Dell has recently released a new set of power user laptops with a gaming side. Dell Inspiron i5577-7359BLK-PUS is one of those, sporting heavyweight components for anything software related. In addition, a dedicated graphics card is included for gamers’ enjoyment. So far so good, the laptop sounds excellent, but there must be some drawbacks and blunders about it? Reading this review will give an idea about the laptop’s usefulness for you!
Performance
The processor on Dell Inspiron i5577-7359BLK-PUS will put a smile on your face. It’s a quad-core Intel Core i7-7700HQ. Yes, i7, and of the 7th generation (Kaby Lake). The clock speed is strong 2.8GHz while turbo boost takes it to 3.8GHz. Naturally, such a processor also contains four cores. The CPU Mark score is very strong at around 9000 points, which is very suitable for people demanding extreme performance.
The model in question has a good storage section. There’s a conventional 1TB 5400RPM hard drive taking the majority of your files. But in addition, what you will find inside is a 128GB M.2 solid-state drive.
The memory is perfect for 2017, one 8GB DDR4 2400MHz stick. I would say most people don’t need more than that; for example power users and even gamers are often content with 8 gigabytes. That being said, you’re welcome to add more memory: 32GB is the maximum with two RAM slots on board.
Graphics and display
The display on Dell Inspiron i5577-7359BLK-PUS has 15.6 inches diagonal, the most common one of notebooks. The maximum resolution would be 1920×1080 which is also known as Full HD. Ideally, you want Full HD or more these days for best image quality and screen estate. The other features of this screen are anti-glare TN panel with color gamut of NTSC 45% and 220 nits brightness. The screen does not support touch.
For graphics, the Dell offers a dedicated GeForce GTX 1050 with 4GB GDDR5 memory. The graphics card in question, while dedicated, still belongs to the inexpensive category. This is not to say it’s a bad choice, but running all games at ultra settings is not feasible. For example, The Witcher 3 would get a poorish ~20FPS on maxed out settings and Full HD. Grand Theft Auto 5 would fall in the same category. On the other hand, if you can reduce settings to medium-high, all games will spit out smooth frames. Virtual Reality is not supported.
Video
Ports and interfaces
Dell Inspiron i5577-7359BLK-PUS has enough ports to keep a player happy. There are three USB connectors at your disposal, and all of them are USB 3.0. One of the ports has a PowerShare function, meaning you can charge devices through the port.
There is a single HDMI output available. You want to use it for hooking up an external monitor. This can happen if you find the notebook’s own screen too small for your taste. Indeed, only one external display can be used at a time.
Mind you, this laptop does not have an optical drive installed. The way to use discs would be to get an external DVD burner which, obviously, hooks up to the Dell’s USB port.
There is a Gigabit RJ-45 port and Wireless adapter for getting this laptop connected to Internet. The WiFi adapter supports the long-range 802.11ac standard and Bluetooth 4.2, so all the wireless essentials are well covered.
Like every laptop I know, also this Dell comes with a media card reader. Those cards are a handy way to move data from many devices, for example digital cameras.
Miscellaneous
The battery has six cells with a total 74Whr wattage. Don’t get too excited about these specs, the power-hungry components will drain the battery rather quickly under gameplay. You’re looking at around 2 hours if gaming, although be prepared to get double if you are just browsing the web.
Surely this model features a backlit keyboard. The color is supposed to be red.
Reasons to buy it
The high-end components make Dell Inspiron i5577-7359BLK-PUS an excellent power user laptop. The quad-core 7th generation i7 processor won’t have slowdowns. Furthermore, the solid-state drive (where the operating system is installed) will load Windows to desktop in only some seconds.
The Dell is not advertised as a gaming laptop but it can surely work as one. The dedicated GTX 1050 will be fine for playing games on medium to high settings.
Reasons not to buy it
Dell Inspiron i5577-7359BLK-PUS is like a chameleon, good for most things, but there’s one it does not excel in. That would be laptop for on-the-go person. The battery life won’t exceed four or five hours under lightweight use. Moreover, the 15.6″ screen size doesn’t earn any extra portability points.
Summary
I can generally recommend Dell Inspiron i5577-7359BLK-PUS. There’s a lot of performance hidden inside its black shell which will manifest itself as smooth operations when you fire up software, mundane or high demanding. Especially the processor, which is the essential component, is strong here with the latest Kaby Lake architecture and Core i7 family. On top of everything, a dedicated graphics card is installed for great gaming experience. If you don’t expect all day battery life from such a machine, this Dell will only surprise you in a very positive way.
