Reviews

Dell XPS 420

• Review
• Test Report
• Pricing

• Pricing:Inexpensive: $2868 (8/8/2008)
• Performance:Superior: 93
• Features:Good: 73
• Design:Good: 79

Pricing Inexpensive: $2868

Inexpensive: $2868

Performance Superior: 93

Superior: 93

WorldBench 6 Tests - Superior: 122

WorldBench 6 Component Results (seconds)
Adobe Photoshop CS2	321
Autodesk 3ds max 8.0 SP-3 DirectX	340
Autodesk 3ds max 8.0 SP-3 Rendering	317
Firefox 2	218
Microsoft Office 2003 with SP-1	347
Microsoft Windows Media Encoder 9.0	197
Multitasking	240
Nero 7 Ultra Edition	274
Roxio VideoWave Movie Creator 1.5	196
Winzip Computing WinZip 10.0	191

Graphics Tests (frames per second)
Overall Graphics Score	Very Good
Doom 3, 1024 by 768, 32-Bit	158.03
Doom 3, 1280 by 1024, 32-Bit	163.53
Doom 3 with AA, 1024 by 768, 32-Bit	150.27
Doom 3 with AA, 1280 by 1024, 32-Bit	140
Far Cry, 1024 by 768, 32-Bit	198.16
Far Cry, 1280 by 1024, 32-Bit	193.11
Far Cry with AA, 1024 by 768, 32-Bit	189.92
Far Cry with AA, 1280 by 1024, 32-Bit	177.35

Features Good: 73

Good: 73

Basics
CPU	2.83-GHz Core 2 Quad Q9550
System Memory	3072

Video & Display
Graphics Adapter	nVidia GeForce 8800 GT
Graphics Board Type	PCI Express
Graphics Board RAM (MB)	512
Graphics Board RAM Type	DDR3
Monitor Model	Dell SP2208WFP
Monitor Type	LCD
Monitor Size	22

Storage
Hard Drives	2
Total HD Size (GB)	640
RAID Type	striped
Optical Drive Type	BD-R/RE/DVD±R DL/DVD±RW
Optical Drive Speed	4

Expansion
PCI Slots	3
PCI Express Slots	3
Open PCI Express X16 Slots	0
Open PCI Express X1 Slots	1
Open Slots	4
External Drive Bays	4
Open External Drive Bays	1
Internal Drive Bays	2
Open Internal Drive Bays	0

Ports
Serial Ports	0
Parallel Ports	0
Front USB Ports	2
Rear USB Ports	6
Front FireWire Ports	1
Rear FireWire Ports	1

Other
Audio Adapter Model	Integrated SigmaTel High Definition Audio
Audio Channels	7.1 surround
Network Adapter	gigabit network adapter
Case Type	Midsize tower
Operating System	Windows Vista Home Premium (32 bit)
Other Included Hardware	USB cable
Included Software	Microsoft Works Suite 2006; Adobe Elements Studio (Premiere 4, Photoshop 6); Roxio Creator Premiere; CyberLInk PowerDVD

Warranty & Support
Labor Warranty (years)	One
Parts Warranty (years)	One
Weekday Support Hours	24
Saturday Support Hours	24
Sunday Support Hours	24
Toll-Free Support	Yes

Reliability & Service
Summary of results for all of brand's products in this category	The company earned decent marks for reliability overall here, but it also attracted more gripes about long hold times for phone support. Once again, Dell's tech staff is good at solving problems.

Reilability of brand's products in this category
Reports of products with core component problems	Average
Reports of products with failed components	Average
Reports of products with any significant problems	Average
Reports of products arriving with problems	Average
Overall satisfaction with reliability of brand's products in category	Average

Service & Support Quality
Time spent holding for phone support	Worse than Average
Overall quality of vendor's phone support	Average
Reports of problems unresolved after contacting service	Better than Average
Overall quality of service	Better than Average

Design Good: 79

Good: 79

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