Which Costco laptop to choose from - Asus Zenbook(ZenBook UX430UN) Vs Dell Inspiron(15 5000 Series )

[Ashutosh_5]

There are two same price laptops at Costco:
1) https://www.costco.com/ASUS-ZenBook-UX430UN-Laptop---Intel-Core-i7---2GB-NVIDIA-Graphics--1080p-.product.100375043.html?pageSize=96&catalogId=10701&dept=All&langId=-1&keyword=1184812&storeId=10301
Link here
Specifications:
Processor & Memory:
Intel® Core™ i7-8550U Processor 1.8GHz
16GB LPDRR3 RAM

Drives:
512GB SATA M.2 Solid State Drive
No Optical Drive

Operating System:
Microsoft® Windows 10 Home (64-bit)

Communications:
802.11 Wireless-AC + Bluetooth 4.1
Integrated HD Webcam

Graphics & Video:
14.0" FHD (1920 x 1080) Matte Display
2GB NVIDIA® GeForce® MX150 Graphics

Keyboard:
Backlit Chiclet Keyboard
Finger Print Reader

Ports & Slots:
1x USB 3.1 Type C (Gen 1)
1x USB 3.0
1x USB 2.0
1x micro HDMI
1x Combination Audio Jack
1x Media Card Reader

Power Supply:
3-cell 50WHr Battery

Additional Information:
Dimensions: 12.8" x 8.9" x 0.6"
Approximate Weight: 2.9lbs



2) https://www.costco.com/Dell-Inspiron-15-5000-Series-Touchscreen-Laptop---Intel-Core-i7---4GB-AMD-Graphics---1080p.product.100376724.html?pageSize=96&catalogId=10701&dept=All&langId=-1&keyword=1188224&storeId=10301

Link here

Specifications:
Processor & Memory:
8th Gen Intel® Core i7-8550U Processor 1.8GHz
32GB DDR4 2400MHz RAM

Drives:
1TB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive
DVD-RW (Writes to DVD/CD)

Operating System:
Microsoft® Windows 10 Professional (64-bit)

Communications:
802.11 Wireless-AC + Bluetooth 4.2
Integrated HD Webcam with Dual Digital Microphone Array

Graphics & Video:
15.6" Touchscreen Trulife LED-Backlit FHD (1920 x 1080) Display
4GB AMD Radeon™ 530 Graphics

Keyboard:
Backlit Keyboard

Ports & Slots:
2x USB 3.1 (Type-A, Gen1)
1x USB 2.0
1x HDMI
1x Combination Audio Jack

Power Supply:
3-cell 42WHr Battery

Additional Information:
Dimensions: 14.9" x 10.16" x 0.89”
Approximate Weight: 5.2 lbs

My needs - Developer/Architect in Java/Bigdata. So needs more memory though 16 GB is not less. Want to run IDE plus VMs into these laptops.
1) Not a big fan of touchscreen laptops as I didn't heard good about them?
2) NVidia GPU even if it is half the size of AMD is better
3) SSD is also a big difference though I am willing to put a SSD on my own in the Dell(around $175 more expense)
4) Display and lightness of Asus is too good.

I am okay with the price range of $1000- $1300 kind of range.
Both of them are exactly same in terms of price.

 

[GreyCatz]

I would go for the ASUS if I were you.

The Dell is clearly meant as a kind of gaming rig, and its GPU and display specs translate into very modest battery life. It also weighs significantly more than the ASUS. There's nothing wrong with the Dell as such, and 32GBs of DDR4 RAM is difficult to ignore, but I think the ASUS will prove the more useful option for your situation. The SSD is fitted to the M.2 slot which means that there should be a SATA slot available for an additional harddisk. The MX150 GPU is a beefed-up version of the ol' dependable 940MX workhorse used in many productivity laptops.

 

[Ashutosh_5]

I would go for the ASUS if I were you.

The Dell is clearly meant as a kind of gaming rig, and its GPU and display specs translate into very modest battery life. It also weighs significantly more than the ASUS. There's nothing wrong with the Dell as such, and 32GBs of DDR4 RAM is difficult to ignore, but I think the ASUS will prove the more useful option for your situation. The SSD is fitted to the M.2 slot which means that there should be a SATA slot available for an additional harddisk. The MX150 GPU is a beefed-up version of the ol' dependable 940MX workhorse used in many productivity laptops.

Thanks for the response.
As Costco provide the 90 days flexible returns policy - I am planning to bring both of them at home...try it out and which one is better....passmark and other tests and find out which is better....it's a hard choice...

Update
Finally returned both of them. For more details please refer this

 

[GreyCatz]

That is certainly a very generous policy from CostCo - and you should definitely make use of it! Nothing I can say on this Forum will compare to the personal experience of sitting with the actual machines in your hands.

Best of luck,
GreyCatz.