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CNET editors' rating:
stars
OK
Detailed editors' rating - Average user rating: 2.5 stars out of 6 reviews
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Product summary
The good: First Dell desktop with 64-bit Vista option; onsite service.
The bad: Competition offers more configuration options at better prices; clunky Dell-branded receiver accessories hurt visual appeal; icon software targets the wrong aspects of Apple systems.
The bottom line: Dell's new Studio Desktop introduces 64-bit Windows Vista to the Dell desktop line-up, but that's about the only thing this system does well. Its biggest, and deal-killing, fault is the overpriced and less than aggressive selection of configuration options.
Specifications: Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad Q8200 (2.33 GHz) ; RAM installed: 4 GB DDR2 SDRAM ; Hard drive: 640 GB ; See full specs
Price range: $764.00 check prices
CNET editors' review
- Reviewed on: 09/24/2008
- Released on: 09/23/2008
With its new Studio Desktop, Dell finally brings its mainstream desktop line into the 64-bit era. The glossy black midtower PC presents little in the way of innovative design, but by offering the 64-bit version of Windows Vista, Dell now competes on even footing with HP, Gateway, and other vendors who've offered the more memory-friendly operation system for months. We're glad to see Dell catch up with its competition, but overpriced accessories and limited upgrade options hold this system back.
At its core, the Dell Studio Desktop is very similar to the $1,100 HP Pavilion Elite m9300t we reviewed a few months ago. Both cost about $1,000, and feature Intel quad-core processors, large hard drives, and an array of optional extras including wireless networking adapters and TV tuners. The difficulty for Dell is that HP's upgrades are more plentiful, and more affordable, giving the Studio Desktop less flexibility for customers looking to configure their own PCs.
| Dell Studio Desktop | HP Pavilion Elite m9300t | |
| Price | $1,208 | $1,100 |
| CPU | 2.3GHz Intel Core 2 Quad Q8200 | 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 |
| Memory | 4GB 800MHz DDR2 SDRAM | 2GB 800MHz DDR2 SDRAM |
| Graphics | 256MB ATI Radeon HD 3650 | 512MB Nvidia GeForce 9500 GS |
| Hard drives | 640GB, 7,200rpm | 500GB, 7,200rpm |
| Optical drive | dual-layer DVD burner | Blu-ray/HD DVD player/dual-layer DVD burner |
| Networking | Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11n wireless | Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11b/g wireless |
| Operating system | Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) | Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 (32-bit) |
| TV Tuner | Yes | Yes |
When we look at the configuration of each system we reviewed, we can see just how similar they are. Dell opted, wisely, to send us a 64-bit Vista unit with 4GB of RAM. HP's 32-bit model has only 2GB of memory, as well as a slightly smaller hard drive and only standard 802.11b/g wireless. Upgrading the HP's RAM and Wi-Fi accordingly raises its price $90, and switching to 64-bit Vista is free, leaving it still less expensive than the Dell, but with two key advantages: a Blu-ray drive and a 512MB graphics card. Both of those options greatly expand the HP's capability to serve up entertainment, and in contrast, the Dell system looks less capable and overpriced.
That said, we commend Dell for finally making the leap to 64-bit Windows Vista. We suspect Dell timed the move to coincide with this week's release of Adobe's Creative Suite 4, the first major Windows application with native 64-bit support. Now that Dell has made the move to 64-bit, its PCs can finally put 4GB of RAM and more to use. The Studio Desktop will support up to 8GB of memory, but as you can see from our performance results, the benefits of 4GB are immediately apparent.
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
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Rendering Multiple CPUs | |
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Our Photoshop test is still based on 32-bit code, but we can still use it to show the benefit of a system such as this Dell that uses all 4GB of its memory. The Studio Desktop blasted through our Photoshop workload 25 seconds faster than the HP, and its scores on our other tests were similarly competitive. The one exception is our multitasking test, which the iMac and its lean Mac OS X operating system continues to dominate.
While the Dell's performance looks good, keep in mind that you can configure the HP with 64-bit Windows and 4GB of RAM and still keep the price under that of the Studio Desktop. We'd expect such rejiggering would result in faster performance. HP doesn't sell the Core 2 Duo Q8200 CPU that came with our Dell review unit yet (it goes on sale from Dell tomorrow), but it sells a variety of quad-core chips with faster processor speeds.
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Regardless of its CPU, the Dell still falls behind on our Unreal Tournament 3 gaming test. Worse, because the 256MB Radeon HD 3650 graphics card is the best that Dell has to offer, these scores represent the limit of the Studio Desktop's gaming capability. Not every desktop has to be a gaming system, but the fact is that the HP and its 512MB GeForce 9500 GS deliver smoother play for less. Given the fact that 512MB 3D cards have become so affordable, and have been for a while, Dell looks out of touch by not offering one with this system.
HP has a similar advantage with its Blu-ray drive. It's not that Dell doesn't offer one for the Studio Desktop. Indeed, Dell advertises the fact that you can configure a Studio Desktop without a discrete graphics card. Integrated video chips have finally become fast enough to spit out satisfactory HD video, and we're glad that Dell leverages that capability. Although we don't find Blu-ray drives a must-have in any midtower desktop, HP undercuts Dell dramatically by offering the Blu-ray upgrade for $150. Choosing Blu-ray on a Studio Desktop instead of our review unit's dual-layer DVD burner will cost you $300.
We also find the Dell has made a few strange design choices with the Studio Desktop. Some we've seen before, but collectively they speak to a general sense that Dell hasn't put as much thought into the visual appeal of this system as it could have. The 802.11n wireless antenna is the first example, an optional feature including with our review unit. Unlike many desktops, the wireless adapter in this system comes as a PCI expansion card, complete with an external antenna that looks like a square hockey puck attached to the system by a thick cable, rather than the typical screw-on antenna. We find dongles awkward as a rule, and especially when their design is so clunky.
We're also annoyed by the external USB infrared receiver. We wish Windows system vendors would adopt the Apple model of sticking everything inside the body of the system. If that means abandoning IR for remote controls, so be it. The Dell receiver looks like a piece of sliced-off carrot. It has inputs for two IR blasters (one is included), for pairing the Windows remote and your TV tuner to a cable box. With those hooked up, the IR receiver then looks like a large slice of carrot with two electrodes in it. We'd love to see desktop vendors, and the buying public who demands it, get over the idea of the PC as an ad hoc TiVo. It hardly works as well as a traditional PVR device, and it looks plain goofy
Finally, the Mac OS X-style icon manager at the top of the Windows desktop screen is a custom application written by Dell that says...something...Mac envy?...Vista regret...? We're not sure. We first came across it on the Inspiron 518, and it seemed harmless then, and practically speaking it still is. If you don't like it, you can always turn it off or uninstall it. But while we'd like to see PC makers compete more aggressively with Apple and clean up their hardware designs, aping one of Apple's software hallmarks, and doing it less elegantly, feels like Dell is trying to diminish its identity as a seller of Windows-based desktop computers.
Dell also included a pair of serviceable Dell-branded 2.1 PC speakers with our review configuration, a $50 premium. A wired mouse and keyboard are your only input options, although from the look of Dell's Web site it seems to be selling a more up-to-date set than what it sent us. The system comes with an HDMI video output that's built into the motherboard, and the graphics card has two HDMI ports as well. The two on the card override the built-in one, so you don't get three HDMI ports, but it's nice to know that even in its basic configuration, this system can accommodate HDTV and newer LCD input standards.
Dell's support policies for the Studio Desktop are standard stuff for Dell, which we still find ahead of most of its competitors, at least on paper (real world results, as always, may vary). The one-year parts-and-labor warranty isn't surprising, and any major vendor should have 24-7 toll-free phone support as a rule. What we like though, is that Dell remains one of the few PC vendors to offer onsite service. You have to obtain approval from a Dell support technician through the remote diagnostic tool (no word on what happens when your computer won't get online or boot), but that the option exists at all still goes beyond most other vendors.
Find out more about how we test desktop systems.
System configurations:
Apple iMac (20-inch, 2.4GHz)
Apple OS X; 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7700; 2GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM; 256MB ATI Radeon HD 2600 Pro graphics chip; 320GB 7,200rpm hard drive.
Dell Studio Desktop
Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 (64-bit); 2.33GHz Intel Core 2 Quad Q8200; 4GB 800MHz DDR2 SDRAM; 256MB ATI Radeon HD 3650 graphics card; 640GB 7,200rpm Western Digital hard drive.
Gateway DX4200
Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 (64-bit); 2.2Ghz AMD Phenom X4 9550; 6GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM; 256MB ATI Radeon HD 3450 graphics card; 640GB 7,200rpm Western Digital hard drive.
HP Pavilion Elite m9300t
Windows Vista Home Premium SP1; 2.4Ghz Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600; 2GB 800MHz DDR2 SDRAM; 512MB Nvidia GeForce 9500 GS graphics card; 500GB 7,200rpm Hitachi hard drive.
Velocity Micro Vector Campus Edition
Windows Vista Home Premium SP1; 2.53Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo E7200; 2GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM; 384MB Nvidia GeForce 8800 GS graphics card; 500GB 7,200rpm Hitachi hard drive.
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User reviews
- Average user rating: 2.5 stars out of 6 reviews
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Dell Studio Desktop Computer (Intel Core 2 Quad Q8200, 640GB HDD, 4GB):
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