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Aaron44126

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Everything posted by Aaron44126

  1. Aaron44126
    Well. Had some free up and decided to ring up the sales office since they are supposedly still open. No go there... The phone tree is broken right now. Auto phone thing: "Otherwise, what can I help you with?" Me: "Small business sales" Auto phone thing: "Ok, great! Purchase and pricing." (...hangs up) Tried a few different times, same result. Went to the chat reps again (Facebook this time) and the one I got there also said that they don't have the option to quote out right now. ...So it seems that either some reps have the option to quote out and some don't (pretty sure the chat reps are based out of India, not the U.S.), or they have recently taken quotes away too...? I'll try again tomorrow to reach an actual U.S.-based rep.
  2. Aaron44126
    Normally, Dell quotes are a PDF that have a "when you're ready, click here to place your order" link at the top, so you don't have to actually interact with the rep to get your order placed once you receive the quote. ...I'm actually not sure how pre-order quotes work just yet, since I haven't got one. My original 7770 quote from last week had such a link and I was able to place the order — but it wasn't a "pre-order quote", Dell had just somehow inadvertently opened up these systems for ordering. I'm assuming that a pre-order quote will have the link and just block you from ordering until the go-live, or, worst case I'll just have to get in touch with the rep on go-live day and say "let's go". (I'll let you know if I manage to get a quote tomorrow...) I guess it might work different in different markets as well. I'm in the U.S. market. ...Awesome machine... 😄 On memory: ECC will be a little bit slower but it will not be noticeable on most workloads. You'd have to be doing something quite memory intensive (scientific work?) or benchmarks to spot the difference. (Same generally goes for modest changes in memory frequency or CL.) ECC modules will be available in the 7X70 systems during the "summer" (best time frame that we have). I'd guess 6-8 weeks after launch. All DDR5 modules have on-die ECC which protects against errors in storage (but not errors in transmission) so they should be more robust than non-ECC DDR4 modules. (See this video.) Newer Precision systems do not have a hardware Wi-Fi/wireless on/off switch. You can use "airplane mode" within Windows 10/11 which will disable wireless connections. In Windows 10, to access "airplane mode" you can just click on notification center (speech bubble icon in the bottom/right of the taskbar) and then there should be a button for it. In Windows 11, it looks like it is in the popout that appears when you click on the Wi-Fi/volume/power buttons on the taskbar. Windows will automatically disconnect from Wi-Fi after a few minutes if there is an Ethernet connection to the same network.
  3. Aaron44126
    Got an update from my rep and it was almost copy/paste identical to the update given by @kors above, with the same 6/21 tentative order date... except he told me that he couldn't give a quote until 6/21, which contradicts what I have heard elsewhere. I might call the U.S. small business sales line tomorrow and see what they say. Basically two reasons to get a quote early for me. One is just that I'm raring to go and want to be at the front of the line, so easier if I just have to click "go" on launch day. 😛 The other is to hopefully lock in a price so that I can make the financial preparations (not exactly a trivial purchase, especially if going for a high-end config).
  4. Aaron44126
    If you order with iGPU, there will be a spacer/passthrough card in the normal dGPU spot which allows HDMI and mDP output from the iGPU. (I think that it uses the DGFF connector on the motherboard that you see not connected in the image above.) You can swap an iGPU system to a dGPU system and vice versa by replacing the appropriate parts. You need the DGFF card itself, plus the two DGFF data connectors, appropriate screws, and a DGFF power cable if you are installing a dGPU card in an iGPU system.
  5. Aaron44126
    Maybe could find a way to invoke Windows Explorer without bringing the other cruft along (a la Windows Server) and then you'd have something sort of normal to start from.
  6. Aaron44126
    I wonder if someone could take something like this and use it as a base to build a lightweight Windows that's actually usable (for browser, games, ...). Seems like its pretty bare-bones but it does support running Win32 apps. https://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-released-a-new-lightweight-windows-11-validation-os-thats-probably-not-for-you/
  7. Aaron44126
    Yes, you can order such a thing. If you start with the cheapest / fully configurable model on the web site, it will let you add a UHD display without requiring that you also add a dGPU. (For some reason, you can order 7760 + UHD + no dGPU, but if you try to order 7760 + UHD + NVIDIA T1200 — the low-end NVIDIA GPU, which should still be better than no dGPU — it will tell you that it is not a valid combination...)
  8. Aaron44126
    Yeah, the quote I got before had a short expiration date (...was looking to place the order on the spot...) so I'm hoping that he can just reissue the same one.
  9. Aaron44126
    Lucky that you're using Linux I guess, the USB error messages gave a thread to follow... Anyway, in Device Manager you can select a device and then "View -> Devices by connection" from the top menu to see if a device is connected by USB or not. Here we have... webcam = USB, SD card reader = PCIe.
  10. Aaron44126
    I updated my NVIDIA driver today to Dell's 512.18, and was able to reproduce this issue. I took the pull request but added some extra logic so that the program can "remember" the GPU name from previous working requests when the GPU was powered on. Here's a test build. I'll do a proper release tomorrow or the next day. There's another bug that I've been sitting on that I want to address, relating to the "Thermal setting" feature. Note that the project has been moved from .NET 5 to .NET 6, so you'll have to install the .NET 6 runtime if you do not have it. https://1drv.ms/u/s!AsIwJHFk4EFdqKJP4MOlZA6NwrWAPg [Edit] Refreshed link, good until 1/1/2023.
  11. Aaron44126
    6/21, hmm... Not really surprised about another delay. I placed my order on 6/6 and it was canceled "automatically" (no action on my part) on 6/10. I do not think that Dell is taking orders at this time (they were opened by mistake somehow) but they are giving out quotes, so you can work with a rep to spec out a system and get a price. Planning to get in touch with my rep tomorrow, will see if I get the same date out of him (along with a new quote).
  12. Aaron44126
    BIOS setup display/video section might have an option to set the “default” brightness of the built-in display …? (Never seen one of these. My best guess.)
  13. Aaron44126
    #3 = power connector (seems important) #4 = speakers (not USB, just a straight analog audio connection most likely) Maybe first just try to disable webcam in the BIOS and see if that helps you at all. Way easier. Do you see webcam in Device Manager? (Just one more possible hint.)
  14. Aaron44126
    One more. Display cable does indeed have "one" end on the motherboard side and "multiple" ends on the other side. So if you do want to disconnect the webcam, probably best to access the webcam and pull the cable from that end. https://www.ebay.com/itm/255084291259?epid=19030890620 https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/EycAAOSwkWZhDT5p/s-l1600.jpg
  15. Aaron44126
    I found reference that "6" in the image above is the display touchscreen cable (which I believe is USB).
  16. Aaron44126
    Oh, I think there is a toggle in the BIOS setup to disable the webcam as well?
  17. Aaron44126
    Most of the internal USB stuff will have a connection on the motherboard. 1 = touchpad, 2 = keyboard (not sure if these are actually USB or not) 5 = fingerprint reader cable Bluetooth module is built into the WiFi card but attached via USB (something else you can try to remove) If you have the touchscreen display, I believe the "touch" part of that is also USB attached. Not sure how you would disconnect just the webcam. My M6700 has separate cables for the display and the webcam but I think some newer systems bundle them together (on the motherboard side anyway). If you can remove the display bezel, there might be a cable on the webcam module side that you can disconnect. (Not sure how easy it is to remove the display bezel on the XPS-style Precisions. On the 7000-series it is pretty easy to just pry off. It's attached with some plastic tabs and adhesive.)
  18. Aaron44126
    It would be hard to fully disable USB in these laptops. It goes a bit beyond the USB ports on the sides — the webcam, Bluetooth module, and fingerprint reader (if you have one) and perhaps other things are attached via internal USB as well. I'm noticing the delay of several seconds between attempts when it tries to query the USB device descriptor there and I'm thinking that yes indeed these may be connected. I've seen the BIOS get hung up on USB stuff, now that I think about it — my Precision 7560 will hang in the BIOS if I have my USB hub connected. (The USB hub has a couple of external optical drives connected to it and also a RCA video import dongle thing. I haven't bothered figuring out which specific device is causing the problem, I just don't connect the hub unless I need something connected to it and it works fine after boot.) ...If you boot into Windows, are you seeing any "USB device descriptor failed" errors if you open up Device Manager?
  19. Aaron44126
    A couple of interesting tidbits I gathered from going through the service manual in more detail. Keyboard Unlike prior systems, there is no separate keyboard trim that can be removed to allow for easy access to the keyboard for removal. Swapping out the keyboard now requires removing a huge pile of components, including the heatsink (thus requiring repaste), inner frame, and motherboard, so that you can basically take the keyboard out from the bottom. (Can't even pop the palmrest off to get to the keyboard. Removing the palmrest requires removing the keyboard first!) Now, because there is no RAM under the keyboard, it's less likely that you'll have to remove it... but as the part that you are actually pounding on when using the computer, it could certainly wear out over time. (It's also the part that you can most easily spill sticky stuff on! 😛) I hope this thing is very well engineered. I replaced the keyboard in a Precision M6700 and Precision 7530 just because they stopped registering certain keypresses properly. At my request, Dell shipped me the Precision 7530 keyboard without a tech because it's a "user-replaceable part". I've been contemplating replacing the keyboard in my Precision 7560 because the left alt key is a bit messed up. Anyway, it's rather disappointing that replacing the keyboard now requires so much hassle when that has never been the case before. Yuck yuck yuck. WWAN antennas Here's an interesting one on antennas. In addition to the four WWAN antenna cables that hook directly to the WWAN NGFF card, there are three here that attach directly to the motherboard. Not sure what this is about. The manual refers to the black ones as "WWAN (Darwin) antenna connectors" (don't know what "Darwin" means here) but doesn't say what the green one is.
  20. Aaron44126
    The other thing that I can suggest is to just disconnect the main battery, run on AC power only, and see if that fixes it. I know that involves removing the bottom panel. Batteries have a limited life and while I have not experienced this particular symptom before, I have seen laptops display some very strange behavior when hooked up to a battery that is ready to be EOL (even if they are not running on battery power).
  21. Aaron44126
    This is an odd one for sure... I've had cases where the system lags for no apparent reason that have turned out to be power related. I think that the system "thinks" that it has an underpowered connection and goes to hard throttling mode. Solved by disconnecting the internal battery and PSU and then reconnecting — in a few cases it was actually the PSU's fault (@*%# Delta PSUs) so I had to swap it out. ...But in these cases for me, the lag would persist into Windows. In this case, I think that the first thing I would try would be disabling the NVMe drive in the BIOS (as @Rinconmike recommended) to rule that out. If that "fixes" the problem, I guess consider replacing the drive. (...But a flaky drive would probably also be causing issues in Windows.) The next thing would be to just reset the BIOS to default settings and see if that helps at all. ...But if it doesn't, it could be quite cumbersome to go and put all of the settings back to how you like them. Failing that, I guess we are looking at motherboard replacement. It would be pretty strange if a Linux kernel update kicked off this issue. ...Are you looking at getting Precision 7X70 (I know you've been posting a bit in that thread)? Might just have to hang in there for a month or so 😕. Just try not to reboot ever 😛.
  22. Aaron44126
    The WiFi is Intel AX211, which is CNVi — the implementation is split between a discrete WiFi chip and support built into the Alder Lake PCH. (Basically as you say.) Still, they could have put the WiFi card slot on and had the AX211 chip installed on a card in that slot. (Swappable AX211 cards are a thing.) That way it would be possible to upgrade to a card implementing a future version of WiFi (as long as the implementation is all on the card - fully PCIe and didn't rely on the PCH). As it stands, upgrading a Precision 7X70 for WiFi 7 (802.11be) will not be possible (without using a USB dongle or something). That's a first for the Precision 7000 line. Well. I do have a NGFF B-key to E-key adapter which would allow a regular NGFF/PCIe WiFi card to be installed in the WWAN slot. B-key does not pass through USB so the Bluetooth part would not work (but that's less important). When I receive the 7770 I will check and see if a standard NGFF WiFi card will actually fit (physically) this way. (Hooking up the antennas might still be a challenge.) Pretty sure arrow keys are the same on all versions? The keyboard is identical to the one in the Precision 7X50/7X60, in terms of layout at least.
  23. Aaron44126
    Indeed, try to find a version from 2019 and then move up from there. I think that Dell generally expects Windows 10 users to stay current. (That said, I haven't had trouble with this + LTSC 2021.)
  24. Aaron44126
    Disappointing but not unprecedented — I believe with Precision 7X30/7X40 you could not order 4K and WWAN together. Also, with Precision 7X40/7X50/7X60 you could not order IR webcam and WWAN together. Seems like WWAN is bound to cause restrictions... You can always go with a USB WWAN solution, use a WWAN hotspot, or just tether your phone. (Not sure if any USB WWAN solutions also provide a GPS sensor, but the other options definitely wouldn't get you native GPS in the system.)
  25. Aaron44126
    Found some more images that confirm that the WWAN antennas are indeed up in the display enclosure. They are routed up through the right hinge (probably also with the webcam data cable).
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