Dell Inspiron 24 7000
A SOLID ALL-IN-ONE PC FOR YOUR HOME OR WORKPLACE WITH SOME SURPRISING PLUS POINTS.
DELL FORGED ITS name (and reputation) in the world of traditional desktop PCs, but with more of us looking for more creative ways to work, the US company is now looking to offer a number of other form factors and options for those looking for something a little different. The Dell Inspiron 24 7000 is the company’s attempt to challenge the likes of the Microsoft Surface Studio and Apple’s premium iMacs in the growing all-in-one PC market, which combines everything you’d want in a PC into a single model.
Make no mistake, the 7000 is striking. The 23.8-inch Full HD display catches the eye from the minute you open the box, offering a true widescreen experience — although there are some seriously large bezels present. The PC is also super thin, at just 27mm across, and thanks to its movable hinge, the display can be tilted to a number of angles, right down to lying flat on its back. This flexibility means that the display isn’t able to rise up too high, though, meaning you might need to invest in a separate screen stand.
All the main components are contained within the base of the display, which packs in the device’s hardware, as well as a surprisingly powerful speaker. With its metal and black plastic design, it’s hardly the most attractive unit, but the angle of the screen means that you won’t really notice it.
The base model, on test here, offers a decent set of specs, including a quad-core Intel Core i5-6300HQ (Skylake) processor with 6MB cache, integrated Intel HD graphics and 12GB of 2,133MHz DDR4 RAM. Other goodies include a 1TB 5,400rpm hard drive, plus 80211ac Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0 wireless connectivity. As far as wired connections go, the Inspiron 24 7000 has you covered, coming equipped with four USB 2.0 and two USB 3.0 ports, plus Ethernet and HDMI, as well as a memory card reader.
These specs put the Inspiron 24 7000 a little behind the lowest-priced iMac offerings, although the equivalent Apple device — the 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K display — will set you back $2,699, far more than the Dell. As for Microsoft’s Surface Studio, the equivalent model costs $4,699.
The Inspiron offers fairly decent power, given its price range, and was able to take on some of its more powerful competitors, outscoring the Microsoft Surface Studio in our GeekBench tests. Here, the Dell scored 3,809 on the single core test; 10,649 on the Multi Core test and a decent 16,588 on the Compute OpenCL test. The Dell also out-performs the 2016 version of the equivalent-sized Apple iMac, which scored lower on Novabench’s tests, with the Dell coming in 70% faster thanks to its integrated Intel HD GPU.
The version we used came with an Intel Core i5-6300HQ processor, but the device is also available with a more powerful Intel Core i7. This boosted version also comes with embedded Nvidia graphics, instead of Intel hardware, 16GB of RAM, plus a 32GB SSD as well as HDD storage. You’ll have to pay more for the privilege, of course. Overall, though, the standard edition is more than enough to handle the vast majority of everyday work tasks, and also means the PC boots quickly, with that 12GB of RAM doing wonders for speed and performance.
Dell is obviously targeting the creative industries, with the flexible display useful if you work in media or graphic design, however this is by no means a portable device, with the unit weighing 9.46kg. The super-wide screen is also ideal for those who need multiple windows or programs open at the same time.
The Inspiron is an attractive proposition if you need a Windows-powered all-in-one. With its 24-inch display, it’s a valuable addition to any home or office, provided you have the room for it. Although it lacks the high street appeal of Microsoft’s Surface Studio, or the sophistication and build quality of Apple’s iMac, for the price on offer, the Dell Inspiron 24 7000 is a good all-rounder.