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Updated January 12, 2024·
Since you're considering the Acer Nitro 5 and the Dell Inspiron 15, it's important to weigh your needs and preferences against their features and price points. The Acer Nitro 5, being on the more expensive side, generally offers better performance for gaming, 3D applications, and demanding engineering software due to its higher-end graphics card and more robust processing power. If these are key activities you'll undertake, it's a strong contender. On the other hand, the Dell Inspiron 15 is more wallet-friendly and may suffice for general use like browsing, office applications, and media consumption. It's likely to be lighter and offer longer battery life, making it more portable for everyday carry. However, its lower cost often reflects in less powerful hardware, so it wouldn't be as suitable for intensive tasks. Consider what's more critical for you: peak performance or saving money and gaining portability and battery longevity. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the Acer Nitro 5 15
- Good for gaming and AI
- Good overall build quality
- Good speakers
- Very good keyboard
Advantages of the Dell Inspiron 15 3511
- Good portability
- Good battery life
Key differences
Gaming and AI
7.5
6.2
7.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The Acer Nitro 5 15 is good for gaming and AI, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3511 is only fair.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
Engineering and Design
7.9
7.0
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
7.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The Acer Nitro 5 15 and Dell Inspiron 15 3511 are both good for engineering and design, though the Acer Nitro 5 15 is somewhat better.
PerfectRec’s Engineering and Design Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for graphic design and 3D rendering work.
Screen Quality
6.9
6.0
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
262.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
230.0 nits
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has a better screen than the Dell Inspiron 15 3511 for general use, gaming and AI, and engineering and design.
For general use, a laptop's screen should be comfortable to view with clear text and images; the Acer Nitro 5 15 provides this with a better resolution and brightness than the Dell Inspiron 15 3511. When it comes to engineering and design, accurate color reproduction is crucial for precision work, and the Acer's color gamuts are more suitable, offering a more accurate display. However, for gaming and 3D applications, the refresh rate becomes essential for smooth motion and responsiveness, and neither laptop excels in this area, with the Acer somewhat underperforming for this specific need.
Portability
Fair
Good
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
5.5 lbs
WEIGHT
3.7 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Dell Inspiron 15 3511 has good portability, while the Acer Nitro 5 15 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.2
6.2
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has good build quality, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3511 has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$780
$560
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has a price of $780 and the Dell Inspiron 15 3511 costs $560.
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Key similarities
General Use
7.6
7.6
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
262.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
230.0 nits
5.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.5 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.5/10
6.3/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.7/10
The Dell Inspiron 15 3511 and Acer Nitro 5 15 are both good for general use.
Both the Acer Nitro 5 15 and the Dell Inspiron 15 3511 have attributes that suit general use well; the Acer with its more powerful CPU and graphics card delivers smoother performance for diverse tasks, along with respectable battery life and screen quality, but is less portable due to its greater weight and thickness.
Content Creation
7.5
7.5
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Acer Nitro 5 15 and Dell Inspiron 15 3511 are both good for content creation.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Software Development
7.4
7.3
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.5/10
The Acer Nitro 5 15 and Dell Inspiron 15 3511 are both good for software development.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
Battery
5.5 Hours
6.5 Hours
The Acer Nitro 5 15 has 5.5 hours of battery life. The Dell Inspiron 15 3511 has 6.5 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
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How the Acer Nitro 5 15 and the Dell Inspiron 15 3511 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Acer Nitro 5 15 | Dell Inspiron 15 3511 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$780 | $560 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | May 1, 2023 | January 1, 2021 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 14.2'' x 10.7'' x 1.06'' | 14.1'' x 9.3'' x 0.74'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 5.51 lbs | 3.7 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 14.19" | 14.11" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 10.67" | 9.27" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i5-12500H | Intel i5-1135G7 | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 32 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 4 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 2 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 512 GB | 1024 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 5.5 Hours | 6.5 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 59 Wh | 41 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 15.6" | 15.6" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 1920 x 1080 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 144Hz | 60Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 262 nits | 230 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.2/10 | 6.3/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 6.4/10 | 7.8/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | Yes | No | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 7.5/10 | 7.5/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 8/10 | 6.5/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 7/10 | 6.5/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | No | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | No | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | Yes | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 3 | 3 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 0 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | No | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 2 | 1 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | N/A | |
Shopping
Acer Nitro 5 15
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Sascha Mölck | June 2022
"The Acer Nitro 5 is a fast QHD gaming notebook. The Nitro 5 is a well-balanced gaming laptop for just under US$ 2400. A Core i7-12700H CPU and a GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Laptop GPU enable QHD gaming at high to maximum settings, accompanied by fast PCIe-4-SSD (1 TB) and 16 GB of RAM. Acer delivers a solid QHD gaming notebook with the Nitro 5 AN515-58. However, the laptop is not completely free of shortcomings. The CPU and GPU can work at consistently high clock rates. The laptop heats up noticeably under load, but not excessively. Noise development is on the usual class level. Once again, however, Acer needs to improve the fan control."
Dell Inspiron 15 3511
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Dig into reviews and images
PCMag
Zachary Cuevas | November 2021
"The Dell Inspiron 15 3000 (3511) is a solid, if unremarkable, 15-inch budget laptop. It improves on many of the issues we had with the previous 3505 model, and with the inclusion of Windows 11, the 3511 is already a step above its competition. The lack of a USB-C port, the subpar speakers, and the dim display are drawbacks to factor in, but it's still one of the better 15-inch budget laptops on the market, especially when you consider it's under $400."
Get a great deal on the Acer Nitro 5 15 or the Dell Inspiron 15 3511
About Acer
Acer is a prominent Taiwanese electronics brand which makes a wide range of laptops, with multiple product lines catering to personal use, gaming, and business use. They are renowned for having exceptional value for money, as they frequently offer good specifications at a lower price than other manufacturers.
About Dell
Dell is a highly recognizable American technology company, and is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. Their laptops are very popular for both personal and professional use, and they also own the Alienware brand which makes mid to high end gaming laptops. Their premium XPS range of laptops offer great build quality and portability, while Latitude and Precision laptops are known for reliability, repairability and performance for business users.
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