Dell’s €1,500 Laptops Need Better Screens, Not Cheap Options

Key Takeaways

1. The Dell Pro 14 Plus offers impressive display options, including WQXGA and Low Power WUXGA displays with good brightness and color coverage.
2. The review model tested had a basic WUXGA IPS screen with poor brightness (below 300 cd/m²) and only 56% sRGB color coverage.
3. This limited display quality makes the laptop unsuitable for color-sensitive tasks, ranking it poorly among 14-inch business laptops.
4. Better display options are not easily available and require customization directly from Dell, which can be expensive.
5. Manufacturers should ensure better display options are accessible, especially for laptops priced around €1,500.

The Dell Pro 14 Plus offers some impressive display options. Among them is a WQXGA (2,560 x 1,600) IPS display with a refresh rate of 90 Hz, alongside a Low Power WUXGA (1,920 x 1,200) display. Both of these screens have a brightness of 400 cd/m² and cover the small sRGB color space, making them suitable for simple photo editing tasks.

Disappointing Display in Review Model

However, there is a significant issue: the Dell Pro 14 Plus PB14255 that we recently assessed does not come with either of those preferred screens. Instead, our review unit was equipped with the most basic display available, a WUXGA IPS screen that only reaches 300 cd/m² in brightness.

In our evaluation, the screen failed to hit the 300 cd/m² threshold, and even more concerning was the limited color coverage. With only 56 percent of the sRGB gamut, the colors appeared dull and inaccurate, rendering the display unsuitable for any color-sensitive work. Among all the 14-inch business laptops we compared, the Dell Pro 14 Plus stood out for having the poorest display quality.

Limited Options for Better Screens

One might wonder why we opted to test this particular model instead of one with a superior screen. The reason is that such models are not readily available. In Germany, the only way to obtain the Dell Pro 14 Plus with a better display is to customize it directly from Dell, which can be quite costly. If you’re purchasing from a typical retailer, like we do, even the highest-spec version of the Dell Pro 14 Plus PB14255 (available on dell.com) priced at around €1,500 still features the most basic screen.

Manufacturers should ensure that better display options are accessible. Offering a basic, lower-cost screen is acceptable, but it should not be the standard for a laptop priced at €1,500.