Dell Inspiron 15 5000 (5668) review

Dell’s Inspiron 15 laptops have always been excellent value for money, but this year’s offering in the 5000 series is rather different from its immediate predecessors. Whereas previous Inspiron 15 5000s have been general-purpose, run-of-the-mill laptops, this year Dell’s adding a 2-in-1 hybrid to the range in the form of the Inspiron 15 5568, giving it a 360-degree hinge for a fully rotatable screen.

It’s a trick we’ve seen many times before, most notably on Lenovo’s Yoga laptops, but Dell’s version definitely brings a touch of class to proceedings with its sleek and stylish gunmetal grey chassis and textured design. It might be made of plastic, but the whole construction feels robust and the faux metal finish makes it look far more premium than its price lets on.

Of course, whether you’ll ever feel the need to flip the screen round and use it as a 15.6in Windows tablet is debatable, so if you’re not that fussed about its hybrid qualities, then have a look at the standard Inspiron 15 5000 instead, which is available in a wide variety of specifications starting from £429 at time of writing. While I haven’t had a chance to test the normal version yet, it does look very similar to last year’s Inspiron 15 5558, albeit with upgraded specs, so have a read of our Inspiron 15 5558 review to get a good idea of what to expect.

360-degree design

Opting for the Inspiron 15 5568 on test here, though, does provide a greater degree of flexibility over the regular Inspiron 15, and the two hinges feel reassuringly stiff and sturdy for when you want to prop it up in tent mode or use it on your lap. I’d recommend using it this way, as tapping the touchscreen with the keyboard face down on the table in presentation mode was much more unsteady. It’s fine for gentle swipes and scrolling up and down web pages, but repeated prodding soon made the screen fall progressively further back, prompting several readjustments when working with the touchscreen.

It’s a small complaint overall, but the laptop itself is quite sizable, which makes using it as a tablet rather unwieldy. Even its relatively light weight of 2.3kg still takes its toll on your arms after a while, and its sharp edges also have a tendency to dig into your palms. However, at least there’s a decent amount of space around the edge of keyboard to give you something smooth to hold onto. All too often we see 360-degree laptops that force you to bash about with its automatically disabled keys underneath, so it’s great to see Dell’s put a bit of thought into its design.

Keyboard and touchpad

Still, that’s of little consolation when you’re using the Inspiron 15 5568 as a proper laptop, and I can’t help but feel like the keyboard could have made better use of its roomy base. You still get a full-sized keyboard, but crowding everything together in the centre means that typing can feel a little cramped at times. This is a shame, because the keys themselves provide plenty of tactile feedback and feel perfectly responsive when typing out long word documents. You also get two levels of backlighting, which is surprisingly bright, even in well-lit environments.

The touchpad, thankfully, is superb and makes using the laptop a real joy if you don’t have a mouse to hand. Two-finger scrolling was brilliantly responsive and its integrated mouse buttons had a firm, confident action. It’s definitely one of the better touchpads I’ve seen, so working on the move shouldn’t pose too much of a problem.

Performance and benchmarks

There are two specifications available for the Dell Inspiron 15 5568, but I was sent the top-end model for review. This version has a dual-core 2.5GHz Intel Core i7-6500U processor that can Turbo Boost up to 3.1GHz under the right thermal conditions, the same chip found in the recent Dell XPS 13, and 16GB of RAM. The basic model, meanwhile, has a Core i5-6200U processor and only 8GB of RAM.

While not as portable as the XPS 13, the Inspiron 15 5568 still packs plenty of power, and it handled all processing tasks without much fuss. Scoring a respectable 48 in our rigorous 4K benchmarking tests, basic word processing and web browsing was swift and responsive, and it’s also suitable for photo and video-editing as well.

You can even squeeze in a little bit of light gaming if you want, as its modest Intel HD 520 graphics chip managed a respectable 38fps in Dirt Showdown at 1,920×1,080 on Low. It’s not cut out for the latest titles, though, so you’ll need to rein in your expectations to get a playable framerate.

Ports and speakers

Sadly, you’re left wanting when it comes to ports and connections, as Dell’s only included three USB ports (one of which is USB), an HDMI port for plugging it into an external display, an SD card reader and a 3.5mm microphone/headphone port.

The lack of Ethernet port here is particularly disappointing, but it’s not surprising given the laptop’s slim dimensions. As a result, you’ll need to rely on its 802.11ac Wi-Fi to get online, and there’s also Bluetooth 4.1 support as well for connecting it to other wireless devices.

The dual speakers, meanwhile, are pretty decent, delivering a good level of bass despite firing downwards into the table. The Waves Maxx Audio Pro enhancement tools that come pre-installed on the laptop also help to improve its overall sound quality, but you’ll get the best audio experience by flipping the laptop round into tent mode as this positions the speakers upwards. There’s a little bit of reverb at high volumes, but it’s not overly noticeable.

Display

The 15.6in, 1,920×1,080 IPS display, however, is a little underwhelming, as its sRGB colour gamut coverage only stretches to 57.2%. This is far below what I’d normally expect to see from a mid-range laptop, and its inability to display a wider range of colours means you lose a lot of detail. Colours still looked lovely and vibrant on a day-to-day basis, but its lack of red and blue coverage makes it a very poor fit for anyone looking to do high-end colour work.

Its contrast ratio of 1,275:1 was reasonably respectable by comparison, but its low peak brightness of just 272cd/m2 means it’s not the most practical choice when working outdoors or in brightly lit rooms.

Battery life

The Inspiron 15 5568 falls down on battery life, too. Lasting just 5 hours and 34 minutes during our continuous video playback test with the screen set to our standard brightness measurement of 170cd/m2, it will get you through a decent stretch of remote working, but you’ll be hard-pushed to last a full day away from the mains.

Conclusion

Ultimately, the Dell Inspiron 15 5568 shares many of the same flaws as its nearest competitor, the 14.1in Lenovo Yoga 700. It’s incredibly fast and has plenty of power, but its poor display, problematic keyboard and underwhelming battery life make it one huge compromise when it comes to everything else. Overall, the Yoga 700 just about comes out on top, as its screen is marginally more accurate and its battery lasts just that little bit longer. However, it’s also £100 more expensive than the Inspiron 15 5568, which is a sizable increase in price for not a lot of benefit.

As a result, the Inspiron 15 5568 is probably one of the better value 15.6in hybrids you can buy right now, especially now the excellent Toshiba Satellite Radius 15 is no longer on sale, but it’s still not exactly ideal. Its processor is massive overkill if you’re only going to be using it for basic computing tasks, and the rest of it just isn’t good enough to warrant spending £700 on. Instead, you’d be better off saving some money and going with something like the £600 Asus Zenbook UX305CA, or spending that bit more to get the infinitely superior Asus Vivobook Pro N552NW.

Buy the Dell Inspiron 15 5000 (5668) now from Dell