It’s been nine months since I started living the nomadic life and doing travel and photography full time. To stay productive, I had to trade in my old and trusted desktop for a portable solution. I am a Windows user and decided to go with the Dell XPS 9510. In this article, I explain why and share how it has performed over the past few months.
You might think this review is a bit dated. After all, I’m reviewing a laptop that was released over a year ago. But I believe it is essential to use the device to high intensity before making a proper assessment.
With the Dell XPS, I did exactly that. I’ve taken it with me on my travels through Portugal, Madeira, Costa Rica, Italy, Greece, and France, and I’ve used it to edit my photos and videos in very different climates. Costa Rica’s hot and humid climate is particularly challenging. I’d say video editing in Costa Rica is the ultimate test for any laptop.
You will also find that new version of Dell XPS no different from the unit I review here. The design is mostly the same, the screen hasn’t been updated as far as I can tell and the ports haven’t changed either. The only significant changes are made to the CPU and RAM: 12th Gen Intel CPUs are now used alongside DDR5 RAM.
The benchmarks I’ve reviewed show that compared to my device, you can expect slightly more single-core performance and significantly higher multi-core performance from the latest version. It’s hard to tell how this translates to real-world usage, but I’m sure the new Dell XPS will outpace my version in a typical creative workflow.
Why I Buy Dell XPS 9510
Before buying this laptop, I watched typical benchmark-focused reviews on YouTube and researched Check the notebook with several other sites, trying to figure out if this laptop meets my creative needs. While it’s certainly not the fastest laptop out there, it’s better than my previous setup, which I used to edit 4K video in Davinci Resolve.
Besides performance enough to edit photos and videos smoothly, I have additional requirements: my new laptop must be compact and easy to move, weighing no more than 2 kg. Because of the upcoming travels, I also want a device with a sturdy chassis. I talk more about this in the feature video, which I shot after purchasing the XPS.
This requirement has greatly reduced the selection of eligible laptops. The hinges wobble, the screen flexes too much, and the case creaks are all I’ve read in reviews of different laptops.
In the end, I narrowed my choices down to the Dell XPS, HP ZBook Studio, and Lenovo Thinkpad X1 Extreme. I’ve used laptops from all three brands in the past, both personally and at work, and they work pretty well. The deciding factor is price. Even though the Dell XPS is one of the more expensive Windows laptops one can buy, compared to the other two, it’s the only one I can afford. I used the 11th gen i7 with 16 GB RAM, 1 TB SSD and Full-HD matte display option.
What I Like
First and foremost, the products I buy must work; Appearance is secondary. But I have to admit, I love the design of the Dell XPS. It looks nice, flat, and the bezels on the 16:10 display are so thin I barely notice them.
But beyond the looks of it, how does it work? First of all, the build quality is spot on. The display doesn’t wobble or flex, the large touchpad works well without the phantom clicks of the previous version, and the keyboard and interior feel solid. I write a lot and love to type on this laptop.
It’s also slim enough to slip into my camera bag and weighs less than 2 kg. By using a 16:10 aspect ratio along with thin bezels for the display, its footprint is further minimized. Compared to other 15” laptops, it is very compact.
I also appreciate the port selection and layout. On the right side there is an SD card slot with a USB-C port, which can be used to charge the device. On the left are two Thunderbolt 4 ports, which I can use to connect Thunderbolt and USB devices. They also work to charge laptops.
Having the charging option on both sides is important because in my travels I never know where the power outlet is. Can be plugged in to charge either side allowing for more flexibility.
What about the screen? For me, as a creator, a good monitor is essential. Since I couldn’t control my editing environment during travel, I went with the Full-HD version, which uses a matte screen. It reduces reflections when I have to work in bright surroundings.
While the Full-HD display cannot display the Adobe RGB color space like the 4K and OLED versions, it can display most of the sRGB color space. With a colorimeter, it is also possible properly calibrated. One thing I’ve noticed is that colors are much less consistent than on my EIZO monitor. Recalibration is needed every four to eight weeks to keep colors accurate.
Everything I’ve mentioned so far provides a solid foundation for a good laptop. But what about performance? How do all those Geekbench, Cinebench and 3DMark numbers translate to the real world?
As I mentioned, I use Davinci Resolve to edit my videos. I can work with 4K clips from Canon R5 no stutter as long as I don’t add too many points and effects. As a general rule, if I include a 4K clip in the timeline and apply a basic color grading with one to three buttons, I can still go through the video smoothly. Displaying a 10-minute Youtube video in 4K format takes about 20 minutes.
Now, if you work with Logs or raw footage and make more complex edits that require strong color grading and effects, you may encounter limitations of the Dell XPS architecture. Not only will the fans be constantly buzzing, but you will also have to use a proxy to be able to edit your videos. For that, I recommend getting more than 16 GB of RAM.
Lightroom and Photoshop don’t pose much of a problem with this laptop. Importing photos into Lightroom and converting them to DNG will put a load on the system and the fans will kick in. The same can happen with some filters in Photoshop and with programs that require a fast GPU and CPU, such as Topaz Gigapixel AI.
Which brings me to the topic of fan noise. For 80% of my work, I don’t care about the fans. This changes during the import of photos in Lightroom and when I work in Davinci Resolve. However, the sound did not bother my ears. With headphones, I can edit my videos without distraction. Video export is another story. After that, the Dell XPS operates under maximum load and the fan will be very loud. That’s usually when I leave the room and grab something to eat.
I must also mention that while traveling through Costa Rica, I always have to export my videos at night when it’s a bit colder. I also did most of my video work after dark. Once, I froze my laptop when trying to output video in the afternoon in a room with no conditions – lesson learned. With Lightroom and Photoshop, I don’t have to take such precautions, as the fans are capable of keeping the laptop running.
What can be improved
The Dell XPS has none of the problems that other reviews mention. The Full-HD display shows textures at the edges. Half a year ago when I bought the Dell XPS 9510, I bought the 9500 version. It had the same problem. I talked to support and got a new monitor, still showing the textures. So I returned it, hoping someone would notice and Dell would fix it.
Unfortunately, they didn’t, and I had no choice but to return version 9510. But due to the lack of good alternatives, I kept it and I’m glad I did. I still notice the vignetting, but since it only shows around the outer areas of the screen it doesn’t affect my work. Color and brightness in the center area are consistent.
Another thing Dell should address is high-pitched fan noise, which occurs if the laptop is not placed on a flat surface. Then the grill at the bottom makes an annoying noise when the air blows through. As you can see in the photo above, a simple piece of tape will fix it. If you apply this fix, attach it only to the outer edge of the grill. Otherwise, it may obstruct the airflow.
Finally, I want to tackle battery life: I usually use this laptop for four to six hours before having to connect it to a power outlet. During that time, I do a mix of editing in Lightroom and Photoshop, write, watch YouTube videos, and listen to music. By the way, the speaker sounds great. If I only use it to write or watch videos, I can get more use out of it. But video editing drains the battery in less than three hours. Especially when I’m traveling, I’d love to get more juice from the Dell XPS.
What bothers me?
Over the past year, I’ve logged into at least 50 different networks. And quite often, I have problems with the connection of my Dell XPS.
While I was surfing the Internet with my Google Pixel without problems with any Wi-Fi, as long as the signal was strong enough, the Dell XPS asked me to fix the problem every few weeks. Sometimes, experimenting with the settings in the Killer Mind Center helped. Sometimes I have to reset my drivers and twice, I have to manually start some Wi-Fi related services. It’s a bit annoying, and from what I gather, something to do with the Killer Wi-Fi card that Dell uses for their laptops.
Thankfully, I’ve developed a habit of staying connected. It includes not installing any driver updates for the Killer card on the go as I never know if those updates will fix the problem or cause new problems.
Inference
The Dell XPS isn’t perfect, and there are certainly faster systems available on the market. But it’s still a great choice for road ads. Textures on the screen are annoying, and Wi-Fi issues can slow me down. But the longer I use this laptop, the less it bothers me. You could say that the positives outweigh the negatives, and I believe there are compromises to be made with any Windows laptop.
So I will buy this laptop or its successor again today? The answer is yes. But the real question is: is this laptop the right choice for you? That’s a question you can only answer for yourself. My review may provide some help, but everyone has slightly different requirements. The good thing is that it’s no problem to order a laptop, test it for a few days and return it if it doesn’t work as expected. I did it with the Dell XPS 9500 because of the display, although all the reviews I’ve read and seen tell me how great it is. In the end, you should trust your own judgment.
