For those who don't know yet, Dell has released a new BIOS for the S-XPS 1645 machine; A06. Since Dell wasn't very clear about what this system does other than:
Quote:
1.Enhance system stability.
2.Support new graphic card.
I am running a 1737 with A04 BIOS. As far as I can tell everything us running great.
I recently saw that theres a new A06 BIOS. Is it worth it to update? And are there any risks?
improved battery life etc.
After a development version of the BIOS for the Studio XPS 1645 turned up, some people were concerned about reverting back to an older BIOS after flashing the X29 version. To solve this problem I extracted the WinPhlash utility from Dell's BIOS package and modified the settings.
Now you have several options:
- Simply backup your existing BIUOS
- Upgrade to any version you like
- Downgrade to any version you like
I compiled a package that contains the following BIOS versions:
A01, A02, A03, X29 and A05, A07, A08
This is as far as I know the order in which they were released. The X29 version was never officially released.
Just to be clear: I did not change anything to the actual BIOS files, just to the WinPhlash program settings. These are original, untouched Dell BIOS files, and the same program Dell uses to force-flash your laptop. I just changed a few settings (allowing us a choice of options).
Disclaimer:
I cannot and will not assume responibility of somehow your laptop is bricked during the flashing process. This can happen with Dells own updat packages as well. I myself have used the tool in my package, and others have too, with success. This is however no guarantee for succes.
Please also note that I do not have either a 1647 or a 1340, so I cannot test these files. The theory behind updating the BIOS is the same for all these machines, and the 1340 packages appear to use the same WinPlash64 tool.
The packages can be found here:
20100327_Dell_Studio_XPS_Bios_Tools.zip This package contains the flash tools and the crisis recovery bits.
I have put the different BIOSes in their own packages:
20100327_SXPS_1645_BIOS.zip contains the BIOS files for the 1645, including the latest A08.
20100327_SXPS_1647_BIOS.zip contains the BIOS files for the 1647, including the latest A05.
20100327_SXPS_1340_BIOS.zip contains the BIOS files for the 1340, including the latest A11. The BIOS files for the 1340 seem to be smaller (about 2Mb vs 5Mb) than the 1645/1647 files.
UPDATE: I added the A06 version to the package. Also included Andrew's crisis recovery kit (see this thread for details). I have moved the package to my own server.
UPDATE: A07 is now also included
UPDATE: A08 is now included, and added packages for 1647 and 1340.
Hi at the moment i have a dell sxps 1645 and i wold like to know about the bios because im on the A01 bios at the moment and im not experiencing any crashes or anything else apart from the throttling ;( is it worth upgrading to the A03 or A05?
View 6 Replies View RelatedDell has released A09 update for Studio XPS 1645 on 17-May-2010
The update resolves following issues:
*Features update:
1. Update Processor Power Management(PPM) from 0.60 to 0.63-1 .
2. Support 2nd source SPI ROM EN25F32(BIOS) and EN25F80(EC).
3. Update ME bin file in BIOS for 2nd source SPI ROM EN25F32(BIOS).
4. Modified flash part size to prevent BIOS crash in failsafe part for factory only.
5. Support over 230W adapter to treat as 130W(EC).
6. Update Clarksfield thermal table to V.03(EC).
7. Enhanced PPM RC code for P-state thread count.
*Issues fix:
1. Fix S4 long run failed on DC mode with BSOD 9F.
2. Paltrow freeze issue: Hang up when playing youtube HD film.
3. Fix unable to communicate with battery error under delldiag.
4. Fix ACPI_PSD error in "powercfg -energy" tool under windows.
5. Fix Micron DDR3 memory can not boot up issue.
ftp://ftp.dell.com/bios/1647_A05.exe
ftp://ftp.dell.com/bios/1645_A08.exe
Used it on my 8600gt that had burnt out out of warranty, gas mark 6 for 8 minutes and it fixed the degraded performance.
View 6 Replies View RelatedJust thought I'd post some info on what I just went through. Ever since A06 bios release I was having internet connection issues (slow!) and a speaker problem. When I logged off, I got a message saying " waiting for logoff sound" and had to click the force restart/shutdown prompt. Then I installed A07 bios and after playing a mp3 file with windows media player and then restarting, I would have no sound at all!. I had to shutdown, wait a few minutes and restart and sound would come back, weird?
Anyway, I decided to try and solve these issues, so I uninstalled the IDT audio & driver and reinstalled from Dell download site hoping it was just a bad install. BAD MOVE, now my sound really went bad! All sounds played through only one speaker AND it was really muffled sounding. I tried everything to fix this with no luck until I rolled back to A03 bios and ta da, sound was normal again, no issues whatsoever PLUS, my internet connection improved significantly!
Now I am hesitent to update to either the a06 or a07 bios since machine is running better tha n ever on a03. My uneducated opinion is you need to run any updates released prior to a06 or a07 bios before you install these updates.
In conclusion, if you are having issues like me, roll back to A03 bios, reinstall or update drivers, problem solved.
today I bricked my new 1645 when I was examing the BIOS for the 1647. The BIOS release 1647_A00.exe released this month automatically begins flashing on an 1645
and does not seem to check compatibility or confirm with the user before it updates.
The BIOS is completely incompatible with the 1645 to say the least, so be very careful if you download it on to a non-1647 system.
Dell is building a new system due to this really sad event. Rip XPS 1645 - December 5th 2009.
Im getting my laptop soonish (I hope) and I just wanted to create a thread to compile all the current updates and drivers for the Dell Studio XPS 16,
And I'm a complete novice at all this stuff so I was wondering if you saw this thread if you could please;
post The most up to date CPU/GPU/Video ect.. driver
Just tried it. 8minutes at gas mark 6.25, and my degraded performance and deteriorated fps is fixed.
View 4 Replies View RelatedI recently returned my 1645 after 2 months of struggling with random crashing and throttling back to Dell for a full refund.
I am in need of a new system and was considering HP Envy 15 as an alternative, but I still like the 1645 given that it performs as advertised.
A new bios update was released today for the XPS 1645 which apparently enhance sound quality. Thats the only thing listed in the release notes anyways.
I installed it on mine, but haven't noticed a difference as of yet.
http://support.dell.com/support/down...&fileid=364341
I'm currently deciding whether to buy the XPS 1645, 6GB RAM, i7, 500GB model of the XPS.
Or a refurbished MBP for the same price. (The one with 256MB DDR3 VRAM)
My main focus is video editing in HD. I've been using Windows 7 and OSX so am familiar with both systems.
What it comes down too right now is the build quality and the potential out of both machines.
I've read numerous reports of "Heat" problems from the XPS1645 which kinda scares me from buying it, however the 1080p and i7 kinda interest me.
I got the XPS 1645 with the Blu-ray Burner (in Europe). Does anybody know if this player is region-free?
And if not is there a firmware update or some type of way to make it region free so that I can play region A (US) discs too?
I have just received my new Studio XPS 1645 yesterday. since then i had been trying to install XP OS. then finally after being touched with dell, they said me that this machin is not compatible with XP Operating system. anyway, after that i tried to install vista ultimate and win7 dual boot. finally today i made it.
but the problem is both in VISTA and WINDOWS 7 the default font and icon is very small. in vista the taskbar icon is so small that they can hardly be seen. my screen is 15.6" widescreen with full hd (1920X1080). I have changed DPI Scalling to 120 DPI from the Default 96 DPI. but still the task bar icon (show desktop, switch between windows,internet explorer, mozilla firefox) is small. i have installed mozilla and it's font size has also become very small but clear(it seems). i m wondering is it they way in high resulation machine should appear. it's annoying. plz help me guys who is having this laptop.
I ordered my XPS 16 during the signature event on 1/18 and it has a ship date of 2/8 which is on Monday. I don't expect that my laptop on time since its already Friday. The online status still shows it as pre-production and the two numbers I called say being processed/pre-prod/building plus the chat is no different.
I really hope there is no delay. I want my laptop
Anyway just wanted to post and say hi.
All of the sudden, bluetooth stopped working on my laptop.
I installed the Dell driver when I first got the computer and everything was going fine. I was listening to music through some blue-tooth headphones this morning, when suddenly they unpaired.
Now, the BT light is on on the front of the computer, but the icon disappeared from the task bar. I tried reinstalling the driver, but got hung up when it asked to turn on blue-tooth with wireless button. The button doesn't do anything for turning on/off bluetooth that I can tell.
So now I'm stuck.
In Device Manager, there is no bluetooth 370 card. But I do have errors in the USB category and the "other devices" category.
I generally use my computer each day, and if I close the lid at night without shutting the computer off, in the morning the computer will be off.
That wouldn't be a bad thing except many times it'll shut the computer off so I lose everything that was opened up. But the only weird thing is that it won't happen every time.
I was just wondering if any of you have this problem and if there was some setting that I overlooked each time when I looked to change that. It's not a big thing, but I had a Dell computer provided by school and it would still be on in the morning after using it at night...........................
Has anybody ordered one yet?
View 10 Replies View RelatedI'm going to be sending back my sxps 1645 to dell. It seems like this whole model is buggy and I don't feel like paying good money to be their beta tester. So I'm wondering what the best way to wipe my solid state drive is.
What is the best way to ensure private data is completely gone on an SSD before it goes back?
it seems that my lovlely 1645 keeps on freezing completely in random fashion. I have not noticed any patterns as everytime it has frozen it has been while doing something different, such as surfing the web, plugging in peripherals, etc etc. So know ive HAD IT. First with the bsod's when fullscreening a flash based video online, which i attribute to the video drivers, of which i have tried installing MULTIPLE, with no solution, and happens to begin with the screen freezing, and now the stupid freezing caused by random events..
Do these issues affect anyone else? I have noticed that the random freezing started to occur after flashing to the A03 BIOS.
i have already reinstalled the OS once, and dont want to do it again....unless absolutly necessary.
I'm under the impression that the Studio XPS 1645 will be using a similar, if not identical, chassis to the 1640. Given that, how easy is it to replace the hard drive with a SSD?
I didn't bother with a SSD option on account of the price, but once the price comes down a bit I'm hoping to replace the drive and use the existing drive externally.
How much of a headache is this and what should I be aware of with regard to known SSD issues,
I am currently being offered a exchange for my 1640, and they are giving my the option to configure it.
Which is better? And how do i know which is the 1645 and 1647 on the website?
Is anyone else experiencing real high fan noise while playing a game? Even with the sound on it's clearly hearable and really annoying and continues going.
As soon as I exit the game it's over, so it probably involves temp & CPU clock. My temps are about ~70C when I exit
I'm looking for a sleeve for my Studio XPS 1645. I'm having trouble finding one that will accommodate the extended 9 cell battery
View 3 Replies View RelatedLess than a month after receiving my 3rd replacement system from dell, I experienced strange problem... I couldn't adjust the screen brightness anymore, altought the quickset was showing movement, the brightness was constantly at max. So I get into dell tech support chat, explain the problem and the guy send me a link to a program that would grand him access to my machine.
He login and start installing some drivers... chipset and etc. He try to flash my bios but i stop him even before downloading it and told him that he will not do that on my laptop. Then he said that he needs to restart the system and this should fix everything. I said ok .....
Is it worth the money to go for the 128gb SSD?
Is it better to get the cheapest hard drive and replace it with your own SSD?
I have spent two plus days searching thread after thread and I am not getting anywhere! If someone could point me in the right direction I would appreciate it. I just got my 1645 yesterday and what I want to do is to remove the hard drive and put it into my desktop and create an image. I will be formatting the drive removing all three partitions and install another OS. Later on down the road I want to be able to reimage my drive with the original backup. I do not want to clone the drive as I will be using it... I have tried Drive Image and it successfully makes a backup image and when I use it to image another drive the 'OS' & 'Recovery' partitions are fine, and the computer even boots into Windows. But when I use F8 to access the repair console I get a '0xc000000e' error. All of the information I find is somewhat outdated and refers to the period when Dell used Mediadirect.
View 6 Replies View RelatedI own a studio xps 1645 i720qm 4gb ram with ati 1gb 4670 card. My speakers are pissing me off. I can only hear sound through my head phones. my speakers arent working. Worst case i tired diagnostics tools at the bios startup and during the tests i hear the sounds?!?!??! when I log in my speakers just go dead. I checked IDT panel and it shows that my headphones are plugged in when they really arent. I called Dell rep to help the replaced my speakers and after a week im having the same problem again. I kind of doubt my HDMI port cause the last time this happened was right wafter i watched movies in my TV through my laptop. please guys help me out this is pissing me off soo much..im starting to regret getting this machine. IM experiencing constant freeze-ups too. some times when i go from adapter power to batter power (Power saver mode specially) and some times it randomly freezes (CONSTANTLY). Please help me somehow. I tried even a fresh install.
View 10 Replies View Related