Dell XPS 15 review: too hot to handle

If you buy something from a link, it may earn you a commission. Our ethics statement can be found here.

The XPS 15 is still good.

The 16-inch MacBook Pro is more efficient than it is powerful. The Dell XPS 15 is the closest Windows-running contender that I have been able to find, due to its combination of power, build quality, and portability. It is light and thin for its size. The keyboard and touchpad are top-notch. It is a dream to look at.

If you're shopping for a Windows machine that can last all day, look elsewhere. If you're looking for a large-screen laptop that's more affordable than the most powerful machines on the market, the XPS 15 is a good choice.

The important thing to note if you’re considering this laptop is that it doesn’t come with anywhere near the most powerful specs you can find in a 15-incher. The unit I was sent, currently listed for $1,999.99 on Dell’s site, comes with a Core i7-11800H, 512GB of storage, 16GB of RAM, and an Nvidia RTX 3050 Ti GPU. (For comparison’s sake, a 16-inch MacBook Pro with comparable RAM and storage costs $2,499.) There’s a Core i9 option, but I’m nervous about it — you’ll see why shortly.

After testing this device, I am pretty sure that these are the most powerful components Dell has been able to figure out how to put in. They are powerful enough to run productivity tasks. The fan was having a hard time handling them. I wish Dell could figure out its cooling situation before it's too late.

When I review a thin laptop, I might occasionally see a spike in temperature while running heavy loads. Larger laptops with very competent cooling can keep their CPUs below the 80s. MacBooks don't turn on their fans.

This unit was really something. TheCPU was consistently around 100 degrees throughout my testing. It was very worryingly hot and there were brief spikes in temp. That is likely to have affected its performance. I saw a decrease in Cinebench R23 scores between the 10-minute loop and 30-minute loop of the test, which means that the XPS was kicking the chip's performance down as it heated up. Across the board, the unit's scores were fine but a big step down from the top of the market, as you can see in the chart below.

The fans were not holding back. They were loud all the time. For the duration of our 4K video export test, the XPS could be heard from across the room.

Outside of benchmark testing, while running my lighter load of Chrome tabs, apps, and streaming, I wasn't necessarily hearing the fans all the time. I did feel a bit of heat when I heard them occasionally. The keyboard keys were not too hot to use while I was working, but they did occasionally come close, and the bottom of the case was often on my lap. It seems like the laptop is at the limits of what it can cool, and neither of these factors means you shouldn't buy it.

Even the mid-range chips have a downside: battery life. The lifespan of a MacBook Pro can be as long as 20 years, but the XPS is getting a fraction of that. I'm sure the high-resolution screen isn't helping. I averaged three hours and 46 minutes of continuous work with the screen at medium brightness, with occasional downloads running, files copying, and other tasks.

I'm sure people will point out in the comments that this battery lifespan is not a deal-breaker for this kind of laptop. Dell didn't make big battery claims, and the XPS 15 isn't massive. It's difficult to swallow a $1,999 device dying that quickly, since it's supposed to be one of its major selling points. It appears that the svelte dimensions of the XPS are putting a hard ceiling on its performance.

The bad news is that those are my only gripes with this laptop. The rest of it is very, very good if you know that you are making tradeoffs.

Every smart device now requires you to agree to a series of terms and conditions before you can use it. It is impossible for us to read and analyze all of these agreements. We started counting how many times you have to agree to use devices when we review them.

You will need to agree to the following in order to use the Dell XPS 15.

• A request for your region
• A request for your keyboard layout
• Windows 10 license agreement and Dell Terms of Sale / License Agreement
• Microsoft account
• PIN

You can either say yes or no.

• Wi-Fi
• Windows Hello face and fingerprint recognition
• Privacy settings (speech recognition, location, Find My Device, sharing diagnostic data, inking and typing, tailored experience, advertising ID)
• Tell Microsoft how you plan to use your device for customized suggestions (you can choose between gaming, schoolwork, creative, entertainment, family, and business)
• Connect an Android phone
• OneDrive backup
• Office 365
• Allow Microsoft to collect information including location and location history, contacts, voice input, speech and handwriting patterns, typing history, search history, calendar details, content and communication history, messages, and apps
• Sign up for Dell’s Support and Protection
• McAfee security subscription

There are six mandatory agreements and 16 optional ones to use.

It's solid. It comes with Dell's Mobile Connect feature, which allows you to integrate your device with a smartphone and easily transfer files, mirror screens, etc. Both the Windows Hello camera and the fingerprint reader work well for sign-in. There was nothing pre-installed on my unit.

Since the last significant redesign of the XPS 15 a few years ago, not much has changed in the hardware department. The build is sturdy and gorgeous. The 16:10 screen is a great choice for those who want exceptional contrast. The HD webcam is tiny, not great, and not completely terrible. Dell should step that up for the next model because other laptops are starting to come out with solid webcams.

The box has a limited selection of ports, but most people will be able to use them. The speakers and microphones are good. Despite its power limitations, the XPS 15 is one of the few laptops I always end up using after hours because I can't bear to go back to my personal one. It is a masterpiece.

That's why the battery life is so bad. The truth is that people who are buying an XPS 15 know what they are getting, for years it has been a hot, loud, and not-super-long- lasting machine that is exceptional in every other. The battery life of the XPS screen is leaving me with a sour taste in my mouth each year, as other companies are making advances at this size and price range.

There are not a lot of 15-inch laptops with this form factor and price point that will offer you better performance and better battery life. The MacBook Pro 16 is a step up in price and doesn't run Windows. There are other 15-inchers in the productivity space, but they are not as good as the XPS. If you want a device that looks and feels like an XPS, then you should go for a device like the ROG Zephyrus G15, but that won't be suitable for you.

It's still going to be my recommendation if you're looking for a premium 15-incher with great peripherals and a great screen, because the XPS 15 is still fairly unique in what it offers. I think it could be a perfect device if Dell could figure out how to cool more powerful chips.