Dell XPS 17 9720 graphics is actually slower than on the XPS 17 9710, but CPU performance has improved

When compared to the XPS 17 9710 with 11th gen Intel CPUs, the XPS 17 9720 comes with 12th gen CPUs but the same GeForce RTX 3060 graphics option. One might expect the XPS 17 9720 to offer faster CPU performance and the same graphics performance than the last generation model based on these specs, but this isn't entirely true as our benchmarks below will show.

The RTX 3060 GPU in the XPS 17 9720 targets a TGP of 65 W compared to 70 W on the XPS 17 9710. GPU clock rates when gaming would be as low as 1312 MHz on the 9720 compared to 1530 MHz on the 9710 as demonstrated in our review. The difference is great enough that we're able to record a GPU performance deficit of up to 10 percent when jumping from the 9710 to the 9720 according to both 3DMark benchmarks and GPU-bound titles.

The slight cut to graphics performance has allowed for higher PL1 limits on the XPS 17 9720 CPU when compared to the 9710 CPU. When running Prime95, the Core i7-12700H in our 9720 test unit can reach up to 115 W compared to only 87 W with the Core i7-11800H in the XPS 17 9710. Raw multi-thread performance can be significantly faster on the 9720 as a result at up to 50 percent in some cases.

If you value GPU performance more than CPU performance, then the XPS 17 9710 may still be the superior choice over the newer XPS 17 9720. If you wish to exploit the CPU to its fullest, however, then the XPS 17 9720 and its 12th gen options would be the more lucrative model.