For general use and portability, the Dell Inspiron 15 3511 is a solid choice with its lower midrange price, lighter weight, and longer battery life, making it suitable for everyday tasks and travel. However, if performance is your priority, especially for gaming, 3D rendering, or machine learning, the Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) offers a significant leap in power with its advanced i9 processor and dedicated RTX 4060 graphics card, albeit at a higher price and with a bulkier design that's less travel-friendly. The Legion's higher resolution display and faster refresh rate also cater to more demanding visual tasks, though it comes with a shorter battery life. Consider the Dell for everyday efficiency and mobility, or the Lenovo for high-performance tasks and superior screen quality. 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 Inspiron 15 3511
Good portability
Good battery life
Advantages of the Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024)
Very good for general use
Excellent for engineering and design
Very good for gaming and AI
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Good overall build quality
Good speakers
Very good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
7.6/10
8.1/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
230.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
500.0 nits
6.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
3.5 Hours
6.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
7.7/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.6/10
The Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) is very good for general use, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3511 is good.
PerfectRec’s General Use Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for general productivity, web browsing, streaming, video calls, and running a wide variety of apps and programs.
Gaming and AI
6.2/10
8.5/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.5/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) is very 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
7.0/10
9.0/10
4.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.5/10
32.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) is excellent for engineering and design, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3511 is good.
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
7.5/10
8.2/10
4.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
32.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) is very good for content creation, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3511 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
7.3/10
8.0/10
4.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
32.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
6.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) is very good for software development, while the Dell Inspiron 15 3511 is good.
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
6.0/10
8.7/10
15.6in
SIZE
16.0in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
230.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
500.0 nits
The Lenovo Legion 5 16 has a better screen than the Dell Inspiron 15 3511 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
PerfectRec’s screen quality scores take into account various important factors that are relevant for different use cases.
Battery
6.5 Hours
3.5 Hours
The Dell Inspiron 15 3511 has 6.5 hours of battery life. The Lenovo Legion 5 16 has 3.5 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
Good
Fair
15.6in
SIZE
16.0in
3.7 lbs
WEIGHT
5.6 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Dell Inspiron 15 3511 has good portability, while the Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
6.2/10
7.4/10
The Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) 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
$560
$1,100
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The Dell Inspiron 15 3511 has a price of $560 and the Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024) costs $1,100.
"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 Dell Inspiron 15 3511 or the Lenovo Legion 5 16 (2024)
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.
About Lenovo
Lenovo is a Chinese technology company, and one of the largest personal computer vendor. They are well known for a variety of technology products, including laptops. Their consumer series include their entry level IdeaPad and LOQ series and mid-to-high-end Yoga and Legion series. On the business-oriented side, their series include their entry-level ThinkBook series and mid-to-high-end ThinkPad series. Lenovo laptops offer strong performance for reasonable prices, and are often on sale.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
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Staff Expert & Software Engineer
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