Dell XPS 15z Review

Dell XPS 15z

Review Summary:

The XPS 15z makes an impressive alternative to a 15-inch MacBook Pro if you can live with a less-than-perfect keyboard.

Pros

• Nice design and quality
• Beautiful 1080p screen
• 6+ hour battery life

Cons

• Not-so-great keyboard
• Hard to upgrade

Dell XPS 15z Full Review

 

The Dell XPS 15z has an ultra-thin metal chassis, a beautiful 1080p display and a backlit keyboard. Add to that an Intel Core i7 processor and Nvidia GeForce dedicated graphics for serious multimedia performance. Is this a worthy competitor to the Apple MacBook Pro?

Build and Design
The XPS 15z resembles a MacBook Pro especially when the lid is closed; the darker-colored palm rest and hinge design are major differentiators. This notebook is mostly constructed out of high-quality metal; the bright silver outside is milled aluminum and the dark gray palm rest is magnesium alloy. Even the screen bezel is metal. The XPS 15z feels very solid to the touch and it is; the chassis hardly bends when flexed and the lid's aluminum backing keeps it from twisting too much.

The display hinge is strong and doesn't allow the display to wobble when let go abruptly. Additionally, the display can be opened with one hand which is convenient. I'm not a fan of the physical appearance of the hinge; it's not in sync with the rest of the chassis in terms of color or texture. Overall the XPS 15z is one of the most solid feeling notebooks I've tested in some time.

Those looking to upgrade the 15z are in for a rough ride. There are no user-accessible panels on the bottom of the chassis so adding RAM or a new hard drive will likely be a complicated job; most of the chassis needs to be disassembled.

Ports and Features
The XPS 15z has an impressive variety of ports. Highlights include two USB 3.0 Super Speed ports, eSATA, mini-DisplayPort, HDMI, and despite being so thin, it also has an integrated optical drive. All picture descriptions are left to right.

Front: Nothing	Back: AC power, Ethernet
Left: HDMI out, mini-DisplayPort, eSATA/USB 2.0 combo, 2x USB 3.0 Super Speed, media card reader, battery life indicator (press button)

Screen and Speakers
The XPS 15z has a 15.6-inch display with a glossy/reflective surface. The notebook is available with two screens: a base 720p model (1366x768 pixels) and a full HD 1080p (1920x1080) model with superior color reproduction and brightness (300-nit); our review unit has the latter.

The 1080p display is positively gorgeous and worth every penny over the standard display. The colors are warm and pop out of the screen; cheaper screens such as those found on most consumer notebooks are dull and cold by comparison. Additionally the 1080p display is noticeably brighter than run-of-the-mill displays, 300 nits to be exact. Besides the quality, the resolution is excellent - 1920x1080 is the highest available on a 15.6-inch notebook. There are enough pixels on the display to comfortably allow two windows side-by-side. A 1080p resolution has 40% more vertical pixels than the base 720p screen, meaning 40% less scrolling is required on average. The only downside of this display is the glossy surface, which is a double-edged sword; it enhances contrast and clarity but adds reflections and is difficult to clean.

Two stereo speakers are located on either side of the keyboard. They have sufficient volume but have a "thin" or somewhat tinny sound with hardly any bass.

Keyboard and Touchpad
The XPS 15z has a full-size keyboard with white backlighting. Unlike other 15.6-inch Dell notebooks this one does not have a separate numeric keypad. The flat-topped keys are smooth to the touch. Unfortunately this keyboard offers little feedback and is not pleasing to type on. The key travel is so short it hardly feels like the keys move, making it somewhat difficult to type quickly. The feel is vague and lacking overall.

There are also issues with the layout. Dell neglected to make the home, end, page up, and page down keys dedicated; instead they are integrated into the arrow keys as secondary functions (the [Fn] key needs to be pressed in conjunction). As a frequent user of these keys, I found it to be inconvenient at best. In the end it looks like Dell focused on form over function when designing this keyboard.

The Cypress touchpad on the other hand is excellent. It has a large, smooth surface that is easy to track on even with damp fingers. The two buttons are separate (not a single piece) and provide excellent cushioned feedback. Their most important aspect is quietness; I test too many notebooks with loud touchpad buttons.

Right: Headphone and microphone jacks, slot-load DVD burner

Our Dell XPS 15z review unit has the following specifications:

• 15.6-inch glossy 1080p display (1920x1080 resolution, 300 nits)
• Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
• Intel Core i7-2620M dual-core processor (2.7GHz, up to 3.4GHz Turbo Boost, 4MB cache, 35W TDP)
• Intel HM67 chipset
• Nvidia GeForce GT 525M 2GB dedicated graphics card
• Automatically switchable to integrated Intel HD graphics via Nvidia Optimus graphics-switching technology
• 8GB DDR3-1333 RAM (2x 4GB; max supported)
• 256GB Samsung 470 Series Solid State Drive (SSD)
• Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6230 wireless card
• Integrated Bluetooth 3.0
• Integrated 1.3MP webcam
• Built-in slot-load DVD burner (HL-DT-ST DVD+-RW GS30N)
• Two-year in-home service after remote diagnosis
• 8-cell Li-ion battery (64WHh)
• Weight: 5.5 lbs.
• Dimensions: 15.15 x 10.25 x 0.97 inches
• Starting price: $999.99
• Price as configured: $2,059.99

Our test unit is about twice as expensive as the starting configuration of this notebook. Compared to the base configuration we have a 1080p high-resolution display, faster processor, 2GB more RAM, two years of warranty coverage, and of course the 256GB SSD which adds over $500 to the price alone. Without the SSD it comes in at $1,499.99 with a 750GB hard drive.

Performance and Benchmarks
The XPS 15z's performance as configured is exceptional for everyday usage. I timed system boot-up from pressing the power button to loading the desktop at a mere 15 seconds and the shutdown at 4 seconds. Additionally, the i7-2620M is the fastest dual-core processor available in notebooks. The Nvidia GT 525M dedicated graphics card is more than capable of playing the latest games but not at the highest visual quality settings. Like all of the latest Nvidia graphics cards, the GT 525M comes with Nvidia's Optimus technology to extend battery life on notebooks with compatible processors and integrated graphics.

wPrime processor comparison results (lower scores mean better performance):

PCMark Vantage measures overall system performance (higher scores mean better performance):

PCMark 7 is a newer benchmark which measures overall system performance (higher scores mean better performance):

3DMark06 measures overall graphics performance for gaming (higher scores mean better performance):

3DMark Vantage measures overall graphics performance for gaming (higher scores mean better performance):

CrystalDiskMark storage drive performance test:

Heat and Noise
The XPS 15z has a single fan exhausting warm air out the rear of the notebook. Off the bat I like the fan location; it is out of the way and does not disturb right- or left-handed mouse users. The fan is noticeable when on and has a slight whine. Overall I think the fan is louder than it needs to be at higher RPMs.

Despite being so thin the XPS 15z remains relatively cool to the touch all over, even under full benchmarking load.

Battery Life
I measured 6 hours, 20 minutes of life during our standard battery rundown test (Windows 7 Balanced power profile, 70% screen brightness, wireless on and refreshing a web page every 60 seconds). This is an excellent time for a 15.6-inch notebook. The SSD and Nvidia Optimus graphics-switching technology certainly helped as did the dual-core processor (as opposed to a quad-core).

Potential buyers should note that the XPS 15z's battery is integrated and not user-swappable. This might not be a problem for most people, but some frequent travelers like to buy an extra battery and swap them out when one battery dies ... that isn't possible with the XPS 15z.

Battery life test results (higher scores mean better battery life):

Conclusion
The XPS 15z impresses in most areas and falls short in a just a few. Its thin metal chassis has excellent quality and the 1080p display is top notch. Performance is stellar for most applications including some gaming and it still manages over six hours of battery life. The biggest downside of this notebook is the lifeless keyboard, which just isn't fun to type on. Additionally the speakers could be better, the screen's glossy surface creates a lot of reflections, and upgrading this notebook is very tough.

Then there's a matter of price; the XPS 15z starts at $999 but ours came out to a tick over $2,000 stocked with top-shelf components. The base notebook is almost certainly the better value; just make sure you get the 1080p display. The XPS 15z is certainly a recommendable notebook; if the keyboard were better, it would be almost perfect.

Pros:

• Nice design and quality
• Beautiful 1080p screen
• 6+ hour battery life

Cons:

• Not-so-great keyboard
• Hard to upgrade

Individual Ratings: *
Software & Support 
Upgrade Capabilities 
Usability 
Design 
Performance 
Features 
Price/Value Rating 

* Ratings averaged to produce final score