Dell XPS L501x: An Excellent Mainstream Notebook
by Jarred Walton on November 10, 2010 12:01 AM ESTA Good High Gamut, High Resolution LCD
Wrapping up the test results, we have the B+GR LED (i.e. WLED) backlit 1080p display. We can't comment on the standard 768p panel, but considering all the results we've seen on such panels to date it's hard to imagine Dell is going to have anything more than a mediocre, low-contrast offering. What they give users is the ability to upgrade to a substantially better 1080p display, and while it doesn't top the WUXGA RGB LED panel in the Dell Precision M6500, it also doesn't bump the price up $300. Actually, short of A/B side-by-side comparisons, we think most users will be very pleased with the 1080p upgrade. It took me all of five seconds after the initial power on to notice that the panel had a good contrast ratio, and colors in images look far better in my opinion than what you get with typical laptop LCDs.
Having used the Dell Studio XPS 16 for a while, I actually prefer the new panel design, but that's mostly because of the silliness of the old "Edge-to-Edge" display. The Studio XPS 16 had a glossy sheet of plastic that was placed over the LCD panel, and when closed the "LCD" rested against the keyboard and palm rest. The result is that the plastic sheet would accumulate smudges and other marks just through normal use over time (though I've heard if you could manage to remove the glossy sheet that the underlying panel was actually a matte display). In contrast, the LCD in the L501x is a traditional affair recessed into the cover slightly, so the only way it will get smudges is if you—or your friends/kids/spouse—touch it. So, the design is better but the panel itself might not be quite as good—more on this after the charts.
The objective results bear out my initial impression: the contrast ratio comes in nearly 700:1, which tops our charts and outranks even the current MacBook Pro LCDs—including the matte MacBook Pro 15 WSXGA+ panel. But then, glossy displays are usually higher contrast so that last point isn't an entirely fair comparison. Regardless, the display looks great, and it has a good maximum white level of 270nits as well. Maximum brightness is still an area that favors MacBooks, but then color quality favors the L501x.
It's worth noting that there are times when a higher color gamut isn't "best"—specifically, the default Windows color space is sRGB, which is around 82% of ARGB1998. That means if you run an application that isn't color space aware (i.e. most applications!), you'll map to sRGB and your 100% of ARGB1998 gamut now makes colors look saturated. That's not to say it's bad, but there are times (particularly if you're watching videos) where the oversaturated colors are apparent. Then again, would you rather have an image that's a bit oversaturated, or do you like images that are highly undersaturated? Because the latter is what you get with virtually every other laptop panel.
We did some side-by-side comparisons with the L501x and three other laptops to show what it looks like when viewing the standard 24-color GretagMacbeth ColorChecker palette (the same palette we use for our Delta E testing)—you can also see the viewing angles in the above gallery. The first comparison is with a typical ~50% gamut low-contrast LCD; in this particular instance we're looking at the Acer 5551G. Next up is the high-contrast 1080p panel in the ASUS G73Jw, with a 55% gamut. The third comparison is with the older 120% gamut Studio XPS 16 with the RGB LED panel. You can definitely see that the high gamut panels look more vibrant (too much so some would say), and in this case the 98% gamut on the new panel is an improvement. In an ideal world, you'd be able to choose between 82% sRGB backlighting and 100% ARGB1998 backlighting at the flip of a switch, but for now you'll have to settle for one or the other. Apple's MacBook Pro comes closer to the sRGB setting most people use and as such would be slightly preferable, but in practice it will usually only matter if you're really a stickler for accurate colors in certain applications.
For the record, the above ColorChecker chart looks "correct" when viewed in Firefox or the standard Windows Picture Viewer (though not in fullscreen mode for the latter). Opening the image in Internet Explorer (or viewing fullscreen in Picture Viewer) gives the oversaturated look seen in the above photographs. Videos also bypass any color profile you may have loaded, resulting in overly vibrant colors at times. Personally, I didn't have a problem with the way the colors look, especially if I don't have something else nearby to compare it with; your eyes will adjust to whatever you see.
Heat and Noise Levels
After taxing the system for more than an hour with 3DMark06, system component temperatures remained acceptable. Surface temperatures of the L501x were also satisfactory; the L501x isn't a cool running CULV laptop by any stretch of the imagination, but it doesn't become unbearably warm either. At idle or under light loads, surface temperatures ranged from 27-35C on the bottom, and 27-32C on the palm rests and keyboard, with a noise level nearing the limits of our testing equipment at just 31dB (in a sub-30dB environment). The 3DMark06 loop brought surface temperatures up to 27-40C on the bottom and 27-34C on the keyboard area, with the exhaust vent at 40C. The hottest spot is under the middle-left area, where the GPU sits. Maximum noise levels were consistent under load, with a moderately loud but not horribly annoying rating of 42dB.
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barnett25 - Wednesday, November 10, 2010 - link
As always a great review. Just wanted to throw that out there because it amazes me how much people complain about the most ridiculous things in reviews on this site.Dug - Wednesday, November 10, 2010 - link
Pc laptop makers still don't get it. (Except HP with Envy line, which is just a knock off of Mac).Just like monitor manufacturers. Just make a simple square black border. Don't add curves, or shiny black borders, or ugly angles.
This thing is horrible to look at.
Why can't manufacturers make a simple design? I don't care if its a little thicker than a mac, just don't add stupid crap that isn't necessary, put stickers all over it, etc. It's not that hard, and would actually be cheaper to manufacture.
For instance the thinkpad series, the border of the screen has engraved lines, hooks, odd spacing on one side, different depths. Why?
I think the timeline x series is close, but still not quite there. It is very close to specs on this except the screen. 3x battery life, better video card, 4.5lbs.
Dug - Wednesday, November 10, 2010 - link
I think this would be a much better alternative.http://www.xoticpc.com/sager-np5135-built-clevo-b5...
$803 with better specs, better looking, and more custum options.
JarredWalton - Wednesday, November 10, 2010 - link
We'll have a look at that Clevo B5130M unit in the near future. I can tell you already that it's just as bulky and the speakers sound like crap, and the build quality doesn't look great either. It's got a good 1080p LCD though (very possibly the same one as the L501x).As for the curves and other styling, that's ultimately a case of personal opinion. I happen to like the L501x; if I had any serious complaints with it I wouldn't have given it the Gold EC award. Some will like simple, some will like the curves; the angled edges also make it more comfortable to rest your hands on the laptop IMO. Some people think the Alienware M11x/M15x/M17x looks freaking awesome, I find it to be somewhat impractical and am perfectly happy with "average" laptops. I also like the way ThinkPads and Latitudes look and feel -- they're nothing like the L501x, but they're built more solidly.
I'm a little confused at some of your comments, though... I suppose you're referring to laptops in general, because the L501x is very clean with no stickers to speak of, and I'm not sure what would qualify as "stupid crap" on this laptop.
Anyway, Clevo's B5130M looks to be a fairly decent laptop and we'll have a full review from Dustin in the not-too-distant future. Stay tuned....
Dug - Wednesday, November 10, 2010 - link
I was speaking of the sides. I don't mind curves around the screen or body as long as its a uniform look, but the sides just look terrible. At least keep the same color of the palm area.The lines should just run even to the back, instead there's some curve and it makes it look like the back flares out.
I also don't need the dvd, multi reader, cdrw, blu-ray, etc junk on the drive. It just looks so bad.
Even the Inspiron has cleaner lines, except for some idiot marketing dept that decided glossy black is what people want where their palms rest. Sony has good lines too.
I also think 1.5" and 6.5 lbs is too much for what you are getting. I am assuming that the speakers are what is taking so much space. Or just bad design.
barnett25 - Wednesday, November 10, 2010 - link
" I am assuming that the speakers are what is taking so much space. Or just bad design."Or cooling?
I think Dell may be trying to avoid the overheating issues of XPSs past.
I like a good looking device as much as the next person but I personally feel Dell made a good call on this one. Half the good looking laptops out there overheat, I would rather have a reliable laptop than one that just looks good.
Pylon757 - Sunday, November 14, 2010 - link
The recent Thinkpad series fixed most of the problems you listed, and overall it's a more integrated look. They've got centered screens, no pesky grille things on the screen, etc. However, the hook on the top is still necessary for the Thinklight.I think the Latitude E-series are pretty close too. My E6410 is a great looking laptop IMO. Brushed metal lid and all corners.
As for curves, my opinion is that doing them right is really hard. This laptop clearly doesn't do them well. I personally think that the unibody white Macbook is a really good example of using curves well. It fits really well into the design, and even adds a lot of functionality since the curved edges make a really nice grip.
Aikouka - Wednesday, November 10, 2010 - link
It's nice to see a look similar to the older Dell XPS M1530 (which I own), but with more curves added. I am a bit bummed that they kind of tacked on the 1080p LCD without adding a graphics option that can truly handle it. When I looked at Dell's new line-up, I also noticed that the 17" laptop doesn't even have a 1080p option (unless it was recently added) but has the fastest GPU option available.notfeelingit - Wednesday, November 10, 2010 - link
* The touchpad belongs in the center of the laptop. No one is using it with their thumbs while also using the keyboard. It should be as large as possible and directly proportional to the aspect ratio of the screen. Also, mouse buttons are dumb.* Chiclet keys are the best.
* Batteries don't need to be super easy to change. If you design your laptop around this principle you will be able to make the laptop smaller while keeping excellent battery life. Maybe make an external battery option for business folks.
* Lose the optical drive.
* Only LED screens from now on, please.
Basically, just make a MBP, minus the optical drive, and knock the $800 apple tax off and everyone on planet earth will purchase your laptop.
JarredWalton - Wednesday, November 10, 2010 - link
1 - Completely disagree on the touchpad buttons. I've used buttonless options and I hated it. Apple seems to have done it better, but I'll keep the buttons thank you.2 - I don't think chiclet is best; it's a stylistic thing that looks okay, but if you want a good keyboard try a ThinkPad or a Dell Latitude.
3 - I agree they don't need to be removable at the flip of a switch for many users, but they also need to be user-replaceable.
4 - Disagree based on input from quite a few people. I've had more than my share of friends see one of my test laptops without an optical drive and they can't figure out what they're supposed to do. When I tell them to buy an external USB drive or just use the network, they look at me like I'm speaking another language. The masses disagree with you here, and even if Apple goes this route it doesn't make it the right choice.
5 - Name me one laptop out there that doesn't use LED backlighting... just one! What you need to say is "stop using crappy panels with tons of backlight bleed."
Pretty much every one of the items in your list is personal opinion, and your opinion is that everything should be a MacBook clone (more or less). I'd like to see a good Windows laptop that incorporates most of the above elements, but by no stretch of the imagination do I think that should be the only way to spec out and build a laptop. There's room for a lot of variety, and while some may not like the L501x styling I think it looks great.