The new Dell XPS 15's battery is rated for 300 cycles, and apparently that's ok

[Redaktion]

Dell recently updated the 15-inch XPS variant with the 9500 for 2020. It incorporates some changes that may be welcome, although its battery capacity is reduced compared to its predecessors. A consumer has noticed that it is also rated for 300 charging cycles, whereas Apple, for one, provide more in its competitors.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/The-new-Dell-XPS-15-s-battery-is-rated-for-300-cycles-and-apparently-that-s-ok.466422.0.html

[youdir]

Are the methodologies comparable between Apple and Dell though? How each company's assessment methodology works, no one knows. Temperature, extent of charge, charging logic design all factor into the longevity of the battery. Without much of this information and specific constraints on how the batteries were tested, we can't know.

[Sterlinger]

it's all about costs, I guess, a battery not replaceable by the user should be a long life battery with 3 years warranty (HP offered long life batteries with this warranty, so it was possible)

[DougJudy]

This is a joke, 300 cycles might not last a year before serious degradation, and I'm guessing the repairability on the laptop is not great either so it will be difficult to replace (which most users wouldn't do anyway)

Are we supposed to discard the laptop after 1 year!? What a joke from dell, hope they get slammed by warranty claims in places like Europe with 2 years required on any device (if the battery is internal it is not a consumable anymore)

[T Brg]

My 7390 2-in-1 battery has degraded 32% over 5 months... I'm not surprised.

[heffeque]

My 7390 2-in-1 battery has degraded 32% over 5 months... I'm not surprised.

Ufff... That hurts...

[A]

The industry standard is 500 cycles, not 300 cycles.

More than likely, the Dell uses a 1000 cycle battery too, but all that heat it gives off lowers it down to 300 cycles.

I really wish they made non-removable batteries illegal. I know US won't but what about Europe who is more concerned about ewaste?

[Elliot Wells]

My current Dell XPS 9550 is getting long in tooth at four years old. It still has plenty of power to keep up and was easy to upgrade the SSD and ram.
Battery has been the big bummer - it declined fast after 12-18 months, I've replaced it twice but Dell does not sell replacements (only "refurbished" batteries and only if you are under warranty). Chinese eBay replacements have been okay but not excellent, with the expected range of slight issues.

I'm certain it is intentional - the laptop is very powerful and durable and would probably last me another 2-3 years if I didn't have to worry about the battery. But then I wouldn't be shopping for a new laptop....

[HOWARD BENNETT]

Who says the battery is not replaceable.
I replaced the one in my XPS.

[Syed Hussain]

What a shame. I've been trying to avoid MacBooks due to (precieved) price gouging and have been happy to use and reccomend the xps line despite the killer card (smh).

Now with them forcing this planned obsolescence looks like they are not viable anymore either. Shame. F dell

[A]

Who says the battery is not replaceable.
I replaced the one in my XPS.

You can replace any battery, but not without disassembling the laptop. Which makes it more difficult. Especially since the best way to perserve a battery's lifespan is removing it from the laptop when using it on a charger. This prevents keeping the battery at 100% for a long time and less exposure to heat extending its lifespan.

[Anon456]

Lenovo is in the same boat apparently. Brand new laptop. Battery lost about 5-10% of its full capacity within the first two, three months. I've replaced it, but the replacement did exactly the same thing. Then I've found out the battery carries just 6 months warranty unlike the laptop that has a 24 month warranty. F lenovo as well.

[tipoo]

That's terrible. I really wanted to love this one, Dell has been getting so much right, the move to 16:10, the larger trackpad that by all accounts is second only to the mac, and retaining the upgradeable RAM and two m.2 slots after the redesign were all great.

But 300 cycles on a machine this high end is not acceptable. Apple shifted to 1000 cycle ratings on all Macbooks since 2011ish iirc, and several manufacturers followed or at least are in the 500-700 cycle range. 300 is what I would have expected from high end systems only a literal decade ago or low end ones now, particularly as it's not an easy external swap, hopefully it's still easy and not glued in or anything.

[Greg]

I am looking for a new laptop and was seriously considering Dell first then Lenovo second.  Not anymore.  I hate non-replaceable battery devices!

[Sterlinger]

I have checked my 8 years old long life battery from HP, still good to use, it also has 300 cycles max so this is nothing Dell invented. It even has only used 66 cycles of this 300 in 8 years (power chord always on, rarely used, but after self discharge below X % it is charged automatically of course)

so, I think this 300 is some value but not a big problem and it says nothing about capacity after a few months and health after a few years (?)