My cd/dvd drive is working , I can hear it, but the pc is not reading it - it is no longer on "my computer" - can't find an icon anywhere-is this a software problem? I am going to ask in PC World today - sigh - hope they can tell me how to resolve the problem without having to take the pc in.

Prices have been up and down on this thing all week. PC
World started the week at £650 but is now back up to £700, Dixons was at £650 on thursday night but by the time I went to buy it on Friday it was back up to £700! Im waiting for the first to go back to £650 then I'll snap one up, Stocks seem to be limited though, Dixons are sold out and PC world only have it if you collect from store, so i run the risk of not getting one at all as I doubt they'll get any more in a hurry.

On the PCWorld Vista upgrade issue. I spoke to a guy in PCWorld (who was actually quite helpful!) and he said you had to register XP to qualify for the free upgrade. I know many people only activate XP and don't go for the full register. I never register XP as i'm not a fan of giving out my personal details to companies that don't need it but there you go. He also there'd be a £10 p&p charge for the media but I guess that ok.

Don't know if its true but it might be worth asking PCworld helpdesk before you give out your personal info. Hope that helps you guys out.

Sue, that happened to me on a different system when I was running Roxio Easy CD creator. Have you recently installed any new CD related programs? If so, it might be a good idea to use Windows System Restore to go back to a restore point before then.

Thanks for your reply KB,

Ive ordered one from Currys website. With discount code, I got it for £584. Should arrive on Monday!!

Adam.

Please, please can someone help me.

I've had my Philips X56 for a few weeks now and love it to bits. Howvever, recently I've had the following problems. They seem to happen intermitently - sometimes as soon as I log on the problems are there, other times if I leave the laptop idle for a while and come back, they start then. The only way I can fix them is by restarting.
1. Volume control/media player etc all stops working. It says it can't play due to activemixer not being installed or something. Why does this happen?
2. High pitch feedback type sound - if I have the volume controls high, sometimes this is okay, other times when I've not got anything playing a high pitch whine blasts out of the laptop.
3. The mouse buttons and keys make an echoey sound - it's hardly noticeable but when I have headphones on it's awful. I've turned all sound effects of but it still happens - it's like a xylophone, but very subtle tones.
4. My internet connection keeps disappearing, even though it says I'm connected. I get the 'this page cannot be displayed', but when I check my wirless connection everything's fine. It only happens when I first log on, or if I leave the PC for a while and come back - just like the volume problem. It never just disappears when I'm actually using the web.

Please can someone tell me what to do?

Thank you.

Does this mean it's just a Packard Bell then? I was going to buy one until I learnt that it is not really Philips. No wonder Currys, Dixons and PC World are the only places that seem to stock it.

Well, chaps, I no longer have my x56! I tried everything including system restore, but to no avail. I went back to PC World today - the chap there tried everything too. He then offered me a replacement. He was gone for ages, then came back and told me I must phone the tech help desk! I told him that I had only had the lap top 14 days - so he then told me that they did not have any instock and was not sure when they were geting any in. I opted for a full refund!
I feel a tad sad as it is a nice little laptop - but relieved I had problems before the 28 days were up rather than after!
Thanks to you all on this forum for you help, and good luck - I will visit here from time to time to see how things are going with you all. Have a really good Christmas (-:

After following this message board for a couple of weeks - and umming and ahhing about the decision - I finally bit the bullet on the weekend and bought my X56. Naturally, I'd procrastinated just long enough for everyone to raise their prices to £700, so I got my fingers burnt. Spent the weekend setting everything up and all was well with the world. In fact, it was exceeeding expectations. Started up this morning, returned to desk after 5 minutes away and wouldn't you know it .. the f%&£$ thing was refusing to return from its hibernation. I'm giving it a week to prove to me the behaviour was an aberation .. or its headed straight back to PCW.

For those having problems with their laptops, have you tried using the technical support links/phone numbers in the System Properties panel?

It says:
----------------------
Technical support is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year

For online support, please visit:
http://www.pcservicecall.co.uk

For Hardware Support:

PC ServiceCall
Tel: 0870 901 3000
(Calls are charged at national call rates)

For Software Support:
Tel: 0906 515 1180
(Calls are charged at £1.50 per minute from BT landlines,
maximum call duration is 20 minutes)
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