Dell XPS 14z: Thoroughly Reviewed
by Jarred Walton on October 24, 2011 9:00 AM ESTPerformance Rundown
Given the lack of discrete graphics in our test sample, we’re going to skip any gaming benchmarks for now. We hope to have the 14z with GeForce GT 520M in for testing in the near future, and we’ll revisit the topic of graphics performance then, but for now we’ll simply refer to the ASUS K53E review as a look at how HD 3000 handles gaming. The i5-2430M GPU is clocked slightly lower than the i5-2520M, but either way you’re going to want to stick with low detail settings for most titles. Application performance is also pretty much known; the i5-2430M should outperform the i5-2410M by a small margin, but without an SSD general performance won’t be as snappy as something like the ASUS UX21.
There’s not much to point out here that we haven’t covered numerous times already. The XPS 14z performs right where you’d expect, given the components. An SSD in place of the HDD would certainly boost the PCMark scores, but otherwise general performance is fine. 3DMark gives us a quick look at what we can expect from the HD 3000 graphics, and the scores are slightly lower than the higher clocked IGP in the K53E.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
60 Comments
View All Comments
ggathagan - Monday, October 24, 2011 - link
Thank you!People seem to forget that one of the leverage points users have is staying away in droves if the product stinks.
The same goes for 16:9 resolution screens.
7Enigma - Tuesday, October 25, 2011 - link
Same here. I've become bored with laptop reviews where I feel it's been a waste of my time reading about a "great" system that has a junk screen. So like you I go to the screen review portion, and if that's good head over to the thermal/power/noise part. If both of those are acceptable then I read the entire article.Sorry Jarred, I just can't get excited after reading very similar review systems anymore!
somedude1234 - Tuesday, October 25, 2011 - link
^^^^^ T H I S ^^^^^I did the exact same thing, skipped to the best screen offering and didn't bother reading the rest of the article.
My employer provided me with a Dell E6400, everything maxed out but with the default 1280x800 screen. I would have gladly traded down to a lower spec CPU or less RAM in order to get the upgraded screen, but I didn't have a say as this is a 'standard' build for us.
Fast CPU, plenty of RAM, great backlit keyboard... and a terrible screen.
I have to use this system every single day and I'm constantly cursing the short-sighted individual in our IT department that decided a slightly faster CPU was worth more than a vastly better screen.
C300fans - Monday, October 24, 2011 - link
999$? I would rather grab a Thinkpad T or X with IPS.Dug - Monday, October 24, 2011 - link
I'm suprised they didn't just use the 3000 for graphics. 520 doesn't do much.I like the 6770 in the Macbook Pro's, so I would think they could at least do a 525.
Almost everyone has a 540 in a similar laptop.
Lenovo has a 550m in their's and under $700
grkhetan - Monday, October 24, 2011 - link
Sorry for off-topic post -- but when will the iPhone 4S review come out? Would like to see how its performance, graphics, battery life, and reception changed... Thanks!mschira - Monday, October 24, 2011 - link
Yea looks like a nice machine, but I just don't like the quality of Dell notebooks.They are cheap. Fair enough, because the price is low, too, but not for me.
Now if one could take the Asus Zenbook give it a few more mm in thickness and slot in a decent CPU but keep every quality aspect - I would be very interested.
M.
agent2099 - Monday, October 24, 2011 - link
Seems Dell pulled the 14z from their website. This morning you could full on order it and now you can only "take a peek at what's to come." Appears like a drastic move but they may be revising it.JarredWalton - Monday, October 24, 2011 - link
Actually, the product probably just went up early on accident. The 14z is officially announced today, but it goes on sale on Nov. 1st.jigglywiggly - Monday, October 24, 2011 - link
what a posnot 1600x900 display or 1920x1080
Weak gpus
overpriced