Dell XPS 17
Dell XPS 17. Order Code xn9700cto240s, priced at $3,300 from Dell
Dell has offered well-designed powerful laptops for years. They tend to choose to optimize more for portability than for power, which is a fine choice to make when engineering a laptop. It has made it harder to recommend past laptops as “only” machines, but the new XPS 17 looks set to replace a desktop and offer all the portability you need.
The Thinkpad P50 series has long been the go-to workstation. Not excelling at any particular task but offering enough power to be a great all-rounder, while being heavy but not too heavy to commute with, the current P53 and upcoming P15 are strong choices for architectural laptops. However, Dell has really achieved something with their new XPS 17. The 17 refers to the screen size - 17 inches diagonal, exceeding the 15.6” on the P53 and similar competitors from HP and the like. However, Dell has managed to engineer bezels so small around the screen that the 17” laptop is only marginally larger than the 15” models. This, coupled with a well-implemented cooling system that pushes the weight to about 5 pounds, makes this the machine to beat in 2020. It offers just a bit more than the competition, and does it at a lower price.
The CPU is a top-end Intel part, with a vapor-chamber cooler to better sustain performance during a long render. The GPU is a consumer card, but one of the fastest. It lacks in VRAM, so you may want to consider an alternative if you’re very focused on delivering real-time GPU-based rendering. The screen is incredible. The speakers are more than enough for a video call. The keyboard is unremarkable. There have been some reports of issues with the trackpad offering spurious clicks, however that does seem to be resolving as the production run continues. The power brick is a custom USB-C unit that is quite reasonably sized. The storage system is great, and the RAM is user-upgradable.
Dell offers premium phone support with on-site service. When you need it, those are excellent resources to have at your disposal. The roll out of this machine has been slow, with long wait times once orders are placed. That should continue to improve. Dell’s pricing fluctuates a bit, so it’s not always possible to know you’re getting a great deal. It can pay to call up or chat online with an agent - often you can get a 10% discount by asking.
If you need a laptop as your only computer, one that you can take with you to a site or client office but push complex models and renders from at home, look no further. With one of the best support networks available, this machine should offer years of flexible service.