Dell Precision 5560 - nothing but problems / bluetooth power save

Question

I am writing you to express my disappointment with this Dell precision 5560 mobile workstation.   We have been buying Dell mobile workstations for about 21 years for use with 3D prototyping software from Autodesk.   This particular machine is the most powerful we have ever bought, and although the features are nice, it has been a disappointment from the start.   Here is an extensive list of problems we have experienced.   Bitlocker We have never used Bitlocker, and have no intention of using it either. However, this 5560 came with Bitlocker turned on, unbeknownst to me. Didn’t find out until after the lock was triggered while moving the OS image to a larger SSD. Wasted hours trying to correct that.   Onboard Bluetooth Right from the start I have experienced lag on my Bluetooth mouse and Bluetooth keyboard. First I thought this was a result of the Dell dock I am using, but later realized the lag happens also without the dock. This lag causes typing errors, and I am also constantly moving my mouse around to find it. As I move my hand but the mouse point does not until a few seconds later. This same Bluetooth mouse and keyboard works perfectly fine on a Dell XPS 15, and on a Dell Precision M4800. This was the reason for the first service call to replace the motherboard.   2A. Service Call I A Dell technician came and replace the motherboard. After completing the swap and running the initial tests, which all passed, the computer started to a blank blue screen. Technician called Dell Support and after half an hour on the phone concluded that they could not fix it. I asked that the originally motherboard was swapped back in again, and after doing the work, the booted up fine. Several hours of my time where I did not have a working computer.   2B. Service Call II A different Dell technician came back a few days later to make another attempt to replace the motherboard. Same thing happened, new motherboard did not do anything but show a blank blue screen. He called Dell technical support, and again no resolution could be found. At that time Dell said I should send in the computer for Dell to look at.  Promising a turnaround time of not more than 10 days. Again I refused and said to put the original motherboard back in, because I am really busy right now and need a functioning computer.   Processor Fan not connected Immediately following the departure of the second technician I started getting unexplained error messages (processor fan not responding) and other issues. Initially I thought there were intermittent issues, maybe even flukes. Unfortunately, this turned out to be the technician not connecting the processor fan plug into the socket on the motherboard. I was able to correct this myself, by again opening up the machine and inserting the plug.   Removeable bottom tray This computer has been opened up so many times, that the bottom tray no longer closes completely, especially near the charging LED in front of the touch pad. That LED now appears to be partially broken. This bottom tray is not designed to take this many removals. There is a slight gap near the LED that no longer closes completely.   Battery Not Connected Since I have connected the processor fan I have occasional 'battery not connected' messages. For days there are no such messages then all of a sudden this message shows.   Charger Not Connected / Charger of Insufficient Capacity I get intermittent messages about the charger not being connected, or messages about slow charging because of charger not being the one that came with the computer. The charger I am using is what came with the computer.   Hours of research as to why the Bluetooth is flaky on this machine I was surprised to learn that there is a long history of Bluetooth lag being reported for precision model going back to at least 5520 / 7520, with the solution being offered to turn off Bluetooth power save mode in the settings. The driver for Intel Bluetooth on this machine has no such feature.   Now I am left with the following questions?   Will Dell provide a driver that supports turning off the Bluetooth power saving feature any time soon? Why can the motherboard not be replaced on this machine? Is the motherboard that I have an early version and will this present a problem in the future? Why do I experience all these intermittent warnings and error messages about the battery / charger? Again, I can not miss my computer for more than a few days, is there a different solution in a shorter amount of time that results in a computer that is reliable and functions as intended?   Please advise as soon as possible how these problems can be remediated.

JaeYim · Answer

I had several issues with the 5560 also. I eventually asked Dell to send me a new one. I had issues w/ the USB and bluetooth. USB was fixed by the motherboard being replaced but the bluetooth wasn't. I eventually asked them to replace the laptop.

The new one is better but still have issues with the bluetooth after the computer wakes up. The mouse cursor as a delay when I move the mouse like you did.

I'm having issues w/ Windows 11 power savings. Can't seem to turn it off no matter what I do.

Definitely not as reliable as the 5550 that I had before. Maybe driver related but still not cool.

Ken C. · Answer

The 5560 has a widespread problem with bluetooth that Dell has not addressed. I received a brand new Precision 5560 from work and have had the same bluetooth keyboard/mouse lag you describe, from day 1.

I took the computer into my office's tech bar and after extensive troubleshooting, they couldn't diagnose it. They pulled out a second brand new 5560 from the box and set it up just to find out if the same bluetooth issue was observed. Sure enough, mouse lag was present from first factory boot.

I have seen this issue addressed with other Precision/Latitude/XPS models. A knowledge base article states Dell engineering is aware of the problem on Latitude E7470, Precision 7510 models.

Precision 7510/Latitude E7470: Resolving USB peripheral lag/connection issues | Dell US

However, the Precision 5560 model is not included here for some reason. The BIOS version it states corrects this is 1.14.1. Meanwhile, my Precision 5560 (Core i9-11950H) is sitting on BOS version 1.7.0 as of latest updated from Dell Command Update.

This model is being neglected for some reason, and I cannot find out why. My only conclusion is that Dell engineering is unaware of the problem, but I know not how to get through to tell them this problem exists across the board - at least for models with the 11th gen Core i9 processor.

Can any one from Dell watching this forum help us enterprise users out a bit?

MajZoa · Answer

This is a serious issue i've been having with my dell precision 5760. I'm baffled that Dell has not fixed this issue yet. @DELL-Cares updated me that engineers are working on a fix that will be released in the next BIOS update 1.8.0.

Until the next BIOS update, which I hope won't take weeks/months, I'm gunna have to suffer from mouse/keyboard bluetooth lagg/delay.

MajZoa · Answer

Update:

I'm happy to update that the issue has been addressed on BIOS update 1.7.2 (07 Mar 2022).

However, there is still a minimal delay after 5 seconds of the mouse/keyboard being idle but it's much better than what it was before. Current delay is somewhere between 50-100ms and it triggers each time the mouse or the keyboard is left idle for 5 seconds.

Ken C. · Answer

Yes, agreed - a BIOS update has finally improved the bluetooth mouse cursor lag from idle. Although it was v1.8.0 that fixed it for me. The issue was specifically called out as an "enhancement" in the release notes.

It is still present, though improved. Shocking how something so basic was left to fester like this, but I'm relieved it's finally being addressed.

Nguyen Tu · Answer

Yeah, I have same issue too.

I spent much money to buy this model but it make me so dissapointed.

Lag happens when connect concurrently mouse and tws earbud. I swear music experience is terriblem

Why don't dell engineer improve it? Especially on this high end model.

vladmix6 · Answer

Guys I just found the Bluetooth Power Management Settings in Win10 for Dell Precision 5560. The location was changed from Device Mng -> Mice to another place Devices Mng -> Human Interface Devices -> Bluetooth Low Energy GATT compliant HID device. Then Right click on it -> Properties -> Power Mng Tab -> deselect "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power". Have a nice day!

I've done this after i updated my BIOS to 1.10.1 (I don't know if it has any relevance).

DigiWise · Answer

I was just searching the issue for my 5560 and found your article and I'm on the latest bios version on the website. Looks like it's a plague!

Stump1185 · Answer

I am still having this issue as well. Done all updates provided from Dell and turned off power saving mode that @vladmix6 provided.  Appreciate help that anyone can provide. Thanks!

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