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Updated January 10, 2024·
The Dell Alienware m17 R5 is tailored for gaming and high-performance tasks with a robust graphics card and processor that can handle demanding software and games. If you prioritize gaming or resource-intensive applications like video editing, this laptop would be suitable. However, the Alienware is heavier and has a larger screen, which may reduce portability. On the other hand, the Dell Inspiron 16 5625, while more affordable and lighter, making it easier to carry, has less powerful graphics and is aimed at general use and productivity tasks. If you're looking for a machine for day-to-day work that's easier on the budget and to carry around, the Inspiron would be a good fit. Keep in mind the Alienware comes with Windows 11 Home, while the Inspiron includes Windows 11 Pro, offering additional business-related features. The choice between the two should be based on whether you need the extra performance and gaming capabilities of the Alienware at the expense of portability and cost, or if the Inspiron's balance of performance and convenience meets your requirements. 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 Dell Alienware m17 R5
- Very good for engineering and design
- Good for gaming and AI
- Very good overall display quality
- Very good keyboard
Advantages of the Dell Inspiron 16 5625
- Good portability
- Good battery life
Key differences
Gaming and AI
7.7
6.2
7.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1200
480Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
7.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
10.0/10
The Dell Alienware m17 R5 is good for gaming and AI, while the Dell Inspiron 16 5625 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
8.1
7.1
8.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.8/10
7.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Dell Alienware m17 R5 is very good for engineering and design, while the Dell Inspiron 16 5625 is good.
The Dell Alienware m17 R5 is better suited for engineering and design due to its more powerful AMD Ryzen 7 processor, higher-end Nvidia RTX GPU, and larger high-refresh-rate screen, which enhances design precision and efficiency in resource-intensive tasks.
Screen Quality
8.1
6.2
17.3in
SIZE
16.0in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1200
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
480Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
301.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
265.0 nits
The Dell Alienware m17 R5 has a better screen than the Dell Inspiron 16 5625 for general use, gaming and AI, and engineering and design.
When considering laptops for general use, the Alienware m17 R5's panel provides sharp images and high brightness, making documents and websites clear and easy to view, while the Inspiron 16 5625 offers decent visibility though not as vibrant or sharp. For engineering and design, the Alienware's screen covers a broader range of colors, allowing for more accurate rendering, which is vital for these fields, whereas the Inspiron's color coverage is adequate but not ideal for precision work. Gamers and 3D designers looking at the Alienware might find the lower refresh rate limits smooth motion and quick visual feedback, whereas for such uses the Inspiron, while not tailored for this either, would offer a similar level of limitation given its comparable display attributes.
Battery
5.0 Hours
8.0 Hours
The Dell Alienware m17 R5 has 5 hours of battery life. The Dell Inspiron 16 5625 has 8 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.
Portability
Poor
Good
17.3in
SIZE
16.0in
7.3 lbs
WEIGHT
4.1 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Dell Inspiron 16 5625 has good portability, while the Dell Alienware m17 R5 has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.8
7.0
The Dell Alienware m17 R5 and Dell Inspiron 16 5625 both have good build quality, though the Dell Alienware m17 R5 has somewhat better build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,100
$800
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
$1,800
The Dell Alienware m17 R5 has a price of $1,100 and the Dell Inspiron 16 5625 costs $800.
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Key similarities
General Use
7.8
7.7
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1200
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
301.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
265.0 nits
5.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
8.0 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
5.5/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.6/10
The Dell Alienware m17 R5 and Dell Inspiron 16 5625 are both good for general use.
The Dell Alienware m17 R5 excels in performance due to its powerful CPU and dedicated graphics card, making it suitable for demanding tasks, but is less portable due to its weight and offers shorter battery life. In contrast, the Dell Inspiron 16 5625, while having a less powerful integrated graphics, boasts a better screen aspect ratio, longer battery life, and is lightweight, which enhances its portability for general use.
Content Creation
7.8
7.6
8.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.8/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1200
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Dell Alienware m17 R5 and Dell Inspiron 16 5625 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
7.5
8.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.8/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1200
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Dell Inspiron 16 5625 and Dell Alienware m17 R5 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.
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How the Dell Alienware m17 R5 and the Dell Inspiron 16 5625 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Dell Alienware m17 R5 | Dell Inspiron 16 5625 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$1,100 | $800 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | June 1, 2022 | January 1, 2022 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 15.6'' x 11.8'' x 1.05'' | 14.1'' x 9.9'' x 0.68'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 7.3 lbs | 4.12 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 15.64" | 14.05" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 11.76" | 9.92" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | AMD Ryzen 7 6800H | AMD Ryzen 7 5825U | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 16 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 4 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 2 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 1024 GB | 512 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 5 Hours | 8 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 97 Wh | 54 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 17.3" | 16" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 1920 x 1200 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 480Hz | 60Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 301 nits | 265 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.8/10 | 7/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 5.5/10 | 7.7/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | Yes | No | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 7/10 | 10/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 8/10 | 7/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 8/10 | 8/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 1080p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | No | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | No | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 3 | 2 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 1 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 2 | 2 | |
Thunderbolt Ports | |||
Thunderbolt Ports | 0 | 0 | |
Shopping
Dell Alienware m17 R5
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Christian Hintze | January 2023
"Overall, the all-AMD system in the Alienware m17 R5 is impressive, especially the graphics performance. However, various driver issues and unnecessary inconsistencies prevent us from truly enjoying such a potent gaming machine. In addition to strong 3D performance, we particularly like the build quality, the fairly bright UHD display with high color space coverage, and the fact that the gamer is often quiet when not under load and also rather quieter than some competitors under load."
Dell Inspiron 16 5625
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Dig into reviews and images
Ultrabook Review
Derek Sullivan | January 2023
"I think there is fair value in the Inspiron 16 this year. Very little has changed with the laptop and my opinion hasn’t really changed either. In other words, I like it. Overall, I think the pros far outweigh the cons of this laptop and the price is certainly justifiable. I found this to be a great typer and I could potentially work all day on this machine, provided I don’t need a graphics card."
Get a great deal on the Dell Alienware m17 R5 or the Dell Inspiron 16 5625
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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