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Dell's XPS Motherboard Exchange Program goes live
Those who have stuck with Dell through the ups and (mostly) downs that have revolved around the XPS 700 are finally in luck, as the XPS Motherboard Exchange Program has officially launched. Notably, all XPS 700 and 710 purchases made through June 30th, 2007 are eligible for this program, and while XPS 700 customers will receive the 720 hardware kit gratis, those with a 710 can snag the same package for $250 (plus shipping). The kit itself includes a XPS 720 motherboard, red or black front panel I/O assembly, all applicable cabling, a mouse pad (huzzah?), and an installation sheet for those who decide to pass on the on-site installation -- which, by the way, is free for XPS 700 owners and up to $150 for 710'ers. Furthermore, current 700 clients can snap up the Intel QX6700 CPU "at 25-percent off the then-current price," but you better get a move on, as the program expires promptly at midnight (CST for those cutting it close) on October 13th.[Via Direct2Dell, thanks David]
Dell's XPS 720 upgrade kit revealed
When Dell's gaming powerhouse XPS 700 was delayed last year, the company attempted to make things right by promising a free Core 2 Duo upgrade when those boards became availabile -- and now the Direct2Dell blog has some shots of the kit 700 owners can expect to receive when the program goes live. It's pretty much what you'd expect: the new mobo from the XPS 720, and the mounting hardware and front I/O panel to match. Somewhat more interesting is the option to upgrade to an Intel QX6700 Core 2 Quad for 25% off Dell's usual price, and the fact that XPS 710 owners will also be able to get in on the upgrade action -- although they'll have to pay for the privilege. We gotta hand it to Dell -- lately they've been pretty good at the whole lemons / lemonade thing. Let's hope a few more companies take the hint.
Dell XPS 700 reviewed and ripped apart
It's not often that you read a review of a computer with a line like "You could kill someone with this thing," but the folks at bit-tech.net got to write that gem in their look at Dell's new gaming-oriented XPS 700, referring to the deadly-looking 3-millimeter thick piece of aluminum that forms the case's side panel. Unfortunately, they weren't as impressed with the system's performance as they were with its decapitating potential, finding it decidedly lacking when put up against their comparable custom-built rig -- although much of the blame seems to be pegged on the slow memory that Dell ships with the XPS. Still, they did find the system got most of the core elements right and delivered decent gaming performance at a reasonable price; given the cost of upgrades from Dell, though, they recommend going light on the memory and video card options when you order and swapping them out yourself when you get this sucker home.
Dell cops to XPS 700 delays
Apparently consumers who ordered Dell's XPS 700 gaming PC have not yet received their machines in the mail, and in the face of increasing complaints, the company has finally come clean on the issue. According to Dell's new one2one blog, the Pentium D- and Pentium Extreme-powered versions of the tower have indeed been delayed, though no specific reason is given -- all that's being said is that inadequate processor inventory is not to blame. While Dell isn't currently providing customers with a solid ship date, folks who ordered their 700 prior to July 18th will receive either a free upgrade to a Core 2 Duo CPU or a gift card for some unknown amount as a bribe to keep them from canceling their orders big thanks for being so patient. If you already have one of these desktops on order, expect to receive a call from Dell customer service in the coming days outlining your options and presumably apologizing for keeping you waiting. And if you haven't already ordered one, well, maybe you can get a good deal on an XPS 600 Renegade on eBay.
Dell says XPS 700 will NOT ship overclocked
We can't blame TG Daily for reporting that the Core 2 Extreme-powered version of Dell's XPS 700 gaming desktop will ship with a factory overclocked processor; after all, the placard in front of that demo machine at the World Series of Video Games did indeed mention an overclocked Conroe, with the promise that "system specs like this [will be] available within the next 30 days at [Dell's website]." After Cnet received a review unit of the new configuration that had not been overclocked, however, they called up Dell to set the record straight once and for all. According to company spokesperson Liem Nguyen, although "Dell has unlocked the BIOS so that customers can overclock the processor themselves...at this time Dell is not factory overclocking the system." So there you have it, straight from the horse's mouth: Dell's not actually doing the dirty work here, but it is giving customers the opportunity to tweak and possibly fry their machines themselves.
Dell to offer overclocked XPS 700
It looks like Dell is intent on keeping up its in-house rivalry with Alienware, upping it's top-of-the-line XPS 700 gaming PC to include overclocked Intel Core 2 Extreme CPUs -- but still no AMD processors, overclocked or otherwise. The desktop is also getting a significant upgrade on the graphics side of things, with the highest-end option now hitting up two Nvidia GeForce 7900 GTX cards operating in SLI mode, replacing the earlier single GeForce 7900 GS card. Availability appears to be dependent on Intel actually delivering the goods, but Michael Dell himself says that the system will be available the second Intel announces that it's good and ready. Exact pricing hasn't been announced, but we're guessing it should come in somewhere below $10,000. Just how far below 10k is yet to be seen.
Dell brings two new XPS models to the US
No surprises here, but Dell is getting their new XPS 700 desktops and XPS M1210 laptops out to their US customers after a couple of early releases overseas. Nothing more to see in specs land, but a few highlights are the 256MB GeForce Go 7400, 4GB of RAM and built-in camera that you can configure the 12.1-inch WXGA M1210 with (which has a pretty reasonable base configuration going for $1300) and those NVIDIA Quad SLI and PhysX cards you can get squeezed into the XPS 700.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]Read - XPS M1210Read - XPS 700
