For a few years, if you wanted to nab a laptop from Dell that was specifically made for gaming, you had to look at its Alienware department. Those laptops are pretty great, but they do cost a good chunk of money. Show Dell's G series aims to cut down on price while still delivering the performance gamers need. Available in three different classifications — G3, G5, and G7 — these laptops rise in price and hardware accordingly. I have here for review the 15.6-inch G7 with an alpine white color scheme and typical aggressive gaming design. Let's take a look at how well it performs and whether or not it's worth your attention. About this reviewDell supplied Windows Central with a review unit of the G7 15 (7588) gaming laptop. This specific configuration has inside an 8th Gen Intel Core i7-8750H processor (CPU), 16GB of DDR4-2666MHz RAM, a 128GB Samsung PM871b M.2 SATA solid-state drive (SSD) coupled with a 1TB 5,400 RPM hard-disk drive (HDD), and a NVIDIA GTX 1060 (Max-Q) with 6GB of GDDR5 VRAM. This exact model costs about $1,310, though they start at about $1,100 and go up to about $1,760. See at Dell Dell G7 15 7588 tech specsSwipe to scroll horizontally CategorySpecProcessor8th Gen Intel Core i7-8750H Six-core Up to 4.10 GHzStorage128GB M.2 SATA SSD 1TB 5,400 RPM HDDRAM16GB DDR4-2666MHz (Two sticks)Display15.6-inch FHD (1,920 x 1,080) IPS 60 Hz refresh rateGraphicsNVIDIA GTX 1060 (Max-Q) 6GB GDDR5 VRAMPortsThree USB-A 3.1 HDMI 2.0 Thunderbolt 3 (4x lanes PCIe) SD card reader RJ45 Ethernet 3.5mm audioSpeakersDual front-firing Waves MaxxAudio ProWirelessIntel Wireless-AC 9560 802.11ac (2 x 2) Bluetooth 5.0CameraFront-facing 720pKeyboardBlue backlit Full size with numpadTouchpadPrecisionBatteryFour-cell 56 WhWeightStarts at 6.31 pounds (2.85 kg)Dimensions15.32 inches x 10.82 inches x 0.98 inches (389 mm x 274.7 mm x 24.95 mm)ColorAlpine white Dell G7 15 7588 design and featuresImage 1 of 2 When first taking the G7 7588 out of the box, you'd be forgiven for thinking it was a 17-inch device. It's made primarily from a plastic chassis with plenty of bulk, though it's sturdy as anything else I've tested. There's hardly any flex in the main body, and picking the thing up you don't feel like it will break if dropped (don't try it). That's no doubt partly thanks to the weight of 6.31 pounds (2.85 kg), which even for a gaming laptop is up there. The G7 is packed with some impressive hardware that contributes to the weight, but it partially also comes from the extra grates on the front and back that house speakers and cooling vents. It's a lot of extra plastic that deliver a gaming look that many love, but to me, it just doesn't seem necessary. It looks a bit outdated, especially compared to the 15-inch Lenovo Legion Y530 I reviewed, but it certainly stands out. Image 1 of 2 There's a lot of room for ports, and Dell makes good on the space. You get on the right side HDMI 2.0, Thunderbolt 3 with four lanes of PCIe, two USB-A 3.1, and a 3.5mm audio jack, and on the left, you get RJ45 Ethernet, another USB-A 3.1, an SD card reader, and the large barrel-style charging port. There's also a Kensington lock slot for safekeeping. You can connect a speedy Thunderbolt 3 dock for extra connectivity, and, since the G7 is advertised as VR-ready, you have the stock ports to handle those systems. A power button resides in the top-right corner, but it doesn't have a fingerprint reader built in, nor is there an IR camera in the spacious bezel above the display. The 720p front-facing camera captures a respectable image, and I wouldn't be too shy to use it for video conferencing or while gaming streaming. Two front-firing speakers are built into the grating just below the palm rests, and for a gaming laptop, they're not bad. There's some severe volume that doesn't distort when loud, and the sound is full; explosions and bullets kind of hit you in the chest, but for something like competitive play I would still not stray from a headset. Dell G7 15 7588 displayImage 1 of 2 For a gaming laptop, the G7 15's 60Hz IPS display is a bit of a letdown. You can tell from the start that color is washed out, and testing color accuracy I got back 66 percent sRGB and 49 percent AdobeRGB. It gets bright enough for most scenarios and has an anti-glare display, and you can always connect to an external monitor when not on the go. Contributing a bit to the overall bulk and outdated look of the laptop is the rather large bezel around the display. You get about an inch on each side, so if that look drives you nuts, you might want to look elsewhere. Overall, the display isn't that great, but that's a tradeoff you have to live with for the price you pay for the complete package. I'd much rather have great performance than a perfect display, and that's what you get here. Dell G7 15 7588 keyboard and touchpadImage 1 of 3 The size of the G7 allows for a full keyboard with number pad, with keys evenly spaced with a good amount of room between. The WASD keys have blue highlights inked on, and you get a blue backlight that fits nicely with the outer alpine white shell. Keys don't seem to have a ton of travel, but they make a satisfying click and can certainly get the job done. You have a standard set of functions along the top F keys, and overall there's not much to complain about. The touchpad is big — about four inches by three inches — and uses Precision drivers for full gesture support but it's placed directly below the spacebar in an off-center spot. If it were only an aesthetic issue, it wouldn't be a big deal, but its placement puts it in the way of my left hand when working the standard WASD section while gaming. Unfortunately, there's no shortcut key to disable the touchpad when a mouse is plugged in, and worse, my thumb rubs against the edge. Once immersed in a game I forget about it, but it's there. Dell G7 15 7588 gaming and VRThese laptops are advertised as VR-ready on Dell's website, and indeed the G7 7588 handled what I threw at it. The GTX 1060 with Max-Q design handled the load without overheating, and the six-core CPU was more than enough. You might be lacking a USB-A port for a full three-sensor Rift setup, but as for Vive and Windows Mixed Reality, you're good to go with no need for adapters or dongles. The back of the laptop is held on with a single Philips-head screw and plenty of clips, allowing you to get inside quickly. Once there, you have easy access to RAM, both SSD and HDD storage, and Wi-Fi card. This will enable you to upgrade later on, helping keep your investment relevant for longer, and also allowing you to save some money at checkout. The cooling system is also evident; dual fans help keep the laptop relatively cool, though you will hear them running. Even while gaming, the plastic chassis never got uncomfortably hot. Testing standard PC games, I played some Rise of the Tomb Raider, Dying Light, and PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG). With settings on High, I averaged about 60 FPS in Rise of the Tomb Raider. Dying Light, with settings on Best, I averaged 114.6 FPS. Finally, in PUBG with settings on High, I averaged about 87.1 FPS. Altogether, the hardware inside will allow you to play modern games without much trouble. 3DMarkTime Spy (Higher is better) Swipe to scroll horizontally LaptopGPUScoreDell G7 15 7588GTX 10603,792Lenovo Legion Y530GTX 1050 Ti2,330Acer Predator Triton 700GTX 10805,809ASUS ROG ZephyrusGTX 10805,551Lenovo Legion Y720GTX 10603,469Lenovo Legion Y520GTX 1050 Ti2,491Razer Blade 2017GTX 10603,639Dell XPS 15 (9560)GTX 10501,789 The hardware combination here delivers a pretty solid Time Spy score, coming in right where it should. 3DMarkFire Strike (Higher is better) Swipe to scroll horizontally LaptopGPUScoreDell G7 15 7588GTX 106010,029Razer Blade 15GTX 107013,560Lenovo Legion Y530GTX 1050 Ti6,864Acer Predator Triton 700GTX 108014,572MSI GS63VRGTX 10609,874HP Omen 15GTX 10608,722Lenovo Legion Y720GTX 10609,017Lenovo Legion Y520GTX 1050 Ti6,623Razer Blade ProGTX 108012,976Dell XPS Tower SEGTX 107012,315Razer Blade 2017GTX 10609,278 Gaming laptops usually come in between the 9,000 and 10,000 mark, so this score is right where it should be. VRMarkOrange Room (Higher is better) Swipe to scroll horizontally PCGPUScoreDell G7 15 7588GTX 10605,969Lenovo Legion Y530GTX 1050 Ti3,931Acer Predator Triton 700GTX 10808,592Lenovo Legion Y720TGTX 10709,028Lenovo Legion Y920TGTX 108010,688 Most standard VR systems hit about the 5,000 mark, with Rift-ready PCs around 3,716. You shouldn't have an issue using VR with this laptop. Dell G7 15 7588 performance, battery, and heatOne of the biggest selling points for a gaming laptop is its battery life. Most of the time it's pretty scary, especially in budget options. The G7 has a four-cell 56 Wh battery, and I managed to eke about four hours from it while going about usual tasks. When gaming you'll want to keep it plugged in for best performance, as the battery will drain far quicker. CPUGeekbench 4.0 Benchmarks (Higher is better) Swipe to scroll horizontally DeviceCPUSingle coreMulti coreDell G7 15 7588i7-8750H4,89721,245Razer Blade 15i7-8750H4,87217,910Lenovo Legion Y530i5-8300H4,72914,967Acer Predator Triton 700i7-7700HQ4,83415,298ASUS ROG Zephyrusi7-7700HQ4,32213,213HP Omen 15i7-7700HQ4,33714,713Lenovo Legion Y720i7-7700HQ4,69714,810Lenovo Yoga 720 15i7-7700HQ3,78410,255Surface Laptopi5-7200U3,7257,523Lenovo Legion Y520i7-7700HQ4,59614,903Razer Blade 2017i7-7700HQ4,27713,597Dell XPS 15i7-7700HQ4,50313,587Razer Blade Proi7-6700HQ3,66012,325 The six-core 8th Gen Intel CPU here is a real performer, beating out most other gaming laptops we've tested. No issues here. PCMarkPCMark Home Conventional 3.0 Swipe to scroll horizontally DeviceScoreDell G7 15 75883,853Lenovo Legion Y5303,546Acer Predator Triton 7004,205Lenovo Legion Y7203,599Lenovo Yoga 720 152,993Surface Pro 20173,055Surface Laptop2,494Lenovo ThinkPad T4703,103Dell Latitude 52853,079Lenovo Legion Y5203,475Razer Blade 20173,448Dell XPS 153,534 The PCMark Home Conventional test takes a bunch of your hardware and determines how well it works together while performing everyday tasks. The G7 scores about where it should. SSDCrystalDiskMark (Higher is better) Swipe to scroll horizontally DeviceReadWriteDell G7 15 7588521.5 MB/s303.4 MB/sRazer Blade 152,722 MB/s1,217 MB/sLenovo Legion Y5301,330.9 MB/s560.4 MB/sAcer Predator Triton 7003,353.5 MB/s1,859.3 MB/sRazer Blade Stealth1,281 MB/s1,330 MB/sHP Omen 151,772 MB/s795 MB/sLenovo Legion Y7201,642 MB/s789.7 MB/sLenovo Yoga 720 151,839 MB/s1,238 MB/sSurface Laptop423 MB/s237 MB/sLenovo ThinkPad T4701,079 MB/s716.1 MB/sLenovo Legion Y5201,838 MB/s1,151 MB/sRazer Blade Pro2,571 MB/s2,467 MB/sDell XPS 15 (9560)2,207 MB/s1,628 MB/s Another sticky point with the G7 is the slow storage. Both the SSD and HDD are SATA, meaning you won't get the same speeds as something with a PCIe drive. Luckily, you can swap these out post-purchase for something faster. Dell G7 15 7588 review: ConclusionI recently reviewed Lenovo's Legion Y530 laptop with a similar price (about $1,300) and different design. Comparing these two, you essentially choose between performance and style. The G7 looks a bit outdated, with its thick bezel and chunky body, but for the price, you're getting a lot of gaming performance. The Y530 delivers less performance, but it has a minimal bezel and not a lot of extra plastic, weighing in at about a pound lighter. The G7 certainly has its share of perks, like easy post-purchase upgradeability, six-core processor, and lots of ports. If you don't mind the chunky look or the washed out display, it will easily power modern games. It doesn't get too hot under load, and the battery is average for a gaming laptop. Who should buy this laptop?Anyone who likes an aggressive design and doesn't mind a big bezel in exchange for great performance should check out the G7 15. It will get the job done every day, and it's even suitable for powering VR. There are Core i9 and 4K models available, but I would stick with the FHD display and Core i7 models for best return on your money when it comes to performance. See at Dell Pros:
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All the latest news, reviews, and guides for Windows and Xbox diehards. Cale Hunt is formerly a Senior Editor at Windows Central. He focuses mainly on laptop reviews, news, and accessory coverage. He's been reviewing laptops and accessories full-time since 2016, with hundreds of reviews published for Windows Central. He is an avid PC gamer and multi-platform user, and spends most of his time either tinkering with or writing about tech. |