Thanks to the technology evolving, a lot of the modern mid-range and low-range devices can be used for both office and home tasks. Nowadays, even some inexpensive CPUs have at least six cores or even more which is great for the regular user. In this article, we'll show you a laptop that is suitable for normal daily tasks and for office usage as well. The notebook is called Dell Vostro 15 3530 and it comes with 13th Gen Intel Raptor Lake U-series CPU options that can be pretty efficient if the manufacturer optimization is done in the right way. Some of the important extras are optional - like the backlit keyboard and the fingerprint reader. The base display option is a prehistoric 768p TN display and this sounds so outdated in 2023. You have to avoid this one by any means necessary because the optional 120Hz IPS panel should be the way to go for most users if money isn't a problem. We can also spot an NVIDIA dGPU option in the specs and that's kind of a surprise given the low price tag of the device. We didn't find such a laptop but we bought one with the most powerful CPU option in order to torture the cooling solution. This is the weak spot of some Dell devices like the Vostro 16 5630 so let's see if this one can surprise us with a better cooling system than its more premium sibling. You can check the prices and configurations in our Specs System: https://laptopmedia.com/series/dell-vostro-15-3530-integrated/ Specs, Drivers, What's in the box Drivers All drivers and utilities for this notebook can be found here: https://www.dell.com/support/home/en-us/product-support/product/vostro-15-3530-laptop/drivers What's in the box? Inside the box, you'll find some manuals and a 65W charger. Design and construction The design is clean and mature, with Dell branding in the center of the lid. The rounded corners and the neutral color scheme (Titan Gray Aluminum) make this laptop suitable for almost all kinds of working environments. The machine is available in two versions - with an aluminum chassis or you can also find a plastic version of this laptop. The metal version has a profile of 15.52 - 17.50 mm and the weight is 1.94 kg. The plastic model is a bit thicker (16.96 - 19.00 mm) but it's slightly lighter - 1.90 kg. Our machine is the metal version but unfortunately, the lid is kind of spongy in the middle even when it's closed. In addition, you can't open it with a single hand and we spotted some flexes when we tried to twist the unit. Aside from that, the bezels around the display are thin. The upper one houses a 1080p Web camera with a privacy shutter. This only applies to the metal iteration of this laptop, the plastic models come with a 720p Web camera without a mechanical shutter. The keyboard is good - it has a backlight (option) it's spill-resistant, and the NumPad section is always appreciated. The board is suitable for long typing sessions because of the long key travel and the clicky feedback. The touchpad isn't big (115 mm x 80 mm) but it's smooth and accurate. Some devices have a built-in fingerprint reader in the Power button. The so-called "lift hinge" is a clever feature. When the lid is opened at almost 90 degrees, the lower part of it will lift the back of the laptop. This contributes to better ergonomics during typing and also more fresh air will reach the cooling fan. Sadly, the base isn't very stable, the central part of the keyboard is flexible while typing and the same goes for the area around the touchpad. On the bottom panel, we can see four rubber feet, a small ventilation grille, and two speaker cutouts. The hot air is exhausted through a vent located on the back of the laptop that is aimed at the lower part of the display. Sadly, this is a trademark "feature" for many other modern laptops. Ports The port selection is modest. On the left, there is a charging plug, an HDMI 1.4 connector, a USB Type-A 3.2 (Gen. 1) port, and a USB Type-C 3.2 (Gen. 1) port with DisplayPort 1.4 and Power Delivery capabilities (the Type-C port of the plastic version of the laptop lacks these two extras). On the right side, we can see a security lock slot, an Audio jack, a LAN port, a USB 2.0 port, and an SD 3.0 card reader. Display quality, Health impact (PWM), Sound Dell Vostro 15 3530 is equipped with a Full HD IPS panel, model number TK0DH-NE156FH (NCP005F). It comes with a 120Hz refresh rate. Its diagonal is 15.6" (39.6 cm), and the resolution - 1920 x 1080p. Additionally, the screen ratio is 16:9, the pixel density – 142 ppi, and their pitch – 0.18 x 0.18 mm. The screen can be considered Retina when viewed from at least 60 cm (from this distance, the average human eye can’t see the individual pixels). Viewing angles are comfortable. We offer images at different angles to evaluate the quality. Also, a video with locked focus and exposure. The maximum measured brightness is 305 nits (cd/m2) in the middle of the screen and 284 nits (cd/m2) average across the surface with a maximum deviation of 12%. The Correlated Color Temperature on a white screen and at maximum brightness is 7230K (average). In the illustration below you can see how the display performs from a uniformity perspective. The illustration below shows how matters are for operational brightness levels (approximately 140 nits) – in this particular case at 46% Brightness (White level = 142 cd/m2, Black level = 0.1 cd/m2). Values of dE2000 over 4.0 should not occur, and this parameter is one of the first you should check if you intend to use the laptop for color-sensitive work (a maximum tolerance of 2.0 ). The contrast ratio is good – 1420:1. To make sure we are on the same page, we would like to give you a little introduction to the sRGB color gamut and the Adobe RGB. To start, there’s the CIE 1976 Uniform Chromaticity Diagram that represents the visible specter of colors by the human eye, giving you a better perception of the color gamut coverage and the color accuracy. Inside the black triangle, you will see the standard color gamut (sRGB) that is being used by millions of people on HDTV and on the web. As for the Adobe RGB, this is used in professional cameras, monitors, etc for printing. Basically, colors inside the black triangle are used by everyone and this is the essential part of the color quality and color accuracy of a mainstream notebook. Still, we’ve included other color spaces like the famous DCI-P3 standard used by movie studios, as well as the digital UHD Rec.2020 standard. Rec.2020, however, is still a thing of the future and it’s difficult for today’s displays to cover that well. We’ve also included the so-called Michael Pointer gamut, or Pointer’s gamut, which represents the colors that naturally occur around us every day. The yellow dotted line shows Dell Vostro 15 3530's color gamut coverage. Its display covers 55% of the sRGB/ITU-R BT.709 (web/HDTV standard) in CIE1976 and 43% of DCI-P3. Our “Design and Gaming” profile delivers optimal color temperature (6500K) at 140 cd/m2 luminance and sRGB gamma mode. We tested the accuracy of the display with 24 commonly used colors like light and dark human skin, blue sky, green grass, orange, etc. You can check out the results at factory condition and also, with the “Design and Gaming” profile. Below you can compare the scores of the Dell Vostro 15 3530 with the default settings (left), and with the “Gaming and Web design” profile (right). The next figure shows how well the display is able to reproduce really dark parts of an image, which is essential when watching movies or playing games in low ambient light. The left side of the image represents the display with stock settings, while the right one is with the “Gaming and Web Design” profile activated. On the horizontal axis, you will find the grayscale, and on the vertical axis – the luminance of the display. On the two graphs below you can easily check for yourself how your display handles the darkest nuances but keep in mind that this also depends on the settings of your current display, the calibration, the viewing angle, and the surrounding light conditions. Response time (Gaming capabilities) We test the reaction time of the pixels with the usual “black-to-white” and “white-to-black” method from 10% to 90% and vice versa. We recorded Fall Time + Rise Time = 21 ms. After that, we test the reaction time of the pixels with the usual “Gray-to-Gray” method from 50% White to 80% White and vice versa between 10% and 90% of the amplitude. Health Impact: PWM (Screen flickering) Pulse-width modulation (PWM) is an easy way to control monitor brightness. When you lower the brightness, the light intensity of the backlight is not lowered, but instead turned off and on by the electronics with a frequency indistinguishable to the human eye. In these light impulses, the light/no-light time ratio varies, while brightness remains unchanged, which is harmful to your eyes. You can read more about that in our dedicated article on PWM. Dell Vostro 15 3530's display doesn't flicker at any brightness level. This makes the screen pretty comfortable for long periods of use. Health Impact: Blue light emissions Installing our Health-Guard profile not only eliminates PWM but also reduces the harmful Blue Light emissions while keeping the colors of the screen perceptually accurate. If you’re not familiar with the Blue light, the TL;DR version is – emissions that negatively affect your eyes, skin, and your whole body. You can find more information about that in our dedicated article on Blue Light. Health Impact: Gloss-level measurement Glossy-coated displays are sometimes inconvenient in high ambient light conditions. We show the level of reflection on the screen for the respective laptop when the display is turned off and the measurement angle is 60° (in this case, the result is 62.1 GU). Sound Dell Vostro 15 3530's speakers produce a sound of pretty good quality. Its low, mid, and high tones are clear of deviations. Buy our profiles Since our profiles are tailored for each individual display model, this article and its respective profile package are meant for Dell Vostro 15 3530 configurations with 15.6" TK0DH-NE156FH (NCP005F) (1920 x 1080) IPS. *Should you have problems with downloading the purchased file, try using a different browser to open the link you’ll receive via e-mail. If the download target is a .php file instead of an archive, change the file extension to .zip or contact us at bg.laptopmedia@gmail.com. Read more about the profiles HERE. Performance: CPU, GPU, Gaming Tests CPU options You can choose between four CPU options - Intel Processor U300, Core i3-1305U, Core i5-1335U, or Core i7-1355U. Both Core i5 and Core i7 chips have 10 cores, 12 threads, and 12MB cache size. The Core i7 model boasts higher frequencies and a more potent iGPU. GPU options Speaking of integrated graphics, depending on the processor model, the iGPU variants are the following - the Intel UHD Graphics Xe G4 (48EU), UHD Graphics (Alder Lake, 64EU), Iris Xe Graphics G7 (80EU), and Iris Xe Graphics G7 (96EU). There is an optional dGPU variant for people who want to play some CS:GO after work - the NVIDIA GeForce MX550 with 2GB GDDR6 memory. Gaming tests CS:GO Full HD, Low (Check settings) Full HD, Medium (Check settings) Full HD, MAX (Check settings) Average FPS 110 fps 96 fps 54 fps DOTA 2 Full HD, Low (Check settings) Full HD, Medium (Check settings) Full HD, High (Check settings) Average FPS 120 fps 64 fps 37 fps Despite the fact that the tested Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7 (96EU) can allocate up to 8GB of system memory, the performance is mediocre even for an integrated solution. The Dell Vostro 16 5630 with its least powerful Iris Xe Graphics G7 (80EU) is able to outscore with ease the Vostro 15 3530 when it comes to gaming, despite the fact that the 5630 version has weak cooling. [eBook Guide + Tools] How to MAX OUT your Laptop Temperatures and comfort, Battery Life Max CPU load In this test we use 100% on the CPU cores, monitoring their frequencies and chip temperature. The first column shows a computer’s reaction to a short load (2-10 seconds), the second column simulates a serious task (between 15 and 30 seconds), and the third column is a good indicator of how good the laptop is for long loads such as video rendering. Average P-core frequency; Average E-core frequency; CPU temp.; Package Power Intel Core i7-1355U (15W TDP) 0:02 - 0:10 sec 0:15 - 0:30 sec 10:00 - 15:00 min Dell Vostro 15 3530 2.06 GHz @ 2.70 GHz @ 94°C @ 40W 1.56 GHz @ 2.22 GHz @ 96°C @ 26W 2.06 GHz @ 2.25 GHz @ 95°C @ 26W Lenovo Yoga Book 9 (13IRU8) 2.23 GHz @ 2.58 GHz @ 76°C @ 40W 2.13 GHz @ 2.42 GHz @ 85°C @ 35W 1.64 GHz @ 2.03 GHz @ 77°C @ 24W ASUS Zenbook S 13 OLED (UX5304) 3.46 GHz @ 2.47 GHz @ 80°C @ 41W 3.06 GHz @ 2.24 GHz @ 91°C @ 31W 2.36 GHz @ 1.68 GHz @ 75°C @ 21W The cooling solution is so basic with one fan and one heat pipe. The P cores frequencies are lower compared to the ASUS Zenbook S 13 OLED (UX5304) while the E cores clock isn't bad at all during any kind of load. The CPU power limit seems okay for the class even after 15 minutes of torture. Alas, the processor temperatures are always in the 94°C - 96°C zone which isn't good at all. However, the performance in short loads is good and that's why the machine feels snappy while using it for normal tasks. Comfort during full load Luckily, the laptop isn't noisy even when the "Ultra Performance" preset is applied. Yes, you can hear the fans but the noise levels are completely fine for work. The "Optimized" or "Quiet" presets offer even lower noise levels. The central part of the keyboard is getting hot under load. You can use the board for typing but you're going to sense the heat under your fingers if the CPU is working hard. During normal usage, the external thermals are much cooler. Battery Now, we conduct the battery tests with the Windows Better performance setting turned on, screen brightness adjusted to 120 nits and all other programs turned off except for the one we are testing the notebook with. Our laptop is configured with a bigger 54Wh battery option. It lasts for 10 hours of Web browsing or 7 hours and 9 minutes of video playback. The result isn't impressive given the efficient U-series CPU under the hood. Storage performance Our machine is equipped with an SK Hynix BC901 512GB NVMe. Below you can see some benchmarks of this small 2230 Gen. 4 SSD. During testing, its temperatures didn't exceed 37°C so thermal throttling isn't an issue here. Disassembly, Upgrade options, and Maintenance To remove the bottom plate, you have to undo 8 Phillips-head screws. The ones in the top two corners are captive and after unscrewing them, they will lift the panel slightly and that's the right time to start popping the plate with a plastic tool. The battery of our laptop is an optional 54Wh unit. The base version is a 41Wh model. If you want to remove the unit, first, you have to pull out the battery connector from the mainboard. Then, you have to undo the four Phillips-head screws that are fixing the battery to the base. The capacity is enough for 10 hours of Web browsing or 7 hours and 9 minutes of video playback. There are two SODIMMs that can handle up to 16GB of DDR4-3200MHz or DDR4-2666MHz RAM. The devices with a regular Type-C port are shipped with slower memory, while the ones with a Type-C port that supports DisplayPort 1.4 and Power Delivery capabilities are shipped with faster memory. For storage, you can rely on a single M.2 slot compatible with 2230 or 2280 Gen 4 SSDs. As you can see, our device is equipped with a shorter NVMe model. The SSD is protected by a metal shroud that has a small thermal pad on the inside. The cooling solution is rather basic. It comprises just one fan and one heat pipe. We can also see one heat sink and one heat spreader. Verdict The Dell Vostro 15 3530 is kind of a mixed bag. We got the metal version of the device with the most powerful CPU option (Core i7-1355U) and with maxed-out memory configuration (2x 8GB DDR4-3200MHz). This sounds good on paper but in reality, the processor can't show its full potential in medium and long loads because of the weak cooling system that has just one fan and one heat pipe. Probably because of that, the performance of the iGPU is also mediocre but still fine for playing CS:GO and Dota 2 on Medium details. The keyboard and touchpad combo is one of the biggest pros of this machine. The board has an optional backlight, it's spill-resistant, and it's comfortable for typing thanks to the long key travel and the clicky feedback. The touchpad is smooth and precise. Aside from that, there is a lot of flex on the center of the board while typing which isn't a very pleasant experience. The area around the touchpad is also bendable. The weak cooling system is tuned for lower noise levels so your ears will be spared even when the CPU is tress at 100%. In this case, the central part of the keyboard is getting hot but it's still okay for work. On the other hand, the external thermals are better during usual home and office tasks. Aside from that, the CPU temperature is going above 90°C even in light loads. The upgrade options are some kind of redemption for this machine. There are two SODIMMs for up to 16GB of DDR4-3200MHz memory (or 2666MHz RAM depending on the laptop version). For storage, there is one M.2 slot that is compatible with fast 2230 or 2280 Gen 4 SSDs. The optional 1080 IPS panel should be one of the key selling points of this notebook. It has a 120Hz frequency, comfortable viewing angles, and a good contrast ratio. The sRGB coverage is narrow but that's not a mandatory feature for such a device. The panel is also PWM-free which is great if you plan to use this laptop for long hours of work. The port selection is modest - an HDMI 1.4 connector, a USB Type-A 3.2 (Gen. 1) port, a USB Type-C 3.2 (Gen. 1) port, a USB 2.0 port, an Audio jack, a LAN port, and an SD 3.0 card reader. Sadly, most goodies are optional which includes the IPS panel, the backlit keyboard, the fingerprint reader, the 3200MHz memory, the 1080p Web camera shutter, and even the metal chassis is an option. We got the bigger battery with a 54Wh capacity but the battery life isn't impressive at all. The Dell Vostro 15 3530 has potential, but the weak cooling solution and the not-so-solid chassis aren't something that can be ignored. However, the IPS panel, the good portability, the comfortable keyboard, and the lower noise levels under load make the device suitable for office needs (if you can live with the flex on the center of the board while typing). You can check the prices and configurations in our Specs System: https://laptopmedia.com/series/dell-vostro-15-3530-integrated/
Graphics performance is severely degraded by using 1Rx16 type memory modules.
In my tests, Iris Xe gains around 25% more performance on average with 1Rx8 memories.