The Dell XPS 15 9510 is the company’s newest update of a semi-professional favorite. Perhaps the most notable change here, other than the most advanced Intel and Nvidia elements, is the attachment of an OLED screen.
Dell XPS 15 9510 begins at $1,349 with an 11th Gen Intel Core i5 and integrated graphics.
Dell XPS 15 9510 Review
The XPS 15 still holds some professional trappings, incorporating a full-sized SD card reader, but it hasn’t increased much even after being redesigned last year. Nevertheless, if OLED is what you need, and you’re after something a bit larger than most ultra-portables, this is one to judge.
Dell hasn’t executed any dramatic adjustments to the Dell XPS 15 9510‘s perspective this time around. It’s the identical chassis as the previous year, which shifted to a 16:10 display and even slimmer bezels. It’s arduous to complain about it: The system is constructed well and made of premium elements.
Dell’s InfinityEdge displays are still amongst the most incredible looking in the business, primarily because they have skinny bezels on all four sides of the display. In addition, Dell still keeps the webcam on the top of the monitor, preventing it from looking straight at your chin like so many competitors do (and previous XPS models did).
With the latest XPS revisions, Dell has adopted Apple’s approach in relying principally on USB Type-C and Thunderbolt ports. However, it still extends a few more inputs and outputs. On the left side of the laptop, there are two Thunderbolt 4 ports and a lock slot.
Dell also holds a small dongle in the box, transforming a USB-C port to a USB Type-A port and HDMI. It’s an implicit admission that the current device might not do it all for a few, but it’s also nice that it projects that in as a freebie for those still applying accessories or monitors that challenge them.
The XPS 15 covers 85% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, surpassing the MacBook Pro and the Surface Laptop. The ThinkPad X1 Extreme did even better at 96.1%. Dell’s display averages 389 nits of brightness.
Keyboard and Touchpad: Dell XPS 15 9510
Dell employs half keys for the up and down arrows, The keyboard on the XPS 15 is convenient, if a bit soft. You can hit 105 words per minute on it with only a handful of errors. The keys must have been clicker, but this gives the trick. It has a fingerprint reader on the keyboard’s power button, which serves fine, though some fancy logging in with facial recognition anyway.
There’s lots of room even for Windows’ four-finger gestures, and scrolling and navigating are nice and smooth. On the other hand, the 3.5 x 5.9-inch touchpad is gargantuan. The 16-inch MacBook Pro’s 3.9 x 6.3-inch touchpad is more extensive if we make it all about size.
Audio: Dell XPS 15 9510
Dell’s top-firing speakers are no joke, as the computer’s pair of speakers showed off with clear vocals, drums, and even some bass. It gets plenty loud, with the volume fine for casual listening around 65%. In addition, Dell includes Waves Maxx Audio Pro with the XPS 15, where you could turn up a dial for the bass and change the EQ profile.
Upgradeability: Dell XPS 15 9510
To open the XPS 15, you require to extract eight Torx screws. They are tiny, so ensure to put them in a cup or other receptacle to hold them safe. You then have to employ a spudger tool or guitar pick to slowly open it from the bottom left corner. Once the lid gets up, you’ll observe two SODIMM slots for the RAM, as well as areas for the m.2 SSDs. The battery is also removable and is tied in with a few screws. Sadly, the Wi-Fi card is inaccessible. Inside, all of the screws are Phillips heads, so you’ll require a second screwdriver or bit to switch out some parts.
Battery Life: Dell XPS 15 9510
OLED screens, usually, are a bit of a burden on battery life. So are discrete GPUs. The Dell XPS 15 plays both and works for 6 hours and 50 minutes on our battery test, which continuously browses the web, run browser-based graphics tests, and streams video, all while connected to Wi-Fi with the screen set to 150 nits of brightness. Versions of the XPS 15 without this display and the same components will likely last longer.
Heat: Dell XPS 15 9510
The keyboard marked an average of 41.8 degrees Celsius within the G and H keys, while the trackpad was a cooler 30 degrees Celsius. The hottest point on the bottom of the laptop is the exhaust vents, which got as hot as 41.5 degrees Celsius.
Webcam: Dell XPS 15 9510
Dell has a minuscule webcam built into its tiny bezels. That gives you an average, head-on angle for your Zoom calls rather than an unfortunate nose cam. The 720p lens is good enough for a video call, albeit with a few issues. If you’re anywhere near a window, this camera system will be blown out. There is some graininess, and details aren’t incredible, but if you’re going to be head in a box on a call, it will do the job.
Wrap Up
The Dell XPS 15 9510 OLED screen is bright and vivid, complimenting a laptop with solid performance and slim bezels. The screen upgrade does, however, shorten battery life.