How To Repair Hinges Latitude E5530

Our Verdict

The Dell Latitude E5530 combines a solid build and top-notch bombardment life into a package that will attract mobile professionals.

For

Sterling battery life
Tough build
Iii-year warranty

Against

Sluggish boot time
Relatively thick pattern
No discrete graphics option

With its heavy-duty metal chassis and long battery life, the Dell Breadth E5530 is congenital to soldier through physical punishment and long stretches without needing on an outlet. Starting at $499 ($i,178 as tested), this 15-inch organisation features a Cadre i5 processor, a total number pad, and a fingerprint reader. In other words, this corporate workhorse is ready for to practise your behest.

Design

The

Click to Enlarge is swathed in industrial greyness and black, save for a silvery horizontal band that wraps effectually the system. Draped in a Tri-Metal casing, the Latitude E5530'southward protective beat out consists of a brushed aluminum lid, steel hinges, magnesium alloy internal frames and a zinc alloy latch that reminds us of an erstwhile-fashioned metal dejeuner pail. The keyboard is spill resistant, and when the hat is closed, a protective seal forms a barrier around the LCD panel to forestall liquids from getting to the screen. However, the hat doesn't do a skillful job of repelling fingerprints.

Click to OverstateThe top left corner of the deck sports dedicated buttons for volume and mute, and the top correct houses the ability push button. A fingerprint reader, on the bottom right-hand corner of the deck, tin be configured through the Dell Data Protection software. The deck itself has a smooth finish.

The Latitude E5530s measures 15.3 10 ix.9 x 1.2 - 1.3 inches and weighs half dozen.four pounds. That makes information technology both larger and heavier than the Lenovo ThinkPad T530, which measures thirteen.5 x 9.05 x 0.viii - ane.0 inches and weighed 5.iv pounds. To exist fair, the E5530 sports a nine-jail cell bombardment, while the T530 we tested carried a smaller half dozen-cell battery, the Dell's extra thickness is noticeable.

Display

Click to EnlargeThe Latitude E5530'south 15.6-inch matte screen has a native resolution of 1366 ten 768. This is lower than we'd prefer on such a large display; the T530 we reviewed packs a 1600 ten 900 console. The good news is that you can upgrade to a full HD 1920 x 1080 panel on the E5530 for $99.

When we watched the "Skyfall" trailer in 720p, fine details such as stray strands of hair and pieces of debris were easily visible. Colors such as the orange fire in explosions and the red bars in the British flag were a bit muted, and blacks weren't as deep as nosotros'd like. Watching videos at 45-caste angle or greater resulted in certain darker images (such as the back of someone's head) being done out.

The E5530's brightness registered 190 lux using calorie-free meter, which is 23 lux less than the category boilerplate, simply college than the ThinkPad T530 (166 lux).

Audio

The front end of the Breadth E5530'south lip contains two small speakers; when we placed the unit in our lap, music sounded noticeably muffled. When we listened to "Papa Don't Take No Mess" by James Brown, the saxophone's highs and lows were clearly aural. The same goes for Freddie Mercury's phonation when we listened to "Slightly Mad" by Queen. Each note of Brian May's guitar solo in the latter melody sounded crystal articulate.

Keyboard and Touchpad

Click to EnlargeOn the E5530, Dell forgoes an island-mode keyboard in favor of a more traditional layout. The E5530 has a dedicated keypad, which, many times, results in smaller Tab, Caps Lock and Left Shift keys. Fortunately, Dell makes full use of the deck, so these buttons are enough large. While a little mushy, the keys offered a good corporeality of travel and response.

On the Ten Thumbs Typing Test, nosotros averaged 68 words per minute with a two percent error charge per unit. Both of those are average marks for united states. The keyboard is backlit and has four effulgence levels, which you lot tin can switch between by holding the "Fn" cardinal and pressing the right arrow button.

Click to EnlargeThe Alps Electric touchpad measures 3.i x ane.75 inches and was extremely responsive when nosotros executed multitouch gestures. We were able to scroll, rotate and flick very easily. There are ii sets of defended buttons, ane above and one beneath the touchpad. All of the buttons provided proficient feedback, though nosotros wish the "click" were more aural.

The Latitude E5530 has a pointing stick between the 1000 and H keys. The stick is sunken, which makes information technology harder to navigate with than it would exist if it sat college. In general, we prefer the pointing stick on Lenovo'southward ThinkPads.

Rut

After running a full-screen Hulu prune for 15 minutes, the E5530's touchpad and eye underside measured 88 and 87 degrees Fahrenheit, respectively. The space betwixt the G and H keys was 89 degrees. Annihilation over 95 degrees is uncomfortable.

Ports

Click to EnlargeAn 8X DVD drive, audio jack, USB 2.0 port and VGA connector line the right side of the Latitude E5530. Around dorsum, you'll detect another USB two.0 port as well equally Ethernet and power. The left side houses one HDMI port, two USB three.0 ports (one of which is an eSATA/USB 3.0 philharmonic) along with SD Card and ExpressCard/54 slots. The latter's plastic tab doubles every bit an English-to-metric measurement conversion table. The forepart of the lip has a switch that turns Wi-Fi on and off.

Webcam

Click to EnlargeThe webcam on the E5530 can capture video and snap photos at a top resolution of 1280 10 720. The image quality was somewhat grainy under fluorescent lighting but less then in natural calorie-free. Colors like the dark imperial seat of an office chair and a collared biscuit shirt were well represented. Dell'south Webcam Central software has limited settings, but does allow you to upload photos and videos to YouTube and Photobucket.

Performance

Click to EnlargeThe Latitude E5530 nosotros tested packs a 2.8-GHz Intel Core i5-3360M processor, 4GB of RAM, a 320GB vii,200 rpm hard drive and an Intel Hd Graphics 4000 GPU. These components produced a PCMark 7 score of two,934, just ahead of the ThinkPad T530 (2,849), which has the aforementioned processor. Both systems topped the category boilerplate by almost 400 (ii,568).

Information technology took the E5530 58 seconds to kicking Windows vii Professional 64-bit, half dozen seconds longer than the category average (52 seconds). The ThinkPad T530, which likewise has a 7,200-rpm drive, loaded the same OS in a zippy 32 seconds. In our File Transfer Test, the Latitude E5530 transferred our 4.97GB test binder (made upward of music, photos and videos) in iii minutes and six seconds for a 27.4 MBps transfer rate. That'south significantly behind both the 36MBps category average besides as the ThinkPad T530's mark of 37 MBps.

In our OpenOffice Spreadsheet examination, in which we match 20,000 names to their corresponding addresses, the Latitude E5530 took iv minutes and 12 seconds to cease the task, dead even with the T530 (4:11), and nearly two minutes faster than the 5:58 category average.

Graphics

Click to EnlargeIn the 3DMark11 test, a constructed benchmark that measures overall graphics operation, the Latitude E5530 and its Intel HD 4000 Graphics GPU scored 703, well below the category average of one,127. The ThinkPad T530, which has the same integrated GPU as the E5530, scored a lower 625.

Still, mainstream games will run reasonably well on the Breadth E5530. "World of Warcraft" clocked in at 60 frames per second on the "Skilful" setting at 1366 ten 768. That's a step in a higher place the 52 fps category average and a very solid mark for a system without detached graphics. With the game set to max, the Latitude E5530 sank to 28 frames per 2nd, which is not quite playable.

By comparison, the ThinkPad T530 averaged 30 frames per second with the game set to Good while running at 1366 10 768, which is underwhelming. Fix to max at the same resolution, the T530 cranked out 13 fps.

Battery Life

Click to EnlargeThe Latitude E5530's ix-prison cell battery ran for eight hours and 39 minutes in our LAPTOP Battery Examination, which consists of continuous Spider web surfing over Wi-Fi. That'south well above both the 5:27 category boilerplate and the half-dozen hours and 39 minutes that the T530's 6-cell battery lasted. (You lot tin can swap the T530's half dozen-cell battery for a ix-cell, a $l option.)

Security, Software and Warranty

Click to Enlarge

The Latitude E5530 ships with Intel'south Active Management Technology, which allows your firm's Information technology section to perform diagnostic scans remotely. The E5530 as well has a complimentary-fall sensor that parks the hard drive in instance you drib the machine from a height of five inches or higher.

The third-generation Intel processor that the E5530 shipped with has Intel Anti-Theft Engineering science. In the issue your notebook is stolen, your provider can transport a lockdown control to your machine, which prevents others from using it. The service requires you lot to sign up with a service provider. A i-year subscription with Norton Anti-Theft costs $39.99 and tin be used with upwards to three devices. LoJack subscriptions are available from $39.99 for 1 year to $109.99 for three years.

The fingerprint reader is easily configured through the Dell Access software. Setting up the reader requires yous to create a Windows password. Unlike the T530's reader, the E5530's won't permit you to turn the system on with a unmarried swipe.

A 30-solar day trial of Trend Micro Client-Server Security is likewise included for use with as many as 3 machines.

The E5530'due south warranty offers 3 years of basic hardware service supplemented by three years of limited on-site service following a remote diagnosis. See how Dell fared in our Tech Support Showdown and Best & Worst Notebook Brands report

Configurations

Click to EnlargeOur version of the E5530 (2.viii-GHz Intel Cadre i5-3360M processor, 4GB of RAM, 320GB 7200 rpm difficult bulldoze and an Intel HD Graphics 4000 GPU) cost $ane,178, but you tin can configure it for significantly less. The $499 base model includes Windows seven Abode Premium (32- or 64-bit), a 2.2-GHz Intel Core i3-2328M processor, 2GB of RAM, a 320GB 7200 rpm hard drive, an 8X DVD drive, Intel Hd Graphics 3000 GPU and a half-dozen-cell battery. If yous opt for the low-end version, you'll have to sacrifice Intel's vPro tech every bit well as the webcam.

If you desire to future-proof your investment, you tin can equip the Breadth E5530 with a 2.ix-GHz Intel Core i7-3520M processor, 8GB of RAM, a 128GB SSD, 15.6-inch 1080p display, an 8X DVD drive, and a 9-cell battery for $1,617.

While you can opt for a 128GB SSD ($130) besides every bit a 1080p display ($99), yous can't configure the E5530 with a detached GPU, which is an option on the Lenovo T530.

Verdict

Click to EnlargeThe Breadth E5530 is a stiff choice for those seeking a durable 15-inch notebook without being tethered to an outlet. This business notebook offers plenty of operation and has a long three-year warranty. While the Lenovo T530 lacks a number pad, we give the edge to that system, as it offers a discrete graphics option and amend pointing stick. Nevertheless, the long bombardment life and sturdy chassis of the E5530 makes it an attractive option.

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Dell Latitude E5530 Specs

Bluetooth	Bluetooth 4.0
Brand	Dell
CPU	2.8-GHz Intel Core i5-3360M
Card Slots	SD retentivity reader
Company Website	www.dell.com
Display Size	fifteen.half-dozen
Graphics Card	Intel Hd Graphics 4000
Difficult Drive Size	320GB
Hard Bulldoze Speed	7,200rpm
Hard Drive Blazon	SATA Hard Bulldoze
Native Resolution	1366x768
Operating System	MS Windows 7 Professional (64-bit)
Optical Drive	DVD-ROM
Optical Drive Speed	8X
Ports (excluding USB)	HDMI, ExpressCard/34, Ethernet, USB three.0/eSata, Combo Headphone/Mic Jack, USB iii.0, USB, security lock slot
RAM	4GB
Size	5.four ten three.i x i.5 inches
Touchpad Size	3.1 ten one.75 inches
Weight	vi.four pounds
Wi-Fi	802.11n

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