What You Need To Know

• Chat with Tech Support when your system is feeling under the weather!

  Wed. Sep. 24, 2008
  by Debbie Davenport, Project Senior Consultant

  Hi, I’m Debbie Davenport and I work with the team that is helping to make chat support available globally for most Dell products.

  Let’s start with a definition. Chat means a lot of things, but I’m referring to online support variety. Here’s how the Wikipedia dictionary defines chat:

  1. To exchange text or voice messages in real time through a computer network, as if having a face-to-face conversation.

  That is an accurate description of the kind of interaction you can expect with Dell’s Technical Support via Chat – an informal conversation in text through a computer network.

  Chat Support isn’t new to Dell but it is growing in popularity with our customers. The US has offered Chat Support for nearly three years and Latin America has offered Chat Support nearly as long.

  Earlier this month we launched Chat support for all of our Canadian Business, Education, Healthcare and Government customers. We’re also focused on expanding chat in other places around the world as well. We have a quickly growing presence of Chat Support for our customers in Europe, Asia and Japan. I’ll talk more about the global aspect in a future post.

  If you are a customer interested in contacting Dell Chat for support, here are a couple ways to do it:

  1. Go to www.Dell.com/chatsupport
  2. From support.dell.com, click on the Chat Online with Technical Support link that looks like this:

  (Editor’s note: some of these images are hyperlinked)

  

  Then enter your service tag on the next screen that looks like this:

  

  You will see a screen like this one:

  

  Note: If your system is not registered to a business, you will not see a Company Name field. You’ll just need to enter your name and e-mail address.

  Also, we will only use your e-mail address to send you a copy of the chat transcript after we complete the chat.

  Click on Continue and you will be in the queue. On the bottom left, you will see details on your place in line.

  

  If you have any questions about the process, please share them here. I hope you find this useful – and hope that we’ll be “chatting” with you soon!
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• NVIDIA GPU Update: Limited Warranty Enhancement Details

  Fri. Sep. 12, 2008
  by Lionel Menchaca, Chief Blogger

  This is my fourth post on this topic. See this link for all of them.

  Since I first blogged about this back in July, I’ve received many comments from Direct2Dell readers. Before I share more, it’s important to note that many customers may not ever experience video issues related to this, especially if you have updated to the latest BIOS. In other words, just because you have one of the systems in the chart below with an NVIDIA GPU, does not mean you will have video-related problems. If you do experience them, however, we will support you.

  Dell Product Name
  Dell Precision M2300	Latitude D630	Vostro Notebook 1400
  Dell Precision M4300	Latitude D630c	Vostro Notebook 1510
  Dell Precision M65	Latitude D820	Vostro Notebook 1710
  Inspiron 1420	Latitude D830	XPS M1330
  Latitude D620	Vostro Notebook 1310	XPS M1530

  For those customers who haven’t read my previous posts, here’s the summary. My initial post defined the issue and explained that we published BIOS updates (hyperlinked above) that could help reduce the likelihood of GPU failures. In my second post, I published a list of systems that the issue could potentially affect. In my third post, I explained that we intended to offer a 12-month limited warranty enhancement specific to this issue.

  Today, we’re moving forward with that intention.

  Again, the limited warranty enhancement is specific to this issue and will extend coverage by 12 months from the date the original warranty term for the laptop expires. For example, one-year warranties will be extended to 24 months for this issue only. The maximum combined period for the initial warranty and the limited-warranty enhancement is 60 months. Systems purchased with 60-month warranties will not be extended. Customers whose warranties have expired will be eligible for this limited warranty enhancement from the date the initial warranty expired.

  This table above contains the list of laptops that are eligible for this limited warranty enhancement. If your system is not listed, no action is required. Please note that because it is specific to this issue, the warranty enhancement will not be reflected in your overall system warranty that is listed on support.dell.com if you are logged in.

  Over the last several weeks, we have been working with our service teams to ensure that we provide support for all customers worldwide affected by this issue. If your system contains an NVIDIA graphics solution AND it is experiencing one or more of the following symptoms, please contact Dell Technical Support for troubleshooting:

  • Intermittent video issues
  • Multiple images
  • Random characters on the screen
  • Lines on the screen
  • No video

  Customers in the United States can use phone numbers on this page to contact Dell Technical Support.

  Here’s the process for customers outside the United States:

  • Go to support.dell.com
  • At the very bottom of the page, select your country in the Choose a Country/Region field
  • Choose Contact Us on the left hand side
  • Click on the More Details link in the Contact Tech Support section
  • Click on the green Telephone button under the Call Tech Support section

  If you still need help after contacting technical support for this issue, please let me know in the comment thread of this post. Thanks for your patience through this process.
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• Updated FAQ for XPS 630 Owners

  Tue. Sep. 02, 2008
  by Lionel Menchaca, Chief Blogger

  Back in June, CNET's Rich Brown published a post on Crave where he featured a Q&A in regards to issues customers had been discussing regarding the XPS 630. The next day, Russell Thompson blogged about the XPS 630 and LightFX.

  Just to make sure interested customers are aware of the latest information, Chris M. recently published an updated XPS 630 FAQ over at the Dell Community Forum.
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• NVIDIA GPU Update: Dell to Offer Limited Warranty Enhancement to All Affected Customers Worldwide

  Mon. Aug. 18, 2008
  by Lionel Menchaca, Chief Blogger

  I've said in my past two posts (here's post #1 and here's post #2) and in the comment threads on this topic that I would share more details when I had them. Here's the deal:

  Dell will offer a 12-month limited warranty enhancement specific to this issue. For all customers worldwide, we plan to add 12 months of coverage for this issue to the existing limited warranty up to 60 months from the date of purchase for the following systems:

  Dell Product Name
  Dell Precision M2300	Latitude D630	Vostro Notebook 1400
  Dell Precision M4300	Latitude D630c	Vostro Notebook 1510
  Dell Precision M65	Latitude D820	Vostro Notebook 1710
  Inspiron 1420	Latitude D830	XPS M1330
  Latitude D620	Vostro Notebook 1310	XPS M1530

   

  Update: Over the last few days, customers like Steve Johnson, John and Robert have asked if their systems are affected. Throughout this process, Dell has undertaken a detailed assessment of this issue.  If your system is not listed in the table above, you do not need to do anything. If you have one of the systems listed above with an NVIDIA graphics card and are experiencing video-related issues I described in the bullet point section of my first post about NVIDIA GPUs, please contact Dell Technical Support.

  Details of the service plan will be available in the next few weeks. When I have more details to share, I will do so.

  In the meantime, thanks to all of our customers for your patience through this process. We appreciate your business and are committed to serving all of you who are impacted.  
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• Stereo Mix Record Functionality and Dell

  Fri. Aug. 15, 2008
  by Lionel Menchaca, Chief Blogger

  Stereo mix record capability in sound cards and audio chips is the source of many discussions and much confusion in the blogosphere. A post from Chad Lakkis over at ripten.com a while back sparked some conversations on other sites like Gizmodo and Techdirt.

  Truth is that there’s a lot of confusion about this issue. Part of the confusion is that stereo mix is also referred to as different things. People also call it things like "record what you hear" or "waveout mix." Desktop and notebooks equipped with sound cards (or with integrated sound components) generally have a few different ways to record audio:

  • through a microphone
  • from the line-in port
  • stereo mix/ WAVE out

  Before I get into the broader discussion about what’s going on, I want to be clear: Dell did not disable stereo mix functionality due to pressure from the Recording Industry Association of America. That speculation is simply not true.

  Here’s what happened: there are two ways for stereo mix functionality can be enabled: at the hardware or software level. Long before Vista was here, we supported stereo mix at the hardware level for integrated audio and in desktops. Back during Vista's development, Dell made decisions to remove stereo mix functionality at the hardware level based on Microsoft's initial Vista software requirements. Those requirements were later changed by Microsoft, but too late for Dell to add that functionality back at a hardware level in products nearing launch.

  Due to customer feedback, we’ve re-assessed things and have made the decision to enable stereo mix functionality in hardware on new notebooks starting with the Studio 15 and Studio 17 laptops. There will be many other notebooks coming in the future that will support stereo mix at the hardware level. Devices that support stereo mix functionality at hardware level will work with Vista and Windows XP. 

  If you want to dig a litte depper into this topic, take a look at these threads on our community forums for more information.
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• Latest on the NVIDIA GPU Issue for Dell Laptop Customers

  Fri. Aug. 08, 2008
  by Lionel Menchaca, Chief Blogger

  Back in July, I blogged about BIOS updates for systems that could experience graphics card problems caused by weak die/packaging material set from some NVIDIA mobile GPUs. Since then, lots of customers have commented on our blogs and have asked questions.

  Though the actual number of affected laptops is limited, many of you expressed concern for potential problems in the future, and we can understand that. We are committed to serving our customers.  We do intend to offer modified service terms to specifically support all customers worldwide who are affected by this issue. Right now, our teams are working through details. When I have specifics to share about service terms, I will do that here.

  Beyond questions about support, lots of Direct2Dell readers like Majortom1981, Carsten and Guiyo have asked if their systems are potentially affected.  

   See table below for clarification on this front:

  Dell Product Name
  Dell Precision M2300	Latitude D630	Vostro Notebook 1400
  Dell Precision M4300	Latitude D630c	Vostro Notebook 1510
  Dell Precision M65	Latitude D820	Vostro Notebook 1710
  Inspiron 1420	Latitude D830	XPS M1330
  Latitude D620	Vostro Notebook 1310	XPS M1530

  The laptops with hyperlinks in the table above are the ones with updated BIOS versions that modify the fan profile in the system. The above links will take you directly to the BIOS download for that system.  If you own one of the hyperlinked systems in the table, Dell strongly encourages you to update the system BIOS. Please refer to my first post for more information regarding BIOS updates.

  Like I mentioned in my earlier post, if you are already experiencing symptoms like multiple images, random characters on the screen, lines on the screen or you have no video signal, updating your system BIOS will not correct them. Please contact Dell Technical Support—here’s how to do that:

  • Go to support.dell.com
  • Choose your country or region from the drop-down list
  • Choose Contact Us
  • Choose Technical Support
  • Choose Call Technical Support

  I know there are many other questions out there. When there are more details to share, I will blog about them here. Until then, thanks for your continued patience. I apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.
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• NVIDIA GPU Update for Dell Laptop Owners

  Fri. Jul. 25, 2008
  by Lionel Menchaca, Chief Blogger

  Earlier this month, sites like Ars Technica and ZDNet blogged about NVIDIA’s statement regarding a potential issue with some of NVIDIA's Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) used in notebooks. According to NVIDIA, these affected GPUs are experiencing higher than expected failure rates causing video problems. Though this issue is not unique to Dell, some of these affected GPUs are used in certain Dell laptops. That's why I wanted to take a few minutes here to explain the issue and to let customers know what to do next.

  The issue is a weak die/packaging material set, which may fail with GPU temperature fluctuations. If your GPU fails, you may see intermittent symptoms during early stages of failure that include:

  • Multiple images
  • Random characters on the screen
  • Lines on the screen
  • No video

  Dell recommends that you flash your system BIOS (see links in the table below). Each of these BIOS updates listed in the table below modifies the fan profile to help regulate GPU temperature fluctuations. Note: if you are already experiencing video-related issues like the bullet points above, updating the BIOS will not correct them. Dell will provide support for customers who have experienced GPU failure according to the terms of the system warranty.

  These BIOS updates will help reduce the likelihood of GPU issues. New systems are being shipped with the updated BIOS revisions. Here's the list of the latest BIOS versions. Click on the links below to download them.

  Dell Product Name	BIOS Revision	Date	Update File Name
  Inspiron 1420	A09	7/14/08	1420_A09.EXE
  Latitude D630	A12	6/22/08	D630_A12.EXE
  Latitude D630c	A06	7/11/08	D630CA06.EXE
  Dell Precision M2300	A07	7/11/08	M2300A07.EXE
  Vostro Notebook 1310	A10	7/10/08	V1310-A10.EXE
  Vostro Notebook 1400	A09	7/10/08	1400_A09.EXE
  Vostro Notebook 1510	A10	7/10/08	V1510A10.EXE
  Vostro Notebook 1710	A07	7/10/08	V1710A07.EXE
  XPS M1330	A12	7/9/08	M1330A12.EXE
  XPS M1530	A09	7/25/08	1530_A09.EXE

  Update: As Direct2Dell reader foduekid noted, the A09 BIOS update for the XPS M1530 was made available yesterday after I published this blog post. I've updated the table above with the link.

  Update 2: I'm getting e-mails and comments that are similar to those of Direct2Dell readers like Customer, fr and barryd. Like I mentioned in one of my responses, this will not be the only blog post on this topic. When I have new details to share, I will share them here. Several of you have expressed concern over potential battery life issues. The reality is that these BIOS updates will not have any noticeable effect on battery life or overall system performance. These updates do not make the cooling fan run all the time. The fan may cycle on more frequently, but when it does, it will run at half or quarter speed.

  Update 3: Since Kara Krautter unveiled the Vostro 2510 on the Small Business blog yesterday, we've gotten some questions about it since it uses an NVIDIA GPU. Take a look at some of the comments in the Vostro 2510 Engadget post to see what I'm talking about. The Vostro 2510 will ship with the latest BIOS updates.

  If you need help flashing your system BIOS or experience any of the video-related issues listed above, please contact Dell Technical Support. Our teams are committed to working with affected customers to resolve issues on a case-by-case basis.
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• Update on Laptop Battery Availability

  Thu. Jul. 24, 2008
  by Lionel Menchaca, Chief Blogger

  About four months ago, I blogged about a fire at LG Chem battery plant. Back then, we discussed its potential impact on the constrained global supply of Li-ion cells used in laptop battery packs.

  Recently, I've been getting direct e-mails and comments from Direct2Dell readers like jonlijoo about delays with their notebook orders. There are also discussion threads in like this one in our community forum on the same topic. The issue? Battery availability. It is affecting our customers in the US, Latin America, Europe and Asia.

  While limited Li-ion cell availability is an industry-wide issue that affects most major PC makers, I want to apologize to our customers whose orders have been affected. Since the fire occurred in March, our procurement team has been working with existing suppliers to develop additional capacity and qualifying new suppliers to add to the supply.

  Our team is also looking at alternative technologies such as Lithium Polymer (Li-Poly) batteries. Li-Poly is a derivative of the standard Li-Ion technology and is well proven in many uses. We have already been using Li-Poly batteries on some of our systems and continue to explore the possibility of using it more widely in the future.

  Lots of folks at Dell understand the inconvenience the battery availability issue has caused and appreciate your patience. Please check with the sales rep on the shipping date before you make your order. We will continue to do everything we can to minimize the impact and keep you posted as the situation improves.

  This availability issue was also the reason we increased our prices for spare laptop (or secondary) batteries. That means more customers are opting for a single battery. For those customers, conserving battery power is important. There are some easy ways to do it—check out this video where Tony Salinas from our notebook performance team shares some good information on how to maximize battery power.
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• Latitude XT Software Update is Here

  Tue. Jul. 15, 2008
  by Lionel Menchaca, Chief Blogger

  Since my post about multi-touch coming to Latitude XT customers via a software update. Several sites like GottaBeMobile, jkOnTheRun and Gizmodo mentioned it, and Joanna Stern from Laptop Magazine even published a pretty solid overview and video demo of the new functionality.

  Now let me get to it... the download is now available for Latitude XT customers at the following links:

  • Vista 32 Bit