Unlike many modern desktop releases, the Dell Studio XPS 435 isn’t built with a single purpose in mind, Instead, it offers a little bit of everything, with something all segments of computer users can probably appreciate.
The machine’s most defining characteristic is its stylish case design and a highly-capable configuration. Fast and powerful, it supports capable gaming, excellent multimedia playback and, pretty much, every standard PC application you can think of. It’s a well-rounded computer – perfect for users who want to use their machines for a little bit of everything.
At its price, the XPS 435 is a bit expensive compared to similarly-configured machines. To give you an idea, core specs include a 2.66GHz Intel Core i7 920, X58 chipset, a 1GB ATI Radeon HD4870 graphics card, 6GB of DDR3 RAM and two 500GB hard disks. It also comes with a Blu-Ray optical drive and is priced at $1,579, about $200 to $400 more than competing machines (which, usually, don’t have the Blu-Ray option onboard).
Overall use is pretty good, as the XPS 435 sweeps through video editing and multi-tasking functions breezily. Gaming is also pretty good, although performance can take a bad hit on the highest settings. Dell should really have outfitted this with a second slot for a graphics card to accommodate serious gamers, as the motherboard currently doesn’t allow for such expansion.
For more work-oriented users, the expansion capabilities should be more than adequate, with three drive bays and six RAM slots. The addition of Blu-Ray on this machine, however, feels like a last-minute decision as it doesn’t come with an HDMI port – go figure!
Priced at a little under $1,600, it’s a pretty expensive machine that has good all-around capabilities. Students and productivity users who want an all-in-one machine should find it an attractive choice, but serious gamers and multimedia users might want to look somewhere else.
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