XPS 15 - how long should it last?

Notebooks have a design life of 3-4 years.  However, between 20-30% of them will fail in that period - which is why whatever you buy next, you should cover it with a 3 year warranty.

These systems are built for Dell by the largest or second largest (depending on the time you check) manufacturer of notebooks in the world - they build for Dell, HP, Acer, Lenovo, Apple - that is, everyone -- so though you may think you're getting something different next time, your next system may well be cosmetically different on the outside - with the same components inside - and having come off the same assembly line as your Dell.

If that's true -- then why won't Apple let you extend AppleCare beyond 36 months?

I don't agree with the earlier response you got. XPS should have provided you more life than you got. Macbooks work without any major motherboards issues for 5-6 years average .Dell narrates XPS as extreme performance systems , so it should be high quality.

@ejn63 so can anybody evaluate the life of the product with the warranty period supported on the product ? Then this world is really served by un-ethical manufactures ... As far as Mac warranty is concerned , i will check and get back , but i have been using Mac for last 3 years and did not atleast face heating issues.

Out of curiosity, which generation of the XPS 15 did you have?  Your experience certainly isn't typical.  I've used Dell XPS and Precision systems in some cases for 6+ years before giving them to someone else, and those people then used them for even longer.  Then again, my sisters can't seem to keep their laptops running well for more than 3-4 years.  Perhaps I just take better care of my laptops than most.  Anyhow, you definitely should not have had to replace components like that at all, never mind multiple times within a year and now encountering total system failure.

I too disagree with ejn63's claim (provided without any official citation) that notebooks are designed to last only 3-4 years, as well as the suggestion that a product's expected lifespan can be determined by the warranty period the manufacturer offers.  My $9000 Sony Z9D TV was only available with a 1-year manufacturer warranty.  I've already had it longer than that without any problems, and I expect that to remain the case to for several more years.  Cars even from brands known for reliability often have warranties for only 3-4 years and can often go much longer than that without any repairs if they’re properly maintained.

Anyhow, I’m sorry to hear you had a bad ownership experience.

my system was the XPS15 9550.  And yes I have a Precision that must be 8 years old, tied to the desk as the battery died a long time ago but otherwise working perfectly, that's why I went with Dell and the XPS

my system was the XPS 15 9550.  And yes I have a Precision that must be 8 years old, tied to the desk as the battery died a long time ago but otherwise working perfectly, that's why I went with Dell and the XPS

The problem with the "last Dell" comment is this:  ALL notebooks are built by a small pool of contract manufacturers.  Well over half of them -- regardless of the name on the outside -- are designed and built by the same two companies.  So -- you may well decide to buy a/n (Lenovo, Apple, HP, etc.) next time - and find out the system was designed and built by the same company that made the XPS for Dell.  If you buy a faulty Whirlpool washing machine -- and a Maytag next time -- you'll find the control panel's name is dififerent, but the internals are identical, since they're both built by the same manufacturer.

I believe the recent XPS 15 laptops have a serious flaw (or more in the design)... mine didn't last a month for receiving issues. First and last Dell. There's lots of other options out there. Find one with better quality for the price. I'm very upset about the $2300 slow browser I bought a year ago and have had to spend hours on getting fixed/resolved (which is still isn't).

Laptops should last 5-6 years without issue. For the guy asking about Apple warranty. ... because putting anything under warranty for more than 3 years in the tech industry just doesn't happen.

Warranty Length != Laptop Lifespan

They are not the same thing in any way.

Built by the same manufacturer does not mean built to the same specification and certainly not using the same parts/materials.  Come on....

Yes, it does - all notebooks are made from the same parts (for any given component such as CPUs, video chips, RAM, etc. you'll find sometimes as few as two and perhaps as many as 4-5 suppliers at most).  In CPUs, there are two - in video chips, three, in hard drives, there are three left.  

Look into the suppliers of basic components such as circuit boards, displays, etc. - and you'll find them similarly restricted.

If you think there's a difference between the components in a Mac built by Compal and an XPS built by Compal -- look inside.  There isn't.

One's a Chevy and the other's a Buick - both GM at the core.  Is one more reliable than the other?  Most stats say no - just about all computer hardware these days has about the same failure rate, which is hardly surprising since it's all built by a very small pool of companies using parts from an even more limited base of suppliers.

The same thing happened to my xps 15 9550. Costly and time consuming. Tried Dell after using HP for a long time. Mistake.

Will miss screen.