Dell XPS 15 9520 (2022) vs Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021)

You can select specific configurations for the laptops to get a more accurate comparative review
Display
3456 x 2234
Battery
100 Wh
CPU
GPU
Apple M1 Pro GPU (16-core)
RAM
Storage

Review

Evaluation of Dell XPS 15 9520 (2022) and Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) important characteristics
Performance
System and application performance
Gaming
Performance in popular 3D games
Display
Viewing angle, color accuracy, brightness
Battery Life
Potential battery life in light and average use
Connectivity
Ports, webcam and other interfaces
Case
Design, materials, durability and usability
NanoReview Score

Key Differences

What are the key differences between the notebooks
Advantages of the Dell XPS 15 9520 (2022)
  • Easier to carry: weighs 260 grams less (around 0.57 lbs)
  • Thinner bezels and 3% higher screen-to-body ratio
  • Around 12% better multi-core CPU performance in the Cinebench R23 test
  • User-upgradable RAM (up to 64GB) and an SSD
  • Smaller footprint: 10% more compact case (122.8 vs 136.7 square inches)
Advantages of the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021)
  • Higher screen refresh rate: 120 versus 60 Hz
  • Features a much bigger (~79%) battery – 100 against 56 watt-hours
  • Better webcam recording quality
  • 75% sharper screen – 254 versus 145 pixels per inch (PPI)
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Tests and Specifications

Comparison table of test results and technical specs

Case

Weight 1.84 kg (4.06 lbs) 2.1 kg (4.63 lbs)
Dimensions 344.4 x 230.1 x 18.54 mm
13.56 x 9.06 x 0.73 inches
355.7 x 248.1 x 16.8 mm
14 x 9.77 x 0.66 inches
Area 792 cm2 (122.9 inches2) 882 cm2 (136.8 inches2)
Screen-to-body ratio ~89% ~86.2%
Side bezels 4.2 mm 3.4 mm
Colors Black, Silver Silver, Gray
Transformer No No
Opening angle - 135°
Size comparison
Cooling solution
Cooling system Active Active
Vapor chamber No No
Number of fans 2 2
Noise level (max. load) 44.6 dB 37.4 dB

Display

Size 15.6 inches 16.2 inches
Type IPS LCD Mini LED
Refresh rate 60 Hz 120 Hz
PPI 145 ppi 254 ppi
Aspect ratio 16:10 16:10
Resolution 1920 x 1200 pixels 3456 x 2234 pixels
HDR support - Yes, Dolby Vision
Touchscreen No No
Coating Matte Glossy (Antireflective)
Display tests
Contrast 1650:1 25700:1
sRGB color space 100% 100%
Adobe RGB profile - 88%
DCI-P3 color gamut - 99.1%
Response time 35 ms 67 ms
Max. brightness

Battery

Capacity
Voltage 11.4 V -
Full charging time - 1:25 hr
Battery type Li-Ion Li-Po
Replaceable No No
Fast charging Yes Yes
USB Power Delivery Yes Yes
Charging port position Left, Right Left, Right
Charge power 90 / 130 W 140 W
Cable length - 2 meters
Weigh of AC adapter 429 grams 353 grams

CPU

CPU name
Base frequency 2.5 GHz 3.2 GHz
Turbo frequency 4.5 GHz -
Cores 12 (4P + 8E) 10 (8P + 2E)
Threads 16 10
L3 Cache 18 MB -
Integrated GPU Intel Iris Xe Graphics (80EU) Apple M1 Pro GPU (16-core)
Fabrication process 10 nm 5 nm

Benchmarks

Geekbench 5 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 5 (Multi-Core)
Cinebench R23 (Single-Core)
Cinebench R23 (Multi-Core)

Graphics Card

GPU name
TGP 40 W 30 W
Nvidia Optimus Yes -
Type Dedicated Integrated
Fabrication process 8 nm 5 nm
GPU base clock 938 MHz 450 MHz
GPU boost clock 1223 MHz 1296 MHz
FLOPS 5.01 TFLOPS 5.2 TFLOPS
Memory size 4 GB System Shared
Memory type GDDR6 LPDDR5
Memory bus 128 bit 256 bit
Memory speed 12 Gbps 6.4 Gbps
Shading units (cores) 2048 2048
Texture mapping units (TMUs) 64 128
Raster operations pipelines (ROPs) 40 64
GPU performance
5.01 TFLOPS
5.2 TFLOPS

RAM

RAM size
Channels 1x8 GB 4x4 GB
Clock 4800 MHz 6400 MHz
Type DDR5 LPDDR5
Upgradable Yes No
Total slots 2 -
Max. ram size 64 GB -

Storage

Storage size
Bus PCI-E Gen 4.0 (4x) Custom
Storage type SSD (M2) SSD (M2)
Channels 1x256 GB 1x512 GB
Upgradable Yes No
Total slots 2 -
NVMe Yes Yes

Sound

Audio chip Realtek ALC3281 -
Speakers 2.2 4.2
Power 4x2W -
Dolby Atmos - Yes
Loudness 83.1 dB 84.7 dB
Microphones 2 3

Connectivity

Wi-Fi standard v6 v6
Bluetooth v5.2 v5
Fingerprint Yes Yes
Optical drive No No
Webcam Above the display Above the display
Webcam resolution 1280 x 720 1920 x 1080
Ports
USB-A No No
USB Type-C 3x USB 4.0 3x USB 4.0
Thunderbolt Thunderbolt 4 Thunderbolt 4
HDMI No 1x HDMI 2.0
DisplayPort No No
VGA No No
Audio jack (3.5 mm) Yes Yes
Ethernet (RJ45) No No
SD card reader Yes Yes
Proprietary charging port No Yes

Input

Keyboard
Keyboard type Island Island
Numpad No No
Backlight Yes Yes
Key travel 1.3 mm 1 mm
Touchpad
Size 15.0 x 9.0 cm 15.5 x 9.9 cm
Surface Glass Glass
Windows Precision Yes No
Further details
Notes on XPS 15 9520 (2022):
    - The USB Type-C to HDMI and Type-A adapter comes in the box.
*Disclaimer! Ports, speakers, display, and other specifications can vary depending on the laptop's specific configuration or region.

Cast your vote

So, which laptop would you choose?
135 (73%)
50 (27%)
Total votes: 185

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