Dell G3 15 3500 review: Best budget gaming laptop for casual gaming

Dell G3 15 3500 Design

When we hear the word gaming laptop, we expect it to have all the features like RGB lighting, flashy design, etc. However, most of these features are for aesthetic purposes only and do not offer any sort of performance boost. Just like its predecessor, the Dell G3 13 3500 features a very basic design with subtle blue color hues all around the laptop.

We recently reviewed the

Asus TUF-A15

, which is also an affordable gaming laptop; However, we didn't like the build quality of this machine, and by comparison the Dell G3 15 looks much cleaner and sturdier even though it's plastic.

So it's a laptop that doesn't. Don't get me wrong, because it certainly has the hardware required to play almost any modern AAA title, albeit at lower graphics settings for newer AAA titles.

Dell G3 15 3500 Display

The Dell G3 15 3500 has a typical 15.6-inch display with FHD (1920 x 1080p) resolution surrounded by some of the thickest bezels we've seen on a laptop launched in 2020. Unlike some of the laptops from game we tested recently, the G3 15 has at least a basic 720p webcam.

The screen has a matte finish and reduces glare and glare. As far as color science goes, this is an 8-bit panel with a 60Hz refresh rate and it's nothing special. Compared to laptops like the ROG G14, the G3 15's screen isn't as vibrant as we wanted.

I have no problem playing games or watching movies on this machine. However, I felt the brightness was slightly lower, especially when streaming content from Prime Video and Netflix. Note that devices like the Asus TUF A15 offer a 144Hz refresh rate and similar costs to the G3 15. So if you like competitive games like CS:Go, you should definitely choose a laptop with a higher refresh rate.< /p>

Dell G3 15 3500 Keyboard and Touchpad

The Dell G3 15 3500 features a full-size keyboard with a dedicated number pad. The keyboard is backlit with blue light with three brightness levels. The G3 15 3500's keyboard is exactly similar to the G3 15 3590 we tested last year.

Unlike some of the gaming laptops we've tested over the past few months, these keys don't offer much travel and I really missed that tactile feedback from the keys when using the laptop for office tasks and for games.

The highest brightness backlight is sufficient for most scenarios. However, I would have liked to see either a red color or an RGB color and blue isn't really my thing.

The device has a big trackpad with a blue frame and I didn't notice any issues when it comes to gestures and tracking. However, you need a joystick or mouse to play games on this machine like any gaming laptop.

Dell G3 15 3500 Cool Features

Gaming laptops still pack tons of features not usually found on regular and business laptops. However, the G3 15 is a gaming laptop that also performs well for professional tasks, and here's how.

Dell G3 15 Gaming Laptop review: A budget gaming laptop that plays it safe https://t.co/UmpJ2OdOD4 https://t.co/RXf56M5NEC

— Expert Reviews Wed Aug 22 18:05:09 +0000 2018

Most recently released laptops I've tested didn't have a full-size SD card. So if I need to copy photos and videos from my camera, I need a third-party adapter to do that. However, the G3 15 3500 has one and it made my life easier.

Another feature that made my life easy was the fingerprint sensor. The G3's fingerprint sensor works perfectly even if the finger is wet. So, these features will help the user to secure the contents of the laptop using this biometric sensor.

Even when it comes to storage solution, the laptop offers 256GB SSD along with 1TB HDD. If a computer maker can't offer all-SSD-based storage to keep the price down, the brand should take that approach by offering a hybrid storage solution.

Dell G3 15 3500 CPU Performance

The Dell G3 15 3500 is powered by the 10th generation Intel Core i5 10300H processor. It is an eight-thread quad-core processor with a base clock speed of 2.5 GHz and an accelerated clock speed of 4.5 GHz. Thanks to the higher single-core clock speed, the processor scores 1122 points on single-core Geekbench 5 CPU performance and 4206 points on multi-core CPU performance.

Similarly, on Cinebench R20, the CPU shows an overall score of 1858, which is significantly lower than the Ryzen 7 4800H that powers the similarly priced Asus TUF A15. Although single-core performance ensures a smooth gaming experience, it's best to have a laptop with Ryzen 5 4600H or Ryzen 7 4800H for tasks like rendering and video editing.

Dell G3 15 3500 GPU Performance

GTA V

is the game we usually test on every gaming laptop we review and we also did the same with the Dell G3 15 3500 gaming laptops. At the highest graphics settings, the laptop offered average FPS of around 70, providing a smooth gaming experience.

As the laptop only has a 60Hz panel, gameplay was very good and even with continuous play we didn't notice any major heating issues other than the fast-spinning fans to keep the components cool. cool internals.

We also ran the Overlay graphics benchmark at 1080p resolution and medium graphics settings. The laptop scored 6524 points with an average FPS of 48.80. This indicates that the laptop may not deliver 60fps gameplay on some of the AAA titles based on the DirectX 12 graphics API.

Dell G3 15 3500 3DMark and PCMark performance

On 3DMark, the laptop scored 3458 points on the DirectX 12-based Time Spy module with an average FPS of 21.79. Similarly, on PCMark 10, the device scored 4316 points. These numbers indicate that the Dell G3 15 3500 is a decent mid-range laptop that can handle normal day-to-day issues without any issues.

Dell G3 15 3500 Verdict: For Casual Gamers

Looking at the number of benchmark tools, it is very obvious that the G3 15 3500 is not a high performance gaming laptop. For the asking price, the device offers good performance, especially for entry-level gamers.

Likewise, it is also a great laptop for everyday use. As it comes with a high-performance CPU and GPU, there's nothing the Dell G3 can't handle. For an asking price of Rs. 73,990, this is one of the good laptops in the market that rivals the Asus TUF A15.

If you're getting into gaming and want a laptop that can also do office tasks and can be used for college work, the Dell G3 15 3500 is a great choice with very minimal compromises.