The Inspiron 16 Plus is Dell’s budget laptop with a large display and content creation. It has an all-metal chassis and discrete GPU options that you won’t find with the non-Plus Inspiron 16, but without the higher price, OLED display and radical design of the top-of-the-line XPS 16 9640. With the Inspiron 16 Plus 7640, Dell adds Intel’s Core Ultra AI processors, but they keep the design basically unchanged from last year’s Inspiron 16 Plus 7630. Aside from the two new Core Ultra CPU options, there’s little difference between this year’s Inspiron 16 Plus and last year’s.

The design this year is no more exciting than last, and the lack of an OLED option remains frustrating. The 16-inch IPS panel’s color accuracy is lacking for graphics professionals, but its sharp 2.5K resolution and fast 120Hz refresh rate should be enough for creative hobbyists and even casual gamers. As well as the performance you get from the Core Ultra CPU and RTX 4060 GPU. The Inspiron 16 Plus remains a good budget option for creators who need a spacious 16-inch workspace with discrete RTX graphics power.

The Dell Inspiron 16 Plus 7640 starts at $1,100 for a configuration with a Core Ultra 7 155H CPU, 16GB of RAM, integrated Intel Arc graphics, a 1TB SSD, and a 2.5K IPS display. During the period I was writing this review, this the base model was on sale for $950.

Our the test system adds RTX 4060 graphics and costs $1,500. It was briefly marked down to $1,300, but usually sells for full price. Stepping up from the retail base model to our full-price test system will set you back $550 — that’s a big bump for an RTX 4060 GPU.

Dell Inspiron 16 Plus 7640 with Core Ulta 7 155H processor and RTX 4060 graphics costs £1,249 in the UK. The Core Ultra model with Intel Arc graphics starts from AU$1698 in Australia.

Big and ice blue

Dell has brought back roughly the same chassis as last year’s model. I won’t rehash my thoughts on it here and instead refer you to my review of the Inspiron 16 Plus 7630 if you want more details on its design. In short, it has a simple, if somewhat staid look, but it’s an all-aluminum body that feels sturdier than the usual Inspiron 16 with some plastic in its construction. I also like the silver-blue shade that Dell calls Ice Blue.

Again, the chassis is almost identical to last year, but there are a few changes. This year’s model is a tad heavier, weighing in at 4.9 pounds compared to last year’s 4.8-pound unit. That seems to be the trend with the line. The Inspiron 16 Plus 7620 from two years ago weighed 4.6 pounds.

The port selection is the same, but both USB-A ports are now on the right side instead of being split between each side of the laptop. Lefties who want to use a mouse to avoid using an undersized touchpad with too firm a click response will be disappointed by this change.

The keys have a squarer shape than last year’s model with less rounded corners, and the right Ctrl key has been replaced by a Copilot key to invoke Microsoft’s AI assistant. Just like last year, I was immediately comfortable typing on the Inspiron 16 Plus 7640’s keyboard and enjoyed the springy, lively keys.

The screen is the same 16-inch, 16:10 panel with a 2.5K (2,560×1,600-pixel) resolution rated at 300 nits, but the refresh rate has changed a bit – and not for the better. It can still run at 120Hz like last year’s model, but it can’t be set to change dynamically. Instead of last year’s 60Hz/120Hz dynamic refresh, this year’s can run at a battery-saving 48Hz or a smooth 120Hz, but you’ll need to delve into the display settings to manually switch between the two modes.

Dell Inspiron 16 Plus 7640 Performance

With a Core Ultra 7 155H chip, the Inspiron 16 Plus 7640 is better equipped to handle AI workloads, but we didn’t see any improvement in overall performance over last year’s 13th-gen Core i7-based model. In fact, it was a step slower on our app benchmarks than the previous version. However, its performance was in line with other notebooks we tested with the Core Ultra 7 155H.

Graphics performance was almost identical from this year to last year, which is no surprise since both models have a 60-watt RTX 4060. You won’t get the same level of performance as you would from a full-powered RTX 4060, but it provides enough oomph for smooth 1080p gaming.

Where the Inspiron 16 Plus 7640 improved over the previous model was efficiency. It lasted more than 11 hours in our online streaming battery drain test, which was over an hour longer than the Inspiron 16 Plus 7630 lasted in the test.

The 2.5K screen produces a sharp image with smooth motion, but its color performance is only so-so. In my tests with the Spyder X Elite colorimeter, it covered 100% of the sRGB gamut, but only 79% of AdobeRGB and 81% of P3. If your creative endeavors require greater color accuracy, you’ll need to look elsewhere or connect to an external display. You’ll probably buy an OLED laptop anyway because of the more accurate color reproduction and superior contrast.

The display is rated for 300 nits of brightness, and exceeded that number in testing, reaching a peak brightness of 330 nits. I found it bright enough in a variety of indoor lighting conditions, but looked washed out under direct sunlight outdoors.

For a 16-inch OLED laptop with RTX graphics, you’ll need to budget around $2,000. The HP Specter x360 16, for example, costs $1980 for the Core Ultra 7 155H/RTX 4050 configuration with 2.8K OLED. Dell’s own XPS 16 costs even more: a Core Ultra 7 155H/RTX 4060 configuration with 2.8K OLED would set you back $2,700. Those prices make $1,500 for the Inspiron 16 Plus 7640 with its Core Ultra 7 155H and RTX 4060 seem like a steal.

Still, it’s one of the pricier large-screen content creation laptops you’ll find without an OLED screen, so I’d wait for Dell’s revolving discount to hit it so you can pick it up for a thrifty $1,300. At that price, the screen limitations and mediocre touchpad become more acceptable.