Dell Inspiron 7000 14" first impressions + goodies

[gus6464]

Updated the firmware and reinstalled Win 8.1 from scratch again but used all 8.1 specific drivers this time. SSD performance went up:

 

[marcplante]

So how many months will it take to get a verdict on the relative reliability of these devices? Dell seems to have fairly mixed reviews Inspiron and even XPS devices had their fair share of issues. Do the Latitudes fare any better?

Looking for a device for a wife that does not tolerate computer problems well.

 

[realjetavenger]

How do you like the color of the keys? This laptop looks interesting but silver keys with white letters? I've used a laptop with those colors and could not stand it (even with backlighting turned on).

 

[gus6464]

How do you like the color of the keys? This laptop looks interesting but silver keys with white letters? I've used a laptop with those colors and could not stand it (even with backlighting turned on).

I don't really look at the keys when I type so it's not that big of a deal for me but they should have been black. That way there would have been less backlight bleed.

 

[SpongeBob]

I've been looking at this same model but the HDD has kept me away. Now I'm thinking of getting it and swapping in a SSD like you did. Two questions:

1) Can you comment on the battery life (after the SSD swap)?

2) I don't have a copy of win 8.1. Is it possible to pull a recovery off the HDD and onto a USB stick I can then load it onto the SSD with? Sorry for the ignorance, this would be my first PC w/o an optical drive.

 

[gus6464]

I've been looking at this same model but the HDD has kept me away. Now I'm thinking of getting it and swapping in a SSD like you did. Two questions:

1) Can you comment on the battery life (after the SSD swap)?

2) I don't have a copy of win 8.1. Is it possible to pull a recovery off the HDD and onto a USB stick I can then load it onto the SSD with? Sorry for the ignorance, this would be my first PC w/o an optical drive.

I didn't swap the SSD. The machine has room for both the mechanical and SSD. Now I have a 256gb SSD as my boot drive and 500gb HDD for storage.

As for your second question I don't know because I never even messed with the HDD install. I just downloaded 8.1 from my MSDN.

 

[RossMAN]

How do you like the color of the keys? This laptop looks interesting but silver keys with white letters? I've used a laptop with those colors and could not stand it (even with backlighting turned on).

Glad I'm not the only one, that's an instant turn off. Of course I can live with it but it would have to be a RossMAN-esque deal on a loaded laptop.

Blacks keys or no sale.

 

[JEDIYoda]

And its $1100 for the dell if you want an i7. I'm not saying 1 lb is heavy, what I'm saying is that I think its odd you think 1 lb isn't noticeable but .1" thickness is.

I think both machines have good value, I just don't think they're directly comparable considering their differences. I would compare the Dell to the MBA or other ultra books.

hahaha why are you still arguing?
MrX8503 -- cheifsfan27 explained away what you claimed and pointed out the errors in your comparison and you still are arguing? you must have some serious issues...

 

[gus6464]

I've been looking at this same model but the HDD has kept me away. Now I'm thinking of getting it and swapping in a SSD like you did. Two questions:

1) Can you comment on the battery life (after the SSD swap)?

2) I don't have a copy of win 8.1. Is it possible to pull a recovery off the HDD and onto a USB stick I can then load it onto the SSD with? Sorry for the ignorance, this would be my first PC w/o an optical drive.

It's too early to tell on battery life but it can definitely hit 8 hours battery easy. I have seen the meter say as high as 15.5 hours of battery left.

I did manage to figure out how to create an EFI Win 8.1 USB stick so now it's installed with UEFI and secure boot. Had to use a gparted live usb though to erase all the partitions on the mechanical hdd but now it's ready to go.

 

[MoInSTL]

I can pick this up for $765+tax from Dell. http://www.dell.com/us/p/inspiron-15-7537/pd?oc=fncwb562h&model_id=inspiron-15-7537

4th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-4500U processor (4M Cache, up to 3.0 GHz)
8GB 2 DIMM (2x4GB) DDR3L 1600Mhz
1TB 5400 rpm SATA Hard Drive
Intel® HD Graphics 4400
15.6 inch LED Backlit Touch Display with Truelife and FHD resolution (1920 x 1080)
Backlit keyboard
Is this the same one
you guys are talking about?

I know in the past Dell shipped OS disks and that they no longer do that. When making the back-up is it a recovery disk or is it just the OS (which I prefer).

Nevermind, I am getting the 15, not the 14 as the OP.