As most of you know, I had ordered the XPS 700 from Dell's online store on the wee hours of July 5th, merely a few hours left on Dell's EPP 30% off coupon that I managed to snag from eBay. I was so ecstatic when I put the order in, my first Dell Desktop, and a sweet 20" widescreen monitor to boot for discount of 38% off, which brought my total to $1054.00 and some change. This includes tax, and free 3-5 day delivery as well.
Let's see what I ordered.
XPS 700
Jet Black
- Pentium D Processor 920 with Dual Core Technology (2.80GHz, 800FSB)
- Microsoft Windows XP x64 Edition
- 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz - 2 DIMMs
- 250GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache
- 256MB nVidia GeForce 7900 GS
- 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability
- Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
- 20 inch UltraSharp 2007FPW Widescreen Digital Flat Panel
Excellent deal there! I wanted to buy a machine that I could upgrade down the line, but still game on it out-of-box.
Little did I realized what I was getting myself into...
I wanted to see if anyone else had ordered an XPS 700, or if there were any reviews, pictures, etc. A quick Google search brought me to the Dell Forums, where I discovered several people had been waiting since the XPS 700's release date of May 31st. Interesting.
Long story short, I read what I could, gathering information regarding the issue with the XPS 700. Surely one would have shipped by that time!
Turns out mid-way through my wait, Dell offered an upgrade to a Core 2 Duo processor, or a 200 dollar Dell gift certificate. A team of individuals (sic) would be calling those back who had made an order on or before July 18th. After a week of waiting, I never received my call. On Dell's blog, www.direct2dell.com, (formally www.dellone2one.com), an annoucement went out to those who hadn't received "the call", to send thier information to the team's email address, which I did.
Days later, I received my call. Wanting my PC faster, I opted for the original processor, the Pentium D 920, after all, I was elated when I heard the news that the XPS 700 motherboard was Conroe ready. Nifty.
However...
I was called twice, the first time the rep spoke with me, the second rep spoke with my wife, both times we confirmed that I wanted the gift card, and neither times were we told that there was an issue with the Pentium D 920s and Windows 64 Bit Edition. I had heard that there was an inventory problem with both of those components, but when I was contacted on my MySpace page (www.myspace.com/cachesyntax) from someone who was on that "team of individuals" (sic, again) who told me about the upgrade or the gift card, which I already knew about, however we spoke back and forth briefly, and he assured me there was no issues with the Pentium D 920, or Windows 64 Bit.
Interesting.
August 18th came and... nothing. That was the original ship date of my computer, and it hadn't even left pre-production. My rep emailed me that day, to tell me that was indeed an issue with the Pentium D 920s and Windows 64 Bit, and she asked me again what I wanted to take: the Core 2 Duo 6300, or a Pentium D 930, and if I took the latter, I would also get the 200 dollar gift card. I was also given a new OS selection, Windows XP Home, Professional, or Media Center.
Interesting.
After mulling it over for... 15 seconds, I took the Core 2 Duo 6300, and Windows Media Center, and my rep also bumped me to free next day shipping, her idea, at no additional cost to me. (Several other memebers of the Dell forum had received next day shipping, but I don't think a single one actually got it, as they received thier XPS 700s three to five days later. In light of this, I was skeptical, but said nothing of it. She also expediated my order. This I couldn't believe at all, but again, said nothing of it.)
My original order was cancelled and a new one was made on the 18th of August and it was shipped the 23rd from Dell in Texas. It's estimated time of arrival was on the 24th, at 3pm. That was most likely the longest 18 hours of my life.
New specs of my XPS 700 are as follows:
XPS 700
Jet Black
- Pentium Core 2 Duo Processor 6300 with Dual Core Technology (1.86GHz, 1066FSB)
- Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition
- 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz - 2 DIMMs
- 250GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache
- 256MB nVidia GeForce 7900 GS
- 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability
- Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
- 20 inch UltraSharp 2007FPW Widescreen Digital Flat Panel
So, around 2:45pm on the 24th I get a phone call, from the Fed-Ex driver, asking me if there was any way I could help with my packages, one the computer, the other the monitor. Now, I had heard that the XPS 700 box was huge... but wow. After helping her carry it in, the computer box weighed about 80 lbs. and she asked if she could see it, because she had been delivering Dell PCs for years and she has never seen a box that big or that heavy. I had also heard from the Dell forums that it's a good idea to have help with lifting the machine out of the box, and so I thought this would work to my advantage.
After pulling it out, she was speechless, and I couldn't stop saying "damn". The XPS 700 is really heavy, the weight more towards the back.
After the Fed-Ex driver left, and my wife returned home so she could take care of our son Kian, I began to go to work.
Now, this is a review, so let's get it started!
INTERNAL REVIEW
Before I hooked it up, I wanted to see it's internals, and how the drives, openings and etc. worked. I opened the side of the case, and the side itself is very thick and has some sort of rubber sealant around the edge, probably to dampen internal noise and prevent vibration.
Upon looking inside, the cable management does it's job, but it's lousy in the terms of neatness. I have built two PCs before, but this... I wouldn't know where to start. Considering I couldn't see it with the case closed, I figured out of sight, out of mind, and therefore I may tidy things up later.
The next thing I had moved onto was the plastic housing on the front. I removed the slide lever on the inside, which in turn allows direct access to the optical drives from the front. I had managed to get the cover off, but it wouldn't go back on correctly. So, a quick thumb through of the instruction manual tells me exactly how to reinsert the cover, no problems there.
So, I close the side cover, again, no problems, and then I focus on setting up my sweet 20" widescreen monitor, which for some reason I can't seem to adjust the height off. The button on the back doesn't seem to work, but I am comfortable with it's current position, so that's not really an issue.
However...
I plug in all components: ethernet connection, keyboard and mouse USB connections, and my monitor. I then plug the monitor and the XPS into the wall, and my XPS snaps on quickly, as evident of loud fan noise from the PSU that I hear, but nothing happens with my monitor.
Damn.
So, on a whim, I switch power cords between the XPS and the monitor, as I had just unpacked everything and didn't notice if I was using the 'correct' power cord or not. Upon swapping the cords, the monitor worked, but the XPS didn't! My monitor power cord was faulty out of box, but fortunately, I had my old monitor power cord, which does the trick nicely.
I go to boot up the XPS, you do this by pressing the power button up, not in. To hard shutdown (there is no reset button) you must hold the power button up until the computer shuts off. Some users on the Dell forum have been having an issue with the power button, mine is rocksteady.
The computer kicks on, and POSTs, but it's very noisy, like a harrier. After POST, the computer fans stop blowing, and it boots into Windows, after of course I set it up and register. The fans are not even audible at all, and the computer is very close to my left ear. The fan upstairs that I use to cool off my bedroom was able to be heard over my XPS, while I was using the computer.
After logging onto Windows XP Media Center, I see some Dell 'bloatware' that I really don't want or care about, and so after I basically got a 'feel' for the system, I then decided to run a reformat. (I also wanted to test out the LEDs on the front and back of the XPS, and actively searched for that program for about 30 minutes and decided to go to the Dell forum to learn that the LED colors can only be changed in the BIOS. Bummer.)
I started the reformat with my Windows XP Media Center disc that came with my computer. And, halfway through the reformat I realized I didn't install any RAID drivers for my hard drive, and I was worried it would show up as 13x something Gigs, instead of the full 250 Gigs that I'm supposed to have. After the Windows reformat completes and I re-enter the newly reformatted Windows, I get a message that other programs are being installed, and it could take up to 30 minutes to complete.
Damn. I'm getting Dell's bloatware on my XPS again.
Wait! The message goes away after five minutes, the computer restarts and it freezes on the logoff screen, and so I perform a hard reboot. It boots up fine, and the only program I see installed is some ESPN program that I don't care about, and quickly uninstalled, without any issues.
I began with Windows updates, and then installed my Panda Platinum Internet Security, and then various other programs. I also add my own personal files, music, photos, etc., and then a few games as well. While installing my programs and data, I tested out the optical drive. My DVD+/- RW was installed on the top bay, and there isn't much space between the drive tray and the LED lights that are over the optical drive and power button area on the front of the machine. However, there is more than enough room to place a CD into the drive tray with no issues. The only thing I would say that would be wrong with this area is that when the optical drive opens, the tray cover fold down and kind of blocks the same button you used to open the drive in the first place. This is easily remedied with just time and use, as of now I am used to it's location.
I also installed 3dMark05, and ran a benchmark test, getting a score of 7602 without any overclocking and stock video drivers. (I installed everything first, like my personal data because I'm going to be gaming with it on there anyway, I'm not trying to get a bigger score, but a benchmark test is definately a great comparison for other machines. After all, certain drivers will increase your score, but make your gaming experience terrible, and vice versa.)
GAMING
I haven't done much gaming yet, I did play some FarCry, but I'll be doing an addendum to this review when I play some more hardware demanding games, like Oblivion, FEAR and Battlefield 2.
FarCry was VERY smooth, no tearing or any issues, but then again FarCry is very well coded, and it could easily run on a Commodore 64 without brearking a sweat. (sic)
UPGRADEABILITY
At this point, it's been said on Dell's blog, www.direct2dell.com, that the XPS 700 motherboard is user upgradable, but some cables are specialized. It is speculated that there will be adapaters for Dell's propietary ports and media devices, but time will tell. Every other component however is user upgradable, and in the future I plan on upgrading my Core 2 Duo 6300 processor to the Core 2 Duo 6600, add 2 more Gigs of RAM, and a future DX10 video card, which remains to be seen.
FINAL THOUGHTS
All in all, an excellent system, very pleased with it. If I had paid full price, I wouldn't have waited this long for Dell to resolve thier problems with the XPS 700, but because of the great deal I received, I was more than happy to wait, and received much more than I started out with anyway.
This is my first Dell Desktop, and if Dell learns to not stick to propietary parts for the high-end gamer/power user and allow retail upgrades, then I'll be a customer for life.
Oh, and some cable management is in order too.
I give the XPS 700 a 8.5 out of 10. I believe this score would be higher if I didn't have to wait so long to receive my computer.
Here are some photos:
Box size, compared with a PlayStation controller for reference.
Corner angle of the XPS 700. I like the green LEDs being a Matrix fan and all.
Front view of the XPS 700.
Side view of the XPS 700. I used a bottle of laundry detergent for a size reference.
And lastly, a rear shot of the XPS 700.
Let's see what I ordered.
XPS 700
Jet Black
- Pentium D Processor 920 with Dual Core Technology (2.80GHz, 800FSB)
- Microsoft Windows XP x64 Edition
- 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz - 2 DIMMs
- 250GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache
- 256MB nVidia GeForce 7900 GS
- 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability
- Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
- 20 inch UltraSharp 2007FPW Widescreen Digital Flat Panel
Excellent deal there! I wanted to buy a machine that I could upgrade down the line, but still game on it out-of-box.
Little did I realized what I was getting myself into...
I wanted to see if anyone else had ordered an XPS 700, or if there were any reviews, pictures, etc. A quick Google search brought me to the Dell Forums, where I discovered several people had been waiting since the XPS 700's release date of May 31st. Interesting.
Long story short, I read what I could, gathering information regarding the issue with the XPS 700. Surely one would have shipped by that time!
Turns out mid-way through my wait, Dell offered an upgrade to a Core 2 Duo processor, or a 200 dollar Dell gift certificate. A team of individuals (sic) would be calling those back who had made an order on or before July 18th. After a week of waiting, I never received my call. On Dell's blog, www.direct2dell.com, (formally www.dellone2one.com), an annoucement went out to those who hadn't received "the call", to send thier information to the team's email address, which I did.
Days later, I received my call. Wanting my PC faster, I opted for the original processor, the Pentium D 920, after all, I was elated when I heard the news that the XPS 700 motherboard was Conroe ready. Nifty.
However...
I was called twice, the first time the rep spoke with me, the second rep spoke with my wife, both times we confirmed that I wanted the gift card, and neither times were we told that there was an issue with the Pentium D 920s and Windows 64 Bit Edition. I had heard that there was an inventory problem with both of those components, but when I was contacted on my MySpace page (www.myspace.com/cachesyntax) from someone who was on that "team of individuals" (sic, again) who told me about the upgrade or the gift card, which I already knew about, however we spoke back and forth briefly, and he assured me there was no issues with the Pentium D 920, or Windows 64 Bit.
Interesting.
August 18th came and... nothing. That was the original ship date of my computer, and it hadn't even left pre-production. My rep emailed me that day, to tell me that was indeed an issue with the Pentium D 920s and Windows 64 Bit, and she asked me again what I wanted to take: the Core 2 Duo 6300, or a Pentium D 930, and if I took the latter, I would also get the 200 dollar gift card. I was also given a new OS selection, Windows XP Home, Professional, or Media Center.
Interesting.
After mulling it over for... 15 seconds, I took the Core 2 Duo 6300, and Windows Media Center, and my rep also bumped me to free next day shipping, her idea, at no additional cost to me. (Several other memebers of the Dell forum had received next day shipping, but I don't think a single one actually got it, as they received thier XPS 700s three to five days later. In light of this, I was skeptical, but said nothing of it. She also expediated my order. This I couldn't believe at all, but again, said nothing of it.)
My original order was cancelled and a new one was made on the 18th of August and it was shipped the 23rd from Dell in Texas. It's estimated time of arrival was on the 24th, at 3pm. That was most likely the longest 18 hours of my life.
New specs of my XPS 700 are as follows:
XPS 700
Jet Black
- Pentium Core 2 Duo Processor 6300 with Dual Core Technology (1.86GHz, 1066FSB)
- Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition
- 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz - 2 DIMMs
- 250GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache
- 256MB nVidia GeForce 7900 GS
- 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability
- Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
- 20 inch UltraSharp 2007FPW Widescreen Digital Flat Panel
So, around 2:45pm on the 24th I get a phone call, from the Fed-Ex driver, asking me if there was any way I could help with my packages, one the computer, the other the monitor. Now, I had heard that the XPS 700 box was huge... but wow. After helping her carry it in, the computer box weighed about 80 lbs. and she asked if she could see it, because she had been delivering Dell PCs for years and she has never seen a box that big or that heavy. I had also heard from the Dell forums that it's a good idea to have help with lifting the machine out of the box, and so I thought this would work to my advantage.
After pulling it out, she was speechless, and I couldn't stop saying "damn". The XPS 700 is really heavy, the weight more towards the back.
After the Fed-Ex driver left, and my wife returned home so she could take care of our son Kian, I began to go to work.
Now, this is a review, so let's get it started!
INTERNAL REVIEW
Before I hooked it up, I wanted to see it's internals, and how the drives, openings and etc. worked. I opened the side of the case, and the side itself is very thick and has some sort of rubber sealant around the edge, probably to dampen internal noise and prevent vibration.
Upon looking inside, the cable management does it's job, but it's lousy in the terms of neatness. I have built two PCs before, but this... I wouldn't know where to start. Considering I couldn't see it with the case closed, I figured out of sight, out of mind, and therefore I may tidy things up later.
The next thing I had moved onto was the plastic housing on the front. I removed the slide lever on the inside, which in turn allows direct access to the optical drives from the front. I had managed to get the cover off, but it wouldn't go back on correctly. So, a quick thumb through of the instruction manual tells me exactly how to reinsert the cover, no problems there.
So, I close the side cover, again, no problems, and then I focus on setting up my sweet 20" widescreen monitor, which for some reason I can't seem to adjust the height off. The button on the back doesn't seem to work, but I am comfortable with it's current position, so that's not really an issue.
However...
I plug in all components: ethernet connection, keyboard and mouse USB connections, and my monitor. I then plug the monitor and the XPS into the wall, and my XPS snaps on quickly, as evident of loud fan noise from the PSU that I hear, but nothing happens with my monitor.
Damn.
So, on a whim, I switch power cords between the XPS and the monitor, as I had just unpacked everything and didn't notice if I was using the 'correct' power cord or not. Upon swapping the cords, the monitor worked, but the XPS didn't! My monitor power cord was faulty out of box, but fortunately, I had my old monitor power cord, which does the trick nicely.
I go to boot up the XPS, you do this by pressing the power button up, not in. To hard shutdown (there is no reset button) you must hold the power button up until the computer shuts off. Some users on the Dell forum have been having an issue with the power button, mine is rocksteady.
The computer kicks on, and POSTs, but it's very noisy, like a harrier. After POST, the computer fans stop blowing, and it boots into Windows, after of course I set it up and register. The fans are not even audible at all, and the computer is very close to my left ear. The fan upstairs that I use to cool off my bedroom was able to be heard over my XPS, while I was using the computer.
After logging onto Windows XP Media Center, I see some Dell 'bloatware' that I really don't want or care about, and so after I basically got a 'feel' for the system, I then decided to run a reformat. (I also wanted to test out the LEDs on the front and back of the XPS, and actively searched for that program for about 30 minutes and decided to go to the Dell forum to learn that the LED colors can only be changed in the BIOS. Bummer.)
I started the reformat with my Windows XP Media Center disc that came with my computer. And, halfway through the reformat I realized I didn't install any RAID drivers for my hard drive, and I was worried it would show up as 13x something Gigs, instead of the full 250 Gigs that I'm supposed to have. After the Windows reformat completes and I re-enter the newly reformatted Windows, I get a message that other programs are being installed, and it could take up to 30 minutes to complete.
Damn. I'm getting Dell's bloatware on my XPS again.
Wait! The message goes away after five minutes, the computer restarts and it freezes on the logoff screen, and so I perform a hard reboot. It boots up fine, and the only program I see installed is some ESPN program that I don't care about, and quickly uninstalled, without any issues.
I began with Windows updates, and then installed my Panda Platinum Internet Security, and then various other programs. I also add my own personal files, music, photos, etc., and then a few games as well. While installing my programs and data, I tested out the optical drive. My DVD+/- RW was installed on the top bay, and there isn't much space between the drive tray and the LED lights that are over the optical drive and power button area on the front of the machine. However, there is more than enough room to place a CD into the drive tray with no issues. The only thing I would say that would be wrong with this area is that when the optical drive opens, the tray cover fold down and kind of blocks the same button you used to open the drive in the first place. This is easily remedied with just time and use, as of now I am used to it's location.
I also installed 3dMark05, and ran a benchmark test, getting a score of 7602 without any overclocking and stock video drivers. (I installed everything first, like my personal data because I'm going to be gaming with it on there anyway, I'm not trying to get a bigger score, but a benchmark test is definately a great comparison for other machines. After all, certain drivers will increase your score, but make your gaming experience terrible, and vice versa.)
GAMING
I haven't done much gaming yet, I did play some FarCry, but I'll be doing an addendum to this review when I play some more hardware demanding games, like Oblivion, FEAR and Battlefield 2.
FarCry was VERY smooth, no tearing or any issues, but then again FarCry is very well coded, and it could easily run on a Commodore 64 without brearking a sweat. (sic)
UPGRADEABILITY
At this point, it's been said on Dell's blog, www.direct2dell.com, that the XPS 700 motherboard is user upgradable, but some cables are specialized. It is speculated that there will be adapaters for Dell's propietary ports and media devices, but time will tell. Every other component however is user upgradable, and in the future I plan on upgrading my Core 2 Duo 6300 processor to the Core 2 Duo 6600, add 2 more Gigs of RAM, and a future DX10 video card, which remains to be seen.
FINAL THOUGHTS
All in all, an excellent system, very pleased with it. If I had paid full price, I wouldn't have waited this long for Dell to resolve thier problems with the XPS 700, but because of the great deal I received, I was more than happy to wait, and received much more than I started out with anyway.
This is my first Dell Desktop, and if Dell learns to not stick to propietary parts for the high-end gamer/power user and allow retail upgrades, then I'll be a customer for life.
Oh, and some cable management is in order too.
I give the XPS 700 a 8.5 out of 10. I believe this score would be higher if I didn't have to wait so long to receive my computer.
Here are some photos:
Box size, compared with a PlayStation controller for reference.
Corner angle of the XPS 700. I like the green LEDs being a Matrix fan and all.
Front view of the XPS 700.
Side view of the XPS 700. I used a bottle of laundry detergent for a size reference.
And lastly, a rear shot of the XPS 700.
