Inspiron 15R from Costco

I recently purchased the Inspiron 15R from Costco but haven't taken it out of the box yet. Not sure if I want to keep it.

I tried to get the XPS they were substituting for the Inspiron last month, but they had run out before I got there. Even still, the specs on the Inspiron didn't seem too shabby for the price, so I got a raincheck at the time.

I know they're not traditionally as solid as an XPS, but I keep looking around and don't see anything better for the price I paid. ($699) Plus, I get a two-year warranty through the Costco concierge service, which I'm hoping is better than the Dell service everyone complains about.

My current laptop is a 4-yr-old HP dv5t. I had problems with it initially and had to send it back to HP twice in 6 months. Since then, it's been pretty trouble-free. (occasional issues, but ones I could fix myself) I was hoping getting a pc from Costco would give me more peace of mind in regard to service.

Are the Inspiron 15r's really that bad? The one I picked up has the i7-2670QM processor, 8 GB ram, 1 TB HD, and the Nvidia 525M video card in it. Everything else I see in that price range has an i5 processor or lower, less ram, etc.

I've even considered not buying a laptop, but getting an all-in-one instead since the laptop rarely leaves the desk and would have a giant screen, good for aging eyes and spreadsheets. ;-)

Would you keep the Inspiron, or return it?

Thanks.

 

Just so you know the I7 2670QM processor is from last generation (Sandy Bridge) for your Inspiron laptop. At this point, I would opt to get the an Ivy Bridge processor based laptop with series 3XXXQM. I wouldn't get a Sandy Bridge processor at this point unless I got some ridiculously good deal that I just couldn't pass up. Other than that, Ivy Bridge is so much better in terms of graphics and other small stuff like built in USB 3.0 support, PCI-E 3.0 support, etc

 

Sandy Bridge was a massive step up from the previous i7 generation but Ivy Bridge is only a small step forward. USB3 is fully supported in current 15R models. The i7 2670QM is a seriously fast CPU for a laptop and the GT 525M graphics are not too shabby at all if you want play games. I don't know about US pricing but I have just ordered a refurb of exactly the same model and I think mine is an absolute bargain.

Ian

 

Yes, I know the processor is 2nd gen, but it is still way faster than my current 4-yr-old machine, and I thought still fast enough to last a few years without seeming slow.

I guess I'm just hesitant because it's an Inspiron, and they haven't had the best reviews the past few years. I still have a really old Inspiron 8600 that actually works (albeit slowly), but the build quality way back then was much better.

I think I'm leaning toward trying an all-in-one pc, if I can find one for the right price/specs. The screen is really large, and it doesn't have a giant cpu to find space for. I use my tablet now for portability, so the laptop just stays on the desk and is used for web surfing, email, productivity software, and printing stuff.

 

I considered an XPS L502x and an XPS 15z, but the former was simply too bulky and the latter doesn't have a removable battery and the keyboard is suspect according to quite a few reviews. And both are significantly more expensive than the 15R. Yes, the 15R (N5110) doesn't have the luxury of an alloy frame like the 15z nor a 1920 Full HD screen, but overall the bang per buck of the 15R is hard to ignore. I read a lot of reviews and the screen was consistently rated as above average for a budget laptop, the keyboard was generally liked too; only a bit of flex in the middle was repeatedly noted but most reviewers said it was a minor issue and nothing to panic over. I have read on forums that if you are a gamer the i7 CPU version can get a little hot, but under normal use it's pretty cool. I'm also reading reports of battery life under light use in Windows battery setting mode of up to 5 hours with the i5 and i3 CPUs and the smaller battery. I'm hoping the i7 won't be significantly worse - no reason why this would be unreasonable given Intel's effective CPU throttling. The 15R looks nice and it's reasonably slim - not as slim as 15z but a lot less slim than a L502x. Like you I am replacing a 4 year old HP and I'm very confident that the 15R will last me another 4 years no problem.

Ian