Dell Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 review: A durable, premium 2-in-1 computer

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Techaeris Rated 9.4/10

Dell recently introduced a new line of their Inspiron 7000 2-in-1s, led by a new 17” model. Our Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 review takes a look at the smallest of the three models of Dell’s latest versatile laptop. Read on to find out why it was one of our Top Picks of 2016.

Specifications

Our review unit had the following specifications and features:

  • Processor: 6th Generation Intel® Core™ i5-6200U Processor (3M Cache, up to 2.80 GHz)
  • Display: 13.3” FHD (1920×1080) Truelife LED-Backlit Touch Display with Wide Viewing Angles
  • Memory: 8 GB DDR4 2133 MHz – up to 16GB available
  • Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 520 – Intel Iris Graphics 540 also available
  • Hard Drive: 256GB SSD – 128GB or 512GB SSD also available
  • Keyboard/Touchpad: Standard full-size backlit, spill-resistant keyboard
  • Ports: HDMI, 1x USB Type-C DisplayPort/Power Delivery, 1x USB 3.0 with PowerShare, 1x USB 2.0, Noble lock slot, Media Card Reader (SD, SDHC, SDXC)
  • Communication: 802.11ac Dual Band 2.4 & 5GHz
  • Sound: 2 tuned speakers, Waves MaxxAudio Pro audio processing, 1 combo headphone/microphone jack
  • Webcam: Widescreen 720p HD Infrared Webcam with Dual Digital Microphone Array
  • Battery: 42 WHr, 3-cell battery (up to 8h 24m)
  • Operating System: Windows 10 Home – Ubuntu available in select countries
  • Software: My Dell, Dell Digital Delivery, Dell Backup & Recovery, Microsoft Office 2013 Trial, McAfee LiveSafe (30 Day trial)
  • Dimensions: 19.2 x 322.4 x 224.0mm (0.76 x 12.69 x 8.82”)
  • Weight: 1.75kg (3.52lb)

What’s in the Box

  • 1x Dell Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 laptop
  • 1x 45 Watt AC Adapter

Design

The Dell Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 laptop features a very slick looking brushed aluminum design. The design and construction also has a nice solid weight to it, and it doesn’t feel flimsy at all. The lid has the usual Dell logo in the center. The entire laptop has a very premium look to it, with rounded edges and corners on the base of the unit — almost reminiscent of recent smartphone design, and polished aluminum bezels on the top of the lid.

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Rounded design and corners adds a premium look.

Dell has placed a curved lip at the front of the bottom of the laptop, which makes it a bit easier to open and also offers an extra bit of styling. Opening up the laptop exposes the same brushed aluminum design surrounding the keyboard and touchpad. The narrow bezel around the display is a matte black plastic, while the display features a wider bezel with the Dell logo centered on the bottom and the camera centered on the top.

The full size 6 row keyboard includes computer shortcuts like volume, media, and brightness controls along the function row. As is quickly becoming the norm, accessing the actual function keys requires holding down the Fn button as well, however on this model there is a Fn lock key if you prefer the old school Function row functionality. The keyboard has matte black keys, and the arrow keys are relegated to the lower right corner under a full size shift key just above it. Typing was responsive and I loved having a full sized shift key on the right hand side, unlike some other brands and models which shrink the shift key to accommodate full size arrow keys. Just below the keyboard is the usual trackpad, in this case with a matte silver surface and the same polished bezel around the outside edge that’s on the top of the lid.

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Touchpad and keyboard detail.

The left side of the Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 houses the power port, USB Type-C DisplayPort/Power Delivery port (yay!), full sized HDMI port, a USB 3.0 Power Share port, and the combo headphone/microphone jack.

The right side is where you’ll find the power button, volume rocker, SD Card Reader, USB 2.0 port, and the Noble Lock Security slot. Underneath the laptop near the front is where you’ll find the dual speakers – one on each side, as well as air vents. Two long cushioned bars run across the front and back of the bottom as well, with the dual purpose of providing feet for use in laptop mode or for resting against the lid in tablet mode.

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Stand mode.

Being a 2-in-1, this laptop functions in four different modes: laptop, tent, stand, and tablet. Laptop and tablet modes are pretty self explanatory, and allow the system to be used as a standard laptop or tablet. Stand mode works well for watching videos or video conferencing as the keyboard folds back and you can be closer to the screen, while tent mode is suitable for touch screen games and video watching as it projects the sound forward more than the other modes due to the placement of the speakers.

Overall the Dell Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 is a premium feeling and looking 2-in-1 laptop.

Display

The 13.3” display is bright and crisp, however due to being a touch screen there is some glare, especially when used in areas with bright light. As with other 13” 1080p screens, you’ll want to increase the Windows 10 display zoom to 125 or 150% in order to be able to read text at a reasonable size.

Documents were easy to read on the laptop, and the colour in videos and photos was pretty accurate as well. Depending on your surroundings, the brightness levels worked well in adjusting the screen brightness to maximize visibility in various lighting conditions.

Software

The Dell Inspiron 2-in-1 series ships with Windows 10, in the case of our review unit Windows 10 Home, and in select countries you can get it with Ubuntu installed. As we’ve mentioned in previous reviews here at Techaeris, Windows 10 works well with the touch screen, and in tablet mode.

Dell also pre-installs some software on the laptop which includes My Dell, Dell Digital Delivery, Dell Backup & Recovery, Microsoft Office 2013 Trial, and McAfee LiveSafe (30 Day trial).

Performance

The Dell Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 performed well with the Intel Core i5-6200U processor and 8GB of RAM. Office applications loaded quickly and ran without any issues. Adobe programs like Photoshop, Lightroom, and even Adobe Premiere worked fine as well, although if you are planning on using the system for heavier photo and video editing you may want to consider the i7 processor and 16GB of RAM.

As with other laptops with an Intel HD Graphics processor, in this case the 520, you’ll be able to handle games with lower requirements on lower settings such as Hearthstone or Heroes of the Storm, but don’t expect to play a lot of FPS on high settings with this laptop.

The laptop worked great in any mode we tested on, and while more a design thing, it’s nice to have options depending on your usage and playing games in tablet or tent mode or watching movies in stand or tent mode worked just as well as in laptop mode.

Speakers

I have to admit, I was suitably impressed with the dual speakers on the Inspiron 13 7000. With the Waves MaxxAudio Pro audio processing, videos and movies sounded pretty good, with a nice balance and depth of sound. Even more impressive was even though the speakers are positioned on the bottom of the laptop, I was hard pressed to notice any difference between laptop, tent, stand, or tablet mode.

Camera

For what you’d use a camera for on a laptop, namely video conferencing, the widescreen 720p HD webcam with its dual digital microphone array worked well enough, and our test video Hangout had no issues on either end of the call. The camera also has infrared functionality, as well as Windows Hello compatibility which makes opening and signing into your laptop a breeze.

Battery Life

Dell claims that the Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 will get up over 8 hours on a single charge, depending on usage. During our testing we were able to get around 6 ½ to 7 hours of use regularly on a single charge. Of course, the type of battery life you get will depend on various things like the programs you are using and the brightness of the screen. For the most part, we used the laptop for word processing, photo editing, web browsing, and a few videos here and there to test battery life.

Price/Value

Starting at $749.99USD ($1,099.99CAD), the Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 isn’t the cheapest 13″ laptop you can buy but it is certainly well constructed, feels solid, and can be used in four different modes.

Wrap Up

It was a no brainer to add the latest 2-in-1 from Dell to our list of Top Picks for 2016. If you’re looking for a durable, premium looking, 2-in-1 laptop/tablet with decent performance and battery life, you’ll want to add the Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 to your list of considerations.

[button link=”http://amzn.to/2clwfFu” icon=”fa-shopping-cart” side=”left” target=”blank” color=”285b5e” textcolor=”ffffff”]Purchase from Amazon[/button][button link=”https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/cty/pdp/spd/inspiron-13-7368-2-in-1-laptop?ST=+inspiron%20+13%20+7000&dgc=ST&cid=3852&lid=5600645&acd=123088137920560&ven1=sPv6HiEQe&ven2=b” icon=”fa-shopping-cart” side=”left” target=”blank” color=”285b5e” textcolor=”ffffff”]Purchase from Dell[/button]
*We were sent a demo unit of the Dell Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 laptop for the purposes of this review.

Last Updated on February 20, 2020.

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