2 reviews

Dell Studio 15 (1558)

$500.00 Released March, 2010

The Pros:Unlike Acer, Dell ships recovery discs by default - giving you a peace of mind. Appealing aesthetics. Solid build.

The Cons:Only support up to 8GB of DDR3 PC3-10666 RAM, when you have virtual box with a linux, photoshop, premiere pro, firefox all on - it is not going to run smooth. Acer Aspire AS8943G-6190 allows 16GB! Battery life with a 9-cell battery in dell power save mode is around 2 hours. The facial recognition (login) does not work in many lighting situations.

The Dell Studio 15 (version 1558) is a media and entertainment notebook from Dell. It sports a variety of custom lid designs for an attractive and original look over other standard notebooks. The 15.6'' LED backlit display is offered in 720p, 900p, and 1080p resolutions offering buyers with options suited to their budget.

Where to Buy

Loading latest prices from ProductWiki...

Online Deals at PriceGrabber.com

The revision of the Sutdio 15 is powered by Intel's Core i3/i5/i7 processors, has up to 4GB of ram, and houses an ATI HD5470 dedicated graphics card (optional). It offers up to 500GB of hard drive space for music and movies. Other features includes a built in 2.0 mega pixel web cam, slot load DVD writer, 6 cell or 9 cell battery options, wireless N connectivity, and a eSATA/USB combo port. All in all, the Dell Studio 15 (1558) is a highly customisable media notebook that is suitable for a wide range of buyers.

Features / Specifications

Windows 7 (Home Premium / Professional / Ultimate)
Intel Pentium Dual Core / Core i3 / Core i5 / Core i7 processors
Up to 8GB of ram
Up to 500GB 7200rpm hard drive
Intel Integrated graphics, ATI Mobility Radeon HD4570 (option)
Slot load CD/DVD writer
Intel HD audio 2.2 with optional Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi MB software suite
6 cell / 9 cell battery option
Optional Backlit keyboard
Built in 2.0 MP web cam with optional face recognition security software
Wireless g/n, gigabit ethernet, mobile broadbrand (WLAN) option
1x eSATA/USB combo port, 2x USB2.0, HDMI out, VGA out, IEEE 1349, 34mm express card slot, 8 in 1 media card reader

User Reviews (2)

Add Pros & Cons

ProScore

Pros

2

Unlike Acer, Dell ships recovery discs by default - giving you a peace of mind
2

Appealing aesthetics.
1

Solid build.
1

Noise level is acceptable.
1

Build-in Firewire and SATA-2 port, and dual headphone jacks are a great addition.
1

Easy to keep clean.
1

Very decent audio quality with the built-in SRS premium speaker. It is loud enough in most situations. (But still too soft to use this built-in speaker for partying though.)
1

Dell has almost perfected the keyboard arrangement of their laptops.
1

The packaging that the laptop was shipped in was eco-friendly.
1

Optional Backlit keyboard.

Cons

2

Only support up to 8GB of DDR3 PC3-10666 RAM, when you have virtual box with a linux, photoshop, premiere pro, firefox all on - it is not going to run smooth. Acer Aspire AS8943G-6190 allows 16GB!
1

Battery life with a 9-cell battery in dell power save mode is around 2 hours.
1

The facial recognition (login) does not work in many lighting situations.
1

Cannot choose a better graphics chip/card in this laptop.
1

Have to uninstall considerable amount of junk and trial-ware.
1

The provided Mcafee Security Home Edition is lame - you cannot add exception to things that you don't want Mcafee to remove.
1

The omission of hard disk activity indicator makes you second guess whether the application is hanging or simply because the application is waiting for the busy hard drive to respond.
1

the glossy screen decreases readability of the laptop.