Thursday, 16 July 2020

Big and impressive

Dell XPS 17

From $1,400 at Dell

Pros

  • More affordable entry point
  • Dedicated NVIDIA graphics options
  • Great displays
  • Huge battery
  • Compact form factor

Cons

  • Only integrated graphics on entry model
  • No Core i9 until later in 2020

Dell's biggest XPS laptop is also its most powerful while ensuring an entry-level model is still massively more affordable than Apple's MacBook Pro. It's big, but still incredibly portable, and with a range of specs to suit differing needs and budgets.

For Apple fans

MacBook Pro 16-inch

From $2,400 at Apple

Pros

  • Stunning Retina Display
  • Dedicated graphics options
  • 6-core and 8-core CPUs
  • Access to apps like Final Cut and Logic Pro

Cons

  • Massively more expensive entry point
  • No legacy ports

The MacBook Pro is packed with hardware to excite, but all that comes at a high price. It's obviously attached to some of Apple's killer apps like Final Cut, but on a hardware level, it doesn't outclass the higher-end XPS 17.

Both of these laptops will appeal to folks looking for a portable machine with a larger display, and the XPS 17 is probably the best choice for most people. But there's always a strong case for the MacBook Pro, so long as your wallet stretches that far.

Dell XPS 17 vs MacBook Pro 16 tech specs

Category Dell XPS 17 MacBook Pro 16-inch
Operating System Windows 10 macOS
Display 17-inch 4K UHD+; InfinityEdge touch; HDR400 + Dolby Vision, 500 nits; 94% DCI-P3; anti-reflective
17-inch FHD+; InfinityEdge; Dolby Vision, 500 nits; 100% sRGB minimum; anti-glare
16-inch 3072x1920 Retina Display
Processor Up to 10th Gen Intel Core i9-10885H Intel Core i7 6-core
Intel Core i9 8-core
Graphics Up to NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 (Max-Q Design), 6GB, GDDR6 Intel UHD 630
AMD Radeon Pro 5300M 4GB
AMD Radeon Pro 5500M 4GB
AMD Radeon Pro 5500M 8GB
Memory Up to 64GB DDR4 2933MHz 16GB/32GB/64GB
Storage 256GB PCIe 3 x4 SSD
512GB PCIe 3 x4 SSD
1TB PCIe 3 x4 SSD
2TB PCIe 3 x4 SSD
Up to 8TB SSD
Ports 4x Thunderbolt 3 (power delivery + DisplayPort)
1x Full size SD card reader
1x 3.5mm headphone.microphone jack
1x USB-C to USB-A 3.0 & HDMI 2.0 adapter included
4 x USB-C Thunderbolt 3, 3.5mm headphone jack
Battery 56WHr or 97WHr Up to 11 hours

A 17-inch powerhouse

Is there a better family of Ultrabooks than Dell's XPS lineup right now? You'd be hard pushed to find such a thing, and the XPS 17 is, at its core, everything good about the XPS 13 and XPS 15, just, bigger.

Despite having a massive 17-inch display either in Full HD or 4K resolutions, the XPS 17 is a pretty compact laptop, coming in around the size that a 15-inch notebook might have been a year or two ago. The display has super skinny bezels, which helps keep the bulk to a minimum.

The base XPS 17 is $1,000 less than any MacBook Pro 16

But with the added size over the other XPS laptops comes additional room for hardware. The XPS 17 has options for Intel's latest 10th Gen Core i9 processor (albeit this isn't ready just yet) and NVIDIAs RTX 2060 Max-Q GPU, making it the most powerful XPS laptop yet.

There is a good amount of flexibility in the range, too. If you want the best color reproduction, there's a DCI-P3 4K display, but even the Full HD has 100% sRGB, making the XPS 17 a good choice for creators. There's also the option of a massive 97Wh battery, almost the largest you're allowed to fly with.

It's well priced, too, with an affordable entry point and a $1,900 asking price on the first of the dedicated GPUs, the NVIDIA GTX 1650 Ti. Even here, the XPS 17 significantly undercuts the MacBook Pro, and while the highest spec models do cost more than the base prices for the MacBook Pro 16, you're getting more hardware inside for your money.

The case for the MacBook Pro

The case for buying a MacBook Pro partly hinges around Apple's software and ecosystem. If it's something you're already invested in, then switching away might not be for you, and no Windows laptop will likely sway your decision. For example, the existence of software like Final Cut Pro may well still be reason enough to get a Mac. This is still Apple's killer feature, and if you're an existing user of the company's suite of applications, then you're probably going to want a new MacBook Pro.

Software like Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro are still the MacBook Pro's killer feature.

The Radeon Pro 5300M and 5500M are both excellent, extremely capable GPUs, and Apple's optimizations to its own software make it a dream pairing. For CPU and GPU intensive workloads, the MacBook Pro is still an excellent laptop.

There are compromises, though, not least the price premium. The MacBook Pro 16 starts at a whopping $1,000 more than the entry-level XPS 13. You could buy a budget gaming laptop with the difference!

You're also 100% all-in on either USB-C and Thunderbolt 3 with the MacBook Pro, or you're a fan of buying dongles to use your old accessories. It's a small thing, but it's essential to a lot of people they can use their existing equipment with a new laptop.

The bottom line

So which of these big laptops is the best one for you? Only you can decide, but we can make some recommendations.

The easiest to consider is the MacBook Pro. It costs more to even buy one than the lower-spec XPS 17 variants, and even compared to the highest end, it doesn't have any wow factor in the hardware. The reason to get the MacBook Pro really over any Windows laptop is always the same: Apple's software.

Apps like Final Cut Pro are system sellers, and if it's something you use or want to use, nothing on Windows will come close. If you're not attached to Apple's ecosystem, then you'll undoubtedly get more mileage for your money from the XPS 17.

Dell's latest is a big, beautiful laptop with either an affordable entry point or the option to have masses of performance. Unless you really need something only a Mac can offer, it's probably the one to get.

Big and impressive

Dell XPS 17 (9700)

From $1,400 at Dell

Dell's biggest and most powerful XPS

The XPS 17 (9700) features a massive 17-inch display, but thanks to its thin bezels, its body is the size of many 15-inch laptops. It pairs that large display with powerful internal options for creators.

More power

MacBook Pro 16-inch

Apple's best yet

From $2,400 at Apple

If you're already a seasoned Mac user, then you're probably going to want to stay that way, so thankfully, Apple's latest MacBook Pro is definitely the best yet.



Related Posts:

0 comments:

Post a Comment

ShortNewsWeb

Blog Archive

Categories

'The Woks of Life' Reminded Me to Cook With All the Flavors I Love (1) 10 Scary Podcasts to Listen to in the Dark (1) 11 Ways to Automate Your Life (and Get Back More Free Time) (1) 13 of the Best Spooky Episodes From (Mostly) Un-Spooky Shows (1) 13 Spooky Movies Set on Halloween Night (1) 16 of the Best Ways to Declutter Your Home (1) 1Password Now Generates QR Codes to Share Wifi Passwords (1) 2024 (15) 21 Thanksgiving Movies About Families As Screwed-Up As Yours (1) 30 Movies and TV Shows That Are Basically 'Competence Porn' (1) 30 of the Most Obscenely Patriotic Movies Ever (1) 31 Spooky Movies to Watch Throughout October (1) 38 of the Best Queer Movies of the Past 100 Years (1) 40 Netflix Original Series You Should Watch (1) 55 Box Office Bombs Totally Worth Watching (1) Active Directory (1) Adobe's AI Video Generator Might Be as Good as OpenAI's (1) AIX (1) and I'd Do It Again (1) and It's Not Worth the Price Hike (1) and Max Bundle Isn't a Terrible Deal (1) and the Dreo Solaris Is the Best Space Heater I’ve Tried (1) and These Are My Favorite Tech Deals From Walmart’s Black Friday Sale (1) and These Water-Resistant Running Shoes Are a Game Changer (1) and They're All on Sale for Black Friday (1) Apache (2) Apple Intelligence Is Running Late (1) Apple Intelligence's Instructions Reveal How Apple Is Directing Its New AI (1) Apple Passwords Is Now on Firefox (but Not for Windows Users) (1) Apple's Latest Update Might Have Opted You Back Into Apple Intelligence (1) August 18 (1) August 4 (1) August 5 (1) Avoid an Allergic Reaction by Testing Your Halloween Makeup Now (1) Backup & Restore (2) best practices (1) bleepingcomputer (114) Blink Security Cameras Are up to 68% Off Ahead of Prime Day (1) Bluesky Has Trending Topics Now (But You Can Disable Them) (1) CentOS (1) CES 2025: Asus' Zenbook A14 Is the Lightweight Laptop My Back Wishes I Had (1) CES 2025: Govee’s New Pixel Light Will Remind You of a Lite Brite (1) Configure PowerPath on Solaris (1) Congress Might Ban DeepSeek (1) Documents (2) Don't Buy the New iPad Air (1) Don't Fall for This 'New' Google AI Scam (1) Don't Rely on a 'Monte Carlo' Retirement Analysis (1) Eight Cleaning Products TikTok Absolutely Loves (1) Eight of the Best Methods for Studying so You Actually Retain the Information (1) Eight Unexpected Ways a Restaurant Can Mislead You (1) Elevate Your Boring Store-Bought Pretzels With This Simple Seasoning Technique (1) Even Steam Has Malware Now (1) Everything Announced at Apple's iPhone 16 Event (1) Everything I'm Seeding in February (1) file system (6) Finally (1) Find (1) Find a Nearby ‘Gleaning Market’ to Save Money on Groceries (1) Five Red Flags to Look for in Any Restaurant (1) Five Ways You Can Lose Your Social Security Benefits (1) Flappy Bird's Creator Has Nothing to Do With Its 'Remake' (1) Four Reasons to Walk Out of a Job Interview (1) Four Signs Thieves Are Casing Your House (1) gaming (1) Goldfish Crackers Have a New Name (for a Little While) (1) Grok Is Now Available Without an X Account (1) Hackers Now Have Access to 10 Billion Stolen Passwords (1) How I Finally Organized My Closet With a Digital Inventory System (1) How I Pack Up a Hotel Room So I Don’t Forget Anything (1) How Opening Multiple Bank Accounts Helped Me Manage My Money Better (1) How to Buy Residency in Another Country With a 'Golden Visa' (1) How to Cancel Your Amazon Prime Membership After Prime Day Is Over (1) How to Choose the Best Weightlifting Straps for Your Workout (1) How to Do Fartlek Runs (and Seven Different Kinds to Try) (1) How to Enable (and Turn Off) Apple Intelligence on an iPhone (1) How to Get Free Car Maintenance and Repair Work (1) How to Get Started With Bluesky (1) How to Keep Squirrels Off Your Bird Feeders (1) How to Mute Words and Phrases on Your Bluesky Feed (1) How to Protect Your Kids From Identity Theft (1) How to Remotely Control Another iPhone or Mac Using FaceTime (1) How to Set Up Your Bedroom Like a Hotel Room (and Why You Should) (1) How to Speak With a Real Person at Target Customer Service (1) How to Take a Screenshot on a Mac (1) How to Take Full Control of Your Notifications on a Chromebook (1) How to Track Your 2024 Federal Tax Refund (1) How to Use Picture-in-Picture Mode on an Android Phone (1) How to Write SMART Goals That Actually Help You Reach Your Fitness Dreams (1) Hulu (1) I Chose the Beats Fit Pro Over the AirPods Pro (1) I Tested Grok 3 (1) I'd Recommend These Seven Outdoor Security Cameras I've Tested (1) I'm a Runner (1) I'm a Shopping Writer (1) I’m Always Cold (1) If You Got a Package You Didn't Order (1) If You Hate Running (1) Important Questions (17) Install and Configure PowerPath (1) interview questions for linux (2) Is ‘Ultra-Processed’ Food Really That Bad for You? (1) Is Amazon Prime Really Worth It? (1) It Might Be a Scam (1) July 14 (1) July 21 (1) July 28 (1) July 7 (1) June 30 (1) LifeHacker (214) Linux (36) Make and Freeze Some Roux Now for Easy Turkey Gravy (1) Meredith's Training Diaries: How I Crushed My Marathon Personal Record (1) Meta Releases Largest Open-Source AI Model Yet (1) Monitoring (3) music (688) My Favorite 14TB Hard Drive Is 25% Off Right Now (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: Apple AirPods Max (2) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: Apple Pencil Pro (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: Google Nest Mesh WiFi Router (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: Google Pixel 8 (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: PlayStation 5 (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: Samsung Odyssey G9 Gaming Monitor (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: SHOKZ OpenMove Bone Conduction Headphones (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: The 13-Inch M3 Apple MacBook Air (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: The Beats Pill Portable Speaker (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: The Garmin Forerunner 955 (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: The Garmin Venu 3S (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: The Google Pixel 9 Pro (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: The Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: The Microsoft Surface Pro (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: The Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: The Sonos Era 100 (1) My Favorite Amazon Deal of the Day: These Bose QuietComfort Headphones (1) My Favorite Tools for Managing Cords and Cables (1) Nagios (2) Newtorking (1) NFS (1) Now Is a Good Time to Buy a Refurbished M-Series MacBook (1) OMG! Ubuntu! (688) OpenAI Just Introduced More Ways to Use ChatGPT on WhatsApp (1) Opera’s New Browser Is Built to Break Your Doomscrolling Habit (1) Oracle Linux (1) oracleasm (3) osnews (34) Oura’s Readiness Score Finally Takes Menstrual Cycles Into Account (1) Password less communication (1) Patching (2) Pixel Studio Is the Easiest (If Not the Best) Way to Make AI Art on Your Pixel 9 (1) Poaching Is the Secret to Perfect Corn on the Cob (1) powerpath (1) Prioritize Your To-Do List By Imagining Rocks in a Jar (1) Red Hat Exam (1) register (126) Rsync (1) Safari’s ‘Distraction Control’ Will Help You Banish (Some) Pop Ups (1) Samba (1) Samsung Just Announced the Galaxy S25 Series (1) Save Time and Air Fry Your Pumpkin Pie (1) Scrcpy (1) September 1 (1) September 15 (1) September 2 (1) September 22 (1) September 23 (1) September 30 (1) September 8 (1) Seven Home 'Upgrades' That Aren’t Worth the Money (1) Seven Things Your Credit Card’s Trip Protection Won’t Actually Cover (1) Six of the Most Common Tax Myths in 2025 (1) Six Unexpected Household Uses for Dry-Erase Markers (1) ssh (1) Stop Your iPhone From Sharing Photos' Data With Apple (1) Swift Shift Is the Window Management Tool Apple Should Have Built (1) System hardening (1) Tailor Your iPhone's Fitness Summary to Your Workouts (1) Target’s ‘Circle Week’ Sale Is Still Going After October Prime Day (1) Target’s Answer to Prime Day Starts July 7 (1) Tech (9583) Tech CENTRAL (45) Technical stories (200) technpina (12) The 30 Best Movies of the 2020s so Far (and Where to Watch Them) (1) The 30 Best Sports Movies You Can Stream Right Now (1) The Beats Solo 4 Are 50% Off Right Now (1) The Best Deals on Robot Vacuums for Amazon’s Early Prime Day Sale (2) The Best Deals on Ryobi Tools During Home Depot's Labor Day Sale (1) The Best Early Prime Day Sales on Power Tools (1) The Best Last-Minute Valentine's Day Gift Ideas for Under $30 (1) The Best Movies and TV Shows to Watch on Netflix This Month (1) The Best October Prime Day Deals If You Are Experiencing Overwhelming Existential Dread (1) The Best Places to Go When You Don't Want to Be Around Kids (1) The Best Places to Order Thanksgiving Dinner to Go (1) The Best Strategies for Lowering Your Credit Card Interest Rate (1) The Best Way to Clean a Microwave (1) The Best Ways to Store All Your Bags and Purses (1) The Boox Note Air 4C Is a Color E-Reader and Digital Notebook in One (1) The Easiest Way to Free Up Disk Space on Your Mac (1) The Latest watchOS Beta Is Breaking Apple Watches (1) The Marshall Emberton II Speakers Are $70 Off for Black Friday (1) The New Disney+ (1) The PowerSchool Breach May Have Compromised Over 70 Million Users' Data (1) The Real Cost of Using a Nespresso Machine (1) The Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro Are $60 Off for Black Friday (1) The Two Best Times of Year to Look for a New Job (1) the X Rival Everyone's Flocking To (1) There's a Fix for Apple Mail's Weird Archiving Behavior (1) These Anker Soundcore Sport X10 Earbuds Are Cheaper Than Ever (1) These Bissell Vacuums Are on Sale Ahead of Black Friday (and They're All Great) (1) These Googly Eyes Will Help You Find Your Mac's Cursor (1) These Meatball Shots Are My Favorite Football Season Snack (1) These Milwaukee Tools Are up to 69% off Right Now (1) This 2024 Sony Bravia Mini-LED TV Is $400 Off Right Now (1) This 75-Inch Hisense ULED 4K TV Is $500 Off Right Now (1) This App Lets You Create Automations Your Mac Usually Doesn’t Support (1) This Google Nest Pro Is 30% Off for Prime Day (1) This iPhone and Mac App Lets You Edit Your Bluesky Posts (1) This MagSafe-Compatible Power Bank Is 40% Off for Black Friday (1) This Peanut Butter Latte Isn’t As Weird As It Sounds (1) This Safari Extension Gives You More Control Over Your Reddit Feed (1) This Tech Brand Will Get the Biggest Discounts During Prime Day (1) This TikTok Upholstery Cleaning Hack Actually Works (1) Three New Things We Know About the Nintendo Switch 2 (1) Three Quick Ways to Shorten a Necklace (1) Three Services People Don't Know They Can Get From Their Bank for Free (1) TikTok's '5x5' Cleaning Method Is Great If You're Short on Time (1) Today’s Wordle Hints (and Answer) for Monday (4) Today’s Wordle Hints (and Answer) for Sunday (11) Try 'Pile Cleaning' When Your Mess Is Overwhelming (1) Try 'Pomodoro 2.0' to Focus on Deep Work (1) Try 'Rucking' (1) Ubuntu News (352) Ubuntu! (1) Unix (1) Use the ‘Organizational Triangle’ to Keep Your House Neater (1) Use This App to Sync Apple Reminders With Your iPhone Calendar (1) Use This Extension to Find All Your X Followers on Bluesky (1) Use TikTok's 'Rage Cleaning' Trend to Get Your Place Spotless (1) veritas (2) Videos (1) Warner Bros. Is Uploading Classic Movies to YouTube for Free (1) Was ChatGPT Really Starting Conversations With Users? (1) Watch Out for These Red Flags in a Realtor Contract (1) Wayfair Is Having a '72-Hour Closeout' Sale to Compete With Prime Day (1) We Now Know When Google Will Roll Out Android 15 (1) What Is the 'Die With Zero' Movement (and Is It Right for You)? (1) What Not to Do When Training for a Marathon (1) What to Do When Your Employer Shifts Your Pay From Salary to Hourly (1) What to Look for (and Avoid) When Selecting a Pumpkin (1) What to Wear to Run in the Cold (1) What's New on Max in December 2024 (1) What's New on Netflix in March 2025 (1) What's New on Prime Video and Freevee in September 2024 (1) Where to Stream Every Nominated Movie Before the 2025 Oscars (1) Why the Apple TV App Is Better on Android Than iPhone (1) Why You Can't Subscribe to Disney+ and Hulu Through Apple Anymore (1) Why You Might Want to Avoid the Latest Chromecast Update (1) Why Your Home Gym Needs Adjustable Kettlebells (1) Windows (5) You Can Easily Add Words to Your Mac's Dictionary (1) You Can Fight (and Avoid) Your Landlord's Cleaning Fees (1) You Can Get 'World War Z' on Sale for $19 Right Now (1) You Can Get a Membership to BJ's for Practically Free Right Now (1) You Can Get Beats Studio Buds+ on Sale for $100 Right Now (1) You Can Get Microsoft Visio 2021 Pro on Sale for $20 Right Now (1) You Can Get This 12-Port USB-C Hub on Sale for $90 Right Now (1) You Can Get This Roomba E5 Robot Vacuum on Sale for $170 Right Now (1) You Can Hire Your Own Personal HR Department (1) You Can Search Through Your ChatGPT Conversation History Now (1) You Can Set Different Scrolling Directions for Your Mac’s Mouse and Trackpad (1) You Need Beneficiaries for More Accounts Than You Think (1) Your DeepSeek Chats May Have Been Exposed Online (1) Your Verizon Bill Just Got a Little More Expensive (1)

Recent Comments

Popular Posts

Translate

My Blog List

Popular

System Admin Share

Total Pageviews