell M1530?

[The Dave @ Apr 21st 2008 5:44PM]

I just finished talking with Dell and they said the high res (1680X1050) AND full hd screen IS led backlit. I saved the logs. I am really having a problem deciding bewteen the high res and the full hd screen.

[Mike @ Apr 29th 2008 12:50PM]

That can't be true--just look at the prices. Upgrading from the regular 1440x900 to the LED version with the same resolution costs a full $150. Upgrading to the hi-res and full HD versions only costs $50 and $100 respectively. Obviously, if those two were LED, they would cost more than the 1440x900 LED, and since they don't, they aren't.

[Will @ May 2nd 2008 8:24PM]

will someone please tell me why full hd would be bad on this computer?

[JohnMag4u @ May 7th 2008 12:56AM]

"will someone please tell me why full hd would be bad on this computer?"

LCD Screens look better in their native resolution. This means less grain and "pixelation." A "full HD screen" (by this I mean the 1920x1200), will therefore look the best at 1920x1200. If this creates such small font and icons that your eyes are bloodshot after a few minutes of using the computer then you are going to change the resolution to something lower, possibly 1440x900. Therefore it would have been better if you just chose that screen originally (plus you could have saved $100).

I am currently using a GEN 1 XPS Laptop with a 15" screen (the big heavy one). I chose the 1920x1200 screen which was quite an upgrade 4 years ago. I have been using a resolution of 1280x768 for the last 3.5 years because the higher solutions hurt my eyes (I am only 22). Had I know this ahead of time I could have purchased the lesser screen, saved money, and seen a clearer picture on a screen which had a native resolution of 1280x768/800.

Given the laptop has an HDMI out with a higher resolution of "full HD" and the video card probably cannot handle gaming higher then 1440x900, I see know reason to give up the LED back lit screen for the higher resolution screen.

Hope this helps!

By the way, I just purchased the M1530 with the LED back lit option. The order is severely delayed due to the lack of stock of 250GB 7200RPM hard drives, but it will be worth the wait.