Dell laptops opinions? About to buy this Ryzen 8840U model.

[SL2]

I know this could be posted under hot deals, but I'm posting here because I want to hear peoples experiences.

I've never bought a Dell before. I don't mind the not so bright display, it's good enough. RAM slots, WLAN and SSD slot.
32 GB RAM max, not a lot but enough for me. Similar models got very good battery performance at notebookcheck (and I'm not talking about that insane XPS), as well as low noise fans.

I'd like to hear your opinion about Dell in general, as nothing about this model makes me hesitate. Or, if you do have some better suggestion under $700.
Also, please remember the price is very low, there are obviously better laptops out there for much more. They've got similar deals in some other countries.

Spoiler: Slots for all y'all

Source: https://dl.dell.com/content/manual18275235-inspiron-16-5645-owner-s-manual.pdf?language=en-us

 

[TSiAhmat]

I heard mostly good stuff about dell, especially the customer Service.

But never had a Laptop from them.

The only bad stuff i heard from them is bad/not enough Ports on their Laptops(mainly the xps-line) & too expensive (also the xps-line... I am seeing a pattern here)

Not sure if the Laptop supports charging from usb-c & and even if it does: You can charge it only from the left side of the device.

Doesn't have a ethernet port which is a bummer (but you probably don't need it)

Seems like a sweet deal to me, also Reviews in my Region are 4.9/5 (24) in the Dell Shop.

 

[SL2]

Yeah, the port count is evident. I think it can charge from USB C though, but it's not super obvious. I can live without it.

I mean when do you ever have power input into a laptop through USB C unless charging? Edit: Dunno how I missed the "power delivery" part lol

 

[TSiAhmat]

Yeah, the port count is evident. I think it can charge from USB C though, but it's not super obvious. I can live without it.

I mean when do you ever have power input into a laptop through USB C unless charging? Edit: Dunno how I missed the "power delivery" part lol

View attachment 372561

yeah looks good, we had at work HP 250 Laptops an these were really bad and annoying to work with.

No Dock Support over USB-C (HP G5 Dock in this example) & Probably the worst Ethernet-Port i have seen (Most of them Broke after a month of use)

Horrible Product, apparently even the HP Engineers who design it hated that damn thing.

Also which i noticed in the mean time:

On their website it's advertised with this picture, seems like the usb-C (which u already confirmed with your Screenshot) can do the whole shebang.

 

[SL2]

HP budget models and Elitebooks are like night and day. I can only say good things about the latter, no surprise there as the price is so different.

As for 250/255 models, I get the impression that they're usually even worse than regular Pavilion models.

 

[dirtyferret]

my last three laptops have all been Dells, never had an issue although I upgraded the ram and SSD in each one. I only used them for a bit of work, video meetings, and kids homework

 

[Bill_Bright]

32GB is a HUGE amount of RAM, way more than most people need, depending on how they use the computer - which, sadly, you did not specify.

If you plan on using this as a gaming laptop, or for other very demanding tasks, I would look elsewhere - but that is primarily because I would not trust the laptop's cooling capability. If planning to use this for general office or school projects, and for personal business tasks like email, on-line banking and shopping, creating Word docs and Excel spreadsheets, updating social media, streaming videos and music, this laptop is more than capable of doing that.

I have owned 2 Dell laptops over the years and supported many more. The 2 I had lasted until they were retired after 7 - 8 years. So no complaints there. Those we supported gave similar service to the other major brand laptops. This makes sense. After all, Dell, like most laptop makers is just an assembler of parts (or may even just oversee assembly of parts) made by other makers. For example, many of their motherboards are made by Foxconn or ASUS. Intel or AMD makes their CPUs and chipsets. Micron or Samsung their RAM. Another OEM makes their drives, power supply/charger, battery, display screens, etc. And of course, ASUS and the others buy their discrete components (capacitors, resistors, VRMs, coils, connectors, etc.) from 3rd party components makers. Dell just designs the case but then outsources manufacturing of that to a case maker.

Dell actually outsources most of its assembly tasks too, to assembly plants in China, Brazil, Taiwan, India, Vietnam, Mexico and elsewhere (source). This typically results in lower costs for us and is not necessarily bad AS LONG AS quality is maintained. That said, if looking for laptop that is mostly made in the US, you probably should look elsewhere than at Dell, perhaps Velocity Micro, Digital Storm or Falcon Northwest.

Ports are not a big deal for me as long as I can attach an external mouse, keyboard and monitor and still have one port extra capable of charging my phone while the laptop is powered off

HOWEVER - You need to verify your information. First, the link to the manual you posted does not work. And when I look here, for the Inspiron 16 Model 5645, it seems clear to me 16GB (2 x 8GB) is the maximum amount of RAM it supports. 16GB is still plenty for general computer tasks; most work and school projects as well as personal business tasks - ESPECIALLY when coupled with a nice SSD (which it is). But if you have your heart set on 32GB, not sure this laptop supports it.

 

[SL2]

First, the link to the manual you posted does not work. And when I look here, for the Inspiron 16 Model 5645, it seems clear to me 16GB (2 x 8GB) is the maximum amount of RAM it supports. 16GB is still plenty for general computer tasks; most work and school projects as well as personal business tasks - ESPECIALLY when coupled with a nice SSD (which it is). But if you have your heart set on 32GB, not sure this laptop supports it.

I know, I think it was something wrong with it at first, but it works now, without any changes.



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[AnotherReader]

I don't like that its HDMI port is ancient.

• Ports
  2 USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps) ports
  1 USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) Type-C® with DisplayPort™ Alt Mode 1.4/Power Delivery port
  1 Universal audio jack
  1 HDMI 1.4 port*

 

[SL2]

I don't like that its HDMI port is ancient.

Sure, but for $550 I don't know what to expect. At least there's DP from USB as well. It IS ancient, though. Thanks of pointing it out.

Like I said, there are much better laptops out there, but I've yet to see something better for this price. 8 core Hawk points are usually not this cheap.

 

[AnotherReader]

Sure, but for $550 I don't know what to expect. At least there's DP from USB as well. It IS ancient, though. Thanks of pointing it out.

Like I said, there are much better laptops out there, but I've yet to see something better for this price. 8 core Hawk points are usually not this cheap.

You're right that it's hard to find comparably priced laptops with 8 core Hawk points. The ease of upgrading the RAM and storage is also a plus point.

 

[SL2]

The ease of upgrading the RAM and storage is also a plus point.

Yeah, that's not a given anymore, epecially for budget, compact... or premium models lol