Dell XPS 15 L501x Mini Review

DELL XPS 15 L501x

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Hi guys

There have been many laptops coming now and in the 50K to 60K price tag,we find many options. But not all offer good performance in all aspects, and even if they do,they have some faults in them.

But rarely do we find a Laptop that is 90-95% perfect for you(100% is impos)

SO for me its the Dell XPS 15

First things first.

SPECIFICATIONS:

i5 460M 2.53 GHz with turbo upto 2.8Ghz

4GB DDR3 Ram runs at 1066Mhz

640GB 7200rpm SATA

1gb nVidia GT420M with bluetooth(as specified in quotation) with OPTIMUS Technology

Windows 7 Pro 64-Bit

Backlit Keyboard:eek:hyeah:

8xDVD-RW Drive Multi Dual Layer(Its a common thing now)

15.6"WLED Screen 1366x768

JBL Speakers :hap2:

MY PICS:

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BUILD QUALITY: 4/5

It has a funky style and great build quality but send out alot of heat from the left side.(Has a vent there). So be prepared for that. Its cool where we use but left part is hot. Considering the conditions in India,it will be barely usable in Summer if you keep it on lap.

DISPLAY: 5/5

Display is really good. It has good contrast levels and good blacks

Its glossy display is barely visible outdoors but with 100% brightness its ok

Watching movies is a real treat for me. I have watched around 3 movies till now(just a day since it came) but its display is easy on the eye

Comparing it with other WLED screens present now in the market,its good..

A few pics at 40% brightness (On Request by DarkAngel)

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SPEAKERS:5/5

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It sure is one of the best speakers. JBL and DELL have done a great job. Combining it with Waves Maxx Audio software, I could clearly hear all the beats and each bit of music at 75% volume. If you are a movie freak,get the FHD screen+ Bluray combo and thats enough for a great entertainment on the go

GRAPHICS: 5/5

Introducing the Optimus technology is a real plus point for DELL. It is the only company to introduce it to India. As far as gaming is concerned,here are my personal experiences:

At Stock clocks(550/800):

NFS HP 2010(Medium) at 1366x768 :

Min was 27,Max was 60 average was 36

I Say its playable

Spiderman Shattered Dimensions:

Auto config at 1366x768:

Min:28 Max:56 Avg:38

I Say its playable

These two were the games i tested

With OC to 700/900 :eek:hyeah:

In NFS it averaged at 44

in SPSD it averaged at 46

So overall a good improvement

BATTERY LIFE:4/5

I got 3 hrs on just chatting it via LAN and in DELL(i.e Balanced Mode) with Wifi and Bluetooth On

If you want to get more battery life even when connected to AC power,then there is an option to Disable Battery Charging in Dell Batetry Meter

I felt this to be great as i use it mostly connected to AC power

KEYBOARD5/5

Only one Word: Excellent

Backlight is excellent and great for typing at night. It has 3 modes which set it at 100%,50% and 0%

OVERALL 4.5/5:

Its one of the best laptops around. just for the sake of USB 3.0 support and Optimus at-least,it scores alot.. If you are looking for a good laptop around 50-60K,I say go for it..

Please Note:

This is my first review/take.

So if I did make any mistakes,regret it...

Please post yourview on my review

BTW sorry for the bad pica. Taken with my X10 mini
 
congrats for the laptop..nice review. more pics of the screen please from various angles, am planning to go for this.
 
titana said:
congrats for the laptop..nice review. more pics of the screen please from various angles, am planning to go for this.
I am right now out of sattion and really don't have the laptop now. I will be back on Monday.Then i will post you
Right now I posted it with my old Laptop DELL Inspiron 1525
Sorry for not being able to help you now
If you can,please wait
 
Thanks alot guys

2nd pic is abit blurry sorry for that

But having a good response is great

@Srirama Thanks for the reps dude

@kushal_f16 Great

But i recommend getting a Laptop Cooling Pad as it gets hotter

While gaming I saw a peak of 81 on GPU(On OC to 700/900).

Is it ok?

Also Note that the Left half is hot. Even on Palmrest and right half is too coool

HDD is under the Left half of Palmrest so this might be the problem...

Overall even the cores idle at 37 degrees and on load i saw a max of 60
 
Congrats on your purchase and a nice review. Is 640GB a 7200rpm drive and 500GB a 5400 rpm drive? I am not seeing the rpm mentioned in the website. Why are you keeping it on a newspaper? It may affect airflow on the bottom. Placing it on a flat and even surface is recommended.
 
^^Both are 7200 rpm

Ooh ok. Removed the news paper

It was my friends idea stating that the airflow will be much better if placed on a news paper

Remvoed it now

Lets see

Anyhow i will surely buy a cooler

BTW

After removing the news paper the palmrest is cooling fast

Ty for that

Thanks for Dublez and DarkAngel for adding reps

@DarkAngel Added pics

if you are unable to see them,right click and select open image in a new tab

--- Updated Post - Automerged ---

Thanks RS4 for adding reps
 
Introducing the Optimus technology is a real plus point for DELL. It is the only company to introduce it to India.

Lenovo too offers Optimus toting notebooks .. and gud alternative to the DELLs :)
 
dexBG said:
Lenovo too offers Optimus toting notebooks .. and gud alternative to the DELLs :)
Can you tell the model name?
As much as i know they use ATi Radeon's Switching graphics
Not nVidia's Optimus
 
Can you tell the model name?
As much as i know they use ATi Radeon's Switching graphics
Not nVidia's Optimus

Oh yes .. apologies for the error :)

It is infact ATI switchable graphics but those are great performers too.
 
Thanks alot dude

Thanks for all the support guys

I will edit and add new points and drawbacks as soon as I find about them
 
My friend only yesterday got his L501X and he formatted and re-partitioned but unfortunately the supplied disks dont have the "Wavemax audio software" and he also removed the backup partition but only created a 70GB partition and left rest untouched. So any idea what he could do to get that software as the sound isnt that great without that software.
Any help appreciated.
 
I recommend you to tell him to try for those at Dell India site

its not that difficult to get that

Lemme know if it worked or not
 
Wavemax audio 3 software is not available on Dell site or in the dell supplied CD/DVD. Any other option??
Can someone tell what does the backup drive from Dell has??
perhaps it may contain it!!
 
Use Dell Factory Image resotore dude

It does the job

And then,if he want to, tell him toremove the bloatware and all unwanted apps
 
Never thought my review would get 800+ views

This is great..

Adding new info about Graphics

--- Updated Post - Automerged ---

Graphic card can OC upto 720/960 giving a boost of 10fps over default
Now the max GPU temp is 77 and Cores idle at 32-34 each
Its soo cool guys
Now sorted issues with heat
Removed new paper and put it on a cool and dry even surface
NP
NO COOLING PAD NEEDED
 
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