The Dell Precision 5520 is a powerful mobile workstation designed for professionals who demand high performance and portability. It boasts a sleek and modern design, a robust build, and an array of powerful components that cater to demanding workloads, including 3D modeling, video editing, and software development.
In this comprehensive review, we'll delve deep into the Dell Precision 5520, exploring its key features, performance benchmarks, pros and cons, and ultimately helping you determine if it's the right workstation for your needs.
Design and Build
The Dell Precision 5520 features a sophisticated and elegant design that blends seamlessly with modern aesthetics. The sleek, metallic chassis exudes a sense of premium quality and durability, reflecting the workstation's ability to withstand the rigors of daily use.
The precision-engineered aluminum lid, which houses the 15.6-inch display, feels solid and sturdy, ensuring the screen remains protected from scratches and other damage. The lid is also remarkably thin, showcasing Dell's commitment to crafting a portable workstation without sacrificing build quality.
The palm rest area, crafted from carbon fiber, provides a smooth and comfortable typing experience, further enhancing the overall user experience. The keyboard's layout is well-designed, with generous key spacing and a tactile response, allowing for efficient and comfortable typing, even during extended work sessions.
The Precision 5520's footprint is compact, making it ideal for travel. The thin profile, at just under 18mm, and its relatively light weight (around 4.2 pounds), make it easy to slip into a laptop bag and carry around, eliminating the burden of a bulky workstation.
Display
The Dell Precision 5520 is available with a range of display options, catering to the specific needs of professionals in various fields. Here's a breakdown of the key features:
- 15.6-inch 4K UHD (3840x2160) display: This option boasts an impressive resolution, offering exceptional detail and clarity, making it ideal for tasks requiring pixel-perfect precision, such as graphic design and video editing. The 4K display, with its high pixel density, allows for a wider workspace, accommodating more windows and applications simultaneously, enhancing productivity.
- 15.6-inch Full HD (1920x1080) display: This option provides a more affordable choice while delivering a crisp and clear image, making it suitable for everyday work tasks and casual entertainment. The Full HD display strikes a balance between performance and affordability, offering a solid visual experience without exceeding the budget.
Both display options come with a range of features, including:
- Anti-glare coating: This feature minimizes reflections, enhancing screen visibility in various lighting conditions, reducing eye strain during prolonged use.
- Wide viewing angles: The Precision 5520's display boasts wide viewing angles, ensuring consistent color accuracy and image clarity even when viewed from off-axis positions.
- Touchscreen: The touchscreen option, available on certain configurations, provides a more intuitive and interactive way to interact with the workstation.
The display quality on the Dell Precision 5520 is truly commendable, offering vivid colors, excellent contrast, and sharp details. It provides a remarkable visual experience that enhances the overall workflow, making it a key asset for demanding professional tasks.
Performance
The Dell Precision 5520 is powered by Intel's latest 8th-generation Core i5, i7, and i9 processors, offering a choice of CPUs that cater to different performance demands.
The workstation is also equipped with NVIDIA Quadro professional graphics cards, ensuring smooth and responsive performance for demanding applications like 3D modeling, video editing, and CAD software.
The Dell Precision 5520 comes with a variety of memory and storage options, allowing users to customize their workstation to meet specific needs.
Key Performance Features:
- Intel Core i5, i7, and i9 processors: These processors deliver exceptional performance, handling complex tasks and demanding applications with ease. The multi-core architecture allows for efficient processing of multiple applications concurrently, maximizing productivity.
- NVIDIA Quadro professional graphics cards: These graphics cards are specifically designed for demanding professional applications, providing powerful rendering capabilities, smooth performance, and exceptional visual fidelity. The Quadro series is known for its reliability and stability, making it ideal for professionals who require uninterrupted workflows.
- Up to 64GB DDR4 memory: This high-capacity memory allows for seamless multitasking, running multiple applications simultaneously without performance degradation. The fast data access speeds offered by DDR4 memory enhance overall system responsiveness, enabling seamless switching between applications.
- Up to 4TB PCIe NVMe SSD: This high-speed storage solution provides blazing-fast data transfer rates, significantly reducing loading times for large files and applications. The NVMe SSDs enhance the overall responsiveness of the workstation, making it a pleasure to use.
The combination of these high-performance components results in a workstation that can handle even the most demanding tasks. Whether you're working with complex 3D models, rendering high-resolution videos, or compiling massive software projects, the Precision 5520 delivers the power and speed you need to get the job done.
Ports and Connectivity
The Dell Precision 5520 boasts an array of ports, offering extensive connectivity options for professionals who need to connect a wide range of peripherals.
- Thunderbolt 3 port: This versatile port allows for high-speed data transfer, connecting external devices like high-resolution displays, fast storage drives, and docking stations. It offers unparalleled flexibility and speeds, making it an essential port for professionals who rely on external peripherals.
- HDMI port: This standard port provides a convenient way to connect external monitors, projectors, and other HDMI-compatible devices.
- Mini DisplayPort: This port offers an alternative to HDMI, allowing for the connection of high-resolution displays.
- SD card reader: This feature allows for convenient data transfer from SD cards, making it ideal for photographers, videographers, and other professionals who work with memory cards.
- USB 3.1 Gen 1 and Gen 2 ports: These ports provide a variety of options for connecting a range of peripherals, including external hard drives, printers, and USB devices. The Gen 2 ports offer faster data transfer speeds than their predecessors.
- Ethernet port: This port provides a reliable and secure wired connection to the internet, ensuring uninterrupted connectivity for demanding applications and data transfer.
The Dell Precision 5520's comprehensive port selection ensures that you have the flexibility to connect all of your essential peripherals, regardless of your specific workflow.
Battery Life
The Dell Precision 5520 offers a decent battery life, considering its powerful components and demanding nature. The 6-cell battery, with a capacity of 60 Wh, provides up to 8 hours of mixed usage, which is sufficient for most professionals who spend a significant portion of their workday on the go.
Factors like display brightness, network connectivity, and application usage can significantly impact battery life. For users who prioritize extended battery life, using the Full HD display option, enabling power-saving modes, and minimizing the use of power-hungry applications can help extend the battery's runtime.
Software and Features
The Dell Precision 5520 comes pre-loaded with a range of software and features designed to enhance productivity and streamline workflows for professionals.
- Dell Precision Optimizer: This software suite optimizes the workstation's performance by analyzing the system's hardware and software configuration, identifying bottlenecks and suggesting performance enhancements. It allows for personalized tuning, ensuring optimal performance for specific applications and workloads.
- Dell Command | Update: This software simplifies the process of updating drivers and firmware, ensuring that the workstation is always running the latest software versions, improving performance, stability, and security.
- Dell PremierColor: This software enables precise color calibration, ensuring accurate color reproduction for demanding applications like graphic design, video editing, and photography.
- Dell Mobile Connect: This feature seamlessly integrates the workstation with mobile devices, allowing users to receive notifications, make and receive calls, and share files between their laptop and smartphone.
- Windows 10 Pro: This operating system offers a comprehensive and feature-rich platform for professional users, including enhanced security features, advanced management tools, and access to a wide range of business applications.
These software features and tools make the Dell Precision 5520 a more user-friendly and efficient workstation for professionals who demand a seamless and productive workflow.
Price and Value
The Dell Precision 5520 is a premium workstation that reflects its high-end performance and features in its price. The starting price is around $1,600, but the price can fluctuate based on the chosen configuration, including processor, memory, storage, and display options.
Price Breakdown:
- Core i5 processor, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, Full HD display: This configuration, offering a solid entry point for professionals seeking a balance of performance and affordability, typically starts around $1,600.
- Core i7 processor, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, 4K display: This configuration caters to professionals demanding a high-performance workstation with a premium display, offering a price point around $2,500.
- Core i9 processor, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD, 4K display: This configuration targets professionals with the most demanding workflows, offering top-of-the-line performance and a price point around $3,500.
While the Dell Precision 5520's price may seem steep, it's important to consider the value it offers. The workstation's powerful components, robust build, and versatile features make it a compelling investment for professionals who require a reliable and high-performing device for their demanding workloads.
Conclusion
The Dell Precision 5520 is a powerful and versatile mobile workstation that caters to the specific needs of professionals in various fields. Its sleek and modern design, robust build, and powerful components ensure that it can handle even the most demanding tasks, while its portability makes it ideal for professionals who work on the go.
The Dell Precision 5520 stands out as an excellent choice for professionals in fields like graphic design, video editing, software development, CAD, and other demanding applications. The combination of its powerful components, extensive connectivity options, and user-friendly software features makes it a highly productive and reliable workstation that can help professionals achieve their goals.
FAQs
Q1: Is the Dell Precision 5520 good for gaming?
While the Dell Precision 5520's NVIDIA Quadro graphics cards offer impressive performance for professional applications, they aren't designed for gaming. Gaming performance on the Precision 5520 might not be as robust as dedicated gaming laptops.
Q2: What is the difference between the Dell Precision 5520 and the Dell XPS 15?
The Dell Precision 5520 is a mobile workstation designed for professional workloads, while the Dell XPS 15 is a high-end consumer laptop. The Precision 5520 comes equipped with professional-grade components, including NVIDIA Quadro graphics cards and software optimization for professional applications. The XPS 15, on the other hand, is designed for general-purpose tasks like web browsing, video streaming, and light productivity, with a focus on aesthetics and entertainment.
Q3: How long does the Dell Precision 5520's battery last?
The Dell Precision 5520's battery life can vary based on usage patterns, but it typically offers around 8 hours of mixed usage.
Q4: Does the Dell Precision 5520 have a Thunderbolt 3 port?
Yes, the Dell Precision 5520 features a Thunderbolt 3 port, which provides high-speed data transfer and versatile connectivity options.
Q5: Can I upgrade the memory and storage on the Dell Precision 5520?
While the Precision 5520 offers a wide range of memory and storage options at the time of purchase, upgrading these components after purchase can be challenging. The workstation's design may restrict access to these components, making upgrades difficult.