The Dell 16 Plus (2025) is a mid-range laptop designed for general productivity. It's available with Intel Core Ultra Series 2 processors, up to 32GB of RAM, and 2TB of storage. Display options include two FHD+ 60Hz IPS screens (with or without touch input), as well as two QHD+ panels (120Hz IPS and 90Hz Mini LED). You get a 1080p webcam with a privacy cover, and you can choose between a Wi-Fi 6E or Wi-Fi 7 wireless adapter. Ports include one USB-A, two USB-C (one supporting Thunderbolt 4), an HDMI 2.0 port, and a headphone jack.
See our unit's specifications and the available configuration options in the Differences Between Variants section.
Our Verdict
The Dell 16 Plus is good for school use. It's quite portable for a 16-inch device, and its battery lasts easily through a typical school day. You get a big screen for split-screen multitasking, a spacious, comfortable keyboard, and a large touchpad. This laptop's Intel Core Ultra SoCs can handle most general productivity tasks like text processing, web browsing, and video playback. However, they aren't ideal for highly intensive workloads, such as 3D rendering or data analysis.
Relatively portable for a 16-inch device due to thin design.
Battery lasts easily through a typical day of light use.
Large screen for multitasking.
Comfortable keyboard, large touchpad.
Low-power SoC can only handle light to moderately intensive tasks.
Display coating doesn't handle reflections well.
The Dell 16 Plus laptop isn't designed for gaming. Its integrated GPU is too weak to handle highly demanding games. You can play some moderately intensive titles, but you'll have to lower the settings to get playable frame rates. As for the display, although it features a 120Hz IPS panel, its response time is slow, resulting in visible ghosting behind fast-moving objects. The 90Hz Mini LED screen will likely provide a better viewing experience; however, note that none of the displays support variable refresh rate, which can help reduce screen tearing.
90Hz and 120Hz display options.
Minimal thermal throttling.
Low fan noise.
Integrated GPU can't handle highly demanding games.
No VRR support to reduce screen tearing.
The Dell 16 Plus is okay for media consumption. This 16-inch device has a thin design that makes it easy to carry around, and its battery lasts nearly 10 hours of local video playback, giving you plenty of time for a couple of full-length movies and TV show episodes. You can get it with a FHD+, a QHD+ IPS, or a QHD+ Mini LED display; the latter will give you the best viewing experience, as it delivers deeper blacks and more vibrant colors. Unfortunately, while the speakers get decently loud, they sound boxy and unnatural, with almost no bass.
Relatively portable for a 16-inch device due to thin design.
Battery lasts nearly 10 hours of local video playback.
Speakers get decently loud.
Mini LED display option.
Speakers sound boxy and unnatural.
IPS panels aren't ideal for dark room viewing.
FHD+ panels look washed out.
Display coating doesn't handle reflections well.
The Dell 16 Plus laptop isn't designed for use as a workstation. Its Intel Core Ultra SoCs can handle some moderately CPU-intensive workloads, but their integrated graphics are pretty weak, so anything requiring lots of GPU processing power is out of the question. Plus, you can only get up to 32GB of soldered RAM, which might not be enough for tasks with large datasets. You can perform color-critical work, like photo editing, as its QHD+ Mini LED display has full DCI P3 coverage. Thermal throttling is minimal, and the laptop doesn't get overly hot or loud under load.
Minimal thermal throttling.
Low fan noise.
Mini LED display option with 100% DCI P3 coverage.
Low-power SoC can only handle light to moderately intensive tasks.
Can only get up to 32GB of soldered RAM.
The Dell 16 Plus is good for business use. This sturdily built laptop is quite portable for a 16-inch device, and its battery lasts over 11 hours in light uses, enough to get you through a typical workday with some charge to spare. You get plenty of screen real estate for multitasking, a spacious, comfortable keyboard, a large touchpad, and a good number of ports for peripherals and external displays. There's also a fingerprint sensor and an IR webcam, so you can log in quickly. Its Intel Core Ultra SoCs can easily handle productivity tasks like text processing, spreadsheets, and presentations. The webcam is okay; audio comes through clearly, but the image looks soft and noisy.
Relatively portable for a 16-inch device due to thin design.
Battery lasts easily through a typical day of light use.
Large screen for multitasking.
Comfortable keyboard, large touchpad.
Webcam image looks soft and noisy.
Display coating doesn't handle reflections well.
Check Price
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the Dell 16 Plus (model DB16250) with a 120Hz QHD+ IPS display, an Intel Core Ultra 7 258V SoC, 32GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage. The display, SoC, memory, and storage are configurable; see the available options below.
SCREEN
- 16" IPS 1920 x 1200 60Hz (matte, 300 cd/m², 45% NTSC)
- 16" IPS 1920 x 1200 60Hz (touchscreen, glossy, 300 cd/m², 45% NTSC)
- 16" IPS 2560 x 1600 120Hz (matte, 300 cd/m², 100% sRGB)
- 16" Mini-LED 2560 x 1600 90Hz (touchscreen, glossy, HDR600, 100% DCI P3)
SoC
- Intel Core Ultra 5 226V (8 cores/8 threads, up to 4.5GHz, 8MB cache, ARC Graphics 130V)
- Intel Core Ultra 5 228V (8 cores/8 threads, up to 4.5GHz, 8MB cache, ARC Graphics 130V)
- Intel Core Ultra 7 256V (8 cores/8 threads, up to 4.8GHz, 12MB cache, ARC Graphics 140V)
- Intel Core Ultra 7 258V (8 cores/8 threads, up to 4.8GHz, 12MB cache, ARC Graphics 140V)
- Intel Core Ultra 9 288V (8 cores/8 threads, up to 5.1GHz, 12MB cache, ARC Graphics 140V)
MEMORY
- 16GB LP-DDR5x 8533MHz (Core Ultra 5 226V, Core Ultra 7 256V)
- 32GB LP-DDR5x 8533MHz (Core Ultra 5 228V, Core Ultra 7 258V, Core Ultra 9 288V)
STORAGE
- 512GB M.2 2230 PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD
- 1TB M.2 2230 PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD
- 2TB M.2 2230 PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD
COLOR
- Ice Blue
Popular Laptop Comparisons
The Dell 16 Plus DB16250 is a good general-purpose productivity laptop. Its build feels quite sturdy, even compared to more expensive models like the LG gram 16 (2024), and it provides a good user experience overall. However, the FHD+ displays are rather underwhelming, so you must upgrade to one of the QHD+ displays to achieve a good viewing experience, which increases the price.
For more options, check out our recommendations for the best lightweight laptops, the best laptops for business, and the best 15- and 16-inch laptops.
The Dell 16 Plus (2025) and the Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Aura Edition 15 (2024) are both ultraportables featuring Intel Core Ultra Series 2 processors, resulting in very similar performance. However, the Lenovo is a better device overall, sporting a more premium build and providing a superior user experience with a brighter display, a more tactile keyboard, a more responsive touchpad, and better-sounding speakers.
The Dell 16 Plus (2025) and the LG gram 16 (2024) are both 16-inch ultraportables with similar performance. The LG edges out the Dell slightly in terms of overall user experience, as it features a better keyboard and touchpad, a wider port selection, and significantly longer battery life. However, the LG doesn't feel as sturdy as the Dell, as its magnesium-alloy chassis exhibits a lot more flex.
Although both are general productivity laptops, the Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (2024) is a higher-end model than the Dell 16 Plus (2025) with a more premium build. The Surfave Laptop also has a brighter display, an easier-to-use haptic touchpad, a higher-quality webcam, and longer battery life. That said, unlike the Dell 16 Plus, the Surface Laptop is an ARM-based device with a Qualcomm processor, which means that some programs may run poorly or not at all.
The ASUS Zenbook S 16 UM5606 (2024) is better than the Dell 16 Plus (2025) overall. The ASUS has a more premium build, a more tactile keyboard, a more responsive touchpad, and a higher quality webcam. You can achieve better performance with the ASUS if you opt for the top-end AMD Ryzen AI 9 CPU, but the battery life may not be as good as Dell's. Also, keep in mind that the ASUS' OLED display flickers at 480Hz, which might bother some people.
Test Results
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