Dell Precision 3530 Review & Rating

3.5 / 5 stars - Dell's entry-level mobile workstation, the Precision 3530, is a powerful and configurable choice, but it's priced only a smidge below the trimmer and lighter Editors' Choice Precision 5530.

Review date: October 2, 2018 | Model: Dell Precision 15 3530

Indeed, it's the Precision 5530 that casts a bit of a shadow over the 3530—not only for its more glamorous design and lighter weight, but for the fact that it doesn't cost all that much more. Our 5530 test unit, which had the same processor, RAM, and storage as our 3530 but a faster graphics card and a 4K touch screen, was priced $687 higher. That's not pocket change, but it's not insurmountable to a workstation buyer who cares less about purchase price than power and longevity. When I tried configuring matching systems on Dell.com, the difference was barely $300. That's not to say the 5530 is flawless—its webcam placement is awful—or to say the 3530 isn't worth a long look. It's just to say you'll have to juggle power, price, and portability as you shop.

Dell Precision 3520 Mobile Workstation Review

The Dell Precision 3520 is a performance workstation that starts at an affordable price. Review date: April 10, 2017 | Model: Dell 15 Precision 3520

The Dell Precision 3520 is yet another solid addition to the company’s line of mobile workstations. The 3520 offers a generous amount of possible components, as well as the performance to handle most business needs. Though there is no 4K option, consumers have the choice of three types of display types, including an FHD touch panel. Unless you’re doing heavy-duty video editing, this is more than enough picture quality for most business-oriented use cases. The Dell Precision 3520 also gives consumers the ability to extend their mobility with a 6-cell battery for further flexibility. That said, Dell markets the 3520 as an affordable workstation; however, the price tag can get fairly expensive when you start equipping it with these higher-end components. With our build, the 3520 was outfitted with the NVIDIA Quadro M620 2GB graphics card, which we leveraged during our benchmarks. Overall, we found that this graphics card was able to give us some pretty good performance when populated inside the Precision 3520, enabling the 3520 to take the lead among the tested workstations in certain categories. In our ESRi benchmark, the 3520 came in just behind the 7510 desktop. In our SPECviewperf 12 and SPECwpc, the 3520 was able to beat out its predecessor (3510) and come close to the more powerful 7510 desktop. During our PCMark8 storage test, the SM961 SSD was more or less in line with other Precision models, but still certainly offered exceptional user performance.

Dell Precision 3510 Review

3.5 / 5 stars - The Dell Precision 3510 is a powerful desktop replacement with a vivid screen. Review date: July 29, 2016 | Model: Dell Precision 15 3510

The Dell Precision 3510 is a powerful, capable workstation with a vivid display and a battery that will last through the workday. It's ideal for designers, architects and engineers who can deal with its bulk and heating issues... If you have a bit of extra money, you should buy the Dell Precision 5510, our current favorite workstation. The 5510 is lighter and better designed, and has an astonishing display, though its battery life is far shorter. But if you're searching for a workstation that offers practicality, power and longevity, the Dell Precision 3510 should be at the top of your list -- as long as you stay away from its vent while it runs.

Dell Precision 15 3510

80% - The mobile workstation Dell Precision 3510 is an inexpensive entry-level model with many positive characteristics, but the review configuration can still not convince us. Review date: July 24, 2016 | Model: Dell Precision 3510

Dell's Precision 3510 is a professional device with a clear focus on mobility. Thanks to its slim build, long battery runtimes and a sturdy chassis, it is a really interesting option for field staff. Other advantages of this mobile workstation are the convenient port selection as well as the available warranty and support options... Fortunately, Dell offers other display versions in its online shop, so this problem can be avoided completely and the device would leave a much better impression.

Dell Precision 3520 Mobile Workstation Review