XPS 8940, disappointed

Question

A few facts I wish I knew before purchasing an XPS desktop (the 8940, acquired in December 2021): 1) Check online for the CPU cooler info. The model I got (8940), similar to the previous one (8930), has a terrible cooler. My XPS came with an i7, the non-K version, so the cooling needs were relatively modest. Dell decided to put the cheapest and the worst cooler so I was seeing very high core temps even while in idle mode. Based on the online info I replaced the cooler with a much better one which cost just $35 ... The temp went down by 20 degrees Celsius.  2) Don't assume the storage will provide max performance. The model I got came with an NVMe drive, of course. These things are supposed to be fantastic in terms of performance but mine didn't really seem that fast. The measurements I took showed a THREE TO FOUR times slower performance than expected so after some digging I found a 'solution': go into the BIOS settings and do a restore to default (although I never changed anything there). That improved things but things were still pretty lame: 3x slower than expected writing performance. I had to replace the drive (regular model, nothing fancy) and things worked as expected.  So yeah, Dell decided to sell me and many others a $1400 flagship that came with a misconfigured and low grade drive. I wonder how many of those customers will ever figure things out or just end up living with this truly lousy setup. 3) Don't assume the RAM memory will provide max performance.  The model I got came with DDR4-3200 memory. The system only supports 2933MHz, though. And if you attempt to replace the memory with aftermarkets it may run as low as 2400MHz (no XMP support). 4) Don't assume you'll get the latest in terms of ports. My model (the 8940) came with 5Gbps USB ports. Would you expect a downgrade from the previous model, the 8930, which had a couple of 10Gbps USB ports? Me neither! 5) Don't assume the Dell installed software will work!  My system came with Windows 11. I started the Dell Update Manager and immediately encountered a silent failure. Digging through obscure web info, I figured out the reason was that my brand new machine shipped with a Dell piece of software (a service) that was incompatible with the operating system it was running on!   6) Don't assume you can install Linux. Not unless you have nerves of steel and plenty of time to figure out the quirks (BIOS config etc). What, you didn't know that you need to switch between AHCI and RAID each time you wish to boot Linux vs Windows?   7) Don't assume the built-in Bluetooth controller will be active at boot time.  I had a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse and connected them directly to the system's BT, since I didn't want to attach the BT dongle to it. Too bad - the BT controller doesn't seem to work at boot time, so until you boot Windows your system will not have a keyboard and mouse so, for example, you won't be able to enter the BIOS settings. Or choose to boot Linux.

lancelee2022 · Answer

(7) is very much true.  I am using a Logitech MX keyboard connecting via a unifying USB connecter to XPS8950, not bluetooth. It took me a few attempes to realize I can not use the hotkey for BIOS access.  I found an old DELL wired keybord (8115 or 8135) to access the BIOS eventually.   But this is very weird cuz wired keyboard is also connected via USB.

mgarcia85 · Answer

Totally disappointed with Dell and its 8940, after installing "urgent" and "recommended" updates and BIOS 2.14.0 my two PC's are useless. They constantly freeze at least 5 times a day, in any application or browsing on internet. I had the same problem a year ago, somehow it got better, freezing sporadically and I decided to updated drivers and the situation is worst now. Dell is not reliable anymore.

RoHe · Answer

@mgarcia85 - Read the post marked as Accepted Solution by mwsheldon in response to  recommendations made by @DELL- Nat M  (Community Manager).

XPS Desktops

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