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Dell Inspiron 15 5579 (i5-8250U, SSD, IPS, Touch) Convertible Review

No news. Kaby Lake CPU replaced with Kaby Lake Refresh CPU - that's pretty much the gist of Dell's latest Inspiron 15. Thanks to its fast SSD, its touchscreen, and the backlit keyboard the convertible is a pretty solid workhorse. Find out in our review whether or not it's worth Dell's asking price of $749.


Dell Inspiron 15 5000 configuration options - source: Dell
Dell Inspiron 15 5000 configuration options - source: Dell

Dell’s latest Inspiron 15 5579 is a 15.6-inch convertible with just minor differences to its predecessor (Dell Inspiron 15 5578). Since last year’s model also received no more than a simple CPU upgrade we would have preferred to see a new, fresh design but alas, we are left with the well-established aging chassis once more. The differences underneath the hood are fairly minimal and limited to a CPU upgrade. However, given the current generation of CPUs the result is a massive improvement in CPU performance.

Two different base models of the Inspiron 15 5579 are available, see the screenshot on the right. Our particular review unit - equipped with an Intel Core i5-8250U, 8 GB of DDR4-RAM, and a 256 GB SSD - will set you back $749 plus sales tax in the US. It also came with a 15-inch IPS touchscreen.

Alternatively, the convertible is also available with an Intel Core i7-8550U, twice the RAM, and twice the storage for $999 plus sales tax instead.

The Inspiron’s main competitors are listed in the table below. We have included its predecessor as well in order to determine how much faster the new model really is.

Dell Inspiron 15 5578 HP Envy x360 15 Asus VivoBook Flip 15 Acer Spin 3 Lenovo ThinkPad L380
CPU Intel Core i5-7200U AMD Ryzen 5 2500U Intel Core i5-8250U Intel Core i5-8250U Intel Core i5-8250U
GPU Intel HD Graphics 620 AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 Intel UHD Graphics 620 Intel UHD Graphics 620 Intel UHD Graphics 620
Display 15.6-inch 1920x1080 (IPS) 15.6-inch 1920x1080 (IPS) 15.6-inch 1920x1080 (IPS) 14-inch 1920x1080 (IPS) 13.3-inch 1920x1080 (IPS)
RAM 8 GB DDR4 8 GB DDR4 8 GB DDR4 8 GB DDR4 8 GB DDR4
Storage 256 GB SSD 256 GB SSD (NVMe) 128 GB SSD + 1 TB HDD 256 GB SSD 256 GB SSD (NVMe)
Rating 79% 80% 79% 81% 86%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672 (Inspiron 15 5000 Series)
Processor
Intel Core i5-8250U 4 x 1.6 - 3.4 GHz, Kaby Lake Refresh
Graphics adapter
Intel UHD Graphics 620, Core: 1100 MHz, Memory: 1200 MHz, single-channel, 23.20.16.4973
Memory
8 GB 
, DDR4-2400, 1 of 2 slots used (single-channel)
Display
15.60 inch 16:9, 1920 x 1080 pixel 141 PPI, capacitive, 10-point multitouch, not pressure-sensitive, AUO, B156HW01, IPS, glossy: yes
Mainboard
Intel Kaby Lake-U + iHDCP 2.2 Base PCH
Storage
SK hynix SC311 SATA, 256 GB 
, 2.5-inch SSD, 210 GB free
Soundcard
Realtek Audio
Connections
1 USB 2.0, 2 USB 3.0 / 3.1 Gen1, 1 HDMI, Audio Connections: stereo, Sensors: gyroscope
Networking
Qualcomm Atheros QCA61x4 (a/g/n = Wi-Fi 4/ac = Wi-Fi 5/), Bluetooth 4.2
Size
height x width x depth (in mm): 20.2 x 381.9 x 253.1 ( = 0.8 x 15.04 x 9.96 in)
Battery
42 Wh, 3500 mAh Lithium-Ion
Operating System
Microsoft Windows 10 Home 64 Bit
Camera
Primary Camera: 720 MPix
Secondary Camera: infrared (Windows Hello)
Additional features
Speakers: stereo, Keyboard: 6-row chiclet, power supply, 24 Months Warranty, 1x Noble safety lock
Weight
2.085 kg ( = 73.55 oz / 4.6 pounds), Power Supply: 269 g ( = 9.49 oz / 0.59 pounds)
Price
829 EUR
Note: The manufacturer may use components from different suppliers including display panels, drives or memory sticks with similar specifications.

 

Case

The only thing we can really say about the 5579’s case is that it is old news. We’ve already seen it on the 5568 and the 5578. It is made entirely out of gray plastic. Our particular unit showed some flex in the area surrounding the touchpad, which resulted in accidental clicks when using the device on our lap. Both the display lid and base can be quite easily warped and the base flexed noticeably in the middle. The display lid had its weakest spot around the Dell logo and flexed quite significantly in this area, resulting in the dreaded ripple effect on the display.

Nevertheless, the Inspiron 15 5579 looks the part, with its beveled edges and smooth surfaces. The 360-degree hinges were too tight for one-handed operation but not tight enough to avoid teetering entirely.

Since the notebook still lacks a dedicated maintenance flap, the entire bottom shell needs to be removed in order to access the internal hardware.

Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579
Dell Inspiron 15 5579

Size Comparison

With a footprint of 38.1 x 25.3 cm (15 in x 10 in) the 5579 was by far the largest device in our test group. However, we should also note that the Acer Spin 3 and Lenovo ThinkPad L380 are 14 and 13.3-inch notebooks, respectively. The scale stopped at 2.1 kg (4.6 lbs) for the notebook itself and 269 g (9.5 oz) for the charger.

381.9 mm / 15 inch 253.1 mm / 9.96 inch 20.2 mm / 0.795 inch 2.1 kg4.6 lbs381.9 mm / 15 inch 253.1 mm / 9.96 inch 20.2 mm / 0.795 inch 2.8 kg6.22 lbs364 mm / 14.3 inch 246 mm / 9.69 inch 18 mm / 0.709 inch 2.3 kg5.07 lbs359.7 mm / 14.2 inch 248.8 mm / 9.8 inch 19.6 mm / 0.772 inch 2.1 kg4.54 lbs334.95 mm / 13.2 inch 229.95 mm / 9.05 inch 20.8 mm / 0.819 inch 1.7 kg3.75 lbs322 mm / 12.7 inch 224.2 mm / 8.83 inch 18.8 mm / 0.74 inch 1.5 kg3.22 lbs297 mm / 11.7 inch 210 mm / 8.27 inch 1 mm / 0.03937 inch 5.7 g0.01257 lbs

Connectivity

In terms of connectivity, the 5579 turned out to be pretty vanilla. More specifically, one of its three USB ports offers USB 2.0 speeds only, and in addition all you will find is an HDMI port and an SD card reader. USB-C or DisplayPort are still nowhere to be seen.

At least the ports are spread out more or less evenly on both sides, located towards the rear of the device, and they are spaced widely apart.

Left: power, HDMI 1.4a, USB 3.1 (Gen1 with PowerShare), USB 3.1 Gen1, audio
Left: power, HDMI 1.4a, USB 3.1 (Gen1 with PowerShare), USB 3.1 Gen1, audio
Right: power button, volume rocker, 3-in-1 SD card reader, USB 2.0, Noble lock
Right: power button, volume rocker, 3-in-1 SD card reader, USB 2.0, Noble lock
Front: status LED
Front: status LED
Rear: fan vents
Rear: fan vents

SD Card Reader

The Dell Inspiron 15 5579’s SD card reader supports all current formats. Our benchmarks showed that it is connected to the chipset’s USB 2.0 interface, and it was thus not any faster than on the predecessor. The benchmarks were performed using our 64 GB Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC UHS-II reference card.

SD Card Reader
average JPG Copy Test (av. of 3 runs)
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro M501 microSDXC 64GB)
75 MB/s +185%
Average of class Convertible
  (17.7 - 177.7, n=36, last 2 years)
73.8 MB/s +181%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
69.4 MB/s +164%
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
26.5 MB/s +1%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
26.3 MB/s
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
22.7 MB/s -14%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
20.6 MB/s -22%
maximum AS SSD Seq Read Test (1GB)
Average of class Convertible
  (22.6 - 263, n=34, last 2 years)
95.1 MB/s +220%
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro M501 microSDXC 64GB)
88.7 MB/s +199%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
82 MB/s +176%
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
31 MB/s +4%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
29.7 MB/s
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
25.6 MB/s -14%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
  (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II)
24.8 MB/s -16%

Communication

Wi-Fi modem
Wi-Fi modem

Wireless communication is handled by a Qualcomm Wi-Fi modem with support for 2x2 802.11 ac and Bluetooth 4.1. The 5579 performed very well in our Wi-Fi benchmarks under ideal conditions, but so did most of its competitors. We have been able to determine maximum RX and TX rates of 657 and 612 Mb/s, respectively. Wi-Fi performance has thus been improved quite remarkably.

Other ways to connect to networks are not supported by Dell’s convertible, and a USB dongle will be necessary in order to connect via Ethernet cable as the device does not have a standard RJ45 Ethernet port.

The 5579 did not come equipped with an LTE modem, and unfortunately it cannot be installed retroactively either.

Networking
iperf3 transmit AX12
Average of class Convertible
  (1003 - 1395, n=2, last 2 years)
1199 MBit/s +82%
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8265
679 MBit/s +3%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
Realtek RTL8822BE Wireless LAN 802.11ac PCIe Adapter
676 MBit/s +3%
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8265
670 MBit/s +2%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Qualcomm Atheros QCA61x4
657 MBit/s
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3165
313 MBit/s -52%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
Atheros/Qualcomm QCA6174
300 MBit/s -54%
iperf3 receive AX12
Average of class Convertible
  (1178 - 1578, n=2, last 2 years)
1378 MBit/s +125%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
Realtek RTL8822BE Wireless LAN 802.11ac PCIe Adapter
632 MBit/s +3%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Qualcomm Atheros QCA61x4
612 MBit/s
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
Atheros/Qualcomm QCA6174
596 MBit/s -3%
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8265
518 MBit/s -15%
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8265
360 MBit/s -41%
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3165
178 MBit/s -71%

Security

Security features include a TPM chip and an infrared camera with support for Windows Hello. Face detection worked very well and reliably once it was set up. Also included is a 12-month subscription to McAfee LiteSafe. The upgrade to a three-year subscription can be added at the time of purchase for another $70.

Accessories

In terms of accessories the choices are slim pickings. Included in the box are the notebook itself, a power supply, and several warranty information and safety booklets and leaflets. All other accessories have to be purchased separately, for example Dell’s D3100 USB 3.0 docking station for $139. Unfortunately, the 5579 does not support active stylus pens. The only option is a passive stylus, such as the Targus Stylus for Media Tablets for $16.

Maintenance

As mentioned before, the Dell Inspiron 15 5579 lacks a dedicated maintenance opening at the bottom. Accordingly, the entire bottom shell needs to be removed carefully in order to access the internal hardware components. The bottom cover is securely held in place with several plastic clips, and we highly recommend using a plastic tool in order to avoid damaging the case or the clips. Once removed one has access to the internal hardware with the possibility to upgrade the RAM and storage.

Since our review unit was equipped with a single RAM module, adding a second module is a no-brainer. However, there are is no empty M.2 storage slot and the only way to upgrade the storage is by replacing the existing SSD.

Dell Inspiron 15 5579 with bottom cover removed
Dell Inspiron 15 5579 with bottom cover removed

Warranty

Dell Inspiron 15 5579 warranty options (source: Dell)
Dell Inspiron 15 5579 warranty options (source: Dell)

By default, Dell sells the 5579 with one year of mail-in warranty but offers a wide variety of optional warranty extensions. For example, $309 will get you four years of Premium Support Plus with on-site service. Please see our Guarantees, Return policies and Warranties FAQ for country-specific information.

Input Devices

Keyboard

Dell Inspiron 15 5579 keyboard
Dell Inspiron 15 5579 keyboard
Dell Inspiron 15 5579 keyboard (backlight on)
Dell Inspiron 15 5579 keyboard (backlight on)

Avid typists are going to fall in love with the Inspiron 15 5579’s chiclet keyboard. The keys’ 16 x 15 mm large nonslip surface felt very nice to the touch. A well-defined and very consistent accentuation point is followed by a rather short key travel that not all users will be comfortable with, but at least the keystroke was well defined and firm. The labels are easily legible and supported by a white two-stage backlight. Except for the space-bar, clatter was fairly minimal. However, the small cursor keys are definitely going to take some getting used to.

Touchpad

Dell Inspiron 15 5579 touchpad
Dell Inspiron 15 5579 touchpad

At 10.5 x 8.1 cm the touchpad was comparatively large, and its surface was delightfully smooth. Thus, it allowed for very accurate pointer input with high-precision touch recognition up to its very edges.

The integrated buttons are located at the bottom. They offer a rather short travel but a very loud acoustic feedback in return. By and large we would deem the ClickPad to be adequate. The large surface is particularly useful for multi-finger gesture input.

Touchscreen

Dell Inspiron 15 5579 touchscreen
Dell Inspiron 15 5579 touchscreen

The 15.6-inch touchscreen offers a third way of input, and it worked flawlessly during our tests. Fingers were detected very quickly, and response times were practically nonexistent. Unfortunately, our review unit’s display did not support active styluses and required a passive stylus instead.

Display

Subpixel geometry
Subpixel geometry
Very noticeable clouding on our review unit
Very noticeable clouding on our review unit

Our review unit came equipped with an AU Optronics FHD panel with a native resolution of 1920x1080. At 15.6-inches, the resulting pixel density was 141 dpi. Its average maximum brightness was just 240 nits, which was slightly brighter than the HP Envy x360’s 207 nits panel. Thanks to a very low black level of just 0.2 nits the contrast ratio of 1,255:1 was fairly high. In this regard, the 5579 offered a much better experience than its LG panel-equipped 5578 predecessor.

Unfortunately, at just 84% brightness distribution was mediocre at best, and we would have expected more. Nevertheless, we have failed to notice any shadowing effects. Clouding, on the other hand, was very pronounced along the left edge on a completely dark screen. PWM was also not present on this particular AU Optronics panel regardless of brightness level.

260
cd/m²
243
cd/m²
241
cd/m²
250
cd/m²
251
cd/m²
247
cd/m²
219
cd/m²
219
cd/m²
226
cd/m²
Distribution of brightness
AUO, B156HW01 tested with X-Rite i1Pro 2
Maximum: 260 cd/m² (Nits) Average: 239.6 cd/m² Minimum: 11.6 cd/m²
Brightness Distribution: 84 %
Center on Battery: 249 cd/m²
Contrast: 1255:1 (Black: 0.2 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 5.25 | 0.5-29.43 Ø5
ΔE Greyscale 3.28 | 0.57-98 Ø5.3
55% sRGB (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
35% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
38.23% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
55.6% sRGB (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
37% Display P3 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
Gamma: 2.15
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
AUO, B156HW01, 1920x1080, 15.60
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
LG Philips (Dell 156WF7), 1920x1080, 15.60
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
Chi Mei CM15E9, 1920x1080, 15.60
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
AU Optronics B156HAN02.1, 1920x1080, 15.60
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
BOE CQ NV140FHM-N41, 1920x1080, 14.00
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
M133NWF4-R3, 1920x1080, 13.30
Display
13%
12%
6%
7%
74%
Display P3 Coverage
37
41.74
13%
41.36
12%
39.19
6%
39.68
7%
65.1
76%
sRGB Coverage
55.6
62.8
13%
62.2
12%
58.9
6%
58.9
6%
95.5
72%
AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage
38.23
43.13
13%
42.74
12%
40.49
6%
41
7%
66.9
75%
Response Times
-2%
6%
-4%
-13%
-6%
Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% *
41 ?(19, 22)
55 ?(20, 35)
-34%
40 ?(22, 18)
2%
44 ?(22, 22)
-7%
43 ?(21, 22)
-5%
47 ?(22, 25)
-15%
Response Time Black / White *
29 ?(17, 12)
20 ?(4, 16)
31%
26 ?(14, 12)
10%
29 ?(15, 14)
-0%
35 ?(21, 14)
-21%
28 ?(14, 14)
3%
PWM Frequency
25000 ?(30)
1000
217 ?(90)
Screen
-3%
17%
-2%
9%
13%
Brightness middle
251
244
-3%
221
-12%
229
-9%
220
-12%
323
29%
Brightness
240
242
1%
207
-14%
221
-8%
221
-8%
310
29%
Brightness Distribution
84
93
11%
87
4%
76
-10%
78
-7%
88
5%
Black Level *
0.2
0.25
-25%
0.15
25%
0.15
25%
0.18
10%
0.22
-10%
Contrast
1255
976
-22%
1473
17%
1527
22%
1222
-3%
1468
17%
Colorchecker dE 2000 *
5.25
4.94
6%
4.35
17%
5.03
4%
3.98
24%
5
5%
Colorchecker dE 2000 max. *
10.04
7.3
27%
8.98
11%
8.89
11%
7.69
23%
9.56
5%
Greyscale dE 2000 *
3.28
4.93
-50%
3.09
6%
5.56
-70%
1.68
49%
6.64
-102%
Gamma
2.15 102%
2.7 81%
2.23 99%
2.64 83%
2.37 93%
2.2 100%
CCT
6502 100%
7401 88%
6068 107%
7015 93%
6382 102%
6638 98%
Color Space (Percent of AdobeRGB 1998)
35
40
14%
56
60%
37
6%
38
9%
61
74%
Color Space (Percent of sRGB)
55
63
15%
86
56%
59
7%
58
5%
95
73%
Colorchecker dE 2000 calibrated *
4
Total Average (Program / Settings)
3% / 1%
12% / 15%
0% / -1%
1% / 6%
27% / 22%

* ... smaller is better

Dell Inspiron 15 5579 vs. sRGB (55%)
Dell Inspiron 15 5579 vs. sRGB (55%)
Dell Inspiron 15 5579 vs. AdobeRGB (35%)
Dell Inspiron 15 5579 vs. AdobeRGB (35%)

Under normal conditions, the display did not suffer from clouding or its mediocre brightness distribution. Colors were displayed fairly well without being too over-the-top. DeltaE deviations were definitely way too high out of the box, and we suggest downloading our ICC profile from the box above for improved color accuracy. Color-space coverage was very poor overall, with just 55% and 35% for sRGB and AdobeRGB, respectively. The Inspiron 15 5579 was beaten in this regard by every single one of its competitors, and we expect a much better color-space coverage on a laptop at the 5579’s price point.

CalMAN: grayscale
CalMAN: grayscale
CalMAN: ColorChecker
CalMAN: ColorChecker
CalMAN: saturation
CalMAN: saturation

Outdoor usability was limited by the panel’s touch surface as well as its low maximum brightness. As a consequence, the Inspiron 15 5579 was practically unusable in sunlight. It was somewhat usable in the shade, but once again its usability was severely limited due to massive reflections.

The Dell Inspiron 15 5579 in sunlight
The Dell Inspiron 15 5579 in sunlight
The Dell Inspiron 15 5579 in the shade
The Dell Inspiron 15 5579 in the shade

Display Response Times

Display response times show how fast the screen is able to change from one color to the next. Slow response times can lead to afterimages and can cause moving objects to appear blurry (ghosting). Gamers of fast-paced 3D titles should pay special attention to fast response times.
       Response Time Black to White
29 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined↗ 17 ms rise
↘ 12 ms fall
The screen shows relatively slow response rates in our tests and may be too slow for gamers.
In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 73 % of all devices are better.
This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (21.6 ms).
       Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey
41 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined↗ 19 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 0.2 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 59 % of all devices are better.
This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (33.9 ms).

Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)

To dim the screen, some notebooks will simply cycle the backlight on and off in rapid succession - a method called Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) . This cycling frequency should ideally be undetectable to the human eye. If said frequency is too low, users with sensitive eyes may experience strain or headaches or even notice the flickering altogether.
Screen flickering / PWM not detected

In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 18110 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 3846000) Hz was measured.

Viewing angles, on the other hand, were as wide as expected of an IPS panel. Colors never shifted noticeably even at acute angles, and we would have expected no less from a convertible.

Dell Inspiron 15 5579 viewing angles
Dell Inspiron 15 5579 viewing angles

Performance

For most users, the cheaper SKU will be perfectly adequate thanks to its Core i5-8250U quad-core CPU with plenty of oomph for everyday tasks. The limit most users will run into first is most likely going to be storage space; however, the SSD is user-replaceable and thus not a limiting factor in the long run. The Inspiron 15 5579 is also available with twice the RAM and twice the storage, and this more expensive unit also entails an Intel Core i7-8550U CPU that should be around 10% faster than our review unit’s i5.

The high latencies detected by LatencyMon can be a problem for some users, and we expect Dell to solve this issue in future driver updates.

CPU-Z
CPU-Z
CPU-Z
CPU-Z
CPU-Z
CPU-Z
GPU-Z
GPU-Z
DPC-Latenzen
HWiNFO
Intel Extreme Utility
Intel Extreme Utility (Benchmark)
 

Processor

Intel Core i5-8250U
Intel Core i5-8250U

As mentioned before, the more affordable SKU comes with the successor to the last generation’s Core i5-7200U, the Core i5-8250U. At a TDP of 15 W this CPU offers four physical cores and up to eight threads running at 1.6 GHz and turbo boosting up to 3.4 GHz on demand. In our single-thread benchmark the 5579 was on a par with Lenovo's ThinkPad L380, although the latter had a slightly higher multithreaded performance. Looking at the results of all notebooks we can see that single-threaded performance is almost identical for all i5-8250U-equipped notebooks. Multithreaded performance is where the wheat is separated from the chaff, though, and the Asus VivoBook Flip 15 turned out to be much faster than all of its competitors.

Compared with its predecessor, the Inspiron 15 5578, the new CPU was between 11% (single-core) and 60% (multi-core) faster.

Additional benchmarks for Intel’s Core i5-8250U can be found here.

Like all notebooks, the 5579 has to run our Cinebench R15 multi-core loop sustained load test. While its initial score of 560 was decent the second iteration dropped to just 480 points, and eventually the score settled at around 500 points. Accordingly, CPU performance decreased by 12% under sustained load.

0102030405060708090100110120130140150160170180190200210220230240250260270280290300310320330340350360370380390400410420430440450460470480490500510520530540550560570Tooltip
Cinebench R15 CPU Multi 64 Bit
Cinebench R15
CPU Single 64Bit
Average of class Convertible
  (68.6 - 287, n=64, last 2 years)
229 Points +64%
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
Intel Core i5-8250U
144 Points +3%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
Intel Core i5-8250U
144 Points +3%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
AMD Ryzen 5 2500U
142 Points +1%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U
  (81 - 147, n=97)
141.1 Points +1%
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
Intel Core i5-8250U
140 Points 0%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel Core i5-8250U
140 Points
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
Intel Core i5-7200U
126 Points -10%
CPU Multi 64Bit
Average of class Convertible
  (110.1 - 2889, n=66, last 2 years)
1554 Points +177%
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
Intel Core i5-8250U
724 Points +29%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
AMD Ryzen 5 2500U
618 Points +10%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U
  (320 - 730, n=101)
570 Points +1%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel Core i5-8250U
562 Points
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
Intel Core i5-8250U
523 Points -7%
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
Intel Core i5-8250U
520 Points -7%
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
Intel Core i5-7200U
326 Points -42%
Cinebench R11.5
CPU Single 64Bit
Average of class Convertible
  (1.86 - 3.26, n=7, last 2 years)
2.65 Points +63%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel Core i5-8250U
1.63 Points
Average Intel Core i5-8250U
  (0.91 - 1.79, n=35)
1.615 Points -1%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
AMD Ryzen 5 2500U
1.61 Points -1%
CPU Multi 64Bit
Average of class Convertible
  (4.31 - 25, n=7, last 2 years)
17.3 Points +187%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
AMD Ryzen 5 2500U
6.91 Points +15%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel Core i5-8250U
6.03 Points
Average Intel Core i5-8250U
  (3.15 - 7.76, n=35)
6.02 Points 0%
Cinebench R10
Rendering Single CPUs 64Bit
Average of class Convertible
  (8098 - 12816, n=3, last 2 years)
10856 Points +58%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U
  (5163 - 8153, n=13)
6972 Points +2%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel Core i5-8250U
6859 Points
Rendering Multiple CPUs 64Bit
Average of class Convertible
  (40308 - 58815, n=3, last 2 years)
52060 Points +116%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel Core i5-8250U
24093 Points
Average Intel Core i5-8250U
  (11245 - 28932, n=13)
23585 Points -2%
JetStream 1.1 - Total Score
Average of class Convertible
  (124.8 - 443, n=5, last 2 years)
339 Points +60%
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
Intel Core i5-8250U
240.8 Points +14%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
Intel Core i5-8250U
220.6 Points +4%
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
Intel Core i5-7200U
219.9 Points +4%
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
Intel Core i5-8250U
215.7 Points +2%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U
  (151.5 - 256, n=78)
215 Points +2%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel Core i5-8250U
211.3 Points
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
AMD Ryzen 5 2500U
193 Points -9%
Octane V2 - Total Score
Average of class Convertible
  (23395 - 92146, n=16, last 2 years)
75639 Points +176%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U
  (22772 - 35817, n=54)
30123 Points +10%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
Intel Core i5-8250U
29884 Points +9%
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
Intel Core i5-8250U
29764 Points +8%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel Core i5-8250U
27438 Points
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
AMD Ryzen 5 2500U
26832 Points -2%
Mozilla Kraken 1.1 - Total
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
AMD Ryzen 5 2500U
1347 ms * -3%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel Core i5-8250U
1314 ms *
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
Intel Core i5-8250U
1259 ms * +4%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
Intel Core i5-8250U
1244 ms * +5%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U
  (986 - 1532, n=59)
1221 ms * +7%
Average of class Convertible
  (472 - 3989, n=65, last 2 years)
721 ms * +45%
X264 HD Benchmark 4.0
Pass 2
Average of class Convertible
  (21.4 - 95.2, n=4, last 2 years)
64.4 fps +102%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
AMD Ryzen 5 2500U
36.4 fps +14%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U
  (29.5 - 37.7, n=4)
32.8 fps +3%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel Core i5-8250U
31.91 (31.88min - 35.34max) fps
Pass 1
Average of class Convertible
  (115.6 - 236, n=4, last 2 years)
195 fps +57%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U
  (124.6 - 157.6, n=4)
139.3 fps +12%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel Core i5-8250U
124.6 (118.06min - 125.24max) fps
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
AMD Ryzen 5 2500U
124 fps 0%
HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2 - 4k Preset
Average of class Convertible
  (0.61 - 20.1, n=64, last 2 years)
10.3 fps +156%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U
  (3.02 - 4.78, n=8)
4.17 fps +4%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel Core i5-8250U
4.02 fps

* ... smaller is better

Cinebench R10
Cinebench R10
Cinebench R11.5
Cinebench R11.5
Cinebench R15
Cinebench R15
Jetstream 1.1
Jetstream 1.1
Octane V2
Octane V2
Mozilla Kraken 1.1
Mozilla Kraken 1.1
Cinebench R10 Shading 32Bit
7195
Cinebench R10 Rendering Single CPUs 64Bit
6859 Points
Cinebench R10 Rendering Multiple CPUs 64Bit
24093 Points
Cinebench R10 Shading 64Bit
7847 Points
Cinebench R10 Rendering Single 32Bit
5349
Cinebench R10 Rendering Multiple CPUs 32Bit
19494
Cinebench R11.5 CPU Multi 32Bit
5.37 Points
Cinebench R11.5 OpenGL 32Bit
40.05 fps
Cinebench R11.5 CPU Single 64Bit
1.63 Points
Cinebench R11.5 CPU Multi 64Bit
6.03 Points
Cinebench R11.5 OpenGL 64Bit
37.28 fps
Cinebench R11.5 CPU Single 32Bit
1.41 Points
Cinebench R15 CPU Single 64Bit
140 Points
Cinebench R15 Ref. Match 64Bit
97.8 %
Cinebench R15 OpenGL 64Bit
34.97 fps
Cinebench R15 CPU Multi 64Bit
562 Points
Help

System Performance

The synthetic PCMark benchmarks were definitely not the 5579’s strong suit, although we must add that the difference between the 5579 and the fastest contender was just a few percent. The review unit performed very well during our tests. The system felt fast and snappy thanks to its SSD, and demanding multithread tasks were completed without breaking a sweat thanks to the fast quad-core CPU. The system never stalled or stuttered due to lack of memory.

PCMark 8 Home
PCMark 8 Home
PCMark 8 Creative
PCMark 8 Creative
PCMark 8 Work
PCMark 8 Work
PCMark 8 Storage
PCMark 8 Storage
PCMark 10
PCMark 10
PCMark 7
PCMark 7
PCMark 8
Home Score Accelerated v2
Average of class Convertible
  (4404 - 5830, n=3, last 2 years)
4890 Points +45%
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
3669 Points +9%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
3650 Points +8%
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SanDisk SD8SN8U128G1002
3587 Points +6%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U, Intel UHD Graphics 620
  (2986 - 4458, n=69)
3584 Points +6%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
Vega 8, R5 2500U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
3462 Points +3%
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
HD Graphics 620, i5-7200U, SanDisk X400 256GB, SATA (SD8SB8U-256G)
3446 Points +2%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SK hynix SC311 SATA
3370 Points
Work Score Accelerated v2
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
4776 Points +5%
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SanDisk SD8SN8U128G1002
4689 Points +3%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U, Intel UHD Graphics 620
  (2699 - 5106, n=58)
4646 Points +2%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
4596 Points +1%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SK hynix SC311 SATA
4556 Points
Average of class Convertible
  (2921 - 6089, n=3, last 2 years)
4045 Points -11%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
Vega 8, R5 2500U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
3800 Points -17%
PCMark 10
Score
Average of class Convertible
  (1486 - 7963, n=59, last 2 years)
5616 Points +154%
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
3638 Points +65%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
3613 Points +64%
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SanDisk SD8SN8U128G1002
3510 Points +59%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U, Intel UHD Graphics 620
  (3358 - 4081, n=67)
3296 Points +49%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
Vega 8, R5 2500U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
2944 Points +33%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SK hynix SC311 SATA
2208 Points
Productivity
Average of class Convertible
  (2764 - 10800, n=59, last 2 years)
7383 Points +53%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
6270 Points +30%
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
6261 Points +30%
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SanDisk SD8SN8U128G1002
5867 Points +22%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U, Intel UHD Graphics 620
  (3851 - 6653, n=67)
5725 Points +19%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SK hynix SC311 SATA
4811 Points
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
Vega 8, R5 2500U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
3901 Points -19%
Essentials
Average of class Convertible
  (3975 - 12059, n=59, last 2 years)
10504 Points +65%
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
7725 Points +22%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
7548 Points +19%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U, Intel UHD Graphics 620
  (5855 - 9289, n=67)
7398 Points +17%
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SanDisk SD8SN8U128G1002
7142 Points +12%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SK hynix SC311 SATA
6349 Points
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
Vega 8, R5 2500U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
6236 Points -2%
PCMark 7
Score
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
Vega 8, R5 2500U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
6091 Points +15%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U, Intel UHD Graphics 620
  (5313 - 5892, n=5)
5591 Points +5%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SK hynix SC311 SATA
5313 Points
Productivity
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
Vega 8, R5 2500U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
5587 Points +29%
Average Intel Core i5-8250U, Intel UHD Graphics 620
  (4330 - 5145, n=5)
4681 Points +8%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SK hynix SC311 SATA
4330 Points
Entertainment
Average Intel Core i5-8250U, Intel UHD Graphics 620
  (3875 - 4553, n=5)
4176 Points +8%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
Vega 8, R5 2500U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
3939 Points +2%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SK hynix SC311 SATA
3875 Points
PCMark 7 Score
5313 points
PCMark 8 Home Score Accelerated v2
3370 points
PCMark 8 Creative Score Accelerated v2
4337 points
PCMark 8 Work Score Accelerated v2
4556 points
PCMark 10 Score
2208 points
Help

Storage Devices

Dell Inspiron 15 5579 SSD
Dell Inspiron 15 5579 SSD
SSD
SSD

The 256 GB 2.5-inch SSD is made by SK Hynix. Out of the box, around 190 GB is available with the rest taken up by the Windows installation and the preloaded software. 4K read performance was adequate even though higher 4K performance would have resulted in faster application launches.

The SSD performed exactly as expected of a SATA SSD. Unfortunately, the 5579 does not support NVMe SSDs, and it also does not feature a second storage bay or slot.

AS SSD
AS SSD
CrystalDiskMark 3
CrystalDiskMark 3
CrystalDiskMark 5
CrystalDiskMark 5
CrystalDiskMark 6
CrystalDiskMark 6
CrystalDiskInfo
CrystalDiskInfo
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
SK hynix SC311 SATA
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
SanDisk X400 256GB, SATA (SD8SB8U-256G)
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
SanDisk SD8SN8U128G1002
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
CrystalDiskMark 3.0
7%
114%
-5%
14%
164%
Read Seq
503
503
0%
1487
196%
458.5
-9%
484.3
-4%
2073
312%
Write Seq
447.2
465.3
4%
1241
178%
337.2
-25%
439.8
-2%
943
111%
Read 512
360.1
293
-19%
923
156%
319.1
-11%
316.4
-12%
1221
239%
Write 512
360.1
322.7
-10%
797
121%
186
-48%
345.4
-4%
819
127%
Read 4k
21.78
28.9
33%
49.38
127%
28.39
30%
27.17
25%
53.5
146%
Write 4k
45.64
55
21%
97.3
113%
56.6
24%
86.7
90%
127.4
179%
Read 4k QD32
223.3
314.5
41%
295
32%
321.1
44%
246.7
10%
396.6
78%
Write 4k QD32
248.4
209.2
-16%
212.5
-14%
128.5
-48%
260.6
5%
538
117%
SK hynix SC311 SATA
Sequential Read: 503 MB/s
Sequential Write: 447.2 MB/s
512K Read: 360.1 MB/s
512K Write: 360.1 MB/s
4K Read: 21.78 MB/s
4K Write: 45.64 MB/s
4K QD32 Read: 223.3 MB/s
4K QD32 Write: 248.4 MB/s

GPU Performance

Thanks to its integrated hardware decoder for high-resolution videos, Intel’s UHD Graphics 620 allows for smooth video playback without causing any noticeable strain on the CPU. In 3DMark, the Inspiron 15 5579 scored somewhere in the thick of it. The highest scores were achieved by HP’s Envy x360 thanks to its integrated AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 GPU. In our synthetic benchmarks, it performed nearly twice as fast as Intel’s integrated UHD Graphics. A second memory module would have improved our review unit’s GPU performance somewhat, although we are talking single-digit percentages here. The HP Envy x360 is thus out of reach.

Additional benchmarks for Intel’s UHD Graphics 620 can be found here.

3DMark
1280x720 Cloud Gate Standard Graphics
Average of class Convertible
  (2965 - 154219, n=50, last 2 years)
31444 Points +288%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 (Ryzen 2000/3000), AMD Ryzen 5 2500U
15186 Points +87%
Average Intel UHD Graphics 620
  (6205 - 16400, n=225)
9262 Points +14%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
Intel UHD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-8250U
9128 Points +13%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel UHD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-8250U
8112 Points
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
Intel UHD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-8250U
7995 Points -1%
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
Intel UHD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-8250U
7798 Points -4%
1920x1080 Fire Strike Graphics
Average of class Convertible
  (365 - 29684, n=64, last 2 years)
5690 Points +471%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 (Ryzen 2000/3000), AMD Ryzen 5 2500U
2310 Points +132%
Average Intel UHD Graphics 620
  (557 - 2608, n=213)
1161 Points +16%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
Intel UHD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-8250U
1117 Points +12%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel UHD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-8250U
997 Points
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
Intel UHD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-8250U
967 Points -3%
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
Intel UHD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-8250U
960 Points -4%
3DMark 11 - 1280x720 Performance GPU
Average of class Convertible
  (471 - 40768, n=64, last 2 years)
7541 Points +393%
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 (Ryzen 2000/3000), AMD Ryzen 5 2500U
3549 Points +132%
Average Intel UHD Graphics 620
  (1144 - 3432, n=244)
1749 Points +14%
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
Intel UHD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-8250U
1634 Points +7%
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
Intel UHD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-8250U
1608 Points +5%
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
Intel UHD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-8250U
1589 Points +4%
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Intel UHD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-8250U
1529 Points
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
Intel HD Graphics 620, Intel Core i5-7200U
1422 Points -7%
3DMark Ice Storm
3DMark Ice Storm
3DMark Ice Storm Unlimited
3DMark Ice Storm Unlimited
3DMark Ice Storm Extreme
3DMark Ice Storm Extreme
3DMark Cloud Gate
3DMark Cloud Gate
3DMark Sky Diver
3DMark Sky Diver
3DMark Fire Strike
3DMark Fire Strike
3DMark Fire Strike Extreme
3DMark Fire Strike Extreme
3DMark Fire Strike Ultra
3DMark Fire Strike Ultra
3DMark Time Spy
3DMark Time Spy
3DMark 11
3DMark 11
3DMark 11 Performance
1672 points
3DMark Ice Storm Standard Score
51513 points
3DMark Cloud Gate Standard Score
7040 points
3DMark Fire Strike Score
920 points
3DMark Fire Strike Extreme Score
422 points
3DMark Time Spy Score
364 points
Help

Gaming Performance

 Intel's UHD Graphics 620 is known for its moderate 3D performance. As such, it is not made for demanding games and is only capable of running a few games smoothly on minimal settings.

low med. high ultra
BioShock Infinite (2013) 48.1 27.1 22.4 7.4
Battlefield 4 (2013) 42.1 29.6 19.9 5.7
The Witcher 3 (2015) 15.2 9.9 5.5
Rise of the Tomb Raider (2016) 18.6 11.4 6.5
Rocket League (2017) 20.7 13.1
FIFA 18 (2017) 58.3 31.8 27.4 24.7

Emissions

Noise Emissions

Noise emissions
Noise emissions

After a cold start and when either idle or under moderate load, the 5579 remained completely silent. The fan spun up under load; however, at just 31.5 dB(A) it remained fairly unobtrusive. Thus, the Inspiron 15 5579 was the quietest notebook in our test group, with the Acer Spin 3 representing the antipole with its maximum sound pressure level of 44 dB(A).

Noise Level

Idle
30.4 / 30.4 / 31.2 dB(A)
Load
31.5 / 31.5 dB(A)
  red to green bar
 
 
30 dB
silent
40 dB(A)
audible
50 dB(A)
loud
 
min: dark, med: mid, max: light   Audix TM1, Arta (15 cm distance)   environment noise: 30.4 dB(A)
dB(A) 0102030405060708090Deep BassMiddle BassHigh BassLower RangeMidsHigher MidsLower HighsMid HighsUpper HighsSuper Highs2035.735.132.933.735.72534.137.336.734.134.13137.943.737.535.737.94036.336.135.330.536.35032.132.931.937.632.16330.230.330.928.730.28027.827.328.226.227.810026.927.126.42626.912528.12628.926.728.116025.124.925.124.825.12002423.323.323.62425022.822.423.123.222.831522.722.521.922.622.74002221.821.422.72250020.820.520.72020.863019.920.119.619.319.980019.219.218.918.719.2100020.320.318.918.120.3125019.719.418.41819.7160019.319.318.117.919.3200018.818.7181818.8250018.518.618.317.918.5315018.718.518.318.218.7400018.518.418.518.518.5500018.718.618.518.618.763001918.918.918.719800019.218.91918.919.21000019.319.119.11919.31250019.519.219.219.119.51600019.819.619.519.419.8SPL31.631.531.13131.6N1.51.41.41.41.5median 19.7median 19.4median 19.1median 19median 19.7Delta1.91.41.621.9hearing rangehide median Fan NoiseDell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SK hynix SC311 SATA
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
HD Graphics 620, i5-7200U, SanDisk X400 256GB, SATA (SD8SB8U-256G)
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
Vega 8, R5 2500U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SanDisk SD8SN8U128G1002
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
Noise
-2%
-7%
-3%
-9%
-1%
off / environment *
30.4
30.6
-1%
30.13
1%
30.2
1%
30
1%
30.4
-0%
Idle Minimum *
30.4
30.4
-0%
30.13
1%
30.9
-2%
30
1%
30.4
-0%
Idle Average *
30.4
30.4
-0%
30.13
1%
30.9
-2%
30
1%
30.4
-0%
Idle Maximum *
31.2
30.4
3%
30.13
3%
30.9
1%
30
4%
30.8
1%
Load Average *
31.5
32.3
-3%
38.8
-23%
34.2
-9%
38.5
-22%
32.1
-2%
Load Maximum *
31.5
35.2
-12%
38.8
-23%
34.2
-9%
44
-40%
32.9
-4%

* ... smaller is better

Temperature

3DMark 11 immediately following the stress test
3DMark 11 immediately following the stress test

We found a total of three surface hotspots of slightly over 41 °C. By and large, the 5579 remained cooler than its predecessor (43.3 °C). CPU temperature quickly shot up to critical levels of 99 °C max while running our Prime 95 stress test. In other words: Thermal throttling was unavoidable. When stressing both the CPU and GPU the former remained cooler due to the fact that it had to share its 15 W TDP with the GPU. Consequently, it only reached 70 °C at clock speeds of just 1.2 GHz. There was no long-term effect on 3D performance whatsoever - running 3DMark immediately after our stress test yielded the exact same result as running 3DMark immediately following a cold boot.

Stress test: Prime95 solo
Stress test: Prime95 solo
Stress test: FurMark solo
Stress test: FurMark solo
Stress test: FurMark+Prime95
Stress test: FurMark+Prime95
Max. Load
 37.1 °C
99 F
41.6 °C
107 F
29.7 °C
85 F
 
 35.5 °C
96 F
37.5 °C
100 F
27.6 °C
82 F
 
 24.2 °C
76 F
24.9 °C
77 F
25 °C
77 F
 
Maximum: 41.6 °C = 107 F
Average: 31.5 °C = 89 F
34.6 °C
94 F
39.1 °C
102 F
41 °C
106 F
26.6 °C
80 F
31 °C
88 F
41.9 °C
107 F
25 °C
77 F
24.4 °C
76 F
24.9 °C
77 F
Maximum: 41.9 °C = 107 F
Average: 32.1 °C = 90 F
Power Supply (max.)  36 °C = 97 F | Room Temperature 24.2 °C = 76 F | FIRT 550-Pocket
(+) The average temperature for the upper side under maximal load is 31.5 °C / 89 F, compared to the average of 30.2 °C / 86 F for the devices in the class Convertible.
(±) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 41.6 °C / 107 F, compared to the average of 35.3 °C / 96 F, ranging from 19.6 to 55.7 °C for the class Convertible.
(±) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 41.9 °C / 107 F, compared to the average of 36.7 °C / 98 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 24.5 °C / 76 F, compared to the device average of 30.2 °C / 86 F.
(+) The palmrests and touchpad are cooler than skin temperature with a maximum of 25 °C / 77 F and are therefore cool to the touch.
(+) The average temperature of the palmrest area of similar devices was 28.1 °C / 82.6 F (+3.1 °C / 5.6 F).
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SK hynix SC311 SATA
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
HD Graphics 620, i5-7200U, SanDisk X400 256GB, SATA (SD8SB8U-256G)
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
Vega 8, R5 2500U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, SanDisk SD8SN8U128G1002
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
UHD Graphics 620, i5-8250U, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP
Heat
0%
-11%
7%
-3%
-5%
Maximum Upper Side *
41.6
37.3
10%
38
9%
36
13%
44.1
-6%
45
-8%
Maximum Bottom *
41.9
43.3
-3%
37.1
11%
37
12%
41.6
1%
44.5
-6%
Idle Upper Side *
26.1
26.8
-3%
38.6
-48%
25.6
2%
25.6
2%
Idle Bottom *
25.7
26.6
-4%
29.2
-14%
25.7
-0%
27.7
-8%

* ... smaller is better

Heat-map top (idle)
Heat-map top (idle)
Heat-map bottom (idle)
Heat-map bottom (idle)
Heat-map top (load)
Heat-map top (load)
Heat-map bottom (idle)
Heat-map bottom (idle)

Speaker

The Inspiron 15 5579 is equipped with two speakers that can be adjusted with Wave’s MaxxAudio Pro software. However, even software adjustments were unable to whitewash the fact that the speakers were missing spatial volume resulting in overemphasized mids and highs. There was no bass worth mentioning, and the speakers were adequate for the occasional YouTube video or TV series episode.

External speakers can be connected via a combined 3.5-mm audio jack.

dB(A) 0102030405060708090Deep BassMiddle BassHigh BassLower RangeMidsHigher MidsLower HighsMid HighsUpper HighsSuper Highs2033.732.72534.133.63135.739.24030.5325037.631.16328.732.28026.227.41002627.112526.728.116024.835.620023.64225023.246.831522.65640022.758.8500205363019.359.280018.771.6100018.171.212501868.6160017.972.520001869.8250017.967.3315018.268.5400018.567.7500018.669.2630018.761.5800018.960100001961.41250019.158.41600019.458.8SPL3180.4N1.443.2median 19median 60Delta210.631.930.931.930.532.130.532.633.732.630.629.330.632.130.632.127.327.227.326.127.226.128.625.128.637.224.637.241.92341.94222.74254.622.454.661.921.661.966.720.366.766.218.866.26418.56466.117.866.165.717.765.760.917.760.963.617.763.663.417.363.461.917.761.96517.86564.418.164.452.918.252.961.418.561.460.718.560.761.218.661.264.618.564.659.618.759.675.430.475.438.61.438.6median 61.9median 18.5median 61.96.41.36.4hearing rangehide median Pink NoiseDell Inspiron 15 5579-9672Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
Frequency diagram (checkboxes can be checked and unchecked to compare devices)
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672 audio analysis

(±) | speaker loudness is average but good (72.5 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 20.7% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (11.9% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(±) | higher mids - on average 7.8% higher than median
(±) | linearity of mids is average (11.2% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(±) | higher highs - on average 5.1% higher than median
(+) | highs are linear (5.7% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (25.6% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 75% of all tested devices in this class were better, 5% similar, 19% worse
» The best had a delta of 6%, average was 21%, worst was 57%
Compared to all devices tested
» 75% of all tested devices were better, 5% similar, 20% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%

Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE audio analysis

(-) | not very loud speakers (66.7 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 17.5% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (13.8% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 2.9% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (5.1% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 2.4% away from median
(±) | linearity of highs is average (8.7% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (17.3% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 25% of all tested devices in this class were better, 9% similar, 66% worse
» The best had a delta of 6%, average was 21%, worst was 57%
Compared to all devices tested
» 27% of all tested devices were better, 8% similar, 65% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%

Power Management

Power Consumption

45 W power supply
45 W power supply
45 W power supply
45 W power supply

Dell has managed to improve overall power consumption, which means the 5579 is around 5% more efficient than its 5578 predecessor. Idle power consumption was measured between 3.9 and 9.3 W, and maximum power consumption was 33.2 W. Eventually, it settled at 30.2 W.

Peak load was 48 W, which was due to a higher TDP of up to 44 W for a short period of time. Accordingly, we don’t expect any problems and the 45 W charger is amply dimensioned.

Power Consumption
Off / Standbydarklight 0.24 / 0.33 Watt
Idledarkmidlight 3.9 / 6.6 / 9.3 Watt
Load midlight 30.2 / 33.2 Watt
 color bar
Key: min: dark, med: mid, max: light        Metrahit Energy
Currently we use the Metrahit Energy, a professional single phase power quality and energy measurement digital multimeter, for our measurements. Find out more about it here. All of our test methods can be found here.
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
i5-8250U, UHD Graphics 620, SK hynix SC311 SATA, IPS, 1920x1080, 15.60
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
i5-7200U, HD Graphics 620, SanDisk X400 256GB, SATA (SD8SB8U-256G), IPS, 1920x1080, 15.60
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
R5 2500U, Vega 8, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP, IPS, 1920x1080, 15.60
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
i5-8250U, UHD Graphics 620, SanDisk SD8SN8U128G1002, IPS, 1920x1080, 15.60
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
i5-8250U, UHD Graphics 620, Micron 1100 MTFDDAV256TBN, IPS, 1920x1080, 14.00
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
i5-8250U, UHD Graphics 620, Samsung PM961 MZVLW256HEHP, IPS LED, 1920x1080, 13.30
Average Intel UHD Graphics 620
 
Average of class Convertible
 
Power Consumption
-5%
-20%
-7%
21%
6%
-11%
-45%
Idle Minimum *
3.9
4.3
-10%
4.8
-23%
3.9
-0%
2.9
26%
3.44
12%
3.81 ?(1 - 12.4, n=259)
2%
5.48 ?(1.6 - 16.6, n=60, last 2 years)
-41%
Idle Average *
6.6
7.6
-15%
7
-6%
7.2
-9%
5.2
21%
6.9
-5%
6.94 ?(2.8 - 15.7, n=261)
-5%
8.27 ?(3.8 - 20.7, n=60, last 2 years)
-25%
Idle Maximum *
9.3
9.8
-5%
9.5
-2%
9.5
-2%
5.4
42%
9.2
1%
8.75 ?(3.8 - 30, n=259)
6%
10.5 ?(4.7 - 29.9, n=60, last 2 years)
-13%
Load Average *
30.2
32.6
-8%
40.8
-35%
36.8
-22%
29.4
3%
27.6
9%
35 ?(8.1 - 51.6, n=259)
-16%
46 ?(7.6 - 101.3, n=60, last 2 years)
-52%
Load Maximum *
33.2
28.4
14%
44.3
-33%
33.1
-0%
29.6
11%
29
13%
47.5 ?(22 - 96.3, n=261)
-43%
65 ?(10.5 - 155.7, n=60, last 2 years)
-96%

* ... smaller is better

Battery Life

3DMark 11 on battery
3DMark 11 on battery
42 Wh battery
42 Wh battery

While measuring the device’s power consumption we got a first glimpse at the 5579’s potential battery life, and the notebook did not disappoint. It beat its 5578 predecessor hands down with its 42 Wh battery but had to surrender to the larger batteries in Lenovo’s and Acer’s contenders. Nevertheless, the 5579 lasted for an acceptable 7:15 hours in our real-life Wi-Fi test. This particular test is performed under normalized conditions, which means we set the display brightness to 150 nits on all candidates. In the case of the 5579, this meant reducing the brightness by four clicks.

Given that there is plenty of free space on the inside, Dell could have opted for a larger battery. Our guess is that the engineers went with the smaller battery due to its lower weight.

3D performance was not limited on battery at all, and 3DMark 11 performed just as well as on mains.

Battery Runtime
Idle (without WLAN, min brightness)
11h 11min
WiFi Websurfing (Edge 42.17134.1.0)
7h 15min
Big Buck Bunny H.264 1080p
6h 41min
Load (maximum brightness)
1h 50min
Maximum battery life
Maximum battery life
Minimum battery life
Minimum battery life
Wi-Fi battery life
Wi-Fi battery life
H.264 battery life
H.264 battery life
Charging time
Charging time
Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672
i5-8250U, UHD Graphics 620, 42 Wh
Dell Inspiron 15 5578-1777 2-in-1
i5-7200U, HD Graphics 620, 42 Wh
HP Envy x360 15-bq102ng
R5 2500U, Vega 8, 55.8 Wh
Asus VivoBook Flip 15 TP510UA-E8073T
i5-8250U, UHD Graphics 620, 42 Wh
Acer Spin 3 SP314-51-548L
i5-8250U, UHD Graphics 620, 52.5 Wh
Lenovo ThinkPad L380 Yoga-20M7001BGE
i5-8250U, UHD Graphics 620, 45 Wh
Battery Runtime
-9%
-2%
-18%
14%
10%
Reader / Idle
671
833
24%
H.264
401
508
27%
WiFi v1.3
435
394
-9%
426
-2%
358
-18%
496
14%
420
-3%
Load
110
99
-10%

Verdict

Pros

+ IPS display
+ FHD display
+ quad-core CPU
+ pleasantly quiet
+ fast Wi-Fi
+ fast SSD
+ decent battery life
+ low power consumption
+ comfortable backlit keyboard

Cons

- dark display
- low color-space coverage
- thermal throttling (CPU)
- no support for Active Pen
- no USB-C
Dell Inspiron 15 5579. Review unit courtesy of Dell Germany.
Dell Inspiron 15 5579. Review unit courtesy of Dell Germany.

The Dell Inspiron 15 5579 is a 15.6-inch convertible with just minor upgrades from the previous model. It even looks identical to its predecessor’s predecessor, the Dell Inspiron 15 5568. However, it is more powerful than ever thanks to Intel’s Core i5-8250U, and Wi-Fi performance has been improved dramatically as well and was much faster than on last year’s Dell Inspiron 15 5578. Equipped with 8 GB of DDR4 RAM and a 256 GB large SSD, the 5579 currently sells for $749.

The price is right for the 15.6-inch convertible, and the decent input devices will please prolific writers. However, the notebook’s downsides are its dark display and the lack of Active Pen support.

Unfortunately, many modern features like USB-C or DisplayPort are still suspiciously missing. An SD card reader is present, albeit connected via USB 2.0. We like the quiet mode of operation and the notebook’s overall acceptable battery life. The integrated infrared camera is a nice bonus and speeds up logging into Windows significantly.

The display, on the other hand, is a mixed bag. On the one hand it offers a very high contrast ratio and does not resort to PWM for brightness control. On the other hand, its color-space coverage and brightness are much too low.

Dell Inspiron 15 5579-9672 - 06/09/2018 v6(old)
Sebastian Bade

Chassis
85 / 98 → 87%
Keyboard
85%
Pointing Device
84%
Connectivity
52 / 80 → 65%
Weight
62 / 35-78 → 64%
Battery
89%
Display
81%
Games Performance
56 / 68 → 82%
Application Performance
83 / 87 → 96%
Temperature
87%
Noise
97%
Audio
62 / 91 → 68%
Camera
47 / 85 → 56%
Average
75%
81%
Convertible - Weighted Average

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > Reviews > Dell Inspiron 15 5579 (i5-8250U, SSD, IPS, Touch) Convertible Review
Sebastian Bade, 2018-06-13 (Update: 2019-03-11)