It IS better than the previous 8600M GT. But by a slight margin.

At the end you'll have to look at the specs you choose. I shall comment on the SXPS 1640... IMHO, I'd look at it from a size comparison way: How many 16" laptops are there in the market now???

So far, I've only known these in the Malaysian market:
Dell Studio XPS 1640
HP HDX 16T
Sony Vaio FW

By comparison, I'd say the HP is the best value for money, where if you customize the Dell to match the HP, you'll overshoot RM6k by at least a few hundreds. The FW with the matching specs will cost even more.

And what's more: the HDX 16T gives you a numerical keypad, great for me as I key in a lotta data, while the 1640 and the FW doesn't have one, and instead they waste the space for nothing...

Lastly, when choosing a 16" laptop, think why you're buying one. I'm buying one for its great aspect ratio of 16:9 to watch HD movies. So which screen amongst all 3 is the best? I'd say the Vaio FW has the best here, but the HDX 16 has the UltraBrightview double lighting to make movies look brighter and sharper.

If you look at the older XPS models, the new 16-incher is not much of an improvement, though I can't comment much on the new Audio system on it with a subwoofer, as I really don't know the quality on it. But hey, Dell's got an RM500 rebate (if your specs exceed RM5k) for CNY, go for it!

The 1340 is 16:9 aspect ratio right?? Is there any other 13-incher like that on the market at all?

Wow, now with the Hybrid SLI graphics, the Studio XPS 13 can go rival a MacBook already.

I guess right now nobody dares to try out their new product...

Those available at Dell's site are DDR3 or DDR2???

Yeah, not the 8GB DDR3 though, the price is KILLER...

Well, it's no surprise really, maybe the demand for the Studio XPS series are just too high??

About what? That discount? Honestly, I was really keen on the RM500 off the XPS16, but after thinking twice about Dell's build quality, I passed...

Wow, congrats on your new ownership. Why only 1GB RAM?

The acer will give you higher specs for cheaper price I guess... But the only problem with Acers are the build quality...

Wanna ask SXPS 16 users 2 things:

-How's the sound quality from the speakers with the subwoofer??
-Does the leather patch at the back get scratched easily??

Thanks in advance.

I knew it would get scratched easily... I checked it out in the AllIT Hypermarket in Ikano, and felt that the leather was very fragile... I didn't get a chance to try out the sound though, just curious... What do u mean by "new audio"???

How "hot" is your hot??? Try Cooler Master's Notepal series, specifically the Infinite.

Where are the cooling vents on the SXPS16 actually? Does it get hot via normal web surfing if I place it on my lap flat?

Wow... Wondering what's gone wrong with Dell these days... Try to get that nice Wasabi mobile printer as free gift la..

Wow... Nice specs for under RM5k bro... Why don't you get the Blu-Ray ROM too? It's a little bit of a waste for a Full HD screen without a Blu-ray player...