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154887
Inspiron 15R SE 7520 video card problems
Dear DELL,
This is a story of love at first sight, a blissful courting period and then heartbreak. While shopping around for a new notebook, I chanced upon a gem of one. 1080p MATTE display? Check. Zippy quad-core Ivy Bridge CPU? Check. Proper, dedicated GPU? Check. Copious amounts of RAM? Check. Beefy HDD? Check. FOUR USB 3.0 ports? Check. Optical disk drive (call me old-fashioned)? Check. Decent price tag? Check (after online discount). Not hesitating, I instantly bought an Inspiron 7520 from you in July of 2012. At first, everything was going great. I had a wonderful relationship with my notebook. The AMD Radeon HD 7730M ran most recent games on medium to high settings as long as I wasn't too demanding with the resolution. Ultra high settings were out of the question, but I was fine with that. Of course, if DELL had allowed me to upgrade to a 7750M or a 7770M, things would've been even rosier. Oh, the good times!
As they say, all good things must come to an end. This relationship that bordered on perfection didn't last long. In October of the same year, tragedy struck. My baby had shipped with Win7 Home Premium 64-bit, but since I was eligible to purchase Win8 at a subsidised price, I went for it right after Win8 launched. At first, I had been wary of upgrading because I was afraid if there would be compatibility issues with my existing games (I have a sizable library of Steam titles). However, after researching this matter, I discovered that there was not much to worry about. Win8 appeared to be just as good for gaming as Win7 (or even better). I therefore took the plunge.
Lo and behold! Immediately after installing Win8, it became apparent that DELL had not amply prepared for the influx of new Win8 7520 users. Right off the bat, my AMD video card stopped working. Needless to say, this was obviously a driver problem. I'm a patient person. Hence, I decided to wait for DELL or AMD to release a newer version of the 7730M drivers. Because, you know, manufacturers/OEMs need time to do their stuff. And I understood that. Take a few weeks, heck, take a couple of months. Then, I want a fully functioning GPU again so that I can play games beyond 800x600 on low settings. Now, when I try to open the Catalyst Control Centre, it just gives me this error: "Catalyst Control Centre cannot be started. There are currently no settings that can be configured with Catalyst Control Centre". Tick, tock, tick, tock... Fast forward to today, 5th March 2013, and it's been approximately half a year since Win8 premiered.
Here's a question, DELL - WHERE ON EARTH ARE THE LATEST DRIVERS FOR THE AMD RADEON HD 7730M???
Before any tech support agent gives me an official response asking me to troubleshoot/diagnose/attempt to fix my system, I'm going to save you the trouble: DON'T. Here's a (non-exhaustive) list of the steps that I've taken in the past half a year to troubleshoot/diagnose/attempt to fix my system:
- I've been through the whole "devmgmt.msc" process.
- I've updated my .NET version to the latest one.
- I've downloaded and installed ALL the latest drivers for BIOS, GPU, WLAN, USB 3.0, even memory card reader, you name it. Yes, not even the latest GPU drivers on your website work. The 7730M just doesn't quite work with Win8. This means that either the latest drivers are not the latest, or that you have released a very sloppy update that probably worsened the situation instead of improving it.
- I've trolled multiple fora online (beginning with DELL's) for fixes.
- I've visited AMD's support website and unacceptably, the Win8-specific drivers for the 7730M have not been released yet. Worse still, it seems like they have not committed to a timeframe for updating their drivers!
- I've tried installing different versions of the drivers for the 7730M, none of which made a difference.
- I've probably done a few other things but I can't recall anything else at the moment.
Look, it's very simple, DELL. On behalf of EVERYONE who purchased the 7520 from you (and I know that this is a popular model), we are sick and tired of waiting for a simple driver update!!! If AMD can't get their crap right, nudge them, push them, force them to! You have a working business relationship with them, but you also have a relationship with us, your customers. If you do indeed treat us as your valued customers, then please, please, please, please, please, just publish that one elusive driver update which re-enables the GPU in our 7520s, whether running on Win7 or Win8. This is the last straw for me; I actually took the time to type out this essay just to release all my pent-up frustration.
To conclude, I have had it with not being able to enjoy something that I rightfully own the way I want to. If you don't sort this matter out as soon as possible, I give you my word, I will not be buying another DELL ever again. Don't respond to this letter by way of a useless official answer that you give to every single complainant, I want real action to be taken. Also, I don't want to downgrade to Win7 as I love Win8 so that is not an option as well. This issue has spiralled out of control - just looking at the number of threads complaining about this exact same matter makes me want to pull my hair out. Once again, on behalf of all Inspiron 15R SE 7520 owners, I implore DELL and/or AMD to come up with a permanent solution to this problem quickly. Pretty please?
Yours sincerely,
An Extremely Agitated Inspiron 7520 Owner
Omer Humayun
6 Posts
0
May 29th, 2013 00:00
I have been using an n5010 with a core i3 370m and 4650m for the past 2.5 years so even this is an acceptable performance increase for me :p I know i shouldnt expect to play on high settings at good fps but it will do the job for me. And yes, i couldve built a far better desktop in the same price but i will be taking it to uni for CAD so it needs to be a portable system. Instead, do you think waiting two months or so for haswell laptops will be worh it?
ColdWar
2 Posts
0
July 22nd, 2014 21:00
The amd drivers are very annoying they are not yet completely compatible with new versions of windows if you have problems i would contact amd directly. I had the same problem and will be aiming to fix it but amd support should know the issue and walk you through fixing it. After all you did pay for the card.
CyberMaxX360
272 Posts
0
March 4th, 2013 16:00
Even though your "Essay" was a good candidate as tl:dr material.
I figure I've seen enough of these here griping about it and have posted so I figure what the heck what's one more, might as well post what I know.
At least perhaps the contribution might help.
Couple things:
First check the AMD site again their 13.1 Reference drivers support Windows 8 and your 7730m.
Specifically stated in these sections:
Compatible Operating Systems
The latest version of the AMD Catalyst software suite is designed to support the following Microsoft Windows platforms:
AMD Mobility Radeon™ Family Compatibility
AMD Catalyst Mobility is a notebook reference graphics driver with limited support for system vendor specific features. When used with Windows Vista or Windows 7, the user experience may be limited or compromised.
The Installation Verification Software is designed to prevent driver download on certain notebook products. This is to help protect against the installing of drivers that may disable features or functionality provided by the system manufacturer. When used with Windows Vista or Windows 7, the user experience may be limited or compromised. In such a situation, it is recommended to revert back to the driver provided by your system vendor for your specific platform. Please contact your system vendor for the most recent drivers for your notebook.
AMD Mobility Product Families
AMD Mobility Radeon™ HD 7000M Series
AMD Mobility Radeon HD 5400 Series
AMD Mobility Radeon HD 6900M Series
AMD Mobility Radeon HD 5100 Series
OK with that out of the way.
Wasn't until recent that AMD is finally getting around to getting "their crap right" - Late October/Early November they released their 12.11 Beta drivers that fixed a lot of issues, specifically making it work better with their Enduro Technology (bit that manages power conservation on mobile laptops, bit that controls which Graphics Processor will render, bit that allows a user to force applications as well).
To be honest with you AMD is a mess when it comes to this technology, look at it this way they have to work with Intel's HD Integrated Graphics Processing Unit (iGPU) - they don't advertise the fact that their drivers also need to include parts of Intel's Reference Drivers. Intel doesn't make it any easier on them, especially since AMD happens to produce CPU's that cuts into Intel's main market. So, AMD waits for Intel to release reference drivers that oh one day may work better with their line of Discrete cards, then AMD has to incorporate those parts into their own driver package. Either digitally sign it themselves or submit to Microsoft at a cost to have them WHQL Certified. This is the reason why people with this setup see issues with the following: Install Intel Drivers direct from Intel for their HD it breaks AMD Catalyst Drivers, Install Non WHQL drivers from AMD or ones not designed for their Mobility GPU's Intel Drivers break. Microsoft Update kicks in updates your unit it breaks the drivers as well. Only option DELL (well not really, see below) has is to wait until AMD "gets their crap together" and comes out with an updated driver, so they can package it all together. It's to complex to go into, there's also issues with Digital Certificate Signing and 64 bit OS's that add to this.
So please take in mind it's not just Dell, it's Lenovo, HP, ASUS, anyone else running this setup to make some of their lines at a cheaper cost for their customers - old saying that fits in this instance "You get what you pay for" I guess.
The 13.1 WHQL AMD Drivers I pointed out are Reference Drivers - they just came out Mid-January, how long until Dell gets around to incorporate them into Dell specific Released drivers for their systems is anyone's guess. Hopefully soon, BUT....
All this leads me here -
http://leshcatlabs.net - I don't work for Dell, it's up to you if you want to try this as an option to correct the problems you and everyone else sees with units built around an Intel HD Integrated Graphics Processing Unit (iGPU) and an AMD Discrete Graphics Processing Unit (dGPU).
Specifically check that site for the 13.1 WHQL UnifL Intel/AMD Laptop drivers (they're presented as a package) read what they have to say about them and what others post in the comments section.
Make sure to read the MANUAL on how to cleanly uninstall past drivers and how to install these drivers and continue reading the manual to understand what you need to do to maintain them so Windows Update doesn't break them. Suggest if you do so, make a complete system backup and ensure you can recover if need be.
Also, note that it will set the watermark for your windows 8 64 bit to test mode... again it has to do with digitally signed drivers, you can read about that at his site as well.
Other then that, I would suspect that Dell will come out with new drivers based on AMD's eventually. You can't lay 100% blame on Dell for the AMD/Intel mess their probably 20% of the problem (can they work faster releasing drivers once AMD does? it's only been about 1.5 months since something promising came out. I say another 20% of the problem going to Intel for being such nudges about it when it comes to working with a competitor (who blames them, I'd do the same if I was in the business) and 60% towards AMD for being so dang slow in producing updated fixed drivers for their OEM's to use.
Lesson - In the future if you want to go a bit cheaper then make sure you stick with AMD CPU/AMD GPU/AMD Chipset setups.
Add Intel into a mix with them and your asking for headaches
Cheers
ThorFolklore
3 Posts
1
March 4th, 2013 19:00
Thank you, CyberMaxX360. Apologies as I forgot to add a tl;dr version.
Regarding your post, I know about the 13.1 reference drivers, and it hasn't worked for me. Thanks though for your link to leshcatlabs.net, will give it a shot. Fingers crossed, this might be the hotfix that everyone needs. /rant over
I should probably make it clear that I'm not squarely placing the blame on DELL - it's only because I bought the laptop from them that I'm turning to them now. I've been a DELL user since 2007 and if they were that bad, I would've jumped ship a long time ago. You're right, AMD are sloths when it comes to driver updates and that's why I was asking both DELL and AMD to buckle up.
Oh, one more thing, I know that you get what you pay for. If only there were more customisation options available, I would've maxed out the CPU and GPU combo. Didn't want an Alienware, as I needed something more portable and slightly less pricey, and this was the best I could find. DELL's XPS lineup during the middle of 2012 was sorely lacking. Can't believe I'm saying this, but this might be one of the few times that an Inspiron overshadows XPS laptops.
Thanks again for your help!
ThorFolklore
3 Posts
0
March 4th, 2013 19:00
Forgot to mention that I've also tried the 12.11 Beta drivers. Results were the same. No fix.
CyberMaxX360
272 Posts
0
March 5th, 2013 12:00
I know that the Leshcatlabs.net drivers do work, hopefully it will work as advertised for you - others that I have pointed towards it have came back and said thanks in their posts. I can also see in the comments section of his site people thanking him who have the exact same unit. So there is some hope and work around for now, until AMD and Dell square everything up. For one thing, at least his manual goes in depth on how to remove old drivers and get the OS back to square one for future driver installs.
I get a kick out of this poll on his sites homepage though.
Polls
Which GPU would be in your next laptop?
AMD. Rocks no matter what! (48%, 558 Votes)
nVidia. Slower but no drivers pain. (48%, 548 Votes)
Intel. Only. Good battery time. (4%, 46 Votes)
Maxx555
13 Posts
0
March 5th, 2013 20:00
I have the same freaking problem and I do not know how to resolve it :'(
IchDrehDurch
15 Posts
0
March 22nd, 2013 14:00
I've got the same problem. Does anyone can help?
Maxx555
13 Posts
0
March 22nd, 2013 16:00
I found a solution on this post try it it may help you en.community.dell.com/.../19495247.aspx
Omer Humayun
6 Posts
0
May 28th, 2013 07:00
Hi everyone. I live in Pakistan and am about to buy a Dell 7520. I have two options available for me:
1. 1366x768 screen, dvd-rw, DOS (it's pretty common here for authorized dealers to sell their notebooks with DOS only)
2. 1080p screen, bluray, WINDOWS 8. (all this comes at about a $100 premium)
I just wanna know if you guys have found a working, permanent solution for the graphics issue in win8 because the 1080p screen is tempting me a lot. Tell me if I can get the win8 version and run games without any headache or should i get the DOS version and install win7. I do have access to a single free copy of any Windows because of my university's DreamSpark program.
Thanks in advance!
ejn63
9 Legend
9 Legend
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87.5K Posts
0
May 28th, 2013 09:00
This is NOT the system to buy if you are anything but a very casual gamer -- if you have anything beyond the most rudimentary gaming aspirations, you need a higher-end system - look at the Alienware systems.
Omer Humayun
6 Posts
0
May 28th, 2013 12:00
Alienware systems are way out of budget for me. This is the only machine in the price range available here with both a good processor and a decent GPU--other notebooks with the same processor have even poorer GPUs like the GT630M or 7670M, and on the other hand machines with cards like GT730M and 8750M have low voltage processors. Too bad the Lenovo Y series isn't available here.
ejn63
9 Legend
9 Legend
•
87.5K Posts
0
May 28th, 2013 13:00
Just realize that you won't be doing high-level gaming on any system at this level. If you don't have the budget for a gaming notebook, buy a desktop system - or realize that you'll have to reduce your gaming expectations.
ColdWar
2 Posts
0
July 22nd, 2014 21:00
I would NOT go for alien ware for Gaming i would build your own you can have 5 times the power of an alien ware for half the price alien ware has very amazing quality but i would recommend it to people who don't have the time to build a P.C. The skills required are the same of making a very delicate Lego set mixed with an Erector set. Just a suggestion but it will save money. http://pcpartpicker.com/
CountOfAnvil
3 Posts
0
September 26th, 2014 12:00
I have the solution for you.
The story of installing new driver on this computer, especially in windows 8.1 is very long.
Here's the correct steps that I tried many times and successfully update AMD driver to newest.(14.4)
MAKE SURE THAT THE PROCEDURE OF INSTALLATION IS THE KEY POINT TO SUCCESS
Download the windows 8.1 driver from Dell support by detecting your tag.(dont download the Intel one,its useless, ONLY DOWNLOAD the AMD driver one for windows 8.1).
Uninstall the AMD drivers from control panel. Dont uninstall intel driver.
Restart computer. Use device manager update your Intel 4000 driver by automatic search. This step is important for create better compatibility.
After that, open the downloaded file, install the AMD driver.(I know this is not the newest, dont worry)
Restart again.
Now, download catalyst 14.4 from amd.. use the download center, choose the mobile GPU 7000 Series.
Install this driver.
Now you could enjoy games.
PS: My 7520 is purchase one year ago, I install a windows 8.1 and update bios to A10. (It also work on A11 bios)