All-in-one (AiO) computers have been around for some time but with the rise of smartphones, tablets, and laptops, the AiO is generally overlooked. With the exception of Apple’s iMac, you don’t hear very much mainstream chatter over AiO PC’s, well, Dell aims to change that. The Dell XPS 27 7760 is one powerhouse of an AiO and every configuration comes with that amazing 4K display. Dell told me they worked on the XPS 27 sound solution for over 2 years and that dedication has given this thing the best sound I’ve ever heard from a computer. The Dell XPS 27 AiO 7760 wants to be your desktop that sets up like a laptop and we think it deserves a Techaeris Top Pick for 2017. Read on for the full review of the Dell XPS 27 AiO 7760.
Specifications
The Dell XPS 27 AiO 7760 sent to us for review had the following features and specifications with a final price of $2649.99USD:
- RAM: 16GB, 2133MHz, DDR4 up to 64GB
- SSD: 512GB PCIe Solid State Drive
- GPU: AMD R9 M470X 4GB GDDR5
- CPU: 6th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-6700 Processor (8M Cache, up to 4.0 GHz)
- Display: 27″ 4K UHD Display with Touch and Articulating Stand
- Software: Windows 10 Home Edition 64bit
- Audio: MAXX Audio Pro speaker system
- Ports: (5) USB 3.0 with PowerShare – (2) Thunderbolt 3 – Ethernet – AUX – HDMI – DisplayPort – SDCard slot – Audio in
- Dimensions
- Height: 435mm
- Width: 625mm
- Depth: 80mm
- Weight
- Non-touch: 13 kg
- Touch screen: 17.3 kg
- Bluetooth 4.0
- 720p webcam
What’s In The Box
- Dell XPS 27 AiO 7760
- Dell wireless keyboard
- Dell wireless mouse
- Dell wireless dongle
- Power cord
- Documentation
https://youtu.be/lw0NxjK2e9c
Design
The Dell XPS 27 AiO design is clean and minimalistic with super premium materials used throughout. The articulating stand is a nice touch, allowing you to fold the AiO down into a position you can work with it like a slanted tablet. The right side of the machine houses the power button and one USB 3.0 port. Over on the left side of the machine, you’ll find the SDcard slot and an audio in port. Heading around the back of the Dell XPS 27, you’ll find the Dell branding and a sleek and beautiful back panel.
At the hinge of the articulating stand (only available on the touchscreen version), you’ll find all the rest of your ports sort of recessed into the back. These are a bit of a pain to get to when you have the AiO on the stand, I would recommend plugging all of your peripherals in before sliding this thing into place. Oh yeah, in case we haven’t mentioned it, the touchscreen version we have weighs in at a hefty 17.3 kilograms. To add to the weight, the rubber feet on the bottom of the stand are really effective so it’s almost easier to lift and place thing and place instead of sliding it around.
The ports on the back consist of a Thunderbolt 3, Ethernet, power, AUX out, HDMI out, DisplayPort, and a USB 3.0 port. The Dell logo is placed where it has traditionally been placed and is clean and slick. Moving around to the front is where you’ll find that amazing 4K display along with the Dell MAXX Audio system which consists of six speakers, three each flanking the Dell logo. Dell chose to accentuate these speakers and make them a centerpiece of the design instead of screening them off or trying to hide them. Dell is very proud of the work they put into the audio system on this machine and we’ll cover that in a few sections ahead.
The bezels on the top, right, and left are all fairly thin though I wouldn’t call this an infinity display but they are thin enough. Finally, there is an array of four microphones at the top of the monitor for using Cortana and video conferencing. Overall the design here is clean, minimal and the look and feel are very premium high-quality. You can most certainly tell you’ve paid a good price for this machine. It’s a very lovely design, my only gripe would be the weight, though if you get the non-touchscreen version, it will be significantly lighter.
Display
This is my first experience with a 4K (3840×2160) display and I am in total awe of the display Dell packed into this thing. Featuring 100% Adobe RGB color, the Dell XPS 27 AiO reproduces colors with amazing clarity and vibrancy. Blacks are rich and deep on this machine and whites are brilliant. The text is super crisp and clean, though if you set this at full resolution without magnification (depending on your eyesight) it could get hard to read small text. Consuming content on this panel was a joy and viewing angles are excellent from all sides. The display does go up to 350-nits giving you very good clarity and usability in brighter lit areas.
I had no issues splitting the screen with two browsers or other work which helps maximize productivity and workflow. Overall this is a brilliant screen, it not only reproduces colors accurately, stay true to the black and whites, and have great viewing angles. It also comes standard on every configuration of the XPS 27 AiO. Some pro users may want to calibrate the display further but for most users, out of the box display performance should be acceptable.
Software/Ecosystem
Windows 10 Home is what’s running on our review unit which pairs perfectly with the touchscreen version of this machine. I could have done without the addition of McAfee security, at some point OEM’s should just leave these promotional software suites off all of their machines. I’d rather pay more for the computer without McAfee or Norton on it than paying a bit less for those ads infesting my already pricey machine.
Performance
Our review unit came with a 6th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-6700 Processor, AMD R9 M470X 4GB GDDR5, and 16GB of DDR4 RAM. This one is a higher configuration with some definite power under the hood. It performed superbly, powering through anything basic like browsing, streaming, office work, email. It also did extremely well with Photoshop, Lightroom and Premiere Pro. I didn’t play any games on this but I’m certain it could make quick work of most games (depending on configuration) you could throw at it.
For those who would rather order less RAM and less storage, the Dell XPS 27 AiO is upgradeable. There are two screws that are holding down the back panel, simply remove those screws and you have full access to the insides of this beast. Here is where you will find your RAM slots and even extra hard drive bays. You have 4 RAM slots which can house up to 64GB of RAM. You have one M.2nvme drive bay and two 2.5″ SSD bays if you need that extra space.
While I think you could probably get away with some gaming on this machine, I do think this is more of a creative’s machine and photo and video editors thinking of getting an iMac may want to really consider the Dell XPS 27 AiO 7760. Overall this is a very nice and very configurable computer that (when configured well) can handle a whole lot of everything thrown at it.
Speakers/Sound
So we all know one of the first things most people do when buying a computer is to get new speakers. Let’s face it, built-in speakers on computers are generally horrible. The majority of speakers on computers tend to be tinny, thin, and plain awful to listen to. Dell wanted to change the way speakers are built-in on all-in-one computers. According to Dell, it’s taken the past few years to develop their MAXX sound experience on the Dell XPS 27 and they are targeting the audiophile in all of us.
So how do they sound? Well, in a few words, freaking awesome! First, let me clarify, this probably isn’t going to replace your full surround sound system and 60″ 4K TV but I challenge you to find better speakers on any computer right now. That’s right, computer speakers. The highs and mids are crystal clear and because the speakers are laid out along the bottom front, it gives you a surround sound feel. The bass isn’t as punchy as I would have liked but it is there and you can feel it when you absolutely need it. Cranking the volume all the way up does not distort the sound or give any sort of cracking whatsoever. I used AWOLNATION’s SAIL video to crank the speakers to full tilt and as I said, I wish the bass was punchier, this speaker system handled it like a champ.
We generally don’t spend this much time writing about the sound on computers but the XPS 27 is probably the top of the heap when it comes to sound. It certainly beats what the iMac has on board and is likely better than any other PC AiO in terms of sound quality. You can tell the Dell team spent some time to get this one right. While it’s not perfect, I can’t think of any other computer’s built-in speakers that sound nearly as good as these.
Camera
The included 720p webcam is decent and produces your basic 720p webcam picture (I wish everyone would at least put 1080p cams on their machines). The only real big issue I had was the placement of the webcam. Because the bezels are so thin, Dell put the cam at the bottom near the Dell logo and it sort of gives that impression the other person is looking up at you. It’s not a deal breaker for me though since I rarely use the webcam on any computer but some may not like this placement.
Price/Value
Starting in at $1899USD the XPS 27 isn’t cheap. But you have to remember that you’re getting a really nice specced computer and a 4K monitor. I think the price is competitive and I think you get much more value out of the Dell than you would out of the iMac. Of course, that is highly dependent on which ecosystem you prefer.
Wrap Up
All-in-one computers aren’t for everyone and let’s face it, the iMac seems to be go-to for AiO buyers. Dell has seriously produced something here that AiO buyers and iMac upgraders should really consider as a purchase. The Dell XPS 27 AiO 7760 has a few things going for it. That 4K display is brilliant, you can upgrade it, that MAXX sound is brilliant and the design is on the same playing field as Apple.
