Dell XPS 15 Teardown: Better Than a MacBook Pro?

[@landinobin4835]

Wishes for this channel to grow. I recently realised how important repairability of devices, especially laptop is needed.

[@aeonjoey3d]

subscribe, it's underated af, and they advocate against anti-repair laws (yes there are laws against repairing your own equipment, e.g. tractors, teslas, etc.)

[@SuperTime2Change]

Having been involved in the PC / laptop service for about 25 years I can confirm that ease of access when doing hardware service and repair is crucial in saving time. Good design goes a long way. Dell has gotten really great with modular replacement that is simple and quick.

[@Daniel-Biruk]

SuperTime2Change yep I am only 17 but already thanks to ifixits pro tech toolkit fixed 5 iPhones and one android but I am hoping to fix laptops soon it’s great to listen to people with experience in the fixing community

[@kbhasi]

Yes! Allowing third-party repair by designing hardware to be repairable, providing service manuals, and selling parts helps create more jobs, because for lots of people, official service locations may be too far away, and some companies want to repair their equipment faster in order to get them back into service faster! Not to mention, iFixit also has their own newsletter!

[@AshTheNimbat]

Apple makes it hard on purpose to get you to spend more. That's one of the main reasons I left apple for good.

[@jkboyett2]

As a repair shop owner, Dell is my favorite brand to work on. They seem to get it right a large percentage of the time. I'd like to see iFixit do more videos on Dell, HP, Lenovo, Acer, and Asus laptops. Apple isn't the only company that makes electronics, contrary to popular belief. Thanks!

[@alyx6427]

John Boyett what about thinkpads?

[@JaseWolf]

@@alyx6427 which is made by Lenovo ;)

[@JustJamieGames]

HP elitebook bby

[@jkboyett2]

@@alyx6427 yeah they're not too bad to work on, and most of them seem to be pretty good computers.

[@wizcombo]

I have worked with computers since I was 8 years old and I’m 20 now working in a very reputable repair shop. I would say the build quality of a MacBook is unmatched. Repairability is a nightmare after 2015 pros. Dell is the most consistent and sold computer manufacturer both in repairability and build quality. Lenovo, Acer and Asus have medium build quality but the failure rate of parts is higher than dells on parts. HP is horrendous in their midrange model in terms of build quality and performance. Although they are easy to repair, you never stop repairing them...especially the hinges!

[@MeowThingy]

Wow. That's amazing. I never thought I'd see a thin laptop so modular ever again. Usually you only see that kind of modularity in thick gaming laptops. And labeling the screw holes? Dell deserves a lot of credit here. Also once again we see that there is absolutely no reason that batteries need to be superglued into the case.

[@harrison2899]

I honestly have so many bad experiences with Dell that it makes me sad that more laptops are not as repairable as this. I would love an alternative that is this good.

[@haraldrutsch8169]

@@harrison2899 If you had bad experience with Dell and maybe like something a bit more robust but still thin and light with very good upgradability I can recommend the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme. I own one a generation 2 model my self and it has been one of the best laptops i have ever had. The only drawback is that it is not as 'pretty' as the dell xps Series, because its not meant to be.

[@BryanzHAn03]

@@harrison2899 I have a Dell Latitude 7480 which is nearly repairable as this Dell XPS 15. I'd stay away from the Inspiron consumer-line laptops.

[@UItEnthusiast]

Dell: makes thin *and* repairable laptop Apple: *thanos voice* "Impossible."

[@Noah-Lach]

Ethan To be fair, the 16” MacBook Pro is thinner with a much larger battery and better thermals.

[@UItEnthusiast]

@@Noah-Lach The battery isn't much larger than the XPS 15 (99.7 vs 99), but the MBP runs longer and keeps thermals in check because its CPU and GPU are undervolted.

[@Noah-Lach]

Ethan That’s the 17, isn’t it? I thought the XPS15 was 86Wh.

[@acalkan]

@@Noah-Lach you are correct about the battery, XPS15 is 86Whrs but the MBP 16 is much bigger in every other dimension than thickness. Hence it can house a 99Whrs battery. Obviously MBP 16 has a slightly larger screen too (it's not an inch as the name suggests as the XPS15 is actually 15.6" with the same aspect ratio as MBP 16). Look, I have one argument against the MBP 16: WiFi 5. So you buy a MBP 16 now, which is an otherwise excellent device, but be stuck in 2019 in WiFi tech for years to come. XPS15's WiFi card is also soldered on (downside) but it's at least WiFi 6 and it's a Killer one that performs very well.

[@amiltonfcjunior]

You can buy a Macbook Pro now and by the next year stick in a bigger SSD, more RAM, and stuff like that... oh wait, you can't do this, you paid less than you should to deserve it...

[@acalkan]

This is absolutely amazing! This clearly and unequivocally debunks Apple's argument that they needed to solder and glue everything in place to make the devices slim and sleek. We intuitively knew that was not true but someone had to come out and totally bust that BS. And Dell has just done that. I bought this laptop (the config with i7 and 1650TI) before knowing it was this easy to replace parts although the replaceable RAM and second M.2 slot had played a major part in my decision. I've fallen in love with the device again 😀

[@acalkan]

In other words, he's tearing down Apple's arguments under the disguise of an XPS15 teardown 🤣

[@natlus_]

acalkan The SSD non-replaceable because it’s locked to the T2 chip for encryption, the rest of the motherboard doesn’t use slots to save space.

[@acalkan]

@@natlus_ again, a design choice, not an engineering necessity. There are many on-board TPM chips that work with different drives in case replacement is required so making that replaceable would absolutely not be a problem for Apple. The thing that frustrates me with Apple is that they try to sell their business/marketing driven decisions as some technical necessity. There is barely anything that Apple engineers cannot achieve as they clearly have the talent and the resources so most "compromises" are simply business decisions masked as design needs.

[@koushuu]

@Antonio Zamudio Poor reliability =/= easier accessibility. Nice logic. Let's just say that Macbooks have both poor reliability and harder accesibility, which they do :)

[@ahothabeth]

Can you please send this to Apple to show how it can be done. Written on a MBP.

[@cryalowicki]

I guess your question mark key has failed.

[@Soren0]

Yes, Apple could learn a thing or two. Apple, remember when your computers were upgradeable? Those where the days. I hope the new ARM MacBooks will make it easier, one can only hope.

[@taurus20077]

@@Soren0 Keep dreaming...

[@clickbaitpro]

At least they should make SSD replaceable because recovering data from macbooks is near impossible

[@Soren0]

@@taurus20077 It is possible as you can see in the video. Imagine loosing your data on a MBP with a soldered on SSD. You'll be screwed and have a $1,500 or more paperweight even if you have a backup. Also, one spends even more at the time of purchase now as one can't upgrade it after purchase.Think planned obsolescence.

[@cywestbrook7448]

Dell actually has technicians who repair laptops, and so it ends up being more cost effective to just make repair easy than try and take Apple's approach.

[@CuthbertNibbles]

Apple also has technicians who repair laptops. They're called geniuses, and you can take your broken or outdated MacBook to them at an Apple Genius Bar, where they'll tell you that the problem is the mainboard and you should buy a new Mac.

[@KSSilenceAU]

@@CuthbertNibbles Thing with Dell though (And also Lenovo and HP typically), is we come to you, rather than you having to go to the store. You call us, we log the job, book you a service, tech comes out, pays you a visit and repairs the machine, Easy. Also for many a thing (because mas are so hard to work on), apple often has to ship machines from the stores out to repair centers to do things that others like Dell can do at your house with an onsite visit.

[@m-stat9]

@@CuthbertNibbles Those epic "Genius" guys costs you A LOT of money once you're out of the 1 year warranty. If the RAM, SSD or Battery break then, have fun!

[@erenwayne]

@@CuthbertNibbles Unironically they're not repair persons but just after sales salesmen.

[@MrTarmonbarry]

@@CuthbertNibbles I want to know why Apple have not been prosecuted about that ''Genius Bar '' name , they clearly are not so in a way calling it that is fraud , unless all the workers there are geniuses

[@glennchugg6015]

Just convinced me to buy one of these when I upgrade, thank you.

[@aeonjoey3d]

I remember when macbook keyboards required turning a screw and pulling two slider switches, revealing the RAM and wifi card, with the HD replaceable under the removable battery, lol. someday apple might wise up and do some modularity again, or not.

[@sneedsneed460]

It only takes me about 15 minutes to completely remove the motherboard in my mid-2012 15" unibody Macbook Pro. I wish they could make a laptop this easy to repair and upgrade again

[@daniel_s]

@@sneedsneed460 yea everthing was upgradeable. that was until Steve's death...

[@andrescarrasco1248]

yeah but they realized they could charge you way more money if the reapir cost was almost the same as a new laptop, that way they give you some credit for the "death" laptop and force you to buy a new one, repairing macs is not imposible, just hard because they not allow the parts to be sold

[@indyford3531]

@@daniel_s RIP Steve wish was still with us!

[@slamdunk715]

Non tech people prefer to have a lighter machine, more reliable and more battery life. Apple gave the customer what they wanted. Apple doesn't want repairs by anyone (unless you accept to void the warranty) because they prefer to not compound the problem in case someone does a botched job. Apple want to keep their reputation of reliability, and that's a legitimate goal.

[@reidarcomposano317]

This was an exceptional video. Unfortunately, my 9500 has been a huge source of struggle over the past 1.5 years, but I’m very thankful for your video to help me in replacing parts.

[@elijah_9392]

Waiting for them to go Ryzen with USB 4.

[@iFixitYourself]

Ooh me too. -TD

[@elijah_9392]

@@iFixitYourself A response? You made my night :)

[@3mar00ss6]

wait USB 4 exists ( ಠ ▵ ಠ)?

[@theJesai]

Yep! Thunderbolt, goodbye!

[@teancoffee208]

Same. I want an XPS (the newer ones look cool and it seems to be a nice balance of work and fun with a dash of premium build), but if the standards are about to get better then I'm fine with waiting.

[@sparkplug964]

Have to admit, that is impressive. Might buy a dell next year, getting sick of the Apple Ecosystem.

[@sparkplug964]

@Antonio Zamudio Please, trying saying that when you loss your HD and you have to wait 4 weeks for a repair which I had to about 2 years ago, if you do not have a backup laptop you're going to be in a tricky situation. Apple could easily offer options on HD and RAM replacement, they don't do this because they want all your money which just comes down to greed.

[@tugloo1]

"I'm not as bad as Kay kay." What did Kay kay do to you?

[@iFixitYourself]

It was just a joke because she also struggles with a connector in her last video! 🙂 -TD

[@ARMOR28]

Ugh, I can't believe gluing down batteries is a thing now

[@robertcalkjr.8325]

Kay Kay would probably play some music that didn't make me want to shoot myself...

[@alyx6427]

Piyush Gupta kay

[@PJ-sv4iw]

KK Slider

[@Dabket3araB]

I wish you can zoom more on the laptop. It's a little far. Overall great job thanks!

[@samjam2295]

Jesus. I learned so much about devices in just the first few minutes of this video. It rarely dawns on people to repair devices by themselves. They usually just let it be when a bit damaged or worn down, or they just buy a new one if totally broken. I guess my key takeaway is checking a device for repairability/upgradability. Subscribing!

[@bill3117]

As a long time Apple computer user, I do miss the days when I could open up my Apple laptop and easily install hard drive and RAM upgrades.

[@SiriPod597]

The last MacBook Pro can be upgraded was the 2015 MBP. Anything after is already impossible. I'm really disappointed with Apple, they used to at least let users upgrade RAM.

[@TheViettan28]

I just hope that I can tighten my MB Pro 2016 lid. It swings as hell. The only solution is to get a new screen. That really hurts me.

[@user-vk3yo3ou3t]

Same. My first Mac was a 17'' Unibody MBP from 2009 and it had the same repairability as this.

[@quantran9922]

@@r1oot 2012 is EOL already, and also no more update will be released for 2012 and prior, new programs on macOS require new macOS ver, so buying a nearly 9 year old laptop is no-go for almost everybody now :v

[@slamdunk715]

Now, upgrading storage space is as easy as plugging an external one in the USB or Thunderbolt ports. It's easier today. Most of the time, if you outlast RAM, it means your computer has quite a number of years under the hood. Sell it to a non-tech and go on with a new model. Upgradable components take more space.

[@hasbianfauzyperdhana5539]

before: "wait, toolkit channel?" after: "holy, this is such great content"

[@Cookie_Wookie_7]

I would love to see ifixit review the XPS 17

[@m-stat9]

Would be very similar. Only major difference is the vapor chamber, and that's it.

[@Arek_R.]

"Teardown engineer" lmao I love this job title.

[@amiltonfcjunior]

If there's a teardown engineer, there's an assembly engineer

[@inothome]

I laughed at that too. I didn't know I was an engineer when I was 6 years old taking things apart. And yes, they went back together in working order.

[@livacreative]

Ya when hipsters rises, they make job titles for them.

[@JPDenali]

I had an XPS 15 9550 for 6 months. It was a complete POS with everything on that computer going wrong. Screen flicker issues, BSOD, the screen lid warping and not sitting flush against the base when closed, dead pixels. I had a technician come to my house on 2 occasions to swap out the motherboard for the screen flicker issues and even had the hard drive replaced all to no prevail. The atrocious tech support in India kept bouncing me around between representatives and told me to just use the screen in the brightest setting to avoid screen flicker. No BIOS version I tried solved the issue. It would Blue Screen during my class in college and I only hoped it wouldn't do it during an exam, where it was worth 25% of my grade and the assignment was to launch a VM, add a user to Active Directory, and do some other network changes among other things. I returned it and went without a laptop for 3 months before I bought a MacBook Pro 15. My only regret with the MBP is that I didn't buy it sooner. Dell was garbage 20 years ago and it appears nothing has changed in all that time. Yet at the same time Michael Dell has been accused of tax evasion and neglecting his company. Maybe he's better off stepping down permanently.

[@avanluven]

My XPS 9550 just wasn't cutting it either. I didn't have as many problems as you but I did have BSOD and it would occasionally reboot while going in hibernation. Between dealing with crap like that and the trackpad just not being as good as a Macbook, I sold it and bought a 2018 15". Macbooks repairability does suck, no hiding it. However, I enjoy using it much more and that's all that really matters in the end. To each their own!

[@user-hk3ej4hk7m]

It is refreshing to see the "no bullshit" approach to engineering and design these enterprise first companies have being brought to the consumer market. I don't know of any other brand specifically but HP has outstanding service manuals for every one of their laptops, complete with graphs and even flowcharts to help you debug issues. I love when companies do this.

[@seramae]

Just bought one of these and received it this week - super happy with it so far! I know people have been having QC issues but mine seems to be completely issue free after having used it for 5 days now. Fantastic to see it has such a high repair-ability rating too! I knew the SSD and memory were replaceable but was not aware that the battery is so easy to remove, so thanks for that!

[@jkelol111]

Hi, I'm thinking of ordering one too, when did you order your XPS 15 9500 and what is your configuration? I'm quite afraid of QC issues too as I have classes to attend with this computer.

[@mutant3x17]

Timestamps! 00:00 Intro 00:29 Removing Bottom Cover 01:05 First Impressions 01:40 Battery Removal 03:43 Speaker Removal 04:09 RAM Removal 04:28 SSD Removal 05:45 Fan and Cooling System Removal 06:21 MotherBoard Removal 07:55 MotherBoard Analysis 08:09 Trackpad Removal 08:43 Display Removal 10:05 Score and Analysis Just copied and pasted...

[@teancoffee208]

Still appreciated!

[@GeekRedux]

Why?

[@traktorworks3200]

amongst some very very good vids on different subjects by youtube this particular vid verges on being brilliant. clear, informative, concise and very listenable. so keep up your good work.

[@ronniefromOR]

this is great! i've been on the fence about purchasing this laptop because i want one that is upgradeable.. but i also heard getting the bottom panel off on this model was a huge pain .. you made it look easy! i also love the fact that Dell put a little spot n there to get your spudger tool in to get it started .. thanks again for the video . subbed

[@JanMessersmith]

Excellent presentation. I just bought a fully loaded XPS 15. Now I'm even more confident about my purchase. Thanks for that. I do have a suggestion. For me, the volume of the background music was distracting. Some might appreciate less of the repetitive and non-essential noise. Some smooth jazz ambiance might be more appropriate to your relaxed style. I'm subscribing.

[@intorion8lv]

Like DELLs laptop. Own XPS for almost 3 years now. Own 9570 model, top spec. Have had an issue with the battery, which overheated in my bag because laptop did not go to sleep on the lid close. Bought an aftermarket replacement on amazon which did not work well (the laptop kept saying the battery is not original). Replaced with another aftermarket one, which also led the laptop to fail, returning both to amazon and got a genuine one, no problem with that. During battery replacement, I forgot to screw in one of the Philips screws, and the screen latch bracket, which is part of the back panel, failed a few months later. Could be related to the existing DELL XPS issue seen on the internet at the time, but bought a new bottom case on my own. The purchase was wrong - my original keyboard did not fit the housing because of a different Enter button. Decided to buy a new aftermarket keyboard which fitted. Along with the latch a screw bracket for the charging port also broke up, but I got an original replacement for a few bucks. At the end managed to screw everything on my own - battery, back housing, charging port, keyboard. Definitely repairable at a good rate.

[@MetalPopka]

It should be against the law to not show us any footage or audio of adhesive pull tabs being pulled out. It's so satisfying of a noise and so satisfying to watch.

[@iFixitYourself]

Hahaha we won’t let it happen again 😉

[@trevorwilliams1783]

I have a xps 15 9550. The parts iv replaced: wifi card, palm rest, screen, wifi antena. There is a very bad design flaw with these laptops. To understand the problem you must know that where the hinges of the screen mount to the palm rest is weak, it's basicly a strip of pot metal that is glued to the carbon fiber palm rest, this metal is brittle. What happend to me is this metal began to break over time, eventually the wires that cause the displays touch functionality to work got pinched due to the broken hinge mounting points as did the wires that led from the wifi card to the antenna. Later on after this was repaired by me I went to upgrade the wifi card however the connectors gripped each other so tightly that it broke where the connector was soldered onto the wifi card. This is my dell experience. You pay for a premium device they should use a beter method of mounting the screens hinges to the palm rest. Hopefully if newer versions this will be beter (it's possible it already is)

[@oseidwomoh]

This normal people: Unboxing and using laptop. IFixit: Unboxing and literally opening up the laptop.

[@jakob.k_design]

It is amazing that they went back to replaceable ram. I never thought that would happen and two m.2 slots make this pretty good in terms of upgradability. Though it is still too expensive for my taste there are a ton of really good alternatives that cost a lot less. Also the thermal solution looks decent ar least not terrible, which is quite good for a dell laptop.

[@audiegm]

Nice content man. It's nice to see dell makes things easier for customers. I'll check their devices from now on

[@TheSpotify95]

That is a great design: thin and compact (which a lot of people want), whilst also repairable and upgradeable. I would definitely have 16GB+ RAM, two SSDs (preferably two 1TB SSDs) and also choose the configuration with a dedicated graphics card - though I reckon the one with no dGPU will have a longer battery life, assuming they use the same battery between models.

[@NEWNATURE777]

Great Taylor! I happen to have XPS 15 9500, thank for your passion and great support to the Dell's community, got a new sub here 👍

[@lovreneno]

Such a good groove in background music

[@mattfm101]

You made me appreciate this laptop in a whole new way

[@Ridgeback2k]

Great Video! Got a brand new XPS 15 for work but the Trackpad rattles. For my Huawei Matebook XPro there was a trackpad-rattle-fix with a piece of paper. Do you have any ideas how to fix it on the XPS15?

[@patrickcameron2950]

After seeing this, I think I'm finally done with MacBooks.

[@jidm19]

So glad I found this. I just bought one today and it comes in a couple of weeks. I plan on adding another SSD, but I know it doesn't come with a screw to hold it in place. What type and size is screw do I need for that specifically? Thank you!!

[@Just-View]

2:57 Him: “If everything goes to plan, I could remove the battery in two minutes.” Me: Ha I can replace it on five seconds in my old laptop that has a crappy battery with a new low capacity crappy battery! Also, love the teardown videos of the channel!

[@sameersawant7666]

That's a really remarkable video... Ensured the viewers of the inbuilt quality of dell xps 15...I personally think that you must also review laptops within a price range... That's really an on-demand video these days... 👍👍👌

[@nhojhtims4995]

I've had my XPS15 open so many times I'm thinking about velcro'ing the bottom panel on and skipping the screws 😄

[@TheViettan28]

Don't do it too many times. The plastic nuts cant stand for tens of times.

[@IvanFedulov]

whats the point of opening it that often?

[@xujingzhe82]

I was looking into this laptop. The tearing down gives me a lot of confidence for purchase. Thanks for the great job !

[@kittananj]

I use XPS 15 9530, and (in spite of out-of-date specs) I love it, especially in repairability. Dell even provide the guide to repair your machine by yours on their website, as well. So, every time that I need to replace battery (which is once a year or two, I can order one on eBay and replace it by myself. It's good to hear that the sequels are still easy to work with.

[@sur.geek333]

Nice video! Question I read your description and you state that it won’t run MacOS Catalina why is that? I had the 9550 with Catalina trying to find out the difference. Thanks

[@zoltanrakottyai]

The 5520 (model with 7th gen i7)had even replaceable wifi card which was pretty neat. I've put in a AX210 card. Big thumbs up to Dell for keeping the quality "interior" design

[@philips170t]

Own one of these, on the outside they look refine, office use. But on the inside, they are powerful and capable for applications like CAD, Blender etc

[@MrMikesvill]

Hey man such an awsome video, like wow I did not even know what was also possible. Also one quick question where was the WiFi card? I never show it in the video.

[@TheHalfGlassFullGuy]

Well, I was just looking for a new laptop. Looks like it's going to be a Dell XPS!

[@MrLazini]

Definitely getting a Dell laptop as my next one.. they seem to have done an amazing job at Dell both in terms of end user experience (huge trackpad, great screen, great overall usage) and repairability.. good job @Dell !

[@AliKhan-bp4zk]

He should’ve wore Anti-Static wrist band while touching the RAMs & MB. Static can easily blow up your hardware components. He also keeping RAMs & rest of motherhood components on magnetic pad which is also can blow up because of magnetic rays.

[@ShainAndrews]

Right...

[@robinte98]

Would be great to have Links for repair parts as well. If there are no parts, then it does not matter how easy it is to disassemble. For example I would not know how to get the screen back together once I removed the bezel and backside adhesive.

[@integratedgraphics]

the usb c ports not being replaceable I think is actually a huge bummer, and one place where most Macbooks actually have an advantage. Keep in mind that the usb c ports are the only way to charge the laptop... at least there's more than one of them I guess...

[@integratedgraphics]

For more context, the previous couple generations of XPS 15 had a soldered usb c/Thunderbolt port too, but they also had socketed DC barrel jacks as a fallback. I kind of wish those were still available with the new design just for some peace of mind.

[@telcobilly]

Fantastic video! You just sold me on the Dell laptop.I was waiting for the new arm MacBooks but had to fight the feeling inside about the lack of repairability. I have two older Macs that are pretty repairable but are very old. I think the Dell XPS is going to be my next machine. Great sight, I visit all the time when I'm contemplating an electronic purchase Keep up the good work! I'm old school, I would rather fix something then just throw it away.

[@confusednsutian7100]

I have an inspiron 7569 and it's excellent. It's 3 yrs old and I have added a new m.2 drive and a ram. Runs like new again.

Imagine being so used to Apple's crap, that when you come across a modular and reasonably easy to open laptop, you just freak out.

[@tristan481]

That video was really awesome, thanks for that ! Since the battery is removable, is it also upgradable with the 86Wh (or something close) one that comes with the 4K models ? Or even another larger battery from previous models ? And if yes, anything special that needs to be done in BIOS or settings of anything ? Thanks for the kind answer in advance ❤️

[@obzzervant]

Insightful! Thanks! Definitely will factor in this new information when making a buying decision.

[@Cookie_Wookie_7]

I was thinking about getting an XPS 17 after seeing this video I'm Even more excited for it

[@rohitbishoyi1095]

Dell and QC!!

[@irfanspace]

plz stay away from Dell laptops , they have good desktops but laptops suchs

[@Cookie_Wookie_7]

@@irfanspace what about them sucks I have bean using Dell laptops for a 6 or 7 years and haven't had any major problems

[@3dr14ng4]

This is the reason why I chose Dell as my laptop. Their Inspiron 15 7000 models only has single screw for maintenance. In 3 years of ownership, I've already replaced the RAM, SSD, HDD for upgrades and the battery (mine got swollen because I tried to mine eth 24/7, my fault), all these I've done myself.

[@wolveric0]

Now this, this is a helpful video, thanks for the video my friend.

[@rsquareaaron1094]

Great progress team ifixit

[@coolmohan]

Very very interesting. I’m glad I found you

[@DJKrikor]

Cool move at 5:56 with the screwdriver spin !

[@ElvenSpellmaker]

Someone else who thinks giant track pads aren't a good thing. The old one was plenty.

[@roshi98]

I wish the XPS 13 had swappable RAM because that's the form factor I prefer to work on and the 15 is just a little too bulky since I move around a lot on the job. The Framework is compelling because everything is as easily replaced as with the 15 but in a 13" chassis with a 3:2 display that is more conducive to productivity, plus the modular ports are an interesting feature.

[@lohbut2]

On Reddit. Discussions about the wobbly trackpad issue. Their solution is to use a different palm rest, but might be sourcing issues because people still reporting they are getting the wobbly keyboard

[@WillN2Go1]

Good review. I'm a MacBook Pro guy, but I just bought one of these for my girlfriend. She got the 4k screen- which looks spectacular. Side by side my MacBook Pro Retina display looks circa 2005. The sound from the Dell speakers is too low, we couldn't (yet) figure out how to fix that or if it was even fixable. That might be ahuge minus. (My 2017 MB Pro, the speakers are (finally!) adequate. The only (chronic) issues I've had with my MBPro is the keyboard (replaced 3Xs): the first full year I had to keep a teflon sheet over the trackpad or it would randomly input and jump the cursor while typing. It was doing this at least once a minute making it impossible to type without the teflon sheet. It was only 100% using an external keyboard. A year or so ago Apple replaced the keyboard/trackpad/top (all one piece no problem under Apple Care, as a DIY fix later?...an expensive negative). I was told that the 2017 keyboard was basically replaced with a 2018 keyboard. Which fit with my experience in Apple Stores, I'd type on the 2017 and it would jump all over the place -every machine. When I took it in for the replacement I tried a 2018 machine and that keyboard worked well. The randomly jumping cursor never seems to have made it to the 'known issues' list. I tested it against a 2011 MBP and the 2011 never jumped once, the 2017 did it more than once per minute. Reasons for the keyboard replacement: first week was the jumping cursor nightmare. They just gave me a new machine. Same thing. The next time (2018) same problem - but this time it mostly solved the problem. The third time was I screwed something up trying to blow out the keyboard with compressed air. This, unlike the jumping cursor, is an admitted known problem. I intended to get a keyboard cover, but the ones available don't seem like they'll keep the dust from jamming it up. However, I do like this keyboard because I transpose fewer letters with it. Don't know about the newer keyboard. The older keyboards I liked just fine, my fingertips don't feel 'hammered' as they do with the 2018, however I think the distance traveled contributed to my transposing letters problem. (It seems like there'd be test results somewhere on keyboards, but then again it seems like the Caps Lock key would also be long gone, moved to become an F key or something. Videos on which keyboard is best are all subjective and pointless, of course the cherry red keys are everyone favorites, click click click - whoopee! they're like sports cars, except try driving a sports car 6 hours a day everyday, you'll quickly get sick of it --but only if you know about alternatives. Who have you ever met or heard of who notices that keyboards make a difference in transposing letters? And typing speed is not really about speed, it's about the time between errors you have to stop and correct. I think I've gone from 20 to 30+ wpm moving from typewriters to computers and the most significant factor is not speed it's mistakes and corrections.) All in all I'd agree that the Dell XPS 15 seems like a terrific machine and is better than the MacBook Pro....except (for me) it's running Windows. (Does everything Windows really have extra steps? And I loathe that menu that pops up if you don't click fast enough. I get flashbacks to that evil Word paperclip thing. To me it's incredibly stupid that none of the options on the menus that pop up is to do the actual action. But this is a mix of 'same old argument' and what I'm used to. It's also been about five years since I've seen anyone's eye brighten up saying either Windows or Macintosh; but they still do for Linux.) The Dell is a lot heavier than the MacBook Pro, (a negative) and thicker-- but that whole Apple-fetish of the thinnest portables? Even fanboys with Apple logo tattoos would rather have a thicker, but still light, machine that cools better. And that doesn't have that sharp corner that imprints the uncomfortable line in your wrists? Jon Ive wake up - that's bad design. (I use a wrist rest or make wood frames for all my MacBooks to raise them up a bit for cooling. At the base is either a rounded wooden wrist rest or one I've sewn myself, stuffed with flax seeds. I also figured out to make an outer sleeve that I can slide off and pop in the washing machine. Sorry to go on and on. Hope some of this is of interest.

[@RicardoDawkins]

Dude....go complain to the Apple board about your Mac issue. This is a DELL XPS review. Paying huge money for thash and buggy hardware.

[@MrLareneon]

Are you sure the keyboard an palm rest are the same piece? I recently replaced the palm rest on an older xps 15 and the screws are hidden under little flaps in the black plastic sheet. Still cool to see the design changes.

[@teja9676]

Excellent videos bro

[@MrNilammani]

I love this video. Thanks a lot for this job. Please make a teardown video on Dell XPS 13 9380.

[@ericrojas8681]

Excellent topic and well done, thanks , this gives me en more reason to choose this lap top

[@irgendeinmarc5335]

Great video, thank you! :) Can you take a look at the 13 inch Dell XPS, please? :)

[@m-stat9]

It's similar, minus the RAM being fixed and only one M2 slot (which is okay considering the small size).

[@davidwillson5896]

Years ago when our company switched to selling Dell PCs to our customers, our hardware techs bitched about how they were build, using plastic parts instead of metal. But they turned out to be much easier to service and repair than the NCR mini towers we had previously been selling.

[@ritajames7797]

Didn't see the WiFi chip - maybe I blinked for too long .... Good video though. Glad I got the Dell XPS now that I have seen this. Thanks for uploading this informative video.

[@MrUploader14]

It's crazy to see the same dell that made their laptop repairable but made it a pain to do it. To being the most easy to repair device on the market aside from the framework. I remember an old n1150 inspiron laptop that was a pain to replace the HDD all other laptops had the HDD available right from taking the bottom cover off. Usually right across from the optical drive or right next to it, but dell made to where you had to unscrew the bottom, remove the optical drive, take off the keyboard, unscrew the top and remove it, unscrew the motherboard, disconnect the display, take out the motherboard and then you had access to the HDD. What a nightmare.

[@Onion_Knights]

Able to upgrade with ease is a huge plus

[@MakingMadBeats]

Which specific XPS 15 model was used in this video? Thx. Stuck between a XPS 15 or the 2020 Razer Blade Stealth for DJing with Serato DJ Pro. Want to replace my Early 2015 MacBook Air 13 i5 with it. THX!

[@boahandarrowsproductions4326]

Beautifully done. Thank you.

[@triadwarfare]

Dell is one of the most repairable laptops. 2 years ago, my sister got her laptop smashed and we were able to avail of the extended insurance and got a tech visit from them. I was able to watch him work and replaced 20 pieces including the screen

[@insight9097]

Learned a lot! Thank you guys, Love from India

[@notgazo7009]

Actually my xps 15 9550 (2015 model but same chassis as last year's model) survives a drop of 2 meters while opened on a tiling floor (even the touchscreen survived). I only need to replace a hinge and the palmrest (the keyboard and the palmrest were not a single unit). The palmrest had not visible damage from outside but the internal structure (screw holes) was damaged.

[@hortonj63]

Say it louder for apple in the back!

[@dimensional7915]

the next step is to make components that are more resilient and less likely to need replacing over say a 6-10 year span. mainly the battery life span needs improving in most devices

[@sukheshpd]

you guys should do more of these, the presenter is very good in explaining and is very clear but he needs more energy.

[@iFixitYourself]

Thanks Sukhesh! I’ll drink some more coffee before the next one ;) -TD

[@peteroconnor5537]

Presenter is great. Relaxed style and no hype. Enjoyed it.

[@HeyMarkL]

Great video Taylor! But where’s Kay Kay?? 😭😢

[@iFixitYourself]

Thanks Mark!! She’ll be back soon 😉

[@duncan94019]

Thanks. I love the repairability. I would love to see a test of stiffness / rigidity for the assembled laptop. I believe having a laptop that does not flex much when reasonable force is applied to torque the laptop contributes to the laptop not needing to be repaired.

[@marcel9568]

“ 😐 I am really excited about these new XPS machines 😐 “ Never seen someone being so excited.

[@oli077]

Hi, sorry I am not sure if I understood you well, can we upgrade graphics card or not? I have xps 15 from 2018 with GeForce 1050

[@strikye7]

Great job iFixit and Dell

[@benji9325]

when do guys do a 2020 MacBook Pro 13inch teardown? I wonder how the new keyboard looks like from the inside

[@jeevanjacob4102]

Are you sure the keyboard is not removable? For my XPS 9560 there were 31 screws! But i managed to replace a water damaged keyboard for £20 (~$30)

[@christophermendoza6765]

Great video as always! 👍🏾👍🏾 A few of us have been waiting for an iPad Pro magic keyboard teardown, are you guys planning to do one? Thanks!

[@iFixitYourself]

Thanks Christopher!! I don’t think we’re going to do a full teardown for the magic keyboard, but I did take apart the trackpad to see how it worked. That plus some x-rays made it to our blog in this post: www.ifixit.com/News/41291/dang-the-ipad-pro-magic-keyboard-looks-cool-in-x-rays

[@christophermendoza6765]

iFixit Thanks for the reply, you guys are awesome! Keep up the good work 👍🏾👍🏾

[@montaderali8656]

Man seeing this pretty work one would expect a great QC ....

[@hasanshamimshaon8195]

my XPS 15's upper portion of the keyboard is bulging. Any idea about what might be the cause? Bulging of the trackpad means battery swelling but in this case, it's not.

[@gladniggo]

I think 9/10 is too high of a score if you consider the USB-C ports are soldered to the motherboard and for a keyboard replacement the board has to go out. In my opinion this Dell XPS should receive something like a 6/10 with 10/10 going to something like a ThinkPad T430.

[@telcobilly]

What model number is this laptop, 9550? Shopping it right now largely due to this teardown. Thanks

[@TheRealLink]

Wow, that's pretty awesome and repairable! Thanks for this review.

[@PintilieVasile]

0:40 That notch is not designed for that. There is an indicator LED for the battery.

[@icpoo1915]

Now in this day, I just know that we have the teardown engineer degree in our world, never heard of that.