DELL XPS M1730 – STILL UNBEATABLE

Though we have seen an impressive line of laptops with cutting edge technologies, the Dell XPS M1730 still remains unbeatable in the gaming arena, both in price and performance. This is mostly due to the fantastic customizing options offered by Dell. The options are virtually limitless and the price invariably shoots up as you upgrade the basic version. The XPS M1730 packs a Core 2 Extreme X9000 mobile CPU running at 2.8GHz, 4GB DDR2 RAM, dual 320GB 7200RPM HDD, a pair of GeForce 8800M GTX cards in SLI, a USB ports for HDMI, S-Video, Firewire and Express Card , Bluetooth/WiFi and of course a webcam. You can take a step further and opt for a 3.4GHz processor, Blu-ray and WWAN too. The result of such a mix is mind blowing but this pack will weigh you down by almost 10.6lbs ruling out mobility. But this ensemble is aimed as a desktop replacement for extreme gaming and mobility doesn’t factor into it. If you still brave it out and decide to travel with it, you can opt for a 9 cell battery that will give you some life saving time. Moreover, you will have to dish out a whopping $4000 for this package which will vary depending on your specifications. But it will be money well spent as Dell XPS M1730 is the fastest and the most powerful gaming laptop that you will be able to find on the shelves for that price.

DELL XPS M1730 WITH 8800M GTX SLI REVIEW

The recent version of DELL XPS M1730 gives it a power of two 8800M GTX in SLI. A powerful combination, this laptop rushed through all our tests with ease.

Design
A commendable fact is that the size has not changed much from the original 1730. Its still that wonderful design, with a strong casing. The attractive lighting, shiny carbon like surface and the overall feel is superb. The laptop has been designed with only gamers in mind, and it should be rather appealing to them. The screen is a 17” WUXGA, with a maximum resolution of 1920x1200 pixels. The brightness is great and so is the color quality, but the only area where the screen suffers is the reflectivity. Its a total strain on the eyes, and the viewing angles are not good either. The location of connectivity ports is also strategic, which means reduced clutter on the top. Four USB 2.0 ports, Firewire, S-Video, DVI, LAN, 5.1 audio support and card reader ports, all are present to give you a decent lineup of connectivity options.

Performance
Powered by an Intel Core-2-Duo T7700 2.4 Ghz, 4GB RAM, 200GB RAID x2 hard drives, 8800M GTX in Sli, this notebook is a power performer. The 8800 beats 8700 by a considerable difference, and the inclusion of it is a great decision. A score of 10824 in 3DMArk 06 and 6458 in PCMark 05 is seriously awesome. All games, and by all I include Crysis too, ran perfectly well at high settings and all eye candy turned on.
(benchmark results has taken from notebookcheck.net)

Conclusion
A great notebook without a doubt, the XPS 1730 with 8800M GTX is a marvelous performer. Its a sure winner, if you don't consider the price tag that comes with it. All gamers are happy, and Dell is laughing to the bank.

Pros
+ Great graphics
+ Awesome design

Cons
- Bulky
- low battery

If I start mentioning the complete set of Pros, the page would finish two times over.

Value For Money

Our Rating

PENRYN NOW WITH DELL XPS M1730

Dell as innovative as always has recently updated its series XPS M1730 Notebook well established for gaming with latest option of Intel Core 2 Duo Penryn 45nm. The essential quality of processor will carry 2.4GHz T8300 with upgraded options of T9300 for the price $125. When you compare the older T7800 came with the price tag of $400 and the X7900 Extreme Edition for the rate $750. I think this would be the most sensible choice to go with T8900 and T9300, as they are more reliable. Dell is not yet out with M1730 the new Penryn X9000 choice; guess it must be on hand soon from Intel.

DELL XPS M1730 WORLD OF WARCRAFT EDITION REVIEW

Introduction
Dells XPS M1730 high-end gaming laptop is now coming in a full World of Warcraft style! Let’s take a look at what this laptop has to offer the hardcore World of Warcraft fans out there.

The Dell XPS M1730 World of Warcraft Edition in General
I am sure many people have been visiting Dell website lately and seen the XPS M1730 World of Warcraft edition. The laptop is pretty much the same as the old and normal edition, but with this version you will get tons of good features which is a must have feature for a hardcore WOW gamer.

Horde VS The Alliance
You can choose if you want the Horde version of the laptop or the Alliance version but as far as I can see only the design are different. The insane price starts at 4500$ and if you want all the features it will end up at almost 8000$. However the machine is pre-loaded with games and all major games patches. You will also receive a golden ticket with this ticket you can get a custom figure print of your in-game character with its exact weapon and armor.

Tons of WOW features
You will also get many World of Warcraft features like a World of Warcraft Beta Club Key Card were you can join beta tests, World of Warcraft and The Burning Crusade Collector's Edition Account Upgrade Certificates and exclusive desktop background artwork, screensavers, soundtrack, novels, strategy guide. This is just a few samples of what you get in the huge Word of Warcraft package.

Overall
So to the question you all have been asking each other, “Is this really worth it?” Yes and no, it really depends how much of a gamer you are and how much of a World of Warcraft gamer you are. The Dell XPS M1730 is a very good gaming laptop and can be used for so much more then and more demanding games then Word of Warcraft. This game don’t require good specs to run well, I can actually run it good on my old Benq S31V Joybook with Celeron 1.60GHz and a Intel GMA945 graphic adapter. This package is not worth it if you are an average World of Warctaft player there are tons of cheaper laptops out there which can run World of Warcraft very good on high details. However if you have been playing World of Warcraft since the beta and you really are a true fan then I guess nothing can stop you from buying you this amazing laptop.

Pros
+ Very good and high performance laptop

Cons
- Way to expensive!

Value For Money

Our Rating

DELL XPS M1730 ANOTHER SHORT REVIEW

Introduction
The Dell XPS M1730, also called The Beast, is a stunning laptop and the most powerful one by Dell. It is particularly meant for hardcore gamers and features twin Nvidia GeForce 8700 GT graphics cards, which offer great performance. It has a 17 inch screen with Windows Vista Home Premium Operating System.

Pros
+ Features new Intel Extreme CPU for hardcore gamers
+ AGEIA PhysX 100M chip to improve game quality
+ 3G Mobile Broadband with Vodafone providing HSDPA services

Cons
- Heavy weight (5 Kg)
- Low battery life of 95 minutes
- Only one PC Card slot and two USB slots


Conclusion
It is undoubtedly a gaming machine as it runs without problems even at 1920x1200 resolutions. All in all, it is a very powerful entertainment notebook.

Specs:
Processor: Intel 965 2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Extreme X7900
Memory: 2GB of 667MHz
Hard disk: 400GB (2x200), 7,200rpm
Screen: 17-inches /1920 x 1200
Graphic: Dual 256MB Nvidia GeForce 8700M GT
Dimensions: 16.5 x 11.6 x 2.2 inches
Optical units: 8X DVD+/-RW DL
Weight: 11.1 pounds

Value For Money

Our Rating


LaptopAdvisor's Editors' Choice:
Best Desktop Replacement For Laptop Users