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DELL 8858X Battery Life
Dell ships the notebook with a 4YRJH 6-cell lithium-ion battery rated at 48 Wh.
To determine the maximum run time during idle, we deactivated the WLAN, turned the display brightness all the way down, and enabled the power-saver profile. Our Inspiron manged to run for 4 hours and 45 minutes.
To determine the maximum run time during idle, we deactivated the WLAN, turned the display brightness all the way down, and enabled the power-saver profile. Our Inspiron manged to run for 4 hours and 45 minutes.
To determine battery life using a more realistic scenario, we subjected the test candidate to our WLAN-surf-test. Surfing the internet using WLAN (via an automated script) with a display brightness of 150 cd/m², we measured a run time of 3 hours before having to plug in the adapter.
Those wanting to watch a movie better check the feature length first: a DVD shouldn't be longer than 1 hour and 41 minutes, a Blu-ray 1 hour and 25 minutes.
When we ran our load test using DELL 312-1242 Battery Eater Classic, which renders an animated 3D-scene and places a heavy load on the processor and the graphics card, we recorded a run time of 1 hour. Charging the battery takes about 3 hours and 20 minutes.
Although the processor is able to supply full power while the laptop is on battery, 3DMark 06 showed a drop from 9615 to 5291 points, indicating that the graphics subsystem is running at reduced capacity.
Case
The design is completely new. The unusual placement of the hinges, a distinctive feature of older Inspiron and Vostro models, has been abandoned in favor of a new design. The hinges are now located at the far back of the base unit. Unfortunately, the display lid still can only be tilted back about 140°. The lid is made out of plastic which accepts the interchangeable aluminum covers as inserts. With the cover in place, the display is very resistant to any pressure applied. The hinges are strong and easily keep the display in the desired position.
The base of the unit, save for the palm rest, is made from plastic. The chassis is torsionally very rigid but the surface areas deform under pressure. Build quality could be improved: the top appears well constructed, on the sides we noticed uneven gaps. The locking mechanism for the battery is very solid and user friendly. (TOSHIBA PA3904U-1BRS batteries)
Most of the surfaces are non-glossy. The interchangeable aluminum cover and the palmrest are made from black anodized aluminum and feature an embossed (but subtle) honeycomb pattern. The sides are made from silver plastic. The three quick access buttons and the keyboard panel are painted glossy.
With Switch, Dell is trying to separate the Inspiron notebooks from the rest of the pack. Unfortunately, the selection of covers leaves to be desired. At this time, only a pink, a red, and a blue cover are available for the standard Inspiron 15R. Additional aluminum covers are not offered. The process of changing the cover is easy and thoroughly explained.
Connectivity
Port selection is above average. The front houses a card reader (compatible with SD, SDHC, SDXC, MMC(+), MS (PRO), and xD). The right side is home to a Blu-ray optical drive in the front and two USB 3.0 and the Gigabit LAN jack towards the back.
The notebook is not particularly well suited for left-handers wanting to use an external mouse: the headphone- and microphone-jack, a regular USB 3.0 and one USB 3.0 that is always powered, are on the left side towards the front, followed by a HDMI port. A VGA port and the power jack are located behind the cooling fan outlet. No ports are located on the back.
Keyboard
The keyboard is different from the predecessor's: while the design is similar, the numeric keypad is missing. The keyboard is now the same one found on some Vostro models. A backlit keyboard, the same one the Vostro V131 features, is available as an option (40 Euro) on the top-of-the line model. Typing is a pleasure: the key travel is not too short and the feedback is solid.
Aside from the fairly big and backlit power button, the Inspiron features three shortcut buttons on the top right. The first one opens Windows Mobility Center, which provides an overview of frequently used settings. The second one opens a small window that lets the user choose a profil for the sound card (game, music, movie,..). The third key can be customized as desired. (DELL PRRRF batteries)
Touchpad
The touchpad is adequately sized and allows for precise control. It features a definite (and easily felt) perimeter although the extreme borders don't respond that well. Multitouch is supported and works without issues. The driver properties allow for a plethora of configuration settings so the touchpad can be customized as desired. A key combination turns the touchpad off; a little orange light glows above the touchpad when it's deactivated.
The two mouse buttons are a pleasure to use. They offer clear tactile feedback and respond well even if not pushed dead-center.
Screen
The screen measures 15.6 inches on the diagonal. If you've not been able to decide between the more portable 13-inch laptops or the desktop-friendly 17-inch beasts, 15 inches is an excellent compromise.
Better still, it packs a Full HD resolution making it well suited for media use. Most 15-inch laptops tend to offer a lesser 1,600x900-pixel display or even 1,366x768 pixels -- the resolution offered on the lower-end model -- so it's great to see Dell providing 1080p on a display of this size.
The HD screen means you're now perfectly equipped to enjoy the Blu-ray drive shoved in around the side. I loaded up my Blu-ray copy of of The Art of Flight and spent blissful minutes watching snowboarder Travis Rice descend mountains at terrifying speeds. The screen proved fairly bright and adequately bold although I have seen more vivid screens. (DELL XPS L321X batteries)
It'll certainly do the job for watching a casual movie on the sofa or for looking at Maru's latest exploits on YouTube, but if you want a more cinematic experience then you'll need to hook up your massive TV and sound system using the HDMI port.
The screen has been given a matte coating that helps cut reflections to a minimum. That's particularly handy if you often find yourself working in bright sunlight or harsh office lighting. Reading the fine detail in massive Excel spreadsheets is considerably more comfortable when you're not avoiding staring back at your gawping face.
Speakers
Dell heavily promotes the speakers in the Inspiron 15R. They are sourced from the US company Skullcandy and controlled using Waves MaxxAudio 4. The sound quality is definitely above average. Maximum volume is very high and the speakers never sound distorted. Unfortunately, there is no subwoofer in the Inspiron, so bass is severely lacking. While we can't recommend the Dell for audiophiles for that reason, for movie night or a presentation the system is perfectly usable.
Verdict
The Inspiron 15R Special Edition is designed to appeal predominately to the performance-oriented crowd. Dell spruced up the chassis with aluminum components and installed more powerful hardware to differentiate the model from the standard edition.
The Inspiron-series was completely redesigned. The models now have generously rounded corners and sport a timeless grey-black chassis. Build quality of the base unit and the display lid is good, although we noticed uneven gaps on the sides of the notebook.
Features and port selection are above average. A Blu-ray optical drive, four USB 3.0 ports, and a card reader capable of reading almost all formats are all included. Networking components are up to date and include WLAN b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, and Gigabit-LAN.
The input devices allow using the laptop for extended periods of time without any issues. The keyboard, which provides good feedback, is also used in the Vostro notebooks. The touchpad is adequately sized and has very decent mouse buttons. (TOSHIBA PA3928U-1BRS batteries)
The FullHD-display is a differentiating feature of the Special Edition compared to the standard Inspirons. Since it is very bright and none-glare, it can be used in bright conditions. The generous viewing angles make using the laptop easier and allow several people to watch a Blu-ray movie. The contrast ratio is quite impressive.
The Intel quad-core processor and the middle-class graphics card supplied by AMD allow decent performance and satisfy most use-case scenarios. Most current games can be played successfully in medium or sometimes even high quality mode. We were quite impressed with the very quiet and fast 1 TB hard disc drive. The notebook remains mostly silent but gets quite warm under load.
Manufacturers seem to pay more and more attention to the sound quality of their notebooks. Skullcandy provides the speakers for the Inspiron. The sound is indeed very impressive, albeit lacking bass.
The Inspiron 15R Special Edition is a multimedia-notebook that manages to leave a very good impression in those areas where it really matters: a great display, well-designed input devices, and plenty of performance.
More info: laptop-batteries.com.au , laptop-battery.org.uk , battery-store.eu
