Looking for the best laptop for programming for yourself? You have landed on the right island. We’ll guide you to the clear confusion Dell or HP which laptop is better for programming?
Dell and HP are both international laptop manufacturers based in the United States of America.
Dell, founded in 1984, is a US-based company that deals in computers and related accessories. It also has a subsidiary named Alienware, that produces gaming laptops.
HP (Hewlett-Packard) is a multinational US-based company that deals in personal computers (PCs), laptops, printers, and related accessories. It was founded in 1939 and provides hardware and software-based solutions to its industry.
Both companies are native competitors and striving to achieve success over one another. If you are confused while buying a new laptop, being a programmer. You must have a question like “Dell or HP which is better for programming?”
In this review article, we’ll try to satisfy your intent, questions, and guide you to what and why should be your choice. But before proceeding, a general knowledge question strikes the mind.
Which laptop brand has the lowest failure rate?
According to the techradar and other reports
The simple and reliable answer is Apple. Yes, Apple just doesn’t have high price tags but also delivers quality.
While Microsoft was the least reliable laptop brand on the market earlier this year, but after the Microsoft Surface release, they have improved their position quite well. In the present scenario, Chromebooks are the least reliable due to OS restrictions and vulnerabilities.
All other laptops have pros and cons according to their use cases.
Dell or HP: Which brand is Better, Overview?
Remember, like no human is perfect in this world like there is no laptop brand is perfect. Both brands HP and Dell deliver best in their area of expertise. In few areas Dell outperforms HP, while in few areas HP outperforms Dell.
We’ll not only explore these brands from a computer programming or developers point of view, but also as a general point of view.
If you have to opt for one choice then there are few compromise(s) that you may have to make.
In a Nutshell…….
As an impatient laptop user and as a quick deal, you can go with the following take.
For long-term users like lifespan and battery life in routine working in offices, schools, etc., HP is the leader.
While Dell is perfect for gaming, design and build quality.
How to Evaluate these Laptop Brands?
In order to get an idea we’ll compare Dell and HP brands under the following criteria or factors.
- Design (Display Screen, Camera, Sound Quality)
- Build Quality
- Lifespan
- Performance
- Battery life
- Price
- Research & Development (R & D)
- Customer Support / After Sale Support
Design
When talking about design, it refers to the overall look, shape, weight, and finish of the laptop. Normally, programmers don’t bother with the design and looks of a laptop, but there are certain people who prefer it.
It becomes important when there is a female or teenage programmer.
HP: Design of Laptop
It’s quite a tough competition and quite a tricky choice to decide which brand has stylish and attractive looks. But in the race of design, HP is leading, but with some limitations as well.
The design of most HP laptops is sleek and sophisticated, adding aesthetic beauty to them and making them more appealing to customers.
There is, however, a limited selection of colours available. Furthermore, you can find a laptop with an all-metal case that looks chic and luxurious.
Dell: Design of Laptop
Dell also offers good designs but lacks innovative designs and prefers conventional designs.
The design of Dell’s products is not particularly important to them. Except for Alienware, all of them have a uniform design.
Dell emphasises reliability and convenience in its laptops. That’s why, It is common to find similar features in most Dell models. In terms of shape or style, they can be similar.
Build Quality
The build quality is a qualitative and quantitative measure that determines the overall feel and look of any product like a laptop. It could be a mixture of feel and looks of material used in the laptop including components.
There are certain build quality measures such as hinges, screen quality, flexibility, keyboard, trackpad, and heat dissipation specially in thin laptops.
HP: Build Quality of Laptop
HP’s build quality does not match Dell’s in any category when it comes to build quality. Although they produce some of the best-performing laptops, they are not quite as good as Dell.
Although they make some really good laptops, they aren’t quite as good as Dell.
On the other hand, like Dell, they use Nvidia Geforce graphics cards in some of their higher end models, including the HP Omen gaming line, and tend to use AMD graphics cards in some of lower end models.
Dell: Build Quality of Laptop
Especially when it comes to its components, Dell places a strong emphasis on build quality. For the manufacture of its equipment, the company uses high-quality and useful materials.
Dell is producing high build quality laptops ranging in price from low to high. As a result, they are leading in the area of build quality.
It is common for Dell to use the best NVIDIA and AMD components in gaming laptops that guarantee their performance. The choice is entirely up to you.
Lifespan or Durability
When it comes to the lifespan of laptops, it means how durable, consistent and long-lasting a laptop is. Normally, high-end laptops deliver fault free performance for a long term.
But When it comes to low-end laptops, then there are some problems. In general Apple delivers the longest life laptops to market compared to other brands.
Normal life of a laptop should be around 3-5 years, and longer can survive if you can use them carefully.
HP: Lifespan and Durability
When durability strikes then HP lacks with a slight margin as compared to Dell laptops. Although sometimes it depends on certain models or a specific series/line of model that has a certain failure.
There isn’t an exact amount of reviews or reports, but a few years back HP has faced durability issues. As some users have complained that HP’s laptops tend to fail within 1-3 years of purchase.
Most laptop users prefer low end or budget HP laptops for daily or routine use.
Now, HP has improved a lot and the situation has changed and there are certain models that survive long duration.
Infact HP has also improved its build quality and they have invested time and energy to improve their laptops lifespan for longer. If you can use them with care they will be equal to Dell’s life time.
Dell: Lifespan and Durability
Dell is known for longer life span and durability, as it offers the most reliable laptops for its customers along with warranty and good customer services.
In the past and in recent years Dell has produced long lasting laptops.
Some of the long lasting or long life models of Dell include Dell XPS 13, 15, 17, Dell Precision 5750, Dell G15, and Alienware m17 R4. These models survives longest possible duration along with long battery life as well.
Performance
In this section of comparison, we’ll just review the overall performance of both brands.
Dell: Performance
Dell is producing laptops that are high quality due to faster processors, better display and more focus on low budget quality laptops. That’s why Dell is performing better than some of their less expensive competitors.
Most of their models are focused on maximum performance at a low price, which makes them excellent budget laptops.
HP: Performance
While talking about overall performance, HP is a leader in delivering solid performance. Although the perception of the market is lower end laptops don’t perform well but high-end laptops do best.
As discussed before HP has improved its component and build quality to enhance performance as well. That’s why HP has produced a lot of laptops with improved specs and pierce range multi-tasking,
No doubt the brand has also made some low quality laptops at a high price, but sometimes companies have to go through experiments to judge their worth through this.
Battery life
When it comes to battery life, it could be on top of the performance and lifespan for some people. In this section we’ll see which brand offers better battery life.
Although competition is quite tough and it’s a notch-to-notch situation for this factor.
Battery’s performance is judged on the basis of battery timing and lifespan. The battery timing depends on type of laptop usage.
HP: Battery Life
As discussed before, normally people prefer HP laptops for their routine work. There is a reason behind it along with others. HP has longer battery timing than Dell.
Unbiased reviewers find better battery timing in its major laptops. It could spend a whole working day with you or more than up to 10 hours while your battery is fully charged once. It will sustain more than 3 years.
Although it could not be applicable across the board for HP, but its a perception for majority of models. It could be a reason for programmers to make UP their favourit.
Dell: Performance
Dell seems to be somewhat behind the constraint when comparing its battery timing with HP. Normally it has been seen that lifespan is almost same for both brands but battery timing differs.
In general Dell’s battery timing lasts up to 7-8 hours in full charge and that’s also equivalent to almost full working day. Dell has improved their battery timing and life in high-end models.
Research & Development (R & D)
Research and development or innovation is the key factor for a brand’s success. In Fact it is a vital component in the laptop industry. The R&D leads to innovation in the products.
The primary factor is R&D budget that sets priorities for the brand. First we’ll explore this budget.
HP: Research & Development (R&D)
HP has spent $1656 million in the current fiscal year, which is a 10.15% decline from last year, while last year’s budget cut was 29%. On the other hand, Dell has cut down almost half of its R&D budget compared to last year.
HP is focusing hardware-based research and bringing innovation in this aspect. It leads to durable and long-term products for users.
That might be the reason that HP hasn’t specified its R&D towards laptops only among printers, scanners and laptops.
Dell: Research & Development (R&D)
Dell is spending a lot on its R&D, but in recent years they have cut down almost 46% of their R&D budget. In the year 2019, Dell has spent $4604 million, while in the current fiscal year it has declined to $2577 USD.
Dell has focused its R&D towards software rather than hardware specifically. It has boosted laptops sound and polished colour quality, enabling their users to enjoy a better entertainment experience from the latest XPS notebooks.
Price
The price is the primary concern for anyone or majority of serious laptop buyers. Everyone wants the best product for their money. We’ll explore which brand offers the best price and product.
HP: Price of Laptops
HP is considered expensive compared to Dell. As the criticism faced by this brand is its price or few users rate it as overpriced. While the brand is producing both low and high end laptops.
You can find a wide range of options in this brand. Although high end models are priced, they are worth it. Either a general user or a programmer, HP will be worth it if you have purchased an expensive model.
In short, HP is a little more expensive than Dell, but it has the worth or value for money.
Dell: Price of Laptops
The Dell product range includes low-cost devices as well as high-end gaming laptops. These laptops perform admirably even when they are low-cost. This makes such an investment even more valuable. You can also customise your laptop’s features at Dell.
Infact, Dell offers market competitive prices compared to other brands. The majority of laptops are reasonably priced. When it comes to budget-friendly computers, Dell is a great choice.
Customer Support / After Sale Support
It is one of the most important features when choosing any brand to purchase something. The customer support must be sound and responsive as user has to contact them frequently.
HP: Customer Support
HP is striving to improve its customer support, but it has yet not achieved the level of its competitor Dell. HP offers a 90-days free phone support along with one-year warranty against hardware problems when purchasing its laptop.
Although HP has improved their CS, still users are complaining that they are able to resolve their problems. We would recommend you to watch HP YouTube channel before contacting them to solve the problem.
Overall, their CS is average and people keep complaining on social media. So, if CS is the primary concern then choosing an HP laptop should be reconsidered.
Dell: Customer Support
There is no doubt that Dell is one of the most dependable laptop manufacturers as far as customer support is concerned. Every product is backed by a warranty, and returns aren’t a problem.
The Dell team helps you solve your problems through telephone, remote work, e-mail, or other appropriate means. In short, being an ordinary laptop user or programmer, if your preference is CS, then go for Dell. It is the finest one, after Apple, in the world.
Conclusion
As a whole and rule of thumb, no brand is perfect in this industry, each brand has its own pros and cons. So choosing a laptop for programming or normal use is tough.
After discussing most relevant aspects like design, build quality, life span, R&D, and price, etc of two laptop brands we would conclude that HP is most suitable for programmers and routing office users.
It doesn’t mean Dell isn’t good for the said purpose, just not as ideal as HP is. While Dell is also offering best deals and rates. If you love Dell then you have the choice to choose.