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Dell continues to bait and switch XPS 15 9570 owners over Modern Standby sleep issues

The Dell XPS 15 9570. (Image source: Dell)
The Dell XPS 15 9570. (Image source: Dell)
Dell has quietly posted an update on its support website for the XPS 15 9570 titled "Modern Standby Performance Improvement Package Application". The 66.94 MB update promises to fix Connected Modern Standby being enabled by default, a change that Dell previously claimed required re-installing Windows 10. The company labels the update as urgent, with it apparently updating machines to BIOS 1.12.0 too. The update is available to download now.

It seems that Dell has not forgotten about the XPS 15 9570 and its sleep problems, having recently released the XPS 15 7590. The XPS 15 9570 has been plagued with sleep-related issues since its launch in 2018, with Dell even attempting to blame consumers in June for their machine's poor sleep performance. The company's intransigence at re-enabling S3 sleep mode, a feature that it removed last year in a BIOS update, has frustrated XPS 15 9570 owners too.

While Dell continues to ignore S3 sleep, it is taking steps to improve the performance of Modern Standby for the XPS 15 9570. On Friday, the company quietly pushed out an update called "Modern Standby Performance Improvement Package Application", a 66.94 MB download that bundles a few changes, some of which it first released in July. Spotted by u/pokechat8978 on Reddit, Dell claims the update introduces the following:

  • Fixes:

    • Fixed the issue where the Modern Standby mode is connected by default and Wake on Wireless LAN (WoWLAN) function gets enabled on Modern Standby mode.

  • Enhancements:

    • Improves the Modern Standby performance.
    • Updates BIOS and Intel Rapid Storage Technology Driver.

According to the thread started by u/pokechat8978, the .exe installs BIOS 1.12.0 and Intel Rapid Storage Technology Driver 17.5.0.1017, the latter of which it last updated under two weeks ago. According to the changelog, it seems that the update disables Wi-Fi while asleep, which is already possible from within Windows 10 Settings. We cannot yet verify this, but frequent r/Dell poster u/mkdr claims this is the case.

Hence, it seems that the "Modern Standby Performance Improvement Package Application" is a cumulative update that introduces nothing that XPS 15 9570 owners may have already installed or enabled. Oddly, the update claims to re-enable Disconnected Modern Standby when Connected Modern Standby is active, something that Dell previously stated required an OS re-install to do. More smoke and mirrors from Dell? We shall endeavour to test the update and report back when we have done so.

(Image source: Dell Support)

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > News > News Archive > Newsarchive 2019 09 > Dell continues to bait and switch XPS 15 9570 owners over Modern Standby sleep issues
Alex Alderson, 2019-09- 2 (Update: 2019-09- 2)