Photo: Dell

Dell laptops follow the same design motif that Dell’s desktop line does by splitting the laptops into specific lines. The primary laptops found within Dell laptops include the Dell Inspiron, the Dell Studio series, with the beefy Dell XPS laptops being the most powerful of the bunch.

The Inspiron line

Within the Inspiron line, the mid-level Dell Inspiron N5010 has long been a top seller for the computer manufacturer and with good reason. At under £600 it’s priced below its inspired performance, sporting an Intel Core i5 430M configuration, clocking at 2.26GHz and 4GB RAM out of the gate.

The Studio Line

The Dell Studio line has long been considered superior in both build and capabilities when compared to the Dell Inspiron line, but recent additions in both categories have blurred the lines a little. The fairly expensive but very capable Dell Studio 1558 is a must have if price isn’t a factor, sporting a 15.6-inch display, an Intel Core i7 processor clocking in at 1,600GHz. If price is a factor, however, scaling back to the ever popular (but dated) Dell Studio 15 series is a viable option.

Dell XPS Line

Photo: Dell

Dell doesn’t have too many variations of its XPS lineup unlike it does for the two ranges above. As such the company has historically able to focus all its resources into marketing one or two very powerful notebooks within this product category. Within the UK the quite uninspiring Dell Studio XPS 16 is the current beefy laptop the US manufacturer is punting. Almost as if Dell isn’t paying much attention to this notebook series in the UK, the recently updated laptop sports an Intel Core 2 Duo T6600 processor running at 2.2GHz with a paltry 2GB ram at a bloated £699. Steer clear. Unless you plan on going all the way up to the Intel Core i7-820QM configuration which, honestly, is priced too steeply, too.

Ubiquity equals accountability

The advantage products from companies like Dell offer is the vast support behind the sales. With a large network, you know that if you have any problems with your laptop, you can have it very quickly ironed out. Assuming that there is sufficient reason coupled with your liking Dell’s general aesthetics, you won’t go wrong with these laptops.

Photo: Dell

Since its acquisition of Alienware, a lot of effort has been put into the Dell gaming laptop range. The 17.3-inch Dell Studio 1749 could very well be their best effort yet.

Specs

A beastly Intel Core i5-520M 2.4GHz processor powers the laptop, with an ATI Radeon HD 5650 doing the heavy lifting graphics processing. The Dell Studio 1749 comes with 4GB DDR 3 SDRAM, with a hard drive capacity of 500GB, while the monitor is a 17.3-inch 1600×900 glossy screen.

Aesthetics

The outside of the Dell gaming laptop has a glossy black finish with Dell’s logo taking its usual central position. While the outside looks great, the inside is not altogether exciting. The palm wrest area is metallic silver whereas the keyboard area is black, too, making the attempted two-tone effect look decidedly dated in a generation where laptops look best when they are one colour. This machine is also a magnet for smudges and dust, suggesting a lot of effort needs to go into keeping it clean. It isn’t the lightest laptop in the world either, coming it at a considerable 3.65 KG, with dimensions of 39×414x281mm.

Keyboard and trackpad

Photo: Dell

The Dell Studio 1749 has a complete keyboard, coming with a dedicated numeric pad. A nifty feature is the backlit function for your keys, which comes in handy for use in very dark areas. The keys give a little when pressed down firmly, which is disappointing, but their saving grace is that they have the dimensions of keys one would find on a desktop, which is great.

This Dell gaming laptop has a slightly receded multi-touch touchpad with a wider surface area than most, meaning noticeably more comfortable use. The ability to scroll up, sideways, as well as a variety of multitouch functions is seamless, too. What’s particularly nice about this touchpad is that the buttons are well weighted and don’t make the awful clicking noise many contemporary laptops do.

Display and processing

The 16:9 aspect ratio on the 17.3-inch display makes for great cinema viewing, but Dell’s decision to use a glossy screen as opposed to a matte screen means it reflects horribly if in a very well lit area, meaning outdoor use is all but written off. Other than that, it’s a very competent display with a decent viewing angle and good contrast.

As for CPU performance, when run with some of the most demanding contemporary games, the Dell Studio 1749 performed well. It can run virtually everything but Crisis at a resolution of 1024×768 with a frame rate always exceeding 30fps, giving scope for running at the monitor’s native size.

Great machine

This Dell gaming laptop is pretty much the business. Its performance is fantastic, it has a great trackpad, and had it not been for the unusual aesthetic decisions and average keyboard performance, The Dell Studio 1749 would easily be one of the best laptops on the market.

The Dell Studio XPS 16 is specially designed for those who want a power laptop that is fitted with cutting edge features. Furthermore, it is a very stylish laptop tat is available in a unique design and very attractive glossy black colour. It has a very sleek design which gives it a catchy look as well. It is a product of the very famous and attractive Dell Studio XPS series. It has a 16 inch display that offers superior quality pictures that will take your breath away. The device from Dell Inc. is very efficient for playing PC games as it is installed with a graphic card.

The Dell Studio XPS 16 is fitted with an Intel Core i7 Mobile Processor that offers a swift functionality. The device is very good for multitasking which makes it a very efficient device. It is fitted with a full 1080p full HD support that further enhances the overall performance. The genuine leather accents of the device give it a very stylish look. The Dell Studio XPS 16 has a backlit keyboard that gives it a unique look. The display of the device is the best part because it offers superior quality images. It is equipped with an amazing rechargeable battery that offers a long battery back up.

The Dell Studio XPS 16 is provided with various accessories that further enhances the performance. It is also fitted with USB ports so that you can connect various USB devices with it. The Dell laptop is pretty stylish and is available at an affordable price as well.

Dell Inc. is a celebrated brand known for manufacturing personal computers, laptops and other computing solutions both for consumer and business needs. Dell has revolutionised the customer experience starting from computing solutions to desktop PCs to servers and storage devices. The product range spans servers, printers, desktop computers, notebooks, electronics and related accessories. But Dell has created niche in the laptop market and one such top products is the Dell Studio 1555.

The Dell Studio 1555 is an exceptional notebook with 15.6 inch screen display with new features and hardware options. It has lot to offer to become the most preferred brand. This HD ready notebook offers a resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels with memory expansion up to 4GB. With built-in webcam, it offers a great clarity and resolution.

This notebook is specifically designed to suit everyone’s budget with some great and impressive features including HD display, a backlit keyboard and a Blu ray Re-writer. It features up to 8GB RAM. The Dell Studio 1555 comes with wireless LAN and offers 8GB RAM memory and 500GB hard drive to store maximum amount of data. It also features ATI Mobility Radeon HD4570 graphics card and 512MB Graphics Memory. This high end graphic card ensures excellent graphics and enhances the user’s experience.

The Dell Studio 1555 features wireless – LAN, USB ports and video outputs including HDMI, S-Video TV-Output, 5in1 integrated digital card reader and an express card. Apart from the express card, it also comes with an additional multi-format card reader. This Dell studio laptop has lot to offer at reasonable price, sleek look and glossy finish.