Mobile Broadband on Studio 15

AndyH · 09-11-2009, 08:52 AM

Hi,
Recently Dell offered free built-in Vodafone mobile broadband on several of their laptops, including the Studio 15. I was hoping to take advantage of this offer however wasn't in a position to be able to do so. Of course, now that I have got the money together, they are no longer running the offer. I assumed that I'd still be able to get the built-in mobile boradband, just not as a free offer. However it is no longer available even as a configurable option. I contacted the CS and was told the offer was no longer available. They didn't seem to be able to grasp the idea that I wanted it as a configurable (paid for) option. I guess I wasn't following the script they were using and so they couldn't answer.

In my limited understanding of these things, I figure that since it was previously on offer, the Studio 15 is capable of having built-in mobile broadband. Looking in the 'Electronics & Accessories' store I can find a built-in mobile broadband card (5530). Surely it's possible for Dell to put these two things together?

Does anybody know if the 5530 the right card for the Studio 15? If not which one is? Does anyone have any suggesting about how to go off-script with Dell CS?

Rgds,
Andy

Paul · 09-11-2009, 01:56 PM

Hi Andy,

Looking at the detailed specs page for the Studio 15, they do specify the Dell 5530 HSPA mini-card for mobile broadband.

See here: Dell Studio Laptop 15 Details

Click on the 'Tech Specs' tab and scroll down a bit.

AndyH · 10-11-2009, 09:02 AM

Ok, so that would appear to confirm what I expected. Now all I need to do is figure out how to order a Studio 15 with the 5530 fitted! Any ideas?

Rgds,
Andy

AndyH · 16-11-2009, 09:10 AM

Just to put this to bed: After going round the houses will various Dell Sales & technical people, I finally got an answer that makes sense. It would seem that the Studio 15 does work with the 5530 card

, but Win7 does not

. The sales agent that finally relayed this to me indicated that Dell were working on this and were looking to release an updated version after Christmas. Of course there was nothing definate about this!

Paul · 16-11-2009, 05:35 PM

Thanks for the info Andy!

AndyH · 04-01-2010, 05:00 PM

Thought I'd post an update....

After browsing on the Dell website I discovered updated drivers for the 5530 and 5540 wireless cards, released at the beginning of November - the week before I last spoke to Dell. The 5540 driver explicitly states that it is for the Studio 1557 and Win7.

So, I contact Dell Sales again and they again deny all knowledge of such an option, and suggest I contact Tech Support. This is now about a week before Christmas.

I contact Tech Support and they take my details and promise to get back to me. I think I missed a call from them on Christmas Eve, and then finally spoke to a very helpful lady on the 30th. I had several calls and emails with her on the 30th and 31st, and she assured me that she could sell me a Studio 1557 with a 5540 HSPA card included. Unfortunately she was not able to offer the discounts that Sales could, and crucially could not give the 10% EPP discount I qualify for.

So, armed with these assurances I again spoke to Sales and gave them the name of the contact in Tech Support. They promised to look into it and would get back to me. They called back a little while later to check exactly which card it was.... And then nothing.

When I called the sales guy's direct number it went direct to answerphone, and email came back saying he was out till 4th Jan. It also gave contact details for a new sales person. When I called her she told me point blank that it wasn't possible.

Today, I started all over again. I've spoken to both the tech support and sales people, and they assure me that they've spoken with each other. From what I can gather the problem is that the different departments use different software. The Tech Support software can give me the configuration i want, but not the discounts, and the sales software is exactly the opposite!

I've left them 'looking into it', but I'm not hopeful!

Rgds,
Andy

09-11-2009, 08:52 AM	#1
AndyH Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 9 Thanks: 2 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Mobile Broadband on Studio 15 Hi, Recently Dell offered free built-in Vodafone mobile broadband on several of their laptops, including the Studio 15. I was hoping to take advantage of this offer however wasn't in a position to be able to do so. Of course, now that I have got the money together, they are no longer running the offer. I assumed that I'd still be able to get the built-in mobile boradband, just not as a free offer. However it is no longer available even as a configurable option. I contacted the CS and was told the offer was no longer available. They didn't seem to be able to grasp the idea that I wanted it as a configurable (paid for) option. I guess I wasn't following the script they were using and so they couldn't answer. In my limited understanding of these things, I figure that since it was previously on offer, the Studio 15 is capable of having built-in mobile broadband. Looking in the 'Electronics & Accessories' store I can find a built-in mobile broadband card (5530). Surely it's possible for Dell to put these two things together? Does anybody know if the 5530 the right card for the Studio 15? If not which one is? Does anyone have any suggesting about how to go off-script with Dell CS? Rgds, Andy

16-11-2009, 09:10 AM	#4
AndyH Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 9 Thanks: 2 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Just to put this to bed: After going round the houses will various Dell Sales & technical people, I finally got an answer that makes sense. It would seem that the Studio 15 does work with the 5530 card, but Win7 does not. The sales agent that finally relayed this to me indicated that Dell were working on this and were looking to release an updated version after Christmas. Of course there was nothing definate about this!

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09-11-2009, 01:56 PM	#2
Paul Administrator Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 385 Thanks: 2 Thanked 29 Times in 26 Posts	Hi Andy, Looking at the detailed specs page for the Studio 15, they do specify the Dell 5530 HSPA mini-card for mobile broadband. See here: Dell Studio Laptop 15 Details Click on the 'Tech Specs' tab and scroll down a bit.

10-11-2009, 09:02 AM	#3
AndyH Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 9 Thanks: 2 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Ok, so that would appear to confirm what I expected. Now all I need to do is figure out how to order a Studio 15 with the 5530 fitted! Any ideas? Rgds, Andy

16-11-2009, 05:35 PM	#5
Paul Administrator Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 385 Thanks: 2 Thanked 29 Times in 26 Posts	Thanks for the info Andy!

04-01-2010, 05:00 PM	#6
AndyH Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 9 Thanks: 2 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Thought I'd post an update.... After browsing on the Dell website I discovered updated drivers for the 5530 and 5540 wireless cards, released at the beginning of November - the week before I last spoke to Dell. The 5540 driver explicitly states that it is for the Studio 1557 and Win7. So, I contact Dell Sales again and they again deny all knowledge of such an option, and suggest I contact Tech Support. This is now about a week before Christmas. I contact Tech Support and they take my details and promise to get back to me. I think I missed a call from them on Christmas Eve, and then finally spoke to a very helpful lady on the 30th. I had several calls and emails with her on the 30th and 31st, and she assured me that she could sell me a Studio 1557 with a 5540 HSPA card included. Unfortunately she was not able to offer the discounts that Sales could, and crucially could not give the 10% EPP discount I qualify for. So, armed with these assurances I again spoke to Sales and gave them the name of the contact in Tech Support. They promised to look into it and would get back to me. They called back a little while later to check exactly which card it was.... And then nothing. When I called the sales guy's direct number it went direct to answerphone, and email came back saying he was out till 4th Jan. It also gave contact details for a new sales person. When I called her she told me point blank that it wasn't possible. Today, I started all over again. I've spoken to both the tech support and sales people, and they assure me that they've spoken with each other. From what I can gather the problem is that the different departments use different software. The Tech Support software can give me the configuration i want, but not the discounts, and the sales software is exactly the opposite! I've left them 'looking into it', but I'm not hopeful! Rgds, Andy