Amazon.com: Dell XPS 17 9720 Laptop17.0-inch UHD+ (3840 x 2400) Touchscreen Display, Intel Core i9-12900HK, 32GB Memory, 1TB SSD, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060, Intel Killer Wi-Fi 6, Windows 11 Pro
3.9 3.9 out of 5 stars
54 ratings
Climate Pledge Friendly
CPU:
Intel Core i9-12900HK
RAM Size:
32 GB
Hard Disk Size:
1 TB
SSD Capacity:
32 GB
Graphics processor:
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060
Automatic Backup Software Included:
Win 11 Pro
Style:
UHD Touch
| Brand | Dell |
| Model Name | XPS 17 9720 |
| Screen Size | 17 Inches |
| Color | Silver |
| Hard Disk Size | 1 TB |
| CPU Model | Core i9 |
| Ram Memory Installed Size | 32 GB |
| Operating System | Windows 11 Pro |
| Special Feature | 4k Resolution; Touchscreen |
| Graphics Card Description | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 |
- COLOSSAL POWER AND PERFORMANCE: Fuel the most intensive creative projects with a 12th Gen Intel Core i9-12900HK processor, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 6GB GDDR6 Graphics, and 32GB of DDR5 memory.
- BUILT TO PERFORM: Take your projects to a new level. Get AI acceleration in top creative apps backed by the NVIDIA Studio platform. The GeForce RTX 3060 laptops are built to perform in record time.
- 12th GEN INTEL: Intel Core i9-12900HK (24MB Cache, up to 5.0 GHz, 14 cores), and 20 threads give desktop-level performance to power intense creative programs in the convenience of a laptop.
- CREATED FOR CREATORS: With 1TB M.2 PCIe NVMe Solid State Drive, 32GB 4800MHz DDR5. Intel Killer Wi-Fi 6 and Windows 11 Pro, this laptop computer is perfect for creating multimedia.
- INCREDIBLE SOUND: 3D soundscape with Waves Nx 3D Audio for Speakers. The first-ever laptop featuring Waves Nx 3D Audio tuned by multi-Grammy Award winning producer, Jack Joseph Puig.
- Dell XPS 17 Inch Touchscreen Laptop, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060, Intel Core i9-12900HK, 1TB SSD, Windows 11 Pro, UHD plus (3840 x 2400) Touchscreen Display, 32GB Memory, Intel Killer Wi-Fi 6, 9720 – Silver
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Dell XPS 17 (2023) review: still great, but going a bit gray
DT Recommended Product
“The XPS 17 9730 is a disappointing update, and it’s losing its leadership position.”
Pros
- Solid productivity performance
- Good gaming performance
- Excellent build quality
- Great keyboard and touchpad
- Superior IPS display
- Classic design
Cons
- Dramatic drop in battery life
- Webcam is just 720p
- No Wi-Fi 6e
- Productivity performance unimproved
When Dell updated the XPS 15 for 2023, it upgraded to Intel’s 13th-gen CPUs and added a faster GPU with the RTX 4070.
Otherwise, the laptop was unchanged and starting to show its age. With the newest XPS 17, Dell did the same thing, maintaining the tried-and-true design while upgrading the internals.
Contents
- Specs and configurations
- A great design showing its age
- Productivity performance is unchanged while gaming improves
- A creator’s IPS display
- A surprising drop in battery life
- Barely treading water
Both laptops are on our best-of lists for their respective sizes, 15-inch laptops and 17-inch laptops, but we’ll have to reconsider given the increased competition. The XPS 17 9730 is an incremental upgrade at best, and it’s no longer the no-brainer recommendation that it once was.
Specs and configurations
| Dell XPS 15 (9530) | |
| Dimensions | 14.74 inches x 9.76 inches x 0.77 inches |
| Weight | 5. 37 pounds |
| Processor | Intel Core i5-13500H Intel Core i7-13700H Intel Core i9-13900H |
| Graphics | Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 (60W) Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 (60W) Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 (60W) Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 (60W) |
| RAM | 8GB DDR5-4800MHz 16GB DDR5-4800MHz 32GB DDR5-4800MHz 64GB DDR5-4800MHz |
| Display | 17.0-inch 16:10 Full HD+ (1,920 x 1,200) IPS 17.0-inch 16:10 4K+ (3,840 x 2,400) IPS |
| Storage | 512GB PCIe SSD 1TB PCIe SSD 2TB PCIe SSD 4TB PCIe SSD 8TB PCIe SSD (2 x 4TB SSDs) |
| Touch | Optional |
| Ports | 4 x USB-C with Thunderbolt 4 1 x 3.5mm audio jack 1 x SD Card reader |
| Wireless | Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2 |
| Webcam | 720p with infrared camera for Windows 11 Hello |
| Operating system | Windows 11 |
| Battery | 97 watt-hours |
| Price | $2,450+ |
Dell’s configuration options change often, but this isn’t an affordable laptop in any arrangement.
Right now, the entry-level model available on its website is $2,450 for a Core i7-13700H, 16GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD, an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050, and a 17.0-inch Full HD+ IPS display. My review unit with a Core i7, 32GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD, an RTX 4070, and a 4K+ IPS display is priced at $2,950. The most expensive configuration costs a whopping $5,200 for a Core i9-13900H, 64GB of RAM, 8TB of SSD storage (two 4TB SSDs), an RTX 4080, and a 4K+ IPS display. The XPS 17 is an expensive laptop from the low end to the high end, and runs in the same general price range as the Apple MacBook Pro 16.
A great design showing its age
Mark Coppock/Digital Trends
I’ve always liked the aluminum and carbon or glass fiber combination in the XPS 15 and XPS 17 designs. It’s an elegant look, and the fiber palm rests provide a warm and inviting surface. But it also looks a bit dated beside the more all-aluminum design that just popped up on Dell’s XPS 13 lineup. The XPS 17 remains a great-looking laptop, and if you’re like me and appreciate its aesthetics, then you’ll be happy with the carryover.
If you’re looking for something that looks more contemporary, then you’ll be disappointed that Dell made absolutely zero changes.
Interestingly, the XPS 17 is meant to be a thin and light laptop — and it is. The problem for Dell is that some other manufacturers are also making thin and light machines that pack in more power and don’t suffer from the same thermal limitations as the XPS 17 (see the performance section). The MSI Creator Z17 HX Studio, for example, also has a 17-inch display to go with its high-end components, and it’s thinner at 0.75 inches (versus 0.77 inches) and just slightly heavier at 5.49 pounds (versus 5.37 pounds). As we’ll see in the performance section, while the XPS 17 did better at gaming (surprisingly), it couldn’t keep up in productivity and creative applications. The LG Gram 17 Pro is an even thinner (0.70) and lighter (3.2 pounds) 17-inch machine, but it also runs much slower components.
You can’t complain about the build quality, though. The XPS 17 remains just as high-quality as always, with zero bending, flexing, or twisting.
It’s easily the equivalent of the MacBook Pro 16, another well-built laptop, and you won’t find any other machine that exudes a more quality feel. The dual-clutch hinge opens smoothly and holds the display firmly in place, another aspect that evokes quality.
Mark Coppock/Digital Trends
The keyboard remains the same, with lots of key spacing, nicely sized keycaps, and one of the lightest – yet snappiest — switches around. It’s almost as good as the best keyboard, Apple’s Magic Keyboard on its MacBook Pros, and that’s high praise. The touchpad is spacious and responsive, with solid, yet quiet clicks. It’s not as good as Apple’s Force Touch haptic touchpad, but it’s among the best mechanical touchpads on the market.
Connectivity is limited, with just three USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 4, an audio jack, and a welcome full-size SD card reader. Connectivity is behind the curve with Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2 rather than the newer Wi-Fi 6E standard. While many people aren’t even using Wi-Fi 6 yet, it’s a limitation that will eventually hold the XPS 17 back.
Also, the webcam remains just a 720p version, perhaps due to the extremely thin bezels. As such, it provides an inferior image compared to many other modern laptops and it won’t excite videoconferencers. An infrared camera allows Windows 11 Hello facial recognition, or you can use the fingerprint reader in the power button. Both worked well.
Productivity performance is unchanged while gaming improves
Mark Coppock/Digital Trends
My review unit was equipped with the 45-watt Intel Core i7-13700H, a 14-core (six Performance at 5.0GHz and eight Efficient at 3.7GHz) and 20-thread CPU that’s been a solid productivity and creativity performer. The latter is especially true when the processor is paired with a discrete GPU like the RTX 4070 in my review unit. Of course, not all laptops are created equal, and the XPS 17 is aimed at being thin and light rather than providing the ultimate performance. Its thermal performance holds it back: Dell provides just 60W to the RTX 4070, which can run at up to 115W.
That’s more than the 40W Dell allocated to the XPS 15 9530’s RTX 4070, but still not a lot of power.
In our CPU-intensive benchmarks, the XPS 17 was in line with other machines using the same CPU. Interestingly, it had faster single-core performance than the previous model with its 12th-gen Core i7-12700H CPU, but its multi-core performance was around the same. The XPS 17 did manage to beat the XPS 15, but it pretty closely matched the Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra, a thin and light 16-inch laptop. The XPS 17’s performance mode made a moderate difference in some benchmarks and is worth turning on.
Mark Coppock/Digital Trends
Where the XPS 17 was least impressive was running the PugetBench Premiere Pro benchmark, which runs in a live version of Adobe’s Premiere Pro and utilizes the GPU to accelerate a variety of tasks. Here, the XPS 17 9730 fell behind the previous model (9720) and couldn’t keep up with the XPS 15 or Galaxy Book3 Ultra in performance mode. It was also considerably slower than the Apple M2 Max CPU in the MacBook Pro 14, which doesn’t bode well for its performance relative to the MacBook Pro 16 M2 (which we haven’t tested).
The XPS 17 is a fast 17-inch laptop for demanding productivity users, and it can do some creative work as well. It’s just not all that impressive compared to other thin and light laptops, including the previous model, and it doesn’t stand up well against faster 17-inch machines like the MSI Creator Z17 HX Studio. It’s important to remember that you’re buying a thin and light laptop with the XPS 17, not a performance powerhouse.
| Geekbench (single / multi) |
Handbrake (seconds) |
Cinebench R23 (single / multi) |
Pugetbench Premiere Pro |
|
| Dell XPS 17 9730 (Core i7-13700H / RTX 4070) |
Bal: 1,901 / 12,654 Perf: 1,928 / 12,911 |
Bal: 79 Perf: 71 |
Bal: 1,933 / 13,384 Perf: 1,912 / 15,462 |
Bal: 760 Perf: 848 |
| Dell XPS 17 9720 (Core i7-12700H / RTX 3060) |
Bal: 1,712 / 13,176 Perf: 1,747 / 13,239 |
Bal: 74 Perf: 71 |
Bal: 1,778 / 12,696 Perf: 1,779 / 14,086 |
Bal: 771 Perf: 853 |
| LG UltraPC 17 (Core i7-1360P / RTX 3050 Ti) |
Bal: 1,598 / 7,444 Perf: 1,595 / 8,915 |
Bal: 146 Perf: 107 |
Bal: 1,619 / 6,454 Perf: 1,697 / 9,316 |
Bal: 633 Perf: 651 |
| Dell XPS 15 (9530) (Core i7-13700H / RTX 4070) |
Bal: 1,787 / 11,978 Perf: 1,830 / 11,769 |
Bal: 79 Perf: 76 |
Bal: 1,865 / 13,386 Perf: 1,868 / 13,927 |
Bal: 709 Perf: 1.  032 |
| Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra (Core i7-13700H / RTX 4050) |
Bal: 1,647 / 12,206 Perf: 1,815 / 12,307 |
Bal: 80 Perf: 74 |
Bal: 1,712 / 13,278 Perf: 1,908 / 14,938 |
Bal: 737 Perf: 975 |
| MSI Creator Z17 HX Studio (Core i9-13950HX / RTX 4070) |
Bal: 2,005 / 15,786 Perf: 2,006 / 19,894 |
Bal: 61 Perf: 51 |
Bal: 1,968 / 19,992 Perf: 2,024 / 23,935 |
Bal: 725 Perf: 1,193 |
| Apple MacBook Pro 14 (M2 Max 12/38) |
Bal: 1,973 / 14,596 Perf: N/A |
Bal: 85 Perf: N/A |
Bal: 1,608 / 14,789 Perf: N/A |
Bal: 1,222 Perf: N/A |
The increase in GPU power available with the XPS 17 9730 is a more significant improvement than the upgrade in CPU. You can now configure up to an RTX 4080, although doing so is unlikely to bring you the improvements you want, given the laptop’s thermal limitations.
As it is, the RTX 4070 in the new generation is faster than the previous model’s RTX 3060 and provides increases across the board in our gaming benchmarks.
Surprisingly, the XPS 17 beat out some other laptops with the same GPU, and it was even faster than the RTX 3080 Ti in the MSI Creator Z16P — although that machine was notoriously slow at gaming during our testing. Overall, the XPS 17 did well at 1080p and might be able to play at 1440p, if you don’t turn the graphics up too high.
| Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (1080p Ultra High) |
Cyberpunk 2077 (1080p Ultra) |
Civilization VI (1080p Ultra) |
3DMark Time Spy |
|
| Dell XPS 17 9730 (Core i7-13700H / RTX 4070) |
Bal: 88 fps Perf: 94 fps |
Bal: 75 fps Perf: 77 fps |
Bal: 155 fps Perf: 159 fps |
Bal: 9,639 Perf: 9,535 |
| Dell XPS 17 9720 (Core i7-13700H / RTX 3060) |
Bal: 23 fps Perf: N/A |
Bal: 45 fps Perf: N/A |
Bal: 111 fps Perf: N/A |
Bal: 6,757 Perf: 6,958 |
| Dell XPS 15 9530 (Core i7-13700H / RTX 4070) |
Bal: 65 fps Perf: 105 fps |
Bal: 60 fps Perf: 60 fps |
Bal: 131 fps Perf: 137 fps |
Bal: 7,077 Perf: 7,632 |
| MSI Creator Z17 HX Studio (Core i9-13950HX / RTX 4070) |
Bal: 66 fps Perf: 101 fps |
Bal: 61 fps Perf: 90 fps |
Bal: 149 fps Perf: 191 fps |
Bal: 10,186 Perf: 11,630 |
| MSI Creator Z16P (Core i9-12900H / RTX 3080 Ti) |
Bal: 55 fps Perf: 60 fps |
Bal: 30 fps Perf: 49 fps |
Bal: 60 fps Perf: N/A |
Bal: 9,251 Perf: 10,054 |
A creator’s IPS display
Mark Coppock/Digital Trends
Many creative laptops are equipped with OLED and mini-LED displays that offer superior brightness, contrast, and colors.
Dell stuck with an excellent IPS 4K+ display for the XPS 17 9730, and it’s a winner for creators. It’s bright at 501 nits and enjoys a 1,570:1 contrast ratio, which is excellent for IPS, even if it doesn’t match the inky blacks of the other leading technologies. The colors are excellent, with 100% sRGB and 100% AdobeRGB gamut coverage and an accuracy of DeltaE 1.33 (just missing the 1.0 or less cutoff for an excellent panel).
We’d prefer that Dell updated to either OLED or mini-LED, but the display it used will still make creators, productivity users, and media consumers quite happy.
Mark Coppock/Digital Trends
As with the previous version, the XPS 17 9730 pumped out excellent audio thanks to a four-speaker setup, with two upward-firing speakers alongside the keyboard and two side-firing speakers along the chassis. It’s among the best audio you’ll find on a Windows laptop, with plenty of volume, clear mids and highs, and some bass. It can’t quite match the superior audio of the MacBook Pro 16, but it’s still excellent.
A surprising drop in battery life
Mark Coppock/Digital Trends
The XPS 17 9730 has exactly the same battery capacity as the previous model, and a CPU that should be at least as efficient, if not more so. When compared with the previous model, however, which also used the same 4K+ display, the newer machine saw a dramatic reduction in battery life.
It fell almost three hours in our web-browsing test, eight hours in our video-looping test, and 1.5 hours in the PCMark 10 Applications battery benchmark. It was way behind our comparison group, and is unlikely to last even half a day when performing typical productivity tasks.
I’m not sure why battery life is so much worse, but these results are disappointing.
| Web browsing | Video | PCMark 10 Applications |
|
| Dell XPS 17 9730 (Core i7-13700H) |
4 hours, 46 minutes | 5 hours, 17 minutes | 5 hours, 34 minutes |
| Dell XPS 17 9720 (Core i7-12700H) |
7 hours, 36 minutes | 13 hours, 5 minutes | 7 hours, 3 minutes |
| LG Gram Style (Core i7-1360P) |
8 hours, 37 minutes | 9 hours, 23 minutes | 9 hours, 7 minutes |
| Dell XPS 15 9530 (Core i7-13700H) |
9 hours, 43 minutes | 11 hours, 46 minutes | 10 hours, 49 minutes |
| LG Gram 17 Pro (Core i7-1360P) |
13 hours, 43 minutes | 19 hours, 53 minutes | N/A |
| LG UltraPC 17 (Core i7-1260P) |
9 hours, 49 minutes | 11 hours, 54 minutes | 13 hours, 26 minutes |
| Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 (Ryzen 7 Pro 6850H) |
12 hours, 4 minutes | 23 hours, 2 minutes | N/A |
Barely treading water
The XPS 17 9730 is an underwhelming update.
Don’t misunderstand me – it’s still a very good laptop, providing solid performance in a thin and light package. But it’s falling behind, with slower creativity performance than many other 17-inch laptops, and it’s saddled with older technologies like a 720p webcam and wireless connectivity that’s a generation behind.
It’s also expensive, rivaling the much stronger MacBook Pro 16 depending on the configuration. If you’re looking for a 17-inch laptop, then the XPS 17 remains a viable choice. But it’s no longer the class leader that it once was.
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The Dell XPS 15 offers a choice from the GeForce RTX 4050 to the GeForce RTX 4070. In addition, there is an original option in the form of the Intel Arc A370M mobile graphics card. The high-end Dell XPS 17 offers options from GeForce RTX 4050 to GeForce RTX 4080. :no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/20081881/mchin_181005_4093_0015.0.jpg)
For the XPS 17 model with the same characteristics, they will charge from $3399. Notebook configurations with lower performance components will be available at a later date. Dell XPS 17 9720 REVIEW ★ Review Test Review Opinion ★ July 2023
by Denis
Dell XPS 17 9720 buy
Specifications Dell XPS 17 9720
The Dell XPS 17 9720 is powered by a 14-core Intel Core i7-12700H processor./cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/20081886/mchin_181005_4093_0001.0.jpg)
The TDP of the Dell XPS 17 9720 is 45W, which is average. On the one hand, the processor cannot boast of exceptional performance, on the other hand, it can still be considered a portable device that can be used away from a power outlet. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Laptop GPU is responsible for the graphics. Add a 65W graphics adapter to the processor power, and at maximum performance you will be able to fully work only from the power supply.
The Dell XPS 17 9720 has 32 GB of DDR5 RAM. This is enough not only for the most modern games, but also for video editing and other resource-intensive activities.
Our storage configuration is a fast Micron 3400 MTFDKBA512TFH 512GB 512GB SSD. The SSD capacity is enough for most tasks, however, if you are into video production or modern games, 512 GB may not be enough.
Dell XPS 17 Display 9720
The Dell XPS 17 9720 has a 17.0-inch 16:10 display with a resolution of 3840 x 2400 pixels and HDR support, made with IPS technology.
This resolution, in my opinion, is redundant for a 17.0-inch screen. Of course, you will be pleased with the highest clarity of the screen, and, of course, it is a pleasure to use such a device. However, there is a downside to the coin – increased power consumption, which negatively affects autonomy. If device mobility is more important to you, I recommend looking at configurations with a lower display resolution.
60 Hz display frequency is not something outstanding, but it is more than enough for everyday tasks. In addition, the lower the frequency of the display, the better its energy efficiency parameters. If autonomy is important to you, then 60 Hz from this point of view would be the best option.
Dell XPS 17 9720 averaged 400 nits of display brightness. This is a good indicator for comfortable work indoors and possibly outdoors on a cloudy day. In bright sunshine, I wouldn’t expect you to be able to see anything on the screen if I were you.
The contrast of the Dell XPS 17 9720 display is 1600:1, which is excellent.
The picture looks juicy and natural. It is especially pleasant to watch movies on such a screen. The screen surface is glossy. Like if you like glossy erans! Subscribe to our channel if you prefer matte.
IPS displays have proven themselves very well in mobile devices due to their excellent viewing angles and good color reproduction at a low production cost. Dell XPS 179720 inherited the advantages of IPS panels, however, it was not without its drawbacks.
Our colorimeter measurements show 100% coverage of the sRGB color space. This is a very good indicator, especially for games and films where richness of colors is important. The Dell XPS 17 9720 display is well calibrated by default, the gamma curve is up to standard, deviating only slightly from the standard, but you are unlikely to notice this with the naked eye.
The white point is noticeably shifted to the cold area. For professional use, I would recommend calibrating the display. In general, out of the box color reproduction is good.
Performance Dell XPS 17 9720
The Dell XPS 17 9720 can hardly be called a performance leader, but the Intel Core i7-12700H performs its best and fully meets expectations. You will only notice episodic system slowdowns if you are used to powerful multi-core desktop computers. For a portable computer, this performance is more than sufficient. In terms of numbers, the Dell XPS 17 9720 scored around 6800 in PCMark 10.
The graphics subsystem provided by the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Laptop GPU occupies a strong mid-range position and perfectly complements the Intel Core i7-12700H. In the 3DMark 11 graphics test, the Dell XPS 17 9 laptop720 scores around 18200 points.
Dell XPS 17 Cooling System 9720
The Dell XPS 17 9720 makes noticeable noise when under light load. It is audible even in office conditions. But if you load the Dell XPS 17 9720 to the fullest, the operation of the fans will frankly interfere. Working for a long time with such a background is uncomfortable.
Under maximum load, the Dell XPS 17 9720 body heats up to an uncomfortable temperature. Dimensions allow you to place a normal cooling system and not bring the device to critical temperatures. It is strange that this was not done.
Battery life Dell XPS 17 9720
The Dell XPS 17 9720 has average battery life. On a single charge, it will last no more than 7 hours with not very intensive use and an average brightness level. If you need more, then to the 2.5 kg weight of the device itself, add 396 g of the power supply, which you have to carry with you.
Dell XPS 17 interfaces 9720
- Dell XPS 17 9720 backlit keyboard
- WiFi 6
- Bluetooth 5.2
- Fingerprint sensor
- Light sensor
- Charging via USB-C (Power Delivery)
- 4x USB 4.0
- 4x Thunderbolt
- 4x DisplayPort
- Memory card slot: SDXC
- Headphone mini jack
Should I buy the Dell XPS 17 9720
The Dell XPS 17 9720 is a good choice, although it has some drawbacks.