Dell Inspiron 15 5575 (Ryzen 3 2200U, Vega 3) Laptop Review
The last Dell Inspiron 15 5000 we tested was the 5567-1753 from January 2017. Then, the device was equipped with a Core i7-7500U and a Radeon R7 M445 but could not convince us entirely. We were particularly disappointed by the display.
The Inspiron 15 5575-98MH4 now represents the device's successor. This model is not only equipped with an AMD chip, its case has also been completely redesigned. An aluminum finish, no optical drive and a bottom plate that is easy to remove.
This model's competitors are inexpensive entry-level devices with integrated graphic cards. We would particularly like to mention the Acer Aspire 3 A315-41-R7BM, as this system is based on the same Ryzen 3 chip as our test unit but features a Full HD screen and - this much we can say already - significantly higher performance.
But Intel devices such as Lenovo V330-15IKB, Asus X510UA-BR305T or HP 250 G6 2UB93ES are also worth a look, particularly in order to compare the Ryzen's performance with standard Core i3 and i5 Intel SoCs.
Please note: This device is currently only available with a Full HD IPS screen for $700 in the US.
Case - looks like an Inspiron 7000
Dell has decided not to insert an optical drive and has given the 5000 series an aluminum finish. The back of the display is no longer shiny and has a matte silver coating. The high-quality look of the 7000 series has been introduced to the 5000 series.
The device feels a little hollow, but basically gives an impression of good quality. The construction can be warped a little under pressure, but we did not hear any creaks.
The back of the display could be a little more resistant as pressure on the back is visible on the screen. It can also be warped quite strongly, which causes small changes in brightness. The single hinge is very tight and you will need to give the device a bit of a jolt if you want to open it with one hand. The hinge has an opening angle of 135 ° and keeps the screen in place apart from a little wobbling at first.
The case is only 20 mm (~0.8 in) thick, which makes it significantly slimmer than the Aspire 3 A315-41-R7BM (29 mm/~1.14 in), another Ryzen 3 laptop. The Asus X510UA-BR305T is similarly slim.
Connectivity - Dell without Type-C-USB
Dell has equipped the notebook with three Type-A USB ports (2x USB 3.1 Gen 1, 1x USB 2.0). There is no Type-C port. The only way to connect an external screen is via HDMI.
There was another issue: We were not able to connect the Dell device with an external HDD (Sharkoon QuickPort USB 3.1 Type-C Gen 2) via any of the available USB ports. This problem has never occurred with any other laptop.
SD Card Reader
The SD card reader is one of the slowest of its kind. We measured a maximum transfer rate of 37 MB/s when copying large blocks of data. 250 jpg images (each about 5 MB) were transferred at a speed of 31 MB/s. We tested the SD card reader with our reference card (Toshiba Exceria Pro SCXC 64 GB UHS-II).
| SD Card Reader | |
| average JPG Copy Test (av. of 3 runs) | |
| Acer Aspire 3 A315-51-30YA (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| Acer Aspire 3 A315-41-R7BM (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| Average of class Office (22.7 - 198.5, n=32, last 2 years) | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 5575-98MH4 (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| Asus X510UA-BR305T (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| Acer Extensa 2540-580K (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| HP 250 G6 2UB93ES (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 5000 5567-1753 (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| Lenovo V330-15IKB (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| maximum AS SSD Seq Read Test (1GB) | |
| Acer Aspire 3 A315-41-R7BM (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| Average of class Office (25 - 249, n=28, last 2 years) | |
| Asus X510UA-BR305T (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 5575-98MH4 (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| HP 250 G6 2UB93ES (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 5000 5567-1753 (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| Acer Extensa 2540-580K (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| Lenovo V330-15IKB (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
Communication
The Inspiron is equipped with a Wi-Fi module (Qualcomm QCA9377). This supports the Wi-Fi standards 802.11a/b/g/n as well as the faster ac standard. We tested the Wi-Fi performance in ideal conditions (no other Wi-Fi devices in the vicinity, short distance between notebook and server PC). The results are average as the module only uses the 1x1 standard. The chip, however, has two antennas.
If you prefer using a cable to connect to a network, you can do this with the Dell. There is an RJ45 port to the right of the HDMI connector. The LAN port has a maximum transfer rate of 100 MBit/s, which is not up-to-date anymore.
Webcam & Microphone
There is a big difference between the quality of the microphone and the webcam. While the microphone can record a voice clearly and without unwanted noise at a distance of up to 2 meters, the webcam is overwhelmed in natural daylight. There is a lot of image noise and the colors appear washed out.
Accessories
The scope of delivery includes only the device, its power supply and some information on support, warranty and a QuickStart guide.
Maintenance
Maintenance of the Dell Inspiron 15 5575 is quite easy despite the missing maintenance hatch. After removing all the screws on the bottom of the base unit, you can easily lift the bottom plate off, starting from the back. There are numerous plastic clips that hold the cover in place, but these are easy to unhook even without the use of a spatula or similar tool.
Once this is done, you can upgrade the RAM (one free slot) or add an SSD. There is one M.2 slot available for PCIe x4 SSDs. Cleaning the small cooling fan is just as easy as exchanging the 2.5-inch HDD.
Warranty
Dell has included a one-year pick-up-and-return hardware warranty. Depending on where you purchase the device, you can also add an extended warranty with additional coverage. Please see our Guarantees, Return policies and Warranties FAQ for country-specific information.
Input Devices - quiet typing on the Inspiron
Keyboard
The Dell Inspiron 15 5575 has a full-fledged chiclet keyboard that is slightly sunk into the surface of the base unit. The keys are roughened but not rubberized and are 16x16 mm (~0.63 x ~0.63 in) large. We know from experience that the surface of these keys can wear away so that regularly used keys will become smooth after a while. There is a 3-mm (~0.12 in) gap between the keys, which is quite large. Typing is inconspicuous and the device can be used for typing in noise-sensitive areas.
The keys of the number pad are a little smaller, but only by about a millimeter. Users will have to get accustomed to the arrow keys, which are narrower than usual.
The pressure point of the keys is noticeable, but could be a little tighter in order to give the user better feedback while typing. The white lettering is easy to read and the keyboard does not appear cluttered. Dell has not included keyboard backlighting, which is a significant disadvantage in dark surroundings.
Touchpad
The touchpad is 10.5 x 8 cm (~4.13 x 3.15 in) large and the two mouse keys are integrated into the bottom half of the touchpad. A narrow black line indicates the separation between the right and the left key.
As with the keys of the keyboard, the feedback is a little too soft, but this does not prevent it from responding to inputs quickly and precisely. We had no issues using navigating with our fingers even when they were damp. The entire surface can be used all the way into the corners.
The two keys register inputs in the lower third of the touchpad. A quiet click gives the user good acoustic feedback, which is particularly useful as the travel of these simulated mouse keys is quite long and ends in a soft stop.
Display - Dell goes for low quality
The 15.6-inch display from Innolux could have come straight out of the stone age of laptops. Its 1366x768 pixel (100 PPI) resolution can in no way be considered up-to-date. It is also a TN LED with narrow viewing angles. Nonetheless, a lot of entry-level devices are still equipped with these low-quality panels, even in 2018. Buyers should be aware of the disadvantages which we will point out to you now.
The panel is non-reflective - and that is where the advantages of this panel end. The screen uses PWM at a low frequency (250 Hz) to reduce brightness. This is not good and can cause eye issues, even for less sensitive users. On the other hand, PWM might not be an issue since the brightness of 195 cd/m² is so low that most users will always have the display set to maximum brightness indoors.
On top of that, the screen has low response times (50/24), which are unusual, even for entry-level devices (see table). The average is 40/14. Unfortunately, the brightness is not particularly even and we measured a brightness distribution of 78%. Most laptops have a distribution of 82 - 90%. The low contrast of 458:1 is also disappointing. Colors tend to be washed out and blacks have a gray cast.
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Brightness Distribution: 78 %
Center on Battery: 202 cd/m²
Contrast: 458:1 (Black: 0.43 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 10.35 | 0.5-29.43 Ø4.86
ΔE Greyscale 11.25 | 0.09-98 Ø5.1
60% sRGB (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
38% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
41.37% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
59.8% sRGB (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
40.02% Display P3 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
Gamma: 2.08
| Dell Inspiron 15 5575-98MH4 Innolux JMC9X 156BGA, , 1366x768, 15.6" | Acer Aspire 3 A315-41-R7BM Chi Mei CMN15D5, , 1920x1080, 15.6" | Lenovo V330-15IKB Chi Mei N156HGA-EAB, , 1920x1080, 15.6" | Asus X510UA-BR305T Chi Mei N156BGA-EA3, , 1366x768, 15.6" | HP 250 G6 2UB93ES BOE BOE0687, , 1920x1080, 15.6" | Dell Inspiron 15 5000 5567-1753 BOE NT15N41, , 1920x1080, 15.6" | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Display | 0% | -2% | -2% | -9% | ||
| Display P3 Coverage | 40.02 | 40.09 0% | 39.32 -2% | 39.11 -2% | 36.24 -9% | |
| sRGB Coverage | 59.8 | 59.7 0% | 58.8 -2% | 58.8 -2% | 54.6 -9% | |
| AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage | 41.37 | 41.47 0% | 40.65 -2% | 40.41 -2% | 37.44 -9% | |
| Response Times | 3318% | 3304% | 3315% | 321% | 28% | |
| Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * | 50 ? | 44 ? 12% | 40 ? 20% | 49 ? 2% | 42 ? 16% | 43 ? 14% |
| Response Time Black / White * | 24 ? | 14 ? 42% | 26 ? -8% | 14 ? 42% | 13 ? 46% | 14 ? 42% |
| PWM Frequency | 250 ? | 25000 ? 9900% | 25000 9900% | 25000 ? 9900% | 2500 ? 900% | |
| Screen | 3% | -3% | 17% | -4% | -11% | |
| Brightness middle | 197 | 234 19% | 230 17% | 226 15% | 184 -7% | 145 -26% |
| Brightness | 195 | 211 8% | 200 3% | 215 10% | 178 -9% | 144 -26% |
| Brightness Distribution | 78 | 83 6% | 77 -1% | 90 15% | 80 3% | 90 15% |
| Black Level * | 0.43 | 0.43 -0% | 0.45 -5% | 0.51 -19% | 0.38 12% | 0.49 -14% |
| Contrast | 458 | 544 19% | 511 12% | 443 -3% | 484 6% | 296 -35% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 10.35 | 11.27 -9% | 11.84 -14% | 6.21 40% | 11.29 -9% | 9.27 10% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 16.02 | 18.03 -13% | 20.47 -28% | 8.9 44% | 19.48 -22% | 16.9 -5% |
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 11.25 | 11.54 -3% | 12.22 -9% | 7.06 37% | 12.43 -10% | 12.28 -9% |
| Gamma | 2.08 106% | 2.09 105% | 2.12 104% | 2.35 94% | 2.34 94% | 2.03 108% |
| CCT | 11592 56% | 11607 56% | 13073 50% | 8321 78% | 13823 47% | 10732 61% |
| Color Space (Percent of AdobeRGB 1998) | 38 | 38 0% | 38 0% | 37 -3% | 35 -8% | |
| Color Space (Percent of sRGB) | 60 | 60 0% | 59 -2% | 59 -2% | 55 -8% | |
| Total Average (Program / Settings) | 1107% /
624% | 1100% /
617% | 1666% /
917% | 105% /
57% | 3% /
-5% |
* ... smaller is better
You will notice the strong blue cast (DeltaE of 11) as soon as you turn the Inspiron 5575 on. Calibrating the screen with our color profile (see link for download above) can reduce the blue cast noticeably. This only works if you really have the exact same Innolux screen (JMC9X 156BGA). Manufacturers often use different panels within the same series, even if the resolution is the same.
The Dell notebook cannot offer a decent color space, but neither can its competition.
Dell has equipped the 15-inch device with a TN panel that does not have good viewing angles. The screen cannot be read from every position. Working outdoors will only be possible if the sun is not too bright due to its low luminosity.
Display Response Times
| ↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
|---|---|---|
| 24 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 20 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 4 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows good response rates in our tests, but may be too slow for competitive gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 51 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (20.7 ms). | ||
| ↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey | ||
| 50 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 28 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 22 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows slow response rates in our tests and will be unsatisfactory for gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.165 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 85 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (32.4 ms). | ||
Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)
| Screen flickering / PWM detected | 250 Hz | ≤ 20 % brightness setting |  |
The display backlight flickers at 250 Hz (worst case, e.g., utilizing PWM) Flickering detected at a brightness setting of 20 % and below. There should be no flickering or PWM above this brightness setting. The frequency of 250 Hz is relatively low, so sensitive users will likely notice flickering and experience eyestrain at the stated brightness setting and below. In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 8445 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 343500) Hz was measured. | |||
Performance - Dell throttles the APU
The Inspiron is powered by a Ryzen 3 2200U (Raven Ridge) from AMD. This is a version of the Ryzen processors presented at the beginning of 2018, which are available both for desktop and mobile devices. We have already tested the Ryzen 5 and 7 in several tests, but the Ryzen 3 is still quite rare on the market. The SoC is aimed at low-end and entry-level devices.
Processor
The CPU part of the APU consists of a two-core processor that clocks at a base rate of 2.5 GHz. The turbo enables this to increase to up to 3.4 GHz. The processor supports simultaneous multithreading (two threads can be worked per core).
On power supply, our test unit completes the Cinebench Multi benchmarks at 1.7 GHz. This is significantly lower than the 2.5 GHz that the Ryzen 3 2200U reached during our tests in the Acer Aspire. The Dell reaches a clock rate between 750 MHz and 1.4 GHz in the single-thread tests. On battery, the CPU works even more slowly. Here, the CPU clock rate lies between 800 and 1.2 GHz in all tests.
Obviously Dell has decided to throttle the APU - at no point during our tests, even in single-thread mode, did we measure the 3.4-GHz turbo. In addition to this, the scores are inconsistent. The Cinebench R15 reached 240/78 points one day and then 306/107 points the next.
In any case, even after entering the best results into our database, our Dell cannot keep up with the Acer Aspire 3 A315-41 with the same APU. -4% during the multi-thread tests and -16% during single-core load. In practice, the disadvantage of the Inspiron is even greater as we only entered the best R15 scores, not those like 240/78.
The test unit reached an average of 290 points during our R15 loop. Here, performance is constant apart from one drop that only accounts for a few percentage points.
Our comparison table shows that the performance of the CPU part of the APU is positioned between the two Kaby Lake processors Core i3-7130U and Core i5-7200U. Bristol Ridge processors - the previous generation - lie far behind (ThinkPad A275).
Consequently, the AMD processor offers sufficient processing power for office and internet applications. The fact that Dell cannot get more performance out of the APU is disappointing nonetheless. We are looking forward to seeing how the Ryzen 3 performs in other notebooks.
System Performance
The combination of a (in this case) weak APU, a noisy hard drive and a RAM running in single-channel mode is bad news for system performance. Turning on the device and loading programs can take some time while the hard drive continues to huff and puff.
The Inspiron 5575 lies 9% behind the Acer Aspire 3 A315-41 and even 18% behind a simple Intel device, the Acer Extensa 2540 with 7200U. The Dell's disadvantage is even greater in the PCMark 10 at -17%. It would be possible to increase the system performance by adding a second RAM module, which would at least enable it to run in dual-channel mode.
| PCMark 8 Home Score Accelerated v2 | 3185 points | |
| PCMark 8 Creative Score Accelerated v2 | 3184 points | |
| PCMark 10 Score | 2534 points | |
Help | ||
Storage Devices
Dell has equipped the Inspiron with a SATA-III HDD from Seagate. The 2.5-inch ST1000LM035 has a capacity of 1 TB, of which about 820 GB are available to the user. The Recovery partition and Windows operating system take up the remaining space.
The transfer rates of the HDD are very bad compared to the SSD systems. The Asus X510UA is also equipped with an HDD of the same build. In that device, the HDD reaches slightly better rates, although its sequential read and write rates are not as good.
| Dell Inspiron 15 5575-98MH4 Seagate Mobile HDD 1TB ST1000LM035 | Acer Aspire 3 A315-41-R7BM SK Hynix HFS256G39TND-N210A | Acer Aspire 3 A315-51-30YA Kingston RBUSNS8180S3128GI1 | Lenovo V330-15IKB Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP | Asus X510UA-BR305T Seagate Mobile HDD 1TB ST1000LM035 | HP 250 G6 2UB93ES Samsung SSD PM871a MZNLN256HMHQ | Average Seagate Mobile HDD 1TB ST1000LM035 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CrystalDiskMark 3.0 | 11928% | 13725% | 19464% | 24% | 18668% | 34% | |
| Read Seq | 137.2 | 512 273% | 428.6 212% | 1303 850% | 89.4 -35% | 488 256% | 90.9 ? -34% |
| Write Seq | 126.7 | 257.2 103% | 281.8 122% | 1279 909% | 84.2 -34% | 455 259% | 88.5 ? -30% |
| Read 512 | 41.77 | 368.5 782% | 295.6 608% | 815 1851% | 29.55 -29% | 426.4 921% | 31.5 ? -25% |
| Write 512 | 95.9 | 259.1 170% | 142.8 49% | 826 761% | 61.7 -36% | 390.7 307% | 77.3 ? -19% |
| Read 4k | 0.418 | 24.92 5862% | 34.88 8244% | 50.1 11886% | 0.326 -22% | 37.68 8914% | 0.4174 ? 0% |
| Write 4k | 0.123 | 46.59 37778% | 73.5 59656% | 100.7 81770% | 0.438 256% | 76.9 62420% | 0.525 ? 327% |
| Read 4k QD32 | 1.267 | 195.7 15346% | 211.6 16601% | 252.2 19805% | 1.047 -17% | 286.5 22512% | 0.993 ? -22% |
| Write 4k QD32 | 0.47 | 165.5 35113% | 114.7 24304% | 178.5 37879% | 0.967 106% | 253.1 53751% | 0.803 ? 71% |
Graphics
The integrated AMD Radeon RX Vega 3 graphics core supports DirectX 12 and works at speeds of up to 1100 MHz - or at least it does in theory. The Vega 3 benefits from fast RAM. As the memory controller supports up to DDR4 2400 memory, which is exactly what Dell has given its device, the main speed limit is the missing second RAM, which would enable it to run in dual-channel mode.
The results of the 3DMark benchmarks are below average for the Vega 3 (-28/-30%), which is due to the throttled CPU. The Vega 3 therefore also performs less good than most UHD Graphics 620.
Basically, the Radeon RX Vega 3 does not look like a bad iGPU. However, there is a large variance in its performance and our test unit is positioned right at the bottom of the scale. The Acer Aspire 3 A315-41 shows that things can look very different with the same APU.
| 3DMark 06 Standard Score | 8642 points | |
| 3DMark Vantage P Result | 5035 points | |
| 3DMark 11 Performance | 5190 points | |
| 3DMark Cloud Gate Standard Score | 5521 points | |
| 3DMark Fire Strike Score | 897 points | |
Help | ||
Gaming Performance
Due to its limited performance the Inspiron can display even fewer games smoothly than would be possible with this APU, which cannot offer very high performance anyway.
The Vega 3 cannot keep up with Intel's integrated graphics solutions HD 620 or UHD 630. Its performance is almost always below average in the office segment. However, it performs above average with some games such as "BioShock Infinite".
Do not think that an AMD IGP graphics card is better than an Intel iGPU. This can be the case in some games, but the advantage of Vega 3 will usually be very small - at least this is the case for our Inspiron 5575.
However, the results of the Vega 3 depend on the cooling system and the TDP, which can be adjusted by the manufacturer of the notebook. This one can be set between 12 and 25 watts.
It seems that Dell has set the test unit to 12 watts and the CPU Package Power (SMU) lies at 7 watts in the R15 loop. Obviously, Dell has not managed to get the most out of the Ryzen 3. The manufacturer is not the only one working this way. The Acer Aspire 3 A315-41 (Ryzen 3 2200U) has a TDP of 15 watts. This is not ideal either, but still better than the Dell test unit.
Current games such as “Resident Evil 7” can therefore only be played at the lowest details and users might feel like they have been sent back in time to 1995. Less demanding games such as the popular “Farming Simulator 17” are a better choice for this device. This game can be displayed at 44 to 74 FPS (Medium / Low settings). As the screen can only offer a resolution of 1366x768 pixels, you will not have to choose between Full HD or higher unless you connect an external screen.
| F1 2017 - 1280x720 Ultra Low Preset | |
| Average of class Office (n=1last 2 years) | |
| Acer Spin 5 SP513-52N-566U | |
| Acer Aspire 3 A315-41-R7BM | |
| Average AMD Radeon RX Vega 3 (20 - 30, n=2) | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 5575-98MH4 | |
| Rise of the Tomb Raider - 1024x768 Lowest Preset | |
| Acer Aspire 3 A315-41-R7BM | |
| Dell XPS 13 i5-8250U | |
| Average AMD Radeon RX Vega 3 (21 - 25.6, n=2) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad A275 | |
| Acer Spin 5 SP513-52N-566U | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 5575-98MH4 | |
| Acer Extensa 2540-580K | |
| Farming Simulator 17 - 1366x768 Medium Preset | |
| Acer Aspire 3 A315-41-R7BM | |
| Acer Spin 5 SP513-52N-566U | |
| Average AMD Radeon RX Vega 3 (44 - 72.3, n=3) | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 5575-98MH4 | |
| Dell XPS 13 i5-8250U | |
| Dirt Rally - 1366x768 Medium Preset | |
| Acer Aspire 3 A315-41-R7BM | |
| Average AMD Radeon RX Vega 3 (22.5 - 33.5, n=2) | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 5575-98MH4 | |
| Resident Evil 7 - 1280x720 Very Low / Off AA:FX | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 5575-98MH4 | |
| Average AMD Radeon RX Vega 3 (41.6 - 46.5, n=2) | |
| Acer Aspire 3 A315-41-R7BM | |
| low | med. | high | ultra | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BioShock Infinite (2013) | 59.5 | 30.8 | 28.5 | |
| Dirt Rally (2015) | 80.1 | 22.5 | ||
| Rise of the Tomb Raider (2016) | 21 | 10.6 | ||
| Farming Simulator 17 (2016) | 73.8 | 44 | ||
| Resident Evil 7 (2017) | 46.5 | |||
| F1 2017 (2017) | 20 |
Emissions - the Inspiron heats up moderately
Unfortunately, the hard drive is the biggest cause for system noise: You will be constantly accompanied by a light clicking noise while working on this notebook. This kind of annoying storage device is unusual nowadays, but Dell has just confirmed that it is not yet extinct.
While idling, the cooling fan in our test unit is usually turned off. The device is never silent, as you can still hear the storage device' normal whirring, even if it stops the loud clicking once in a while.
The cooling fan starts turns up under load and we measured a noise volume of 40.6 dB(A) during the stress test (Prime95 + FurMark running simultaneously for at least one hour).
Noise Level
| Idle |
| 31.4 / 31.4 / 31.6 dB(A) |
| HDD |
| 31.6 dB(A) |
| Load |
| 31.9 / 40.9 dB(A) |
 | ||
30 dB silent 40 dB(A) audible 50 dB(A) loud |
||
min:  , med:  , max:  Audix TM1, Arta (15 cm distance) environment noise: 30.4 dB(A) | ||
Temperature
Our test unit responds to the stress test (Prime95 and FurMark running for at least 1 hour) similarly when running on battery and on power supply. When connected to a socket, the processor clocks between 824 MHz and 1.4 GHz. The graphics core only reaches a clock rate of 230 MHz. GPU load on its own causes the iGPU to work at a constant 700 MHz.
Prime95 starts off at 1.7 GHz, but the chip soon heats up to 100 °C (~212 °F) which then causes the clock rate to drop to 200 MHz. After that, clock rate and temperature start to increase again slowly. This happens 4-5 times. In this phase, the power consumption oscillates between 10 and 40 watts.
Only after about 1-2 minutes of strong fluctuations do the clock rate (1.2 GHz), temperature (42 °C/~108 °F) and power consumption (29 watts with internal screen) settle down and remain constant after that.
The laptop heats up moderately. We only measured one hotspot that reaches just over 41 °C (~106 °F) during our stress test.
(±) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 45 °C / 113 F, compared to the average of 34.3 °C / 94 F, ranging from 21.2 to 62.5 °C for the class Office.
(±) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 41.2 °C / 106 F, compared to the average of 36.8 °C / 98 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 27.1 °C / 81 F, compared to the device average of 29.5 °C / 85 F.
(+) The palmrests and touchpad are cooler than skin temperature with a maximum of 28.1 °C / 82.6 F and are therefore cool to the touch.
(±) The average temperature of the palmrest area of similar devices was 27.6 °C / 81.7 F (-0.5 °C / -0.9 F).
Speakers
Both speakers are placed at the front below the wrist rest. They emit sound towards the bottom, which means that the sound is reflected by the surface on which the device is standing. If this surface is soft, the sound quality is reduced significantly.
The small speakers produce mainly highs and mids - bass frequencies are largely ignored. The sound is distorted at maximum volume. The speakers are good enough for video chatting, but we would recommend connecting the device to external speakers or headphones when playing films or games.
Dell Inspiron 15 5575-98MH4 audio analysis
(±) | speaker loudness is average but good (72.7 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 23.1% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (13.1% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 3.3% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (4.7% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 2.2% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (6.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (19.1% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 34% of all tested devices in this class were better, 7% similar, 59% worse
» The best had a delta of 7%, average was 21%, worst was 53%
Compared to all devices tested
» 43% of all tested devices were better, 7% similar, 50% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 24%, worst was 134%
Acer Aspire 3 A315-41-R7BM audio analysis
(-) | not very loud speakers (67.8 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 25.3% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (12.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 3% away from median
(±) | linearity of mids is average (10.1% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 1.8% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (5.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (22.7% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 59% of all tested devices in this class were better, 8% similar, 32% worse
» The best had a delta of 7%, average was 21%, worst was 53%
Compared to all devices tested
» 65% of all tested devices were better, 6% similar, 29% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 24%, worst was 134%
Energy Management - efficient consumption but short runtimes
Power Consumption
The Dell 5575 is very careful with its power consumption, but not more so than comparable Intel systems with an iGPU. The usual consumption lies between 5 and 10 watts, depending on the brightness of the display.
The two AMD systems seem to consume the most power under load. But this is not the case for our Inspiron 5575 due to its throttling. The 44.7 watts represent the initial power consumption during the stress test. This drops after a maximum of 3 minutes and subsequently remains at 29 watts.
| Off / Standby | 0.3 / 0.34 Watt |
| Idle | 5 / 8.4 / 9.2 Watt |
| Load |
30 / 44.7 Watt |
   
| |
Key:
min: ,
med: ,
max: Metrahit Energy | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 5575-98MH4 R3 2200U, Vega 3, Seagate Mobile HDD 1TB ST1000LM035, TN LED, 1366x768, 15.6" | Acer Aspire 3 A315-41-R7BM R3 2200U, Vega 3, SK Hynix HFS256G39TND-N210A, TN LED, 1920x1080, 15.6" | Acer Aspire 3 A315-51-30YA i3-8130U, UHD Graphics 620, Kingston RBUSNS8180S3128GI1, TN LED, 1920x1080, 15.6" | Lenovo V330-15IKB i3-7130U, UHD Graphics 620, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP, TN LED, 1920x1080, 15.6" | Asus X510UA-BR305T i3-7100U, HD Graphics 620, Seagate Mobile HDD 1TB ST1000LM035, TN LED, 1366x768, 15.6" | Average AMD Radeon RX Vega 3 | Average of class Office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power Consumption | -8% | 5% | 22% | 8% | 15% | -12% | |
| Idle Minimum * | 5 | 5.6 -12% | 5.4 -8% | 3.2 36% | 5.2 -4% | 4.51 ? 10% | 4.63 ? 7% |
| Idle Average * | 8.4 | 8.5 -1% | 8.2 2% | 6.7 20% | 8.1 4% | 7.11 ? 15% | 7.56 ? 10% |
| Idle Maximum * | 9.2 | 8.4 9% | 8.4 9% | 7.1 23% | 8.6 7% | 7.94 ? 14% | 8.98 ? 2% |
| Load Average * | 30 | 41 -37% | 32.2 -7% | 29.6 1% | 30.8 -3% | 27.1 ? 10% | 42.3 ? -41% |
| Load Maximum * | 44.7 | 44.2 1% | 32.6 27% | 31.5 30% | 28 37% | 33.1 ? 26% | 62.6 ? -40% |
| Witcher 3 ultra * | 32 |
* ... smaller is better
Battery Runtime
The Lithium-Ion battery of the Dell Inspiron 15 5000 cannot be removed and has a capacity of 42 Wh. But this only gives the 15-inch device enough power for 4:11 hours.
This is sufficient, but Acer shows that there is another way. With only 37 Wh the Acer Aspire A315-41 has the lowest battery capacity, but manages to run for just over 6 hours in our practical Wi-Fi test. Why is this the case? After all, they are both equipped with the same AMD chip.
It is difficult to say. There is hardly any difference between the devices' power consumptions while idling. Our Dell 5575 even consumes less power under average load due to its high throttling. The battery runtimes while idling are very good, which confirms the low power consumption in this situation.
| Dell Inspiron 15 5575-98MH4 R3 2200U, Vega 3, 42 Wh | Acer Aspire 3 A315-41-R7BM R3 2200U, Vega 3, 37 Wh | Acer Aspire 3 A315-51-30YA i3-8130U, UHD Graphics 620, 37 Wh | Lenovo V330-15IKB i3-7130U, UHD Graphics 620, 30 Wh | Asus X510UA-BR305T i3-7100U, HD Graphics 620, 42 Wh | HP 250 G6 2UB93ES 6006U, HD Graphics 520, 41.6 Wh | Average of class Office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Battery Runtime | 13% | 12% | 10% | 69% | 63% | 112% | |
| Reader / Idle | 570 | 536 -6% | 1254 ? 120% | ||||
| WiFi v1.3 | 251 | 344 37% | 281 12% | 275 10% | 425 69% | 409 63% | 668 ? 166% |
| Load | 77 | 83 8% | 114.7 ? 49% | ||||
| H.264 | 296 | 755 ? |
Verdict - failed Ryzen 3 implementation
Pros
Cons
Dell has now also opened the door to Ryzen APUs. Acer has already shown us how to create a good office all-rounder that can keep up with current Intel chips and even trumped them during occasional gaming with Ryzen 3. Dell, unfortunately, has decided to take a different path, which, we believe, led the manufacturer to an unsuccessful implementation of Ryzen 3. The APU throttles so heavily that it cannot even get close to its turbo clock rates. Therefore, the processor, application and games benchmarks are disappointing - and the clicking hard drive is the last straw. Dell has not done the AMD Ryzen a favor with this laptop - unlike Acer with its Aspire 3 A315-41.
On top of this, the device has a poor HD panel with low brightness, PWM flickering, a blue cast, low contrast and narrow viewing angles (TN) - this screen manages to score every minus point available. The matte surface is the only advantage of this panel.
We cannot recommend this 469-Euro device (~$550). Instead, we would suggest taking a look at its competitors, the Aspire 3 A315-41 in particular, which offers a Full HD screen, storage device and Windows 10 from $580. Although the Acer also has a dark screen with narrow viewing angles, it can make much better use of the Ryzen 3 in applications and games and offers better battery runtimes.
Dell Inspiron 15 5575-98MH4
- 05/30/2018 v6 (old)
Sebastian Bade
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