Yes, I know the Dell Inspiron 15 7000 Gaming laptop was updated a few months ago. But hear me out: an even newer update is all for the better. Available starting on September 12, the latest version of the notebook is leaner and more powerful than its predecessors and starts at a reasonable $999.
Now I don't know about you, but I'm a huge fan of the Inspiron 15's flair for the dramatic with its show-stopping red chassis. Dell wisely kept the hue, making the notebook available in Matte Black or Beijing Red. But instead of a soft-touch finish, the notebook has more of a rubberized finish in an effort to repel oily handprints. The new system's 5.8-pound frame is slightly thinner at 15.3 x 10.8 x 0.98 inches, compared to its 5.8-pound, 15.2 x 10.8 x 1-inch predecessor.
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Dim and almost criminally dull, the Inspiron 15 7000 Gaming's displays haven't been the best historically. Dell is hoping to change that by outfitting each system in the new line with an IPS panel. When the new line launches, you'll have a choice between a 1920 x 1080 non-touch anti-glare display, a 1920 x 1080 touchscreen or a 3840 x 2160 anti-glare screen. Keep in mind, that 4K displays aren't cheap, this one and its accompanying premium specs bump the price up to $1,449.
Other configurations of note include the RAM, which you can max out at 32GB, and storage, from a 1TB 5,400-rpm hard drive up to a 512GB PCIe SSD. For graphics cards, you can still outfit your notebook with either an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 or 1050 Ti GPU or make the jump to a GTX 1060. The addition of the 1060 GPU marks the first time this line of notebooks will truly be VR-ready. The laptop will also have a Thunderbolt 3 port which is another first for this series.
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People eagerly waiting for Intel's new 8th-gen processors, will have to wait a while longer. Since Intel has yet to announce its 8th-generation H-series chips, the Inspiron 15 7000 Gaming will be powered with 7th-gen CPUs. You have a choice between a Core i5-7300HQ CPU or a Core i7-7700HQ processor.
While I'm definitely looking forward to reviewing the Inspiron 15 7000 as a gaming notebook, I'm most excited about the battery life. Due to its rather lackluster screen, the previous system lasted more than 11 hours on our battery test. With the new and theoretically better panels, I'm curious to see how it will fare this time around.
