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Reading Time: 6 minutesDell’s new Inspiron refresh is so good it presents an interesting conundrum. If this is the new standard for a “mainstream” laptop, how are “premium” laptops going to continue justifying their higher prices?
Not so long ago, there was a clear gulf in quality between the mid-range and the premium ends of the laptop market. Affordable laptops compromised significantly in looks, build quality, display tech, and overall refinement to achieve mainstream affordability. And that allowed premium laptops to shine.
But, as I unboxed the newly refreshed Inspiron 16 Plus for the first time, it quickly becomes apparent how significantly that quality gap has closed. Here we have a large, powerful, well-built, classy-looking productivity laptop, with a starting price of under $1000. At a glance, you’d be forgiven for thinking it costs double that amount.
So, do you really need to splash out on a “premium” laptop to get a supremely high-quality device? The answer to that question is no longer as clear cut as it once was.
If you want a premium laptop for productivity, content creation or even office work with occasional gaming on the side, it might just be the Inspiron that you buy.
Dell Inspiron 16 Plus Technical Specifications
- 11th Gen Intel Core i7 11800H (up to 4.6GHz)
- 16GB DDR RAM 3200MHz
- 512GB NVMe SSD
- Nvidia Geforce RTX 3050 4GB
- RTX Studio support
- 16-inch IPS display
- 3072 x 1920 resolution (16:10 aspect ratio)
- 100% sRGB color coverage
- 1000:1 contrast ratio, 300 nits peak brightness
- HDR10 and Dolby Vision HDR support
- Full 10-key number pad keyboard
- USB-C (with Power Delivery, Thunderbolt, DisplayPort 1.4)
- 2x USB Type-A, HDMI 2.0, full SD Card slot, headphone jack
Mainstream Goes Premium
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Let’s put things into context with actual numbers. While the Inspiron 16 Plus’ base price is $930.99, our test unit is currently being sold at $1,352.39. (Dell pricing fluctuates regularly.) That extra $400 accounts for upgrades across the board, from an i5 to an i7 CPU, RAM doubled to 16GB, storage upped to 512GB and, most crucially, the addition of an Nvidia RTX 3050 graphics card. All of which transform this laptop from a casual office workstation to a powerful productivity machine.
So how does that price compare with Dell’s XPS laptops? Since there’s no 16-inch XPS, it’s not entirely like-for-like, but a 15-inch XPS with nearly identical specs is almost $600 more than the Inspiron. The 17-inch XPS, again with similar specs, is almost $800 more.
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XPS laptops are really nice. I’ve long praised the beautiful carbon fiber touch surfaces, impressively thin dimensions and the standout brightness of its screens.
But is a similarly spec’ed XPS drastically nicer than the new Inspiron? Like, $800 nicer? I don’t think so. And that’s not a swipe at the XPS, but rather a testament to the fantastic job Dell has done with the Inspiron. It looks and feels expensive, from aesthetic touches like the Mist Blue matte finish and polished edges adorning the lower body, to functional refinements such as the perfectly weighted hinge and super thin screen bezels.
Fully Loaded
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The Inspiron 16 Plus even offers some advantages over the XPS. If you want a full number pad built in, you need the Inspiron. I’m not a fan personally, because of how this pushes the main keys to the left, and relegates the speakers to a less-than-ideal down-firing configuration. But that full-featured keyboard may be a huge benefit for you.
The Inspiron also has a more diverse selection of legacy ports, with USB-C, USB Type-A, full size HDMI and full size SD card reader, making it highly utilitarian without the need for USB adapters.
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A built-in fingerprint sensor comes as standard, as does the 3072 x 1920 resolution display, which is surprisingly high for the standard display option on an affordable laptop. Text looks razor sharp on this screen, as does higher fidelity media like 4K video.
It’s an IPS-type panel with 100% sRGB color delivery, which makes it great for this laptop’s main intended purpose: content creation.
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More notably, it’s a 16:10 ratio display, which means it’s taller (and more square) than your typical 16:9 panel. This ratio allows the display to be 15% larger than that of the last-gen 15-inch Inspiron, while only growing the overall chassis size by 5%. The increased vertical real estate is also nicer for consuming scrolling content, like long documents or social media websites.
Dell flaunts the inclusion of HDR support, but you should temper your expectations. Yes, HDR content will work, but with a modest 300 nits of peak brightness, this display is not capable of the levels of performance needed to deliver a true HDR experience.
Forward-Looking Features
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The Inspiron does well to adopt many of the newer trends in laptop design. It’s nice to see Dell integrate a discrete physical shutter for the webcam amidst growing concerns over online privacy.
Conversely, thanks to a more modern standby state, Cortana voice assistance can be activated even when the laptop is asleep. This may have limited use at present, but could signal a shift toward laptops becoming viable ambient smart home control hubs in the future.
Also, Dell has a fairly robust array of software that it includes with its laptops. If you don’t immediately remove it all like clean-OS purists might, you can benefit from wireless phone connectivity via Mobile Connect, including full screen mirroring for iOS and Android devices, as well as adaptive cooling management that adjusts according to the surface it detects (like a table or on your lap).
Dell also incorporates dynamic charging that will fast-charge when a top-up is needed in a hurry, and then ramp down charge speeds to prolong battery health.
Made for Creators
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The inclusion of the Nvidia RTX 3050 graphics card is a clear statement of intent. This is a laptop for content creators, and that GPU serves as a relatively low-cost solution to tackling rendering tasks or high-fidelity 3D work.
The RTX 3050 is the entry-level card in Nvidia’s RTX range, but this means it offers relatively low power consumption, modest heat levels, and decent rendering performance in a compact form factor. Those attributes make it perfect for an affordable and fast productivity machine.
Catering to busy professionals, it supports RTX Studio drivers, which means its core software updates receive extended testing before release to ensure better stability than you might get from Nvidia’s gamer-oriented drivers.
It’s competent enough for some casual gaming at medium settings, too, but don’t expect monster gaming performance. The RTX 3050’s 4GBs of VRAM is a bottleneck that will cause problems in newer titles. This isn’t a gaming laptop, but the option to upgrade the GPU to an RTX 3060 (which has a more capable 6GB of VRAM) is available.
Should You Buy the Dell Inspiron 16 Plus?
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For a “mainstream” productivity laptop — one that aims to deliver great performance at an affordable price — this is one impressively well refined machine.
The new design is classy, feels expensive and has an excellent display. And the tangible elements, like the keyboard and touchpad, are every bit as good as those on premium-class laptops.
With this design refresh, the Inspiron no longer feels like the cheap alternative to the XPS. It’s an excellent choice for creators, and you can own it knowing that, unless you pine for the very brightest screen possible or you’re a snob for diamond-cut aluminum surfaces, you’re not missing out on much at all.
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Mike Jackson
Mike Jackson has been writing for high-profile publications for 16 years, primarily in the video game industry, but also covering tech. Mike is an obsessed video game hoarder with hundreds of games spanning a 30-year collection. An entire room in his house is dedicated to Super Mario, and he thinks the Nintendo Switch is “the best invention in human history.” Counseling may be necessary.