AFFORDABLE POWER: A Tale of Two Dells

摘要

EARLIER THIS YEAR, we reviewed the Dell Precision 3530 (see DE January 2019; digitalengineering247.com/r/22062X a system that delivered great performance and more than 9 hours of battery life at a very affordable price. Imagine our surprise when Dell followed up by sending us not one, but two new mobile workstations-the Precision 3540 and 3541-as successors to that very successful system. Outwardly, the 3540 and 3541 appear identical. Both share the same chassis design, charcoal gray case and connectivity options, although there are minor differences. For example, the Dell Precision 3540 measures 14.14x9.30x0.80 in. (WxDxH), while the Precision 3541 measures 13.85x9.29x0.86 in. Although the actual weight varies a bit depending on the installed components, the 3540 we received weighed 4.25 lbs. plus 0.79 lbs. for its 90-watt power supply, while our 3541 tipped the scales at 4.78 lbs. plus 0.98 lbs. for its 130-watt power supply. Despite the wattage difference, the power supplies were otherwise identical.