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The PerfectRec laptop team Learn more
Updated January 10, 2024·
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 offers superior performance, with a much more powerful processor and graphics card, making it ideal for intensive gaming, 3D rendering, machine learning, and engineering tasks. It also has a larger and higher quality display with a higher refresh rate, more RAM, and considerable storage capacity, but it comes with a high-end price tag and is heavier, which affects portability. On the other hand, the Dell Inspiron 15 3520 is more budget-friendly, lighter, and therefore more portable, with longer battery life, but it has a less powerful processor and integrated graphics, making it suitable for general use and less demanding tasks. 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 m18 R1
- Very good for general use
- Excellent for engineering and design
- Excellent for gaming and AI
- Very good for software development
- Very good for content creation
- Good overall display quality
- Very good overall build quality
- Very good speakers
- Very good keyboard
Advantages of the Dell Inspiron 15 3520
- Good portability
- Good battery life
Key differences
General Use
8.2
6.9
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
281.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
259.0 nits
4.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.5 Hours
8.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.5/10
5.1/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.6/10
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 is very good for general use, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3520 is only fair.
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 excels in general use largely due to its high-end CPU, ample RAM, and superior screen quality, but is less portable and has a shorter battery life compared to lighter laptops. On the other hand, the Dell Inspiron 15 3520, while being more portable and having a longer battery life, offers a lower-tier CPU, less RAM, and a screen that is less impressive in terms of color accuracy and brightness, making it fair for general use.
Gaming and AI
9.1
6.0
9.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
165Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
7.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 is excellent for gaming and AI, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3520 is only fair.
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 excels in gaming and 3D tasks primarily due to its high-end Nvidia RTX 4080 graphics card, combined with a screen refresh rate that supports smoother visuals, whereas the Dell Inspiron 15 3520 has a less powerful Intel i3-1215U UHD Graphics card and lower screen refresh rate, making it adequate but not exceptional for such demanding tasks. The processing power of the Alienware's CPU also plays a role in its superior performance over the Inspiron's CPU, although it's not as critical as the GPU and screen refresh rate.
Engineering and Design
9.1
6.3
9.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.8/10
9.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
32.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 is excellent for engineering and design, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3520 is only fair.
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.
Content Creation
8.4
7.0
9.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.8/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
32.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 is very good for content creation, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3520 is good.
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
8.0
6.7
9.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.8/10
32.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.5/10
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 is very good for software development, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3520 is only fair.
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.
Screen Quality
7.8
6.8
17.3in
SIZE
15.6in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
165Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
281.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
259.0 nits
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 has a better screen than the Dell Inspiron 15 3520 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 has a high-resolution display that offers sharp visuals and vibrant colors, making it suitable for general use and engineering tasks that benefit from color accuracy and detail. For engineering and design, its wide color gamut coverage ensures that colors are represented accurately, which is crucial for professional work that requires precise color matching. However, for gaming and 3D applications, the screen's lower refresh rate may not provide the smoothest experience, which could be a drawback for fast-paced games that rely on quick screen updates.
Battery
4.0 Hours
6.5 Hours
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 has 4 hours of battery life. The Dell Inspiron 15 3520 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.
Portability
Poor
Good
17.3in
SIZE
15.6in
8.9 lbs
WEIGHT
3.6 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
0.8in
The Dell Inspiron 15 3520 has good portability, while the Dell Alienware m18 R1 has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
8.5
6.2
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 has very good build quality, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3520 has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$2,600
$329
$0
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
$4,000
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 has a price of $2,600 and the Dell Inspiron 15 3520 costs $329.
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How the Dell Alienware m18 R1 and the Dell Inspiron 15 3520 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Dell Alienware m18 R1 | Dell Inspiron 15 3520 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$2,600 | $329 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | October 1, 2022 | May 1, 2022 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 16.2'' x 12.6'' x 1.05'' | 14.1'' x 9.3'' x 0.83'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 8.9 lbs | 3.65 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 16.15" | 14.11" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 12.59" | 9.27" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i9-13900HX | Intel i3-1215U | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 32 GB | 8 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 4 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 2 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 1024 GB | 256 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 4 Hours | 6.5 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 97 Wh | 41 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 17.3" | 15.6" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 2560 x 1600 | 1920 x 1080 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 165Hz | 120Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 281 nits | 259 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 8.5/10 | 6.3/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 5.1/10 | 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 | 7.5/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 8.5/10 | 6.5/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 8/10 | 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 | 4 | 2 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 2 | 1 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | No | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 4 | 1 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | N/A | |
Shopping
Dell Alienware m18 R1
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Dig into reviews and images
PCMag
Matthew Buzzi | July 2023
"Dell's Alienware m18 delivers on its promises: This is a large, powerful gaming laptop with the premium flair and feel you expect from an expensive purchase. The drawbacks are really the price and battery life, which in context are reasonable. (We'd also like to see more ports on the laptop's sides.) This price tier exists for deep-pocketed enthusiasts, and if you’re considering anything in this range, the m18 isn’t an outlier. For the majority of shoppers, of course, all of these mighty 18-inch systems are likely too expensive."
Dell Inspiron 15 3520
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Dig into reviews and images
PCMag
Mark Knapp | January 2023
"Dell's Inspiron 15 (3525) is a peppy-enough and affordable-enough home or remote work machine, but it's not very ambitious; it does little to go beyond the basics. More the concern: It’s readily overshadowed by a number of machines that outperform and outclass it. Even if the Inspiron can get the job done today, its competition has the mettle to keep doing the job tomorrow in a way the Inspiron simply can’t promise. Plus, those alternatives are much more enjoyable after work."
Get a great deal on the Dell Alienware m18 R1 or the Dell Inspiron 15 3520
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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