by
Nathan Wasson
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Wednesday, October 19, 2022, 12:46 PM EDT
Dell XPS 15 9520 And XPS 17 9720: Thermals, Acoustics, And Our Final Verdict
Both of these new Dell XPS laptops are pretty quiet most of the time. The fans sit still when the systems are at idle or during light work. When there’s a little more going on, the fans kick in, but they usually spin so lightly that you can’t hear them unless you hold your ear up next to the vents. It’s only under heavier workloads that the fans become noticeable, and they are quick to spin down once load is reduced.
Thermal And Acoustic Performance
In order to test how loud the fans get, as well how hot the laptops get, we ran 3DMark’s intensive Port Royal stress test that goes for around twenty minutes. As with the other benchmarks, we set the power mode in the Windows power settings to “Best performance.” We also ran the stress test multiple times to test out the difference between the “Optimized” and “Ultra Performance” settings in Dell’s power manager utility. We monitored both external heat and noise over the course of these runs and have summarized what we saw below.
XPS 17 (left) and XPS 15 (right) both in default Optimized mode
Regardless of setting, the fans in both laptops quickly spun up and stayed steady during the runs. While in Optimized mode, the fan noise coming from the XPS 17 stayed around 48.5dB, and the XPS 15 consistently produced around 45.6dB of fan noise. Dell’s power manager utility says that Ultra Performance mode increases fan speed, so we unsurprisingly observed an increase in fan noise with the XPS 17 set to Ultra Performance, measuring around 51.5dB during the test. Oddly, though, we didn’t measure a noise increase, but rather a decrease in the case of the XPS 15. In Ultra Performance mode, the smaller XPS laptop put out around 44.8dB of fan noise. We made sure to mount the sound meter on a tripod and run the tests back-to-back to avoid moving either the laptop or the sound meter, so we’re not sure why Ultra Performance mode resulted in a slight decrease in fan noise from the XPS 15. Nonetheless, the change was minimal enough not to be noticeable without the help of the sound meter.
Our takeaway from this testing is that neither laptop gets annoyingly loud under heavy load. While in Ultra Performance mode, the XPS 17 reaches a level of fan noise on par with some dedicated gaming laptops running at full tilt. However, as we mentioned at the top of the previous page, we didn’t observe any performance difference between Ultra Performance and Optimized, so we recommend that users stick to the default Optimized mode to cut down on unnecessary fan chatter.
XPS 17 (left) and XPS 15 (right) both in default Optimized mode
Our thermal testing reinforces our view that users probably shouldn’t bother with Ultra Performance mode unless you want to maintain performance over more extended durations. Since this setting increases fan speed, it does a good job cooling down the system components. During the stress test, the area above the keyboard sat around 101°F in the case of the XPS 17 and 96°F on the XPS 15. These temperatures are quite good considering the hardware these systems are packing. However, switching to Optimized mode barely raises these temperatures. We ran the stress test again with both laptops in Optimized mode, and the temperatures stayed around 102°F for the XPS 17 and 98°F for the and XPS 15.
The same area above the keyboard often reaches 120+°F in our thermal testing of other laptops, so both the XPS 15 and 17 keep things pretty cool. These measurements also refer to the hottest area right above the CPU and GPU. The areas where users actually rest their fingers, namely the keyboard and touchpad, stay even cooler, never getting anywhere near uncomfortably hot.
If you’re curious about internal temperatures, you can take a look at the graphs below that show data captured by 3DMark during a couple benchmark runs.
XPS 17 hardware details during 3DMark Time Spy benchmark run (click to enlarge)
XPS 15 hardware details during 3DMark Time Spy benchmark run (click to enlarge)
The XPS 15’s hardware ran a little hotter than the hardware in the XPS 17, which isn’t surprising given the 15” laptop’s smaller form factor. Under heavy load, the RTX 3050 Ti in the XPS 15 fluctuated a little around 70°C, and the XPS 17’s RTX 3060 hovered around 60°C. The same story holds true for the Core i7-12700H in each laptop for the second half of the test, but CPU temps fluctuated more in the first half. In the first half of the benchmark, the XPS 15’s processor spiked up to 100°C at multiple points, while the XPS 17 kept its processor below 100°C, going a little over 90°C a few times. Regardless, these readings aren’t bad for internal GPU and CPU temps, especially given that both laptops are on the thinner side.
Dell XPS 15 9520: Our Review Verdict
Dell stuck with a tried-and-true design for this refresh of the XPS 15, and we aren’t complaining. The laptop’s no-nonsense appearance and feature set make for a work horse suitable for a wide range of buyers. That said, the lack of even a single USB-A port hampers the laptop’s backwards compatibility somewhat. We also found that our review unit was held back some by its 16GB of RAM (and possibly thermal saturation), so buyers may want to choose the 32GB memory configuration. Owners may also need to remove some unwanted pre-installed software, depending on how the consumer device registration and setup process goes.
While the XPS 15 is fairly thin for a laptop rocking a discrete GPU, it’s a bit on the heftier side. However, lighter laptops packing this amount of graphics power often don’t feel as solid. Picking up the XPS 15, operating its hinge, or pressing down on its panels doesn't elicit a single creak. The only area that flexes even the slightest bit under pressure is the center of the keyboard.
Dell's premium build quality is also backed up by a premium display here. The 3.5K OLED panel displays colors vividly and in high detail. The touch support is a nice addition too, though it may go unused in a non-convertible laptop. Gamers may find the 60Hz refresh rate disappointing, and perhaps Dell could have opted for a higher refresh display over a touchscreen. That said, the XPS 15 is meant to serve a wider audience than just gamers and this OLED display is just plain gorgeous.
The combination of an Intel Core i7-12700H and a NVIDIA RTX 3050 Ti should be plenty of power for most workloads, including gaming at 1080p. It’s only in more recent AAA titles set to high graphics presets that the 3050 Ti struggles some. When not gaming, the 86WHr battery on board here keeps the XPS 15 running for a fairly impressive length of time, particularly given the laptop’s high resolution display.
If you’re looking for a cutting-edge gaming machine, Dell's XPS line isn't that. However, if you want considerably more graphics power than integrated graphics can offer in a premium, relatively thin package with great non-gaming battery life, the XPS 15 has you covered. Whether potential buyers are willing to pay what Dell is asking for this machine is another question. The XPS 15 starts at $1449, but the sticker price on our review unit is $2299, which is a bit steep, versus some similarly configured options on the market. Fortunately, the build quality inspires confidence in the long term durability of this new Dell laptop, so the XPS 15 shouldn't be a short-lived purchase, and the experience it delivers is very premium.
Dell XPS 17 9720: Our Review Verdict
Aside from being larger, the XPS 17 is largely identical to the XPS 15, so almost everything we just said goes for the XPS 17 as well. However, there are a few differences of note. First, the larger laptop bumps the display resolution up from 3.5K to 4K, while going from an OLED panel to an LCD panel. We’re happy to see the increase in display resolution but we wish choosing the 17” display over the 15” didn’t mean giving up Dell's OLED panel option. Regardless, the XPS 17's LCD panel is still a very nice display and not everyone needs or wants OLED.
In addition, Dell equipped the XPS 17 with a bigger battery than the XPS 15, but the 17” 4K display still drains that 97WHr battery faster than the 15” 3.5K display drains the 86WHr battery. On the one hand, one might expect a bigger laptop to have higher battery capacity and therefore longer battery life, but to be fair, the XPS 17 we tested still offers pretty decent battery life for a laptop with a 4K display. That said, Dell's XPS 15 is the better choice if you prioritize being untethered from the wall.
Finally, since the two laptops share the same Core i7-12700H, their CPU-bound performance is pretty much the same. However, the RTX 3060 in the XPS 17 translates to a significant increase graphics performance over the XPS 15. If you’re looking for a laptop that can pull double duty as a work machine and an occasional gaming system, the XPS 17 will better perform that role than the XPS 15, so long as you don’t mind lugging around a heavier laptop. Potential buyers should also take note that the XPS 17 costs significantly more than the XPS 15. The XPS 17 starts at $1849, but our review unit is priced at $3049. Those considering picking the XPS 17 over the XPS 15 for the RTX 3060, might want to think twice about whether the bump in graphics performance is worth the additional cost. Nonetheless, so long as you have the cash, we don’t think you can go wrong with either system and both are fairly priced in comparison to similar premium (operative word) options in the market currently.
