Dell XPS 15 Review

• Dell XPS 15 L501x
• Core i7-840QM @ 1.86Ghz with Turbo Boost up to 3.2Ghz
• 8GB DDR3 RAM @ 1333Mhz
• NVIDIA GeForce GT 435M 2GB
• 256GB SSD
• 15.6″ B+RGLED TLF(1920×1080) with Skype-Certified 2.0MP HD Webcam
• Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 & Bluetooth 3.0
• Blu-Ray Reader Combo
• Backlit Keyboard & 9-cell battery

Build price (before taxes and shipping) at time of purchase: US$2,300

The Dell XPS 15 includes the speedy USB 3.0 technology and offers up 2 USB 3.0 ports, one on the left side and one on the back next to the power connector. A USB 2.0 (eSATA/powershare combo) can be found on the right side of the laptop. On the back you’ll find a gigabit LAN port and an HDMI 1.4 port. The SD card reader slot is flushed with the front of the laptop covered by hardly noticeable dummy SD card.

One of the main gripes I have with this laptop is the form factor and weight. The Dell XPS 15 is a whopping 1.5″ at its thickest point. With the 9 cell battery plugged in, you’re looking at carrying around a 6.33lbs laptop. That is both bulky and hefty compared to its competition, the Macbook Pro 15-inch model (boasting a height of only .95″ and a weight of 5.6lbs). The 9 cell battery adds to the height of the laptop, protruding about an inch from the base of the laptop. Although the incline the battery creates makes typing more comfortable, it can become uncomfortable when having the laptop on your lap for too long. The weight and bulky nature of the Dell XPS 15 make the laptop less friendly for frequent commuters. I found it best to unplug the 9 cell battery when storing the laptop in my messenger bag.

Current configurations allow only for 768p or 1080p screens. The Full HD  BRGLED display on the Dell XPS 15 is phenomenal. Colors are crisp and vibrant. Watching movies and YouTube videos on the screen is a joy. Users who work with photo and video editing software will specially appreciate the color accuracy the display produces. Text can be smaller than some may like, but this is easily corrected with a quick change of the DPI settings in Windows. The only downside to this otherwise perfect display is the slight glare that is apparent when working in well-lit environments. While the glare is not as bad as WLED displays, it still remains prominent when watching movies at full brightness.

Speaking of WLED displays, the 768p WLED display is not as brilliant as the BRGLED. Colors don’t pop as much and blacks tend to look washed out. Furthermore, the low 768p on a 15.6 inch display makes things a little too big in screen. I would have liked to see an option for a 900p display at the very least.

The i7 840QM processor on this laptop performed well during our video rendering tests. I was able to edit and preview at half quality in Sony Vegas with not lag whatsoever and rendering  an 11 minute 720p video to .avi format took an average of 15 minutes. Having multiple programs and windows open at once also resulted in no system slow downs. The i5 systems will perform just as well. I recommend general users to stick to the newer i5 second generation mobile CPUs (i5 2410 and 2520). Upgrading to an i7 would only give you a bit more cache (1-2MB, which would only affect programs like AutoCAD).

The NVIDIA GeForce GT435M (now equivalent to the GT540M) did fairly well in all of our gaming tests. Portal 2 saw an average of 29 FPS on highest settings in 1080p,  while graphic heavy Total War: Shogun 2 saw an average of 27 FPS on 900p resolution. Overall we found we could play almost any game on medium settings in at least 900p resolution. Playing on 900p resulted in no blurriness whatsoever. If you’re looking for a decent gaming laptop, the Dell XPS 15 is an option. Here are some more statistics from the guys over atnotebookcheck.net:

Audio and Speakers

I can honestly say I have never listened to laptop speakers as good as the JBL 2.1 speakers on the Dell XPS 15. The laptop includes two speakers on either side (each boasting 4W of power) and a 12W sub-woofer on the bottom of the base. That is a total of 20W total peak audio performance on a 15 inch laptop. The speakers are not only loud, but clear at high volumes. There was no noticeable distortion when playing music and movies at full volume. The bass impressed me the most, achieving a clear booming sound. Without a doubt these speakers make the Dell XPS 15 one of the best multimedia laptops on the market.

The SSD is around a US$500 upgrade. For half a grand you get 256GB of space, which is inadequate. Is the speed worth it? Yes and No. Here’s the breakdown:

SSD Stats

SSD boot time is just 29 seconds.

No heat is produced and no moving parts.

Too expensive

HDD Stats

HDD (7200 rpm) boot time is 55 seconds.

HDD has greater storage capacity.

Relatively cheap (US$50 for 750GB)

While an SSD will improve program load times and boot times, the expense that comes with upgrading to the 256GB is not worth it in my opinion. You’re better off waiting for a sale on a higher capacity SSD and then simply switching out the drives later on. Simply put, if you’re on a budget, stick to the conventional HDD for now.

 The 9 cell battery boasts about 4 hours of general use (web browsing, light video viewing). If you’re going to sit down and watch a movie, expect around 3 hours of battery life. Finally if you’re going to be gaming unplugged, you’ll only get an hour to an hour and a half. The newer generation Dell XPS 15 includes the Optimus technology with their video cards. Optimus claims to give better battery performance by switching to the integrated Intel graphics when you are not gaming or using dedicated GPU based programs.

The back-lit keyboard is phenomenal. Typing is a breeze and the back-lit keys are easy to read in low light. When the Dell XPS 15 first came out, you had the option to add the back-lit keyboard for around US$25, but Dell has since wizened up and now includes the back-lit keyboard automatically with any new purchase of the Dell XPS 15. If you are buying this laptop from a third-party retailer, make sure you check that it has the back-lit keyboard if that is a feature you wish to have.

The Dell XPS 15 was the first laptop to include a Skype-certified webcam. The webcam is a 2.0MP camera capable of recording 720p HD content. While performing a Skype test, the person on the other end, could both hear and see me clearer than my Logitech Webcam Pro 9000. Video footage taken with the webcam was decent, but suffered from heavy noise and framerate issues when recording at 720p.

The wireless card on this review model is the Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300. This model was quickly taken down weeks after the Dell XPS 15 release due to lack supply for the overwhelming demand. It’s a shame because this little card is by  far the best laptop wireless card I have ever had the pleasure of using. The range on this Ultimate-N 6300 is rated as 2x that of the Centrino Advanced-N 6200 series, but what really makes the card shine is the addition of a third antennae. 6200 cards usually have only 2 antennae. Having a third allows for faster wireless speeds and an overall more reliable connection. Speeds are rated at 450 Mbps compared to the 300 Mbps of the 6200 cards.

 The Dell Xps 15 is one warm machine. Notice I used the word warm not hot. If you’re using the laptop for general everyday things like browsing the web and working on documents, the temperatures will hang around 55 degrees Celsius. If you’re rendering video, expect the fan to ramp up and temperatures to hover around 70 degrees Celsius. Gaming will raise temperatures even higher into the 80s.

While these temperatures are higher than what I’m used to on my personal computer, they are not entirely bad. Most laptops starve for cool air because of the enclosed nature of the chassis, so temperatures around this range are actually normal. For reference, the Dell XPS 15 does not get anywhere near as hot as its predecessors the Studio XPS 16 and Dell XPS M1530. If the warmth the Dell XPS 15 gives out proves to be too much for you, or if you’re a heavy gamer, I suggest you invest in a laptop cooler. Nowadays laptop coolers run around US$20 – $50 depending on how much cooling force you want.

The main upgrade the second generation Dell XPS 15 has are the newer SandyBridge CPUs which run cooler and are up to 30% more efficient than previous generation i5/i7s. The addition of a 1080p WLED multi-touch display is exclusive to the newer L502x model, but in my opinion you might as well upgrade to the BRGLED if you want a nicer display. Lastly the inclusion of Optimus is a big plus on second gen L502x’s due to the ability to save more battery and lower temperatures.

The Dell XPS 15 is the best multimedia laptop on the market at its price point. If you can live with the slight bulky design and 6lbs weight, you’ll be able to enjoy the high quality JBL speakers, brilliant BRGLED display, and more than adequate performance it has to offer. Whether you’re a gamer or multimedia enthusiast, this laptop will take everything you throw at it.