Older Dell Latitude 7300 Core i7 runs just as fast as the newer Latitude 7310 Core i7
Older Dell Latitude 7300 runs just as fast as the latest Latitude 7310 (Image source: Dell)
The differences in CineBench and PCMark benchmark scores between the 2019 Latitude 7300 and 2020 Latitude 7310 are merely just a few percentage points. For superior performance-per-dollar, the older Whiskey Lake-U-powered Latitude 7300 remains the better deal.
If you're in the market for a new 13.3-inch business laptop and can't decide between the excellent Dell Latitude 7300 or Latitude 7310, then it'll be important to keep in mind that the newer 7310 is only marginally faster than the Latitude 7300 at best even though it carries newer Intel processors. Instead, the most significant difference between them will be the chassis updates and other physical changes as the Latitude 7310 is a bit smaller for increased portability.
Users who have been following the Intel 9th gen Whiskey Lake-U and 10th gen Comet Lake-U series will find the lack of performance upgrades unsurprising. Most Comet Lake-U CPUs like the ones that power the Latitude 7310 offer essentially the same performance as the older Whiskey Lake-U CPUs like the ones that power the latitude 7300. Granted, these subnotebooks aren't targeting high-performance office users in the first place, but it also means that you can buy the cheaper Latitude 7300 and still get the same performance as the 7310.
For greater year-over-year performance gains, Dell could have included hexa-core Core i7-10710U or AMD Ryzen options for its Latitude 7310, but the series is instead "capped" at the Core i7-10610U for now.
Now, this doesn't mean that the Latitude 7310 should be written off as it offers a host of other benefits over the Latitude 7300 that's not related to raw processor performance. See our full review on the Latitude 7310 here to learn why we still think it's one of the better business clamshells available.
Dell Latitude 7310 UHD Graphics 620, i7-10610U, Samsung SSD PM981a MZVLB512HBJQ; CPU Multi 64Bit: Ø546 (539.87-548.66)
Dell Latitude 7300-P99G UHD Graphics 620, i7-8665U, Samsung SSD PM981 MZVLB512HAJQ; CPU Multi 64Bit: Ø531 (513-670)
Allen Ngo - Lead Editor U.S. - 5253 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2011
After graduating with a B.S. in environmental hydrodynamics from the University of California, I studied reactor physics to become licensed by the U.S. NRC to operate nuclear reactors. There's a striking level of appreciation you gain for everyday consumer electronics after working with modern nuclear reactivity systems astonishingly powered by computers from the 80s. When I'm not managing day-to-day activities and US review articles on Notebookcheck, you can catch me following the eSports scene and the latest gaming news.
