Amazing Performance, Thigh Blistering Heat, Wife Annoying Fan Noises!
TLDR: Absolutely stunning performance worth every $$$ - Insane heat while gaming will blister your thighs if sitting on your lap - As quiet as a neon green Lamborghini with no muffler. Keyboard can be heard clicking from 100' away. Backstory: I purchased this computer last year during the height of the graphics card shortages because of the RTX 3080 built in. I've never had a gaming laptop prior to this but the specs were hard to argue with so I pulled the trigger. I primarily needed to replace the laptop I used for work, but I also edit videos and do some gaming, so I decided to just go all out and get something that could fill all roles. Fan & Keyboard Noise: I did a lot of research before purchasing this setup and many people complained about the fan noises. The software scales fan performance very well based on CPU usage. For normal use the fans are inaudible, but when pushing the CPU (typically while gaming) the fan will ramp up to full speed and it is very loud. I personally don't mind the sound but I have had many people ask me if my computer was OK. I guess they expected wisps of smoke to start pouring out based on the intensity of the noise it was making. My wife will often watch TV and I have been banned from sitting next to her on the couch because the fan noise makes it harder to hear the TV. The big surprise for me was how loud the keyboard is when typing. I LOVE the satisfying click feel compared to most laptop keyboards, but the noise it makes is embarrassingly loud when sitting in a room trying to take notes. If you plan to use this for school/work just keep that in mind! Performance: The speed of this computer is epic. I max out all settings and have yet to see any noticeable issues with any games. Video compiling in Adobe is awesome and the screen is beautiful. Boot up is close to instant. I didn't realize the power unit for this computer is much stronger than normal Dell units. I have a standard Dell power unit at my office and when using it the computer will not allow max performance. This isn't an issue for me because I do not need to push CPU at work, but I found in interesting. Speaking of power, battery life is something to consider. Even at reduced power settings I will see 1-2 hours before the battery is depleted. Running off batteries with the standard settings also reduces performance by several orders of magnitude. Many games will stutter with high settings. I found this to be an acceptable compromise but worth considering for your needs. Issues: So far, after 12 months of ownership I've had little to complain about. My "S" key cap started to de-laminate and recently cracked in half, causing me to reach out to Dell about the warranty. They are sending a technician out in a couple days to replace the keyboard for me at no cost. Hard to complain about that. It also seems like there are a few companies that offer replacement key caps for a nominal fee which I suspect I'll need to take advantage of when the warranty period is over. Heat: OMG! I cannot express how hot this thing gets when running flat out. I highly suggest placing something between your thighs and the bottom of this PC. That said, I have yet to see any heat related performance issues so I gather the heat management is doing something correct. All-in-all I really struggled to plunk down the huge $$$ of this setup but at this point I am beyond happy with the value. I may get a cheap tablet or similar for the rare times I want to be subtle when taking notes in a professional setting, but having all the power of a high end desktop in a portable package is awesome. Read more













