Dell Precision 5520
Specifications
Price comparison
Average of 2 scores (from 3 reviews)
Reviews for the Dell Precision 5520
Source: PC World
Archive.org versionThe Dell Precision 5520 is a capable work machine and can offer a stylish alternative to OS X or Windows 10 workstations. When a manufacturer provides drivers (either backported from a newer kernel or supplied for the PC in question), the seamless experience makes you want to lean back and enjoy the OS. Frankly, I wish more PC makers would do what Dell did and offer their hardware to consumers, prepared and equipped for a Linux experience.
Single Review, online available, Very Long, Date: 05/01/2017
Source: Laptop Mag
Archive.org versionThe ThinkPad P50 has a better keyboard, but uses a last-gen processor and has 3 hours less battery life. If you want the best combination of mobile workstation power, portability and style, the Precision 5520 is a no-brainer.
Single Review, online available, Very Long, Date: 03/04/2017
Rating: Total score: 80%
Foreign Reviews
Source: Alt om Data
DA→EN Archive.org versionSingle Review, online available, Very Short, Date: 05/18/2017
Rating: Total score: 80% price: 60% performance: 80%
Comment
Model:
Describing the latest Dell Precision 5520 requires quite a number of superlatives. The US manufacturer claims that it is “the world’s thinnest, lightest, smallest 15" mobile workstation”. In fact, it could easily pass of as a premium ultrabook. On first sight, it is clear that the Precision 5520 is a well-built machine. Its 14-inch chassis is compact and the carbon palm rest exudes strength and durability. Dimensions of this laptop measures at 0.44” x 14.05” x 9.26” and it weighs merely 1.78kg. This slim and light profile makes this compact laptop a mobile power horse. Its 15.6 inch display will certainly blow users away as the InfinityEdge display, from the XPS series and Dell Premium display units has been brought to this ultraportable workstation. The display is constructed with very small bezels for virtually borderless viewing. Furthermore the incredible 4K Ultra HD resolution with over 8 million pixels is poised to deliver unbelievable detail on visuals and images. Dell PremierColor assures users of up to 100% AdobeRGB minimum gamut display for the quality and fine level of detail required. In terms of performance, this laptop is powered by the Intel Core i5-7440HQ and running on 8GB, DDR4 RAM. It is unquestionable that on these specs that this machine is capable of delivering maximum performance, even from demanding professional software. Internal storage consists of a 500GB hard drive, enough for media storage but probably not enough for something that is called as a workstation.
Connectivity is also adequately provided for with USB 3.0 ports, HDMI port and a Thunderbolt 3 port. The single cable docking modules makes multitasking a breeze and Thunderbolt 3 connectivity manages large file transfers at lightning speed. This laptop comes bundled with a 3-cell (56Wh) Lithium Ion battery with ExpressCharge. This surely will appeal those who require the added battery juice for longer productivity and fast charging capability. Another feature of this Precision workstation is the Dell Precision Optimizer which automatically tunes the workstation to run the most popular Independent Software Vendor (ISV) applications at a rapid pace. If there is any quirk mentioning about this laptop, it will be the position of its camera. It is high likely that the awkward position of its optics is compromised to maintain its virtual borderless viewing mode. Apart from this minor quibble, this machine certainly scores high on all fronts. Early reviews also affirm of its high ranks among its rivals. It is certainly a mobile work horse for performing professional tasks but don't expect it to give the real workstation experience. It is quite weird that Dell has made a workstation with specs that can be lower than its entry level Inspiron series.
Hands-on article by Jagadisa Rajarathnam
NVIDIA Quadro M1200: Mainstream workstation graphics card based on the GM107 Maxwell architecture with 640 shaders and a 128-bit wide memory bus. The GPU is similar to the consumer GTX 960M.
Modern games should be playable with these graphics cards at low settings and resolutions. Casual gamers may be happy with these cards.
» Further information can be found in our Comparison of Mobile Graphics Cards and the corresponding Benchmark List.
i5-7440HQ: Quad-core notebook processor based on the Kaby Lake architecture running at 2.8 - 3.8 GHz without Hyper Threading (which is supported by the faster i7 CPUs). The chip also integrates the HD Graphics 630 GPU clocked at 350 - 1000 MHz and is manufactured in a 14 nm process (improved compared to Skylake).» Further information can be found in our Comparison of Mobile Processsors.
15.60":
15-inch display variants are the standard and are used for more than half of all laptops.
The reason for the popularity of mid-sized displays is that this size is reasonably easy on the eyes, often allows high resolutions and thus offers rich details on the screen, yet does not consume too much power and the devices can still be reasonably compact - simply the standard compromise.
» To find out how fine a display is, see our DPI List.Dell: Dell is a U.S. manufacturer (based in Texas) of computer hardware founded in 1984 and is one of the largest international manufacturers in terms of both market share and notebook models. Its product line includes desktops, notebooks, storage systems, monitors, servers, printers, consumer electronics and peripherals. Dell offers laptops that are suitable for various applications, such as business laptops, gaming laptops, ultra portables and workstations. Dell's business laptops from the Latitude and Precision series are an option for professional users and businesses.
In 2023, Dell had an approximate 17% market share of global PC sales, ranking #3 after Lenovo and HP.
For gaming enthusiasts, Dell's Alienware brand is for gaming notebooks.
80%: This rating is not earth-shattering. This rating must actually be seen as average, since there are about as many devices with worse ratings as better ones. A purchase recommendation can only be seen with a lot of goodwill, unless it is about websites that generally rate strictly.
» Further information can be found in our Notebook Purchase Guide.
