Dell XPS 15 i7 11th Gen – newest 15-inch laptop is a powerful video-editing tool thanks to its faster processors and upgraded OLED screen.
Some of the most popular, thin, and light Windows laptops for the money are Dell XPS models. The 13-inch model has been a WIRED favorite for a long time (8/10, WIRED Recommends), and the new 15-inch model has the same upgrade that the 13-inch model got earlier this year: an OLED display.
The Dell XPS 15 is one of the best 15-inch laptops on the market because it has a new 3.5K OLED touchscreen. The latest Intel processors, a great trackpad, and a keyboard give it great power. The only bad thing is how long the battery lasts.
Dell XPS 15 i7 11th Gen: Specification
| Storage type | SSD |
|---|---|
| RAM | 16GB |
| Backlit keyboard | Yes |
| Features | Full HD webcam |
| Operating system | Windows, Windows 10 |
| brands | Dell |
| Processor | Intel Core i7 |
Dell XPS 15 i7 11th Gen With OLED
The XPS 15 from 2021 has the same 11th-generation Intel chips as the previous model. The big news here is the new OLED screen, which, it’s important to note, is not required. As with the XPS 13, if you want the OLED option, you must choose the more powerful Intel i7 chips. So, the screen on the i5 base model will stay the same. That’s an FHD+ screen with 1920 x 1200 pixels.
If you choose an XPS 15 with an i7 or i9 processor, you can choose between a 4K UHD screen and a new 3.5K OLED screen. If you want to know which is better, the answer is… it depends. The 4K screen has a better resolution. I also think the 4K model has slightly better battery life, though I’m comparing the 4K model from last year to the OLED model from this year.
The least expensive option for the OLED is $2,100. The model I tested had an OLED screen, an Intel Core i7 from the 11th generation, an Nvidia RTX 3050 Ti laptop GPU, 16 GB of RAM, and a 512 GB SSD. The list price for this set-up is $2,200. You can add the i9 Chip, up to 64 gigabytes of RAM, and up to a whopping 8 terabytes of SSD space to bring the price up to $4,600. There are some more good configurations in between.
The base mode with the i5 Chip is fine for basic computing needs, but if you can afford it, I recommend the OLED screen and faster Chip. It has a very bright screen, and the bezels are so thin that it makes you feel like you’re in the picture. No other 15-inch laptop I’ve tried comes close to this. It’s so much fun to edit photos and videos on this machine that I took pictures so I could process them in Darktable on the XPS 15.
I’ve also noticed that glossy OLED screens work better than FHD screens in bright light. Here, the 400-nit screen worked well everywhere except in direct sunlight. The high-gloss surface picks up fingerprints like crazy in direct sunlight. Sunlight and glare won’t be a problem if you keep it clean.
The Nvidia RTX 3050 Ti graphics card is pretty good, especially when working with video. I tested this along with the new Surface Laptop Studio, and the XPS came out on top in every test (most of which were real-world renderings in Premiere). The Studio’s screen refresh rate is 120 Hz, while the XPS 15’s is only 60 Hz.
Time and Time Again
As we’ve already said, Dell hasn’t changed much besides the screens. The same ports are still there: a headphone jack, a MicroSD card reader, and three USB-C ports that support Thunderbolt 4. I wish it had a full-size card reader, but the three USB-C ports are better than the XPS 13’s two.
The shape has not changed either. It has the same InfinityEdge thin bezels and a sleek body. The XPS 15 does weigh 4.2 pounds, which is something to keep in mind. That’s not too bad, but your shoulders will feel it after carrying it around for a day.
The keyboard and touchpad are the same. The touchpad is a bit too big, but I usually use a keyboard and mouse, so I might be the only one who thinks that way (which I could apply to half a dozen other 15-inch laptops). The keyboard isn’t as good as one on a Thinkpad, but it doesn’t slow me down or cause any trouble.
The battery life is the only thing I don’t like about the XPS 15. In two weeks of testing, the XPS 15’s battery only let me work for a full day once. In a less subjective test, in which we looped a 1080p video at 75% brightness, it only lasted 7.5 hours. Most of the time that isn’t enough to forget the power cord or portable battery. I rarely go to work for more than a couple of hours, so it doesn’t bother me. However, given your situation, it could be a problem for you.
Aside from that, this is one of the best 15-inch laptops you can buy. It doesn’t have the hybrid features of the new Surface Laptop Studio, but in my video tests, it did better than the Surface. The XPS 15 is a good choice if you want a powerful 15-inch laptop and don’t mind that the battery life isn’t as long.
FAQs
The Dell XPS 13 is the best Windows laptop you can buy. It has a beautiful screen, a great keyboard, and a long battery life, all in a slim, stylish design that’s easy to carry around.
Dell XPS 15: Battery life
We found that the XPS could be used for work for 9 hours and 4 minutes with the screen brightness set to half. That’s a good score for a 15.6-inch laptop with a powerful processor. If you use this laptop for everyday tasks, you should be able to get through the workday.
three
With the USB-C ports on your XPS 15 9510, you can connect up to three 4K displays, one 5K display, or one 8K or higher display. Before you start, look at the ports on your external displays and choose how you want to connect them.
