![]() But the design is what makes the XPS 17 stand out from other 17-inch laptops on the market. The performance, which we'll get into shortly, is good. In the marketing materials, Dell really leans into the idea that the XPS 17 delivers "colossal power." But if I were on their PR team I'd encourage Dell to spend more time touting the design and less time on performance. But the thing I've appreciated most about the XPS 17 isn't the performance or even the upgradability, it's the design, the build quality, and especially the display. Regardless of how you configure or upgrade the Dell XPS 17, you'll get a reasonably powerful machine that can put up impressive benchmarks in photo and video editing applications. My hand is covering the other M.2 slot, which is positioned above the second fan. Two RAM slots and two M.2 slots are easily accessible by removing the base cover of the laptop. I spoke to Dell about this and they're confident that you can still upgrade to a full-sized M.2 drive no problem – it's the same motherboard, just a slightly different heat spreader with an indentation in the middle – but if you want to be safe, get the 1TB model for $150 more and you'll get the full sized heat spreaders as seen below: Note, however, that the 512GB variant seems to come with a slightly different heat spreader on the M.2 slots, because the base model uses a smaller M.2 2230 drive (see of the service manual) instead of the standard 80mm long 2280 sticks you may be used to. Two DIMM slots and two PCIe 4.0 M.2 slots are easily accessible by simply unscrewing eight T5 Torx screws that hold the base cover in place. If you're feeling adventurous, you could pick up the Core i9-11900H variant with only 16GB of RAM and a 512GB M.2 SSD for $2,500, and then upgrade both the RAM and storage yourself. (Side Note: the laptops I'm referring to can support up to 64GB of RAM, but we're talking about configurations available from the manufacturer). It's an option that we don't see very often in the PC space since most $3,000+ laptops top out at 32GB of RAM out-of-the-box, opting for a more powerful GPU instead. If I had to choose, I would probably upgrade to the "More Powerful" model above, mainly for the 64GB of RAM. Below are the full specs of our machine, compared to a more powerful variant that professional creators may prefer, and the maxed-out-to-the-max version: You can spend up to $5,200 on this laptop if you max out every single option, but our variant with its Core i7-11800H, an RTX 3060, 32GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage comes in at a much more reasonable $2,800. There XPS 17 offers a combination of power and portability that's rare for a 17-inch laptop. For obvious reasons, most brands choose to send the spec that's going to generate the best benchmarks, but Dell chose a variant that makes a bit more sense for the photographers and video editors in the room who aren't trust fund kids. To Dell's credit, they did not send me the most expensive variant of the XPS 17 for testing. And while it can't quite match the specs of the most powerful PC laptops on the market, it offers a combination of performance and portability that's rare for a 17-inch machine.ĭesign, build and usability | Screen quality | Performance benchmarks | Conclusion So for the past month, I've done just that: when I've not been testing the new Apple M1 Max MacBook Pro, I've used the Dell as my daily driver. The XPS 17 in particular – with its more powerful graphics options, ultra-large 16:10 display, and the (optional) power of a top-performing 11th Gen Intel Core i9-11980HK CPU – is an interesting option if you're looking for a laptop that can do double duty as a desktop replacement. Ever since the XPS 15 and XPS 17 moved to the new, sleeker design with a beautiful "infinity edge" display, they've become favorite Mac alternatives for PC users who care more about screen quality and portability than gaming performance. ![]() ![]() Thanks to its color-accurate display, sleek design, and solid photo editing performance, the Dell XPS 17 is one of the most popular "creator" laptops for Windows users on the market.ĭell's XPS laptops have become a top choice for creators over the past several years. ![]()
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