Entered CNET Catalog: 09/12/2006
SKU: DXCWPF3
Manufacturer: Dell, Inc.
Manufacturer description
At first glance, you'll be amazed at how remarkably compact the XPS 210 is. But what's really amazing is that this small wonder packs in big-time performance. Plus, the sleek case makes it a stylish addition to your home.Product summary
The good: New Core 2 Duo CPU bolsters performance; Dell's DellConnect support leaves the troubleshooting to the professionals.
The bad: Innovations in design since the case's debut 14 months ago make the XPS 210 feel clunky; lazy absence of internal Wi-Fi.
The bottom line: With so many systems on the market that have planted their home-theater flags deeply in the living room rug, Dell's noncommittal XPS 210 feels too much like it's trying to please everyone. The addition of Intel's Core 2 Duo chips helps overall performance, but in general, this small-scale desktop needs more than a new brain to keep up with the competition.
CNET editors' review
- Editors' Choice: No
- Reviewed on: 09/14/2006
Our review unit's $1,844 price tag includes the Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 processor, a 20-inch Dell 2007FPW wide-screen LCD, 1GB of 533MHz DDR2 SDRAM, a 320GB hard drive, a TV tuner, a DVD burner, and a 256MB ATI Radeon X1300 Pro (HyperMemory). The CPU is really the only major difference in this model compared to its previous incarnation, the XPS 200. That's a fine configuration for getting most work done, playing music and movies, creating less intensive digital content, and even PC-based digital video recording, thanks to the tuner.
Among the XPS 210's configuration options, Dell offers the full range of Intel's Core 2 Duo chips (minus the Extreme X6800), plus more memory, a larger internal hard drive and a selection of external hard drives, as well as the usual range of software, printers, cameras, and other peripherals. Our chief disappointment is that Dell still doesn't offer a built-in wireless networking option. Both Apple and WinBook include Wi-Fi and Bluetooth as standard features in media PCs that are even smaller than the XPS 210. Dell sells all kinds of wireless routers but no internal wireless adapters, which would go a long way toward making the XPS 210 more living-room friendly.
The XPS 210's slim case is roughly the size of a first-generation Xbox. At 12.4 inches high, 3.7 inches wide, and 14.4 inches deep, it should be able to fit almost anywhere. Inside there's room for one hard drive and one optical drive, as well as up to four memory sticks. You only get two expansion slots, though, one x16 PCI Express slot, and one x1 PCI slot.
Even if some of the features and the design aspects of the XPS 210 are lacking, its application performance is strong. Its Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 and 1GB of memory place it just a step behind the higher-end Dell XPS 410 and its 2GB of memory, and slightly faster than the (less expensive) Velocity Micro ProMagix E2010 and its slower CPU. We suspect the Core 2 Duo chip in the XPS 210 helps the Quake 4 scores as well, such as they are. The Radeon X1300 Pro graphics card certainly isn't helping, since it's a HyperMemory card, which means it siphons off some of the system memory to boost its own onboard stash. Still 31.4 is respectable, and for many PC gamers, as long as they can play World of Warcraft, what more do they need? You should be able to play WoW, and any other game that is graphically forgiving, but with the half-height graphics-card limitation due to the slim case, your gaming options will always be limited.
Dell was uphappy with our support rating for its XPS 700, since with the release of that system Dell introduced a new commitment to service, accompanied by a feature called DellConnect. The XPS 700 has bigger problems with its warranty (mainly the duration, considering the system's price), but the XPS 210 is a more mainstream system, so its one year of parts-and-labor warranty coverage and 24/7 phone support are more acceptable. Dell's wide-ranging support Web site has a FAQ and system-specific support features. You can also add all kinds of service options to suit your specific needs for onsite service, extended warranties, and more.
We tried out DellConnect, and we came away impressed. DellConnect is a service that lets you grant a Dell technician access to your desktop remotely. You initiate contact with a standard call to Dell's customer service. You must be connected to the Web over a broadband connection, and your PC must at least be able to boot to the OS. Once you download the small software package (which you can later remove), your technician has multiple options for fixing a problem, but you also get to control how much access you want to allow. Options include football-style onscreen drawings that help you figure out how to make the changes yourself. You can let a tech change a setting for you directly; you can even grant a full system analysis. The software gives you the ability to affirm or deny each step, and you can also cancel out of a session completely at any time. We don't believe any other system vendor offers a comparable service right now, and DellConnect really sets Dell's support apart from the rest of the pack.
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
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Apple iTunes encoding test | |
Adobe Photoshop CS2 image-processing test | |
Multitasking test |
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
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Quake 4 1,024x768, 4xAA 8xAF |
Find out more about how we test desktop systems.
System configurations:
Apple iMac Core 2 Duo (24-inch)
OS X 10.4.7.16GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7400; 1GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM; 128MB (dedicated) Nvidia GeForce 7300 GT graphics chip; 250GB 7,200rpm Serial ATA hard drive;
Dell XPS 210
Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 SP2; 2.4GHz Intel Core Duo E6600; 1,024MB DDR2 SDRAM 533MHz; 256MB ATI Radeon X1300 Pro; 320GB Western Digital 7,200rpm SATA
Dell XPS 410
Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 SP2; 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo E6600; 2,048MB DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz; Intel 965G chipset; 256MB Nvidia GeForce 7900 GS; (2) Western Digital 300GB 10,000rpm SATA; Nvidia Nforce RAID class controller (RAID 1)
Shuttle XPS X100
Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 SP2; 1.6GHz Intel Core Duo T2050; 2,048MB DDR2 SDRAM 533MHz; 256MB ATI Mobility Radeon X1400; 250GB Seagate 7,200rpm SATA
Velocity Micro ProMagix E2010
Windows XP Professional SP2; 2.13GHz Intel Core 2 Duo E6400; 1,024MB DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz; 256MB Nvidia GeForce 7600GS; Western Digital 320GB 7,200prm SATA
User opinions
Select a User Opinion to view: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 User Rating: 
6/10
Decent Machine
Pros: Fine machine when compared to our Dimension E20 and Dimension 4600
Cons: Gets easily bogged down when running Photoshop, Illustrator, and indesign.
Seems to run slower then A MacBookPro with Similar Specs (mbp has slower Processor, HD, and less ram)
User Rating: 6/10
It works for me!
Pros: Small, Good to look at
Cons: Not really powerful enough
Otherwise i have had a reasonable time. Annoyed dell feel that the solution to every problem is either to turn it off and on or to reinstall windows, as it meant time spent on the web to find a program that would play dvds after the standard dell cineplayer that came with it wont play anything any more.
Overall I would say that it has been advertised to be something its not, a high end standard pc in small packaging would have been better, rather than low end gaming. And the support definitely needs to be improved.
User Rating: 
2/10
Noisy Machine, Horrible Dell Suport
Pros: fast, ports are easy to access
Cons: noisy vibration, horrible dell customer support
The vibrating case got so annoying that I eventually decided to lay the case flat on it's side instead of standing up. Fortunately, my desk can accommodate this position, but I think most people will want to stand it up in the normal position.
My second and bigger complaint is with Dell support. When I purchased the PC, Dell had a promotion for a $200 gift card, to arrive separately. Well, it never arrived. When I called Dell they assured me it was simply delayed due to a backlog on processing the rebates. They kept giving me this story for weeks and then changed their story altogether that my order didn't qualify for the rebate.
Fortunately, my invoice clearly showed that the order qualified for the Dell rebate, and I eventually received it. But only after pointless aggravation.
I was never able to speak to anyone in the US. They said that was impossible so I was in off-shore call center hell. A similar thing happened to me with Dell Financial Services when they made a mistake with a payment.
I will never buy a Dell again.
User Rating: 2/10
my dad doesnt like it
Pros: havent seen none yet
Cons: he uses my computer more than his new one
User Rating: 2/10
Just a BAD! desktop.
Pros: it dose look nice..
Cons: it's very NOISY sounds like an airplane on your desk
User Rating: 
5/10
hope it's quieter than the 200
Pros: Can't comment
Cons: Can't Comment
User Rating: 2/10
Horrible Customer Service from Dell
Pros: System is fast
Cons: Customer Service
I am ready to pack up this system, send it back to Dell and go down to my local Best Buy and get a Gateway! At least if they treat me with the same poor service, I have a place to take my complaint in person, not get put on hold again!
User Rating: 
9/10
I like it. mostly not sure about the review of IFYC576
Pros: nice. clean. fast. capable.
Cons: none yet. but i don't have the wit of the IFYC576 reviewer. I mean, what a valuable review! that is!
what a great review. Thanks for the valuable input. i can't believe how thorough and accurate you were with the review you wrote you dolt.
so your big beef with this pc is that it doesn't run games that you play...or at least i guess that's what it is. Tough to tell, since you're "expert review" is that of a 10 year old.
thanks for the knokwledge. I'll have my 3 year old write a review here when he can type. I'm sure it'll be about as helpful...
User Rating: 
8/10
Great PC in general
Pros: Small, quiet, fast
Cons: upgrade options are limited
User Rating: 
1/10
Dell's Service is terrible
Pros: Don't know yet
Cons: Expensive service plan is a scam
User Rating: 6/10
I had to laugh when I read the Editor's review! lol
Pros: __________
Cons: ___________
User Rating: 6/10
I had to laugh when I read the Editor's review! lol
Pros: __________
Cons: ___________
User Rating: 9/10
very impressed with the dell xps 210
Pros: small form, great looking, duo core processor, fast, queit
Cons: so far, none
I loaded mine with a 2.4 ghz proc, duo core of course, 2 gb of memory, the basic 250 gb of memory, 256 mb ati radeon x1300 pro, integreted hd sound card. This thing sure is great to look at, and i have it laying flat down with my beautiful 19" widescreen LG monitor right on top of it. Wireless logiteck MX3200 keyboard and mouse in the front, and logitech speakers on each side. the set up i have is great, especially for my small room. i love it.. I am satisfied for now. after going through a hp laptop, returning it, after getting an imac, returning it, i can now say that i am glad with this choice, and seeing as no one else has written a review, i am here to say, get this desktop, not only does it look great, not only is it small, but it runs great as well.
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