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Aaron44126

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Everything posted by Aaron44126

  1. Aaron44126
    Use the small business sales phone number. Or, just use the online chat (pick business sales). Click the blue "Contact us" button at the bottom right of the product pages to kick off the chat. (Even though it says 8am-1pm for the hours there, they've had someone available at all times that I have checked including during the evening.) I ended up going through a chat rep to place my initial order (from June that was cancelled). You can just tell them what model you're interested in and then go through the specs/options that you want, and they'll generate a quote to email over to you. You can finish the order by pressing the button at the top of the quote. Check the quote carefully before ordering (be it phone rep or chat rep) and make sure that everything is exactly right. Smaller things like whether or not SSD door is included, fingerprint reader, backlit keyboard, and so forth are things that they tend to get wrong for me...
  2. Aaron44126
    See the PC World article if you haven't looked at it yet. The author was able to interview Tom Schnell, who is one of the key players at Dell in creating the CAMM "standard", and it seems that there was also at least some exchange with @Dell-Mano_G (Mano Gialusis). https://www.pcworld.com/article/693366/dell-defends-its-controversial-new-laptop-memory.html It is noted that Dell is working to get the CAMM "standard" in front of JEDEC for blessing. If JEDEC approves it then Dell would have to offer it to other laptop/memory makers under "reasonable and non-discretionary" licensing terms. It seems like something has to be done about SODIMM which will become more and more difficult to work with as DDR5 matures and speeds ramp up. There's also always a chance that what becomes the final standard is tweaked a bit from what we are seeing in the Precision 7X70 systems, so these modules and future modules might not be cross-compatible (assuming that CAMM becomes a JEDEC standard at all).
  3. Aaron44126
    Probably going to just stick with Ubuntu with my triple-boot (Win10/Win11/Linux); it's what Dell supports and it also happens to be what I am most familiar with. I might dabble with some others if I can just boot them via "live USB".
  4. Aaron44126
    Not sure where to find the GeForce part number. On the quote, it says 490-BHOM; I think that is an order/item SKU code and not the actual part number. Maybe I'll be able to find the part number after the service tag is issued. I can say that I've had multiple engagements with sales reps and they've never had an issue "finding" the option to add to a quote. If you want to use the part number to order the GPU card separately from the system, you can try, but Dell doesn't allow that in most territories. I ordered with Windows 11. I'm planning to use the stock Windows 11 install only for review benchmarks. I will use my own Windows 10 LTSC license/install for general use. (I have some major issues with Windows 11 that I have discussed before, in this thread and others. There's a link in my signature.) I'm planning a triple-boot setup with those two, plus Linux, but I will be spending almost all of my time in Windows 10 after getting the review out. No SSD door for me. I don't see any practical need for it, I prefer the "look" of the system without it (...though you're not looking at the bottom of the system that often...), and I don't necessarily want it to be easier for someone to yank the drive from my system. From pictures in the service manual, I don't think that Dell has done much to improve the SSD thermals. But, they did add DOO fans which should get some air circulating around inside of the chassis, and that could help reduce SSD temperatures a bit.
  5. Aaron44126
    I did just pick up a "smart thermostat" a few weeks ago, which has the perk of being able to see the temperature and control the AC while away from the home. Not sure if that would really be helpful in your situation but maybe you could set it higher and then lower it while you are on the way home from work or something. I selected "Ecobee3 Lite" and I'm quite happy with it so far... Ecobee seems to be a leading brand and this was one of the few current models that I could find that has HomeKit support and does not have a microphone for Alexa / smart assistant support.
  6. Aaron44126
    I've heard of this thing but haven't tried it. You can install it at your breaker box and it will help tell where your electricity is going. https://sense.com/
  7. Aaron44126
    Well an easy one is, you could order through the web (not through a rep), and then come back next week and find the price has been lowered. Another one could be that Dell puts a new deal in place shortly after you order (i.e. "five years ProSupport for the price of four years" like they had in June) and you want to take advantage of that.
  8. Aaron44126
    Seems like web prices have been updated, at least on the U.S. site. The system that I configured last week on launch day for $7,100 is now showing around $6,200. (i9/128GB RAM/A4500/512GB SSD/5 year ProSupport Plus/extras; same as the one that I bought through a rep, except with RTX A4500 instead of GeForce RTX 3080Ti.) If you buy a system and end up finding a better deal shortly afterwards, you can go to customer service and they should credit you the difference.
  9. Aaron44126
    So, I'm going to be working on a "professional"-style review for the Precision 7770 after I get it. I've been planning on doing this for a while, even before NBR died. My intent is to publish it here on NotebookTalk. I'm planning to have two parts to the review. The first part will follow a normal laptop/notebook review format and in addition to some benchmarks, I'll be looking at things like available options, design & build, disk performance, fan behavior/noise, temperatures & max/average clock speeds, and so on. I'm picking up a "Kill-a-Watt" power meter, IR temperature sensor, and dB meter to help out with this. For the first part, I will specifically be looking at running tests with the system in its stock/default configuration and not taking any special steps to push the performance up. The second part may be published a little bit later and it will be more of a less structured grab bag where I take a look at things like the impact of Dell's thermal settings, Optimus on vs off, Windows 10 vs 11, dock behavior, undervolting CPU & GPU, what Linux support looks like, and whatever else I can think of. In terms of benchmarks for the first part, I am looking at: CPU Cinebench WPrime GPU 3DMark (Fire Strike & Time Spy, and probably some others as well) Unigine Superposition GravityMark Final Fantasy XIV benchmark Shadow of the Tomb Raider benchmark (Not apt to include SPECviewperf ... I'm getting a GeForce configuration, so performance in many of those tests will be bad compared to what you'd get with a pro-RTX GPU) It's my first time attempting something like this so I'm looking for feedback as to what sorts of things you guys would like to see in a laptop review, if there is anything specific that you think I should take a look at or if there are any benchmarks that you would like to see run that are not included above. (The review will take some days/weeks to put together, so of course I will also be doing Q&A/AMA once the system comes in. I imagine that some other users receiving systems would be happy to participate in this as well.) Thanks!
  10. Aaron44126
    There was the situation where it looked like 7770 would launch before 7670, a couple of weeks ago. They might have been more ready to go with that one.
  11. Aaron44126
    Yes, the issue seems to be if you add a fingerprint reader, it forces you to add a smartcard reader, and that forces you to add the SSD door.
  12. Aaron44126
    My 7770 order is now showing “in production”. (Precision 7560 order last year, placed a day or two after launch, took about two weeks to show this status…)
  13. Aaron44126
    Google: "58500 cny to usd" -> $8,737.60 (I think maybe you tried to convert "yen" which is the Japanese currency.) You are right, it looks like if you select a GPU that gets you the performance chassis for Precision 7670 and a security option (smartcard/fingerprint reader), the SSD door is added automatically and you can't get rid of it. They must not have made a "performance chassis + smartcard reader + no SSD door" part; I guess with eight possible variations of the bottom cover for the Precision 7670, it makes sense that maybe they didn't choose to produce all of them. For Precision 7670 (thin chassis) and Precision 7770, you do have the option to get rid of the SSD door. You could try to get the "performance chassis + no smartcard reader + no SSD door" part separately (Taobao might have it available) and swap it out. I think it would be physically compatible, it would just partially cover up the smartcard reader slot.
  14. Aaron44126
    Precision 7560 + WD19DC and we do not have this issue. Are the LEDs on both of the USB-C cables lighting up …?
  15. Aaron44126
    Last time I tried FIPS was with Precision 7530. It was definitely slow to read, you have to hold your finger on it for 2-3 seconds. It looks like they are still using the same sensor. Non-FIPS in Precision 7560 is very quick, less than a second. Also not a fan of the placement of the FIPS sensor in Precision 7770. Instead of on the very right side of the palmrest, it is moved in a bit towards the middle. (FIPS would presumably be more secure / harder to trick.)
  16. Aaron44126
    1. No, if you get the fingerprint reader, you will get a smartcard reader too, I don’t think there is any way to avoid this. 2. Pick the chassis option for “smartcard only” and not “smartcard and SSD door”. 3. NVIDIA Dynamic Boost will shuffle the power allocation between CPU and GPU depending on current load conditions. Interesting that GeForce is showing as an option on the China site.
  17. Aaron44126
    I don’t know the answer to this. But, Dell typically allows the external video ports to be connected directly to the dGPU even if hybrid graphics is turned on (setting in BIOS). It should offer the standard HDMI output for Tiger Lake or NVIDIA Ampere depending on which GPU you set it to connect to. (I don’t think the specific NVIDIA GPU would matter in this regard, output options for all Ampere GPUs on offer should be the same.) After receiving the system I will check to confirm if all external outputs can be connected to either GPU.
  18. Aaron44126
    There’s still going to be a SODIMM option, so you could bring your own modules and save a bit… just limited to two modules, so an issue if you need more than 64GB. 😕
  19. Aaron44126
    You can’t get 3080Ti through the configurator. You must go through a sales rep to get it. (This is the case in all regions.)
  20. Aaron44126
    This is actually a limitation of the Alder Lake platform. If you have 128GB then it must slow down to 3600 MHz. ...I went for the big memory capacity because I have use for it, but I would be very interested to see some benchmarks and see what speed difference it makes. I would assume that the CL decreases when the memory is operating at a lower speed so it won't make a noticeable performance difference unless you are running something that is especially memory-intensive. See: (Courtesy of @Peksha earlier in this thread.) That's crazy. Dell might not be supporting GeForce+Linux but there is no reason why it wouldn't work. ProSupport gets you directly to a local support person if you call in (rather than the India call center or something). I like having it, they've never given me any hassle with regards to getting components replaced and on a couple of occasions I've had issues elevated to the engineering team pretty promptly. I imagine basic onsite would be fine, you just might have to deal with another layer or two of people who don't know the system as well if you actually have an issue that needs a hardware replacement... (One would hope that you never actually have to call them.) Note that "ProSupport Plus" basically combines ProSupport and accidental damage protection (as I understand it).
  21. Aaron44126
    I have some benchmarks from when I first tried the M5000M, upgrading from K5000M. Performance doubled (or more) in most cases. https://www.nbrchive.net/forum.notebookreview.com/threads/precision-m6700-gpu-upgrade-k5000m-to-m5000m.807061/ To know if you have eDP, you basically need to find your display panel model (use MonInfo or HWiNFO64) and then look up the panel information online to see if it is eDP or LVDS. I don't think Adobe products would care which type of panel you are using.
  22. Aaron44126
    U.S. site is now showing August 15 for Precision 7770 ETA. Wonder if they're still making adjustments, or if changes to inventory & anticipated production workflow causes the target to change as orders come in...
  23. Aaron44126
    Realized the comparison of web price and rep price I gave above was off. The rep price I gave included sales tax but the web price did not. So, the discount is even greater. I saved around $1,400 (almost the price of the CAMM module!), close to 20%. Part of that was warranty savings. The rep matched a deal that I asked about which was active in June but not July, which gets you 5 years ProSupport (Plus) for the cost of 4. So, ask about that if you’re interested in extending the base warranty.
  24. Aaron44126
    Hopefully, CAMM becomes a standard and we get more manufacturers, places to order from, and competition. Right now, it's going to be inflated for sure 😕
  25. Aaron44126
    Just put my order in. Got the same price as before. (Well, up just a little because I did decide to go with 512GB SSD. I'll end up moving it to a different system.) Estimated ship August 2, estimated receipt August 5. (I hope they are early and not late. I am traveling starting August 7. I'd like to bring it with me, rather than have to wait for it if it arrives while I am gone. 😛 ) Also. I'm still using the Precision M6700 as my personal system, which I got at launch in 2012, and this Precision 7770 is replacing. August 9 would mark the ten-year anniversary since I received the M6700. Fun timing 🙂 Back to waiting. (Now to refresh the order details page an unreasonable amount of times every day to see when it advances to "in production".)
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