Dell XPS M1730 User manual

www.dell.com | support.dell.com
Dell™ XPS™ M1730
Owner’s Manual
Model PP06XA

Notes, Notices, and Cautions
NOTE: A NOTE indicates important information that helps you make better use of
your computer.
NOTICE: A NOTICE indicates either potential damage to hardware or loss of data
and tells you how to avoid the problem.
CAUTION: A CAUTION indicates a potential for property damage, personal injury,
or death.
____________________
Information in this document is subject to change without notice.
© 2007 Dell Inc. All rights reserved.
Reproduction in any manner whatsoever without the written permission of Dell Inc. is strictly
forbidden.
Trademarks used in this text: Dell, the DELL logo, Inspiron,Wi-Fi Catcher, and Dell MediaDirect
are trademarks of Dell Inc.; Intel, and Core are registered trademarks of Intel Corporation.;Microsoft
and Windows are registered trademarks and Windows Vista is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation
in the United States and/or other countries; Bluetooth is a registered trademark owned by Bluetooth
SIG, Inc. and is used by Dell under license.
Other trademarks and trade names may be used in this document to refer to either the entities claiming
the marks and names or their products. Dell Inc. disclaims any proprietary interest in trademarks and
trade names other than its own.
Model PP06XA
July 2007 P/N TM373 Rev. A00

Contents 3
Contents
Finding Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
1 About Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Determining Your Computer’s Configuration . . . . . . 19
Front View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Left Side View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Right Side View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Back View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2 Setting Up Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Connecting to the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Setting Up Your Internet Connection . . . . . . . . 26
Transferring Information to a New Computer . . . . . 27
Windows Easy Transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Setting Up a Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Printer Cable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Connecting a USB Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Power Protection Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Surge Protectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Line Conditioners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Uninterruptible Power Supplies . . . . . . . . . . 30

4Contents
3 Using the Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Adjusting Brightness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Switching the Video Image From Your Computer Display To a
Projector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Setting Display Resolution and Refresh Rate . . . . . . 32
4 Using the Keyboard and Touch Pad . . . . 33
Numeric Keypad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Key Combinations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
System Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Display Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Wireless Networking and Bluetooth®Wireless Technology
Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Power Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Microsoft®Windows®Logo Key Functions . . . . 34
Dell™ QuickSet Key Combinations . . . . . . . . . 35
Adjusting Keyboard Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Touch Pad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Customizing the Touch Pad . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
5 Using a Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Battery Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Checking the Battery Charge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Dell QuickSet Battery Meter . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Microsoft®Windows®Battery Meter . . . . . . . 41
Charge Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Contents 5
Low-Battery Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Conserving Battery Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Configuring Power Management Settings . . . . . 42
Using the Sleep Power State . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Charging the Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Replacing the Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Storing a Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
6 Using the Optional Camera . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Accessing the Camera’s Help File . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Manually Adjusting the Camera Settings . . . . . . . . 46
Creating a Picture or a Video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
7 Using Multimedia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Playing Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Playing Media Using Dell Express Card Remote Control 49
Copying CD and DVD Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
How to Copy a CD or DVD . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Using Blank CD and DVD Media . . . . . . . . . . 51
Helpful Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Adjusting the Volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Adjusting the Picture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Using Dell MediaDirect™ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Connecting Your Computer to a TV or Audio Device . . 54

6Contents
S-Video and Standard Audio . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
S-Video and S/PDIF Digital Audio . . . . . . . . . 58
Composite Video and Standard Audio . . . . . . . 60
Composite Video and S/PDIF Digital Audio . . . . 62
Component Video and Standard Audio . . . . . . 64
Component Video and S/PDIF Digital Audio . . . . 66
Enabling the Display Settings for a TV . . . . . . . 68
8 Using Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
ExpressCards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
ExpressCard Blanks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Installing an ExpressCard . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Removing an ExpressCard or Blank . . . . . . . . 71
Memory Card Reader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Memory Card Blanks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Installing a Memory Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Removing a Memory Card or Blank . . . . . . . . 74
9 Setting Up and Using Networks . . . . . . . 75
Connecting a Network or Broadband Modem Cable . . 75
Setting Up a Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Wireless Local Area Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
What You Need to Establish a WLAN Connection .76
Checking Your Wireless Network Card . . . . . . 76
Setting Up a New WLAN Using a Wireless Router and a
Broadband Modem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Connecting to a WLAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Mobile Broadband (or Wireless Wide Area Network) .80

Contents 7
What You Need to Establish a Mobile Broadband Network
Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Checking Your Dell Mobile Broadband Card . . . . 81
Connecting to a Mobile Broadband Network . . . 82
Enabling/Disabling the Dell Mobile Broadband Card 82
Dell Wi-Fi Catcher™ Network Locator . . . . . . . . . 83
10 Securing Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Security Cable Lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Passwords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
If Your Computer Is Lost or Stolen . . . . . . . . . . . 86
11 Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Dell Technical Update Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Dell Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Dell Support Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Drive Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Optical drive problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Hard drive problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
E-Mail and Internet Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Error Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
ExpressCard Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
IEEE 1394 Device Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Keyboard Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

8Contents
External Keyboard problems . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Unexpected characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Lockups and Software Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
The computer does not start . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
The computer stops responding . . . . . . . . . . 103
A program stops responding or crashes repeatedly 104
A program is designed for an earlier Microsoft®Windows®
operating system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
A solid blue screen appears . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Dell MediaDirect problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Other software problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Memory Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Network Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Mobile Broadband (Wireless Wide Area Network [WWAN]) 107
Power Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Printer Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Scanner Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Sound and Speaker Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
No sound from integrated speakers . . . . . . . . 111
No sound from external speakers . . . . . . . . . 111
No sound from headphones . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Remote Control Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Touch Pad or Mouse Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Video and Display Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
If the display is blank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
If the display is difficult to read . . . . . . . . . . 114
If only part of the display is readable . . . . . . . 114

Contents 9
Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
What Is a Driver? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Identifying Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Reinstalling Drivers and Utilities . . . . . . . . . . 116
Troubleshooting Software and Hardware Problems . . 118
Restoring Your Operating System . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Using Microsoft Windows System Restore . . . . 118
Using the Operating System Media . . . . . . . . 119
12 Adding and Replacing Parts . . . . . . . . . 123
Before You Begin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Recommended Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Turning Off Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Before Working Inside Your Computer . . . . . . . 124
Hard Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Returning a Hard Drive to Dell . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Mini-Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Hinge Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Coin-Cell Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Optical Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Internal Card With Bluetooth®Wireless Technology . 141

10 Contents
13 Dell™ QuickSet Features . . . . . . . . . . . 143
14 Traveling With Your Computer . . . . . . . . 145
Identifying Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Packing the Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Travel Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Traveling by Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
15 Getting Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Obtaining Assistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Technical Support and Customer Service . . . . . 148
DellConnect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Online Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
AutoTech Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Automated Order-Status Service . . . . . . . . . 149
Problems With Your Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Product Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Returning Items for Warranty Repair or Credit . . . . . 150
Before You Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Contacting Dell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Contents 11
16 Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
17 Appendix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Using the System Setup Program . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Viewing the System Setup Screen . . . . . . . . . 162
System Setup Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Commonly Used Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Cleaning Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Computer, Keyboard, and Display . . . . . . . . . 164
Touch Pad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Dell Technical Support Policy (U.S. Only) . . . . . . . 166
Definition of "Dell-Installed" Software and Peripherals 167
Definition of "Third-Party" Software and Peripherals 167
FCC Notice (U.S. Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
FCC Class B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Macrovision Product Notice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
Glossary 169
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

12 Contents

Finding Information 13
Finding Information
NOTE: Some features may be optional and may not ship with your computer. Some
features may not be available in certain countries.
NOTE: Additional information may ship with your computer.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here
• A diagnostic program for my computer
• Drivers for my computer
• Device documentation
• Notebook System Software (NSS)
Drivers and Utilities Media
Documentation and drivers are already
installed on your computer. You can use
the Drivers and Utilities media to
reinstall drivers (see "Reinstalling Drivers
and Utilities" on page 116) or run the
Dell Diagnostics (see "Dell Diagnostics"
on page 87).
Readme files may be included on your
Drivers and Utilities media to provide
last-minute updates about technical
changes to your computer or advanced
technical-reference material for
technicians or experienced users.
NOTE: Drivers and documentation updates
can be found at support.dell.com.
• Warranty information
• Terms and Conditions (U.S. only)
• Safety instructions
• Regulatory information
• Ergonomics information
• End User License Agreement
Dell™ Product Information Guide

14 Finding Information
• How to set up my computer Setup Diagram
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

Finding Information 15
• Service Tag and Express Service Code
•Microsoft
®
Windows
®
Product Key
Service Tag and Microsoft Windows
Product Key
These labels are located on your
computer.
• Use the Service Tag to identify your
computer when you use
support.dell.com or contact support.
• Enter the Express Service Code to direct
your call when contacting support.
NOTE: As an increased security measure,
the newly designed Microsoft Windows
license label incorporates a "security
portal," which looks like a missing portion of
the label, to discourage removal of the label.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

16 Finding Information
• Solutions — Troubleshooting hints and
tips, articles from technicians, online
courses, and frequently asked questions
• Community — Online discussion with
other Dell customers
• Upgrades — Upgrade information for
components, such as the memory, hard
drive, and operating system
• Customer Care — Contact
information, service call and order
status, and warranty and repair
information
• Service and support — Service call
status, support history, service contract,
and online discussions with support
• Dell Technical Update Service —
Proactive e-mail notification of software
and hardware updates for your
computer
• Reference — Computer
documentation, details on my
computer configuration, product
specifications, and white papers
• Downloads — Certified drivers,
patches, and software updates
• Notebook System Software (NSS) — If
you reinstall the operating system on
your computer, you should also reinstall
the NSS utility. NSS automatically
detects your computer and operating
system, and installs the updates
appropriate for your configuration,
providing critical updates for your
operating system and support for Dell
3.5-inch USB floppy drives, Intel
®
processors, optical drives, and USB
devices. NSS is necessary for correct
operation of your Dell computer.
Dell Support Website — support.dell.com
NOTE: Select your region or business
segment to view the appropriate support site.
To download Notebook System Software:
1 Go to support.dell.com , select your
country/region, and then click
Drivers & Downloads .
2 Enter your Service Tag or product
model, and then click
Go .
3 Select your operating system and
language, and then click
Find
Downloads
, or under Downloads
Search
, search for the keyword
Notebook System Software .
NOTE: The support.dell.com user interface
may vary depending on your selections.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

Finding Information 17
• Software upgrades and troubleshooting
hints — Frequently asked questions,
hot topics, and general health of your
computing environment
Dell Support Utility
The Dell Support Utility is an automated
upgrade and notification system installed
on your computer. This support provides
real-time health scans of your computing
environment, software updates, and
relevant self-support information. Access
the Dell Support Utility from the
icon on the taskbar. For more information,
see "Dell Support Utility
" on page 91 .
• How to use Windows Vista™
• How to work with programs and files
• How to personalize my desktop
Windows Help and Support
1 Click the Windows Vista Start button
, and then click
Help and Support .
2 In Search Help , type a word or phrase
that describes your problem, and then
press <Enter> or click the magnifying
glass.
3 Click the topic that describes your
problem.
4 Follow the instructions on the screen.
• Information on network activity, the
hotkeys, and other items controlled by
Dell QuickSet
Dell QuickSet Help
To view Dell QuickSet Help , right-click
the Dell QuickSet icon in the Windows
notification area.
For more information on Dell QuickSet,
see "Dell™ QuickSet Features" on
page 143.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

18 Finding Information
• How to reinstall my operating system Operating System Media
The operating system is already installed
on your computer. To reinstall your
operating system, use one of the
following methods:
• Microsoft Windows System Restore —
Microsoft Windows System Restore
returns your computer to an earlier
operating state without affecting
data files.
• Operating System Installation Media —
If you received operating system media
with your computer, you can use it to
restore your operating system.
For more information, see "Restoring
Your Operating System" on page 118.
After you reinstall your operating system,
use the Drivers and Utilities media to
reinstall drivers for the devices that came
with your computer.
Your operating system product key label is
located on your computer.
NOTE: The color of your operating system
installation media varies according to the
operating system you ordered.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

About Your Computer 19
About Your Computer
Determining Your Computer’s Configuration
Based on selections that you made when purchasing your computer, your
computer has one of several different video controller configurations.
To determine your computer’s video controller configuration:
1Click
Start , and then click Help and Support .
2 Under Pick a Task , click Use Tools to view your computer information
and diagnose problems.
3 Under My Computer Information , select Hardware .
From the My Computer Information - Hardware screen, you can view the
type of video controller installed in your computer, as well as the other
hardware components.

20 About Your Computer
Front View
MEDIA CONTROL BUTTONS —Control CD, DVD, and Media Player playback.
1media control buttons 2keyboard status lights
3keyboard 4power button
5display
3
12
4
5