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XPS 13 7390 2-in-1 disappointing thermal management and battery life
I previously owned a Dell XPS 13 9343 and it was a great device! I expected a solid upgrade going to the 7390 2-in-1. But I can't say I'm pleased. I got the really expensive model, 1TB drive, 32GB memory, QHD display.
Yes, I know the QHD display draws more power than the FHD. Sadly, the FHD display isn't even available with the large SSD and memory... Anyway:
== Regarding the battery ==
As other have noticed, the battery life is pretty abysmal. I get up to 5 hours at low screen brightness and just browsing the web. I have no idea what was different about the devices tested by Anandtech, cnet, laptopmag and others, but they all easily got 8 hours out of the QHD, up to almost 14 hours for the FHD model. But what Dell is shipping to people seems like a different deal. And I've read people calling Dell and getting told that it's normal for the battery to run out after 3-4 hours. Very disappointing for a device clearly aimed at mobility.
== Regarding thermal management ==
My old Dell XPS 13 ran cool and quiet. The fan NEVER turned on during normal use unless I was maxing out the CPU. In this new model, the fan is CONSTANTLY running on low. The CPU temp, just writing this forum post, hovers around 44° C in a 23° C room. Maybe the thermal compound and/or its application are rubbish? But this can't be intentional. Especially after all the marketing regarding Intel Athena... I'd be totally fine with much more aggressive throttling and lower performance (as if you even need "performance" for most tasks) if that would shut up the fan and extend the battery life. I think there's something massively wrong with the engineering of the thermal management.
All in all, this is a pretty disappointing deal for 2500USD, especially compared to the old one. Honestly I'm not sure what to do. Maybe I'll upgrade the thermal compound on the CPU. Maybe I'll just have to return it... What a shame.
DELL-Cares
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January 25th, 2020 01:00
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shcl
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January 25th, 2020 02:00
Jmar56
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May 18th, 2020 22:00
I would like to second this, I spent wayyy too much money on a laptop like this to be having such thermal issues. I've had countless issues with display drivers, always keep it up to date and take good care of it but this hardware definitely doesnt warrant such a price tag. I have older laptops that are half the price but manage everything significantly better.
I have this computer fully maxed out. There is little to no reason why I should have an issue running thinkorswim and a youtube video. Between the stutters, crashes, and thermal issues, its just a train wreck.
This has been my first dell in many many years when they used to compete with gateway. Sadly I dont think I should have given them a second chance.
accmoz
22 Posts
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May 19th, 2020 01:00
I have a 2 in 1 (FHD though) and it works very well (some audio issues, but not performance related, must be a driver). I had it repasted and undervolted, and i can lightly game with it with no problem. I had a 4K version before and I agree that the battery life was bad, however, the FHD version is not that better, i get 6/7 hours out of it.
I dont have any thermal throttling and i get a score of 2040 on cinebench r20.
I would suggest you to undervolt it (really easy and safe to do) and if you can repaste it.
mux8
59 Posts
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May 19th, 2020 17:00
How did you repaste and undervolt? Any before and after results?
accmoz
22 Posts
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May 20th, 2020 11:00
I wasnt the one who repasted it, but dell's user manual is quite explicit on how to access the motherboard.
For undervolting, i used Throttlestop.
About 10% increase in performance (1850 to 2040 in cinebench r20) to and 5/10% increase in battery life so quite substantial