Dell XPS 15 9530 review

The Dell XPS series from Dell has been in existence for more than ten years. It has only seen a few significant design alterations throughout this time. Since Dell has consistently outperformed its rivals in this area, we must be forgiving of them from this viewpoint.

The Dell XPS 15 9530 was reborn (just in terms of its name, of course) as a result of the device’s yearly improvements, which result in an appropriate name change.

The 13th Gen Intel CPUs are present in this 2023 model. You also have access to a variety of graphics cards. Due to the fact that it is now also a supplier of low-end gaming GPUs, in this case the Arc A370M, Intel has further encroached upon the laptop market.

However, if you want something more potent and respectable, you may look to NVIDIA’s offerings, which include the RTX 4050, RTX 4060, and RTX 4070. However, due to the poor thermal capacity of the chassis, they are all fairly low in TGP.

What’s inside the Box

You’ll find some papers, a 130W charger, a USB Type-C to USB Type-A and HDMI dongle within the package.

Design

Unsurprisingly, there has been absolutely no modification in the product’s design. It still has a carbon fibre and aluminium construction, and its body is still incredibly thin. The combined weight of the IPS and OLED models is 1.92 kg and 1.96 kg, respectively.

The fact that the lid of this laptop is so hard is usually outrageous. In actuality, it is less flex-prone than the base. Because of the thin tolerances there, when you rotate the base excessively, the touchpad detects clicks.

Fortunately, opening the lid just requires one hand. Its bezels are so tiny they hardly even exist. Even an HD Web camera and an IR face recognition scanner were integrated by Dell.

The base has the recognisable braided carbon fibre finish and two speakers that are placed around the keyboard. The board’s top-right corner has the power button, which also functions as a fingerprint reader. It offers good key travel and clicky feedback in terms of comfort.

A sizable touchpad can be seen underneath it. It features an incredibly smooth surface, precise tracking, and an incredibly quick response.

You also get two speakers on the bottom in addition to the two front-firing speakers. The ventilation grill can be found here as well. Similarly, hot air is expelled through a vent on the base’s rear.

Ports

Two Thunderbolt 4 ports and a security lock slot are located on the left side. An audio jack, an SD card slot, and a USB Type-C 3.2 (Gen. 2) port with Power Delivery and DisplayPort capability are then located on the right.

Display

Sharp DW7XN-LQ156N1 (SHP1515) Full HD IPS display is a feature of the Dell XPS 15 9530. It has a refresh rate of 60Hz. the resolution is 1920 x 1200p, and the diagonal is 15.6′′ (39.6 cm). The 16:10 aspect ratio, 145 ppi pixel density, and 0.18 x 0.18 mm pixel pitch are additional details. When seen from a distance of at least 60 cm, the screen can be deemed Retina (from this distance, the typical human eye cannot discern the individual pixels).

There are good viewing angles. To assess the quality, we present photographs taken from various perspectives.

With a maximum variation of 15%, the maximum measured brightness is 564 nits (cd/m2) in the centre of the screen and 533 nits (cd/m2) on average throughout the surface. On a white screen with maximum brightness, the Correlated Colour Temperature is 7010K.
You can see how the display works from a uniformity perspective in the example below. The example below demonstrates how things work for operational brightness levels (about 140 nits), in this case at 25% Brightness (White level = 143 cd/m2, Black level = 0.09 cd/m2).
If you want to use the laptop for work that requires a high level of colour sensitivity, values of dE2000 > 4.0 should not occur (a maximum tolerance of 2.0). The 1630:1 contrast ratio is excellent.

We want to offer you a brief introduction to the sRGB colour gamut and the Adobe RGB to make sure we are all on the same page. The CIE 1976 Uniform Chromaticity Diagram is a good place to start because it depicts the range of colours that can be seen by the human eye and helps you understand how well the colour gamut is covered.

The standard colour gamut (sRGB), which is utilised by millions of people on HDTV and the web, may be seen inside the black triangle. Regarding Adobe RGB, it is utilised for printing in professional cameras, monitors, etc. The majority of colours are employed inside the black triangle, and this is what makes a typical notebook’s colour quality and colour accuracy so important.

However, we’ve also included alternative colour spaces, such as the widely used DCI-P3 standard for film production and the digital UHD Rec. 2020 standard. However, Rec.2020 is still a thing of the future, and current displays struggle to adequately depict that. The so-called Michael Pointer gamut, often known as Pointer’s gamut, which stands for the hues that surround us every day in nature, is also featured.

The colour gamut coverage of the Dell XPS 15 9530 is shown by the yellow dotted line.

Its display covers 90% of DCI-P3 and 100% of the sRGB/ITU-R BT.709 (web/HDTV standard) in CIE 1976.

The ideal colour temperature (6500K) is delivered by our “Design and Gaming” profile at 140 cd/m2 brightness and sRGB gamma mode.

With 24 frequently used colours, like light and dark human skin, blue skies, green grass, orange, etc., we evaluated the display’s accuracy. Results can be viewed both under factory settings and while using the “Design and Gaming” profile.

Below you can see a comparison of the Dell XPS 15 9530’s test results using the factory default settings (on the left) and the “Gaming and Web design” profile (on the right).

The next image demonstrates how well the display can simulate extremely dark areas of an image, which is crucial for watching films or playing video games in dimly lit environments.

The image’s right side shows the display with “Gaming and Web Design” profile activated, while the left side shows the display with its default settings. The grayscale is located on the horizontal axis, and the luminance of the display is located on the vertical axis. You can quickly see for yourself on the two graphs below how your display handles the deepest nuances, but bear in mind that this also varies on your display’s settings, calibration, viewing angle, and external lighting conditions.

Response time (Gaming capabilities)

Using the traditional “black-to-white” and “white-to-black” methods, we measure the pixel response times from 10% to 90% and the opposite.

We noted the following: Fall Time + Rise Time = 30 ms.

Then, using the standard “Gray-to-Gray” approach, we examine the pixel response times between 10% and 90% of the amplitude and 50% White to 80% White.

Health Impact: PWM (Screen flickering)

Monitor brightness can be easily adjusted using pulse-width modulation (PWM). The backlight’s light output is not reduced when the brightness is reduced; instead, the electronics turn the backlight on and off at a frequency that is undetectable to the human eye. These light impulses hurt your eyes because the brightness doesn’t fluctuate while the light/no-light duration ratio does. Our specialised article on PWM has further information about that.

The display on the Dell XPS 15 9530 doesn’t flicker at any brightness setting. This makes using the screen for extended periods of time fairly comfortable.

Health Impact: Blue light emissions

By installing our Health-Guard profile, you may get rid of PWM and lessen the hazardous Blue Light emissions while maintaining the perceptually accurate colours of the screen. If you’re not familiar with blue light, the short explanation is that it emits rays that are bad for your skin, eyes, and overall health. More details on it are available in our special post on blue light.

Health Impact: Gloss-level measurement

Glossy-coated displays can occasionally be uncomfortable in bright environments. When the display is off and the measuring angle is 60°, we present the amount of reflection on the screen for the relevant laptop (in this case, the result is 53.2 GU).

Sound

The quad-stereo speakers on the Dell XPS 15 9530 deliver amazing sound. The device is ideal for watching films and listening to music because it has a powerful bass and lively mids and highs. In addition, there are no alterations in the low, mid, or high tones.

Performance: CPU, GPU, Gaming Tests

CPU options

This laptop can be found with the Core i5-13500H, Core i7-13700H, or Core i9-13900H.

3d Render

GPU options

In terms of graphics, you can pick from the Intel Arc A370M, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 (50W), RTX 4060, or RTX 4070.

Gaming test

Metro Exodus	Full HD, Low (Check settings)	Full HD, High (Check settings)	Full HD, Extreme (Check settings)
Average FPS	112 fps	57 fps	27 fps

Shadow of the Tomb Raider (2018)	Full HD, Medium (Check settings)	Full HD, High (Check settings)	Full HD, Highest (Check settings)
Average	86 fps	73 fps	57 fps

Temperatures and comfort, Battery Life

Max CPU load

In this test, we employ 100% of the CPU cores while keeping an eye on the chip’s temperature and frequency. The first column displays a computer’s response to a brief load (2–10 seconds), the second column mimics a demanding activity (15–30 seconds), and the third column provides a useful indication of how well the laptop performs under prolonged loads, such as those required for video rendering.

Intel Core i7-13700H (45W TDP)	0:02 – 0:10 sec	0:15 – 0:30 sec	10:00 – 15:00 min
Dell XPS 15 9530	3.28 GHz @ 2.57 GHz @ 94°C @ 85W	2.95 GHz @ 2.20 GHz @ 95°C @ 65W	2.51 GHz @ 1.90 GHz @ 82°C @ 45W
Acer Swift X 14 (SFX14-71G)	1.36 GHz @ 3.23 GHz @ 80°C @ 80W	0.40 GHz @ 1.95 GHz @ 54°C @ 20W	0.60 GHz @ 3.16 GHz @ 83°C @ 50W
MSI Stealth 16 Studio (A13V)	3.77 GHz @ 2.34 GHz @ 87°C @ 101W	3.61 GHz @ 2.32 GHz @ 87°C @ 91W	3.62 GHz @ 2.43 GHz @ 87°C @ 92W
Acer Swift Go 14 (SFG14-71)	3.13 GHz @ 2.34 GHz @ 75°C @ 67W	3.08 GHz @ 2.32 GHz @ 91°C @ 66W	2.46 GHz @ 1.83 GHz @ 89°C @ 43W
MSI Pulse 15 (B13V)	3.70 GHz @ 2.36 GHz @ 86°C @ 96W	3.52 GHz @ 2.37 GHz @ 87°C @ 89W	3.23 GHz @ 2.54 GHz @ 77°C @ 87W
MSI Vector GP77	3.86 GHz @ 3.08 GHz @ 89°C @ 135W	3.75 GHz @ 3.10 GHz @ 94°C @ 128W	3.24 GHz @ 3.00 GHz @ 81°C @ 90W

In spite of the Core i7-13700H’s lower performance, the Dell XPS 15 9530 is surprisingly excellent given its cooling limitations.

Real-life gaming

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050	GPU frequency/ Core temp (after 2 min)	GPU frequency/ Core temp (after 30 min)	Max fans
Dell XPS 15 9530	1709 MHz @ 77°C @ 45W	1828 MHz @ 72°C @ 45W	–
Lenovo LOQ (16″ Intel, 2023)	2685 MHz @ 71°C @ 88W	2670 MHz @ 79°C @ 90W	–
MSI Bravo 15 C7V	2535 MHz @ 72°C @ 89W	2535 MHz @ 74°C @ 89W	–
ASUS TUF Gaming F15 (FX507, 2023)	2595 MHz @ 69°C @ 90W	2595 MHz @ 67°C @ 89W	–
MSI Cyborg 15 (A12V)	1812 MHz @ 64°C @ 45W	1806 MHz @ 67°C @ 45W	–
MSI Katana 15 (B13V)	2540 MHz @ 74°C @ 85W	2540 MHz @ 74°C @ 85W

As you can see, the circumstances at the second minute and that at the conclusion of the exam are very different. This laptop wants to remain quiet, which is the main cause of that. It doesn’t actually sound too loud, even after 30 minutes of gaming, which is wonderful for comfort.

Gaming comfort

The XPS 15 9530 is not just quiet but also a little too heated. not in a nice manner, though. Instead of warming your heart, it will keep your fingertips perspirant and greasy.

Battery

Now that Windows Better performance is enabled, the screen brightness is set to 120 nits, and all other programmes are closed other than the one we are using to evaluate the notebook, we do the battery tests. The battery pack in our setup has an 86Wh capacity. It may be used for either 16 hours and 26 minutes of movie playback or 17 hours and 13 minutes of web browsing.

Disassembly, Upgrade options, and Maintenance

You must remove a total of 8 Torx-head screws in order to gain access to this notebook’s internals. The bottom panel should then be pried using a plastic tool, beginning at the front two corners.

We discover an 86Wh battery pack inside. It can play videos for 16 hours and 30 minutes or 17 hours of web browsing. Remove the 8 Phillips-head screws holding the battery to the chassis and unhook the connector from the motherboard to remove it.

Here, there are two RAM SODIMM slots that can accommodate up to 64GB of dual-channel DDR5 memory. There are two M.2 PCIe x4 slots for storage, which support Gen 4 SSDs.

Two heat pipes on this device are shared by the GPU and CPU. You also receive two fans, two heat sinks, and a few heat spreaders for the graphics RAM and VRMs.

Our Verdict

The XPS 15 9530 is not your typical laptop, let’s face it. And it shouldn’t be handled in that way. This machine might not appear to be very effective if we do that. Consider the rough results of the temperature test. Even when the “Ultra Performance” profile was utilised, you won’t be able to tell how silently the device operated by looking at them.

In actuality, nevertheless, the device fulfils your needs exactly. It has excellent speakers and a comfortable keyboard and touchpad. A vibration unlike any other is produced by the 3W woofers.

Its default screen setting alone is a work of art. This variant of the Dell XPS 15 9530’s display features an IPS panel with a WUXGA resolution, good viewing angles, and a high contrast ratio. Its maximum brightness is exceptionally high, and 100% of the sRGB and 90% of the DCI-P3 colour gamuts are covered.

Furthermore, as might be expected from this specific notebook, its colour accuracy is rather good. Additionally, the screen doesn’t regulate its brightness via PWM. This makes it comfortable to use for extended periods of time without doing too much damage to your eyes or brain.

It comes as no surprise that this is the MacBook Pro’s main rival. Dell gives you the option to update your RAM and storage, in contrast to Apple. Despite the XPS 15’s lacklustre connector choices, you still receive an HDMI dongle and a USB Type-C to USB Type-A converter within the box.

For a device that hasn’t changed much in the last three years (or more), that’s definitely not terrible. Fortunately, its battery life is so lengthy that, if you don’t have any demanding tasks to complete on your laptop, you can comfortably work for two days straight.

Overall, this shows that the Dell XPS 15 9530 is still one of the greatest workhorse computers available, despite the design team’s complete lack of effort this year and the slight generational change.

PRO’S & Con’s