The Dell Precision 5560 (2021) is a 15.6 inch mid-range mobile workstation. It sits between the lower-end Precision 3000 series and the higher-end Precision 7000 series in Dell's lineup, and it replaces the Precision 5550 model from 2020 with Intel 10th Gen CPUs and NVIDIA Quadro T1000/T2000 GPUs. The Precision 5560 is mainly an internal upgrade as the outer design looks almost identical to its predecessor. The CPU gets an upgrade to Intel 11th Gen, and there are also new GPU options, the NVIDIA Quadro T1200 and RTX A2000. The USB-C ports now support Thunderbolt 4, and the storage slot supports PCIe Gen 4 SSDs.
Our Dell Precision 5560 has an Intel Core i7-11800H CPU, an NVIDIA Quadro T1200 GPU, 16GB of memory, and 512GB of storage. You can also configure the laptop with an Intel Core i5-11500H, i7-11850H, i9-11950H, or Core Xeon W-11955M CPU. There's only one other GPU option: the NVIDIA RTX A2000. The memory is configurable up to 64GB, and you can choose between non-ECC or ECC memory; however, the ECC memory is only available on models with an Intel Core Xeon W-11955M CPU.
Our Verdict
The Dell Precision 5560 is good for school use. It's a well-built laptop with a thin and light design that makes it easy to carry around. The keyboard feels comfortable to type on all day, and the touchpad is large and responsive. The 1080p display is decently sharp and gets bright enough to combat glare, and you can also upgrade to a 4k panel if you want even sharper text and images. The battery lasts about nine hours of light productivity, which is enough to get through a typical school day, though you might still need to plug it in if you perform more intensive tasks. Its Intel CPU and dedicated NVIDIA GPU are powerful enough to handle demanding workloads, like graphic design or 3D animation.
- Sturdy aluminum chassis.
- Easy to carry around thanks to thin and light design.
- Display gets bright enough to combat glare.
- Comfortable keyboard and responsive touchpad.
- CPU and GPU can handle demanding workloads.
- Battery lasts around nine hours of light productivity.
- No USB-A or HDMI port.
- Mediocre webcam video quality.
Although the Dell Precision 5560 isn't a gaming laptop, it's still decent for gaming. Its Intel CPUs and NVIDIA GPUs are powerful enough for 1080p gaming, though you'll have to lower some settings in graphically demanding titles to get smooth gameplay. Unfortunately, you can only configure the laptop with a 1080p or 4k 60Hz display, and both panels have a slow response time with no variable refresh rate support to reduce screen tearing. Also, it gets hot under load.
- No thermal throttling on GPU.
- Fast storage drive.
- Relatively quiet fans under load.
- 60Hz display with slow response time and no VRR support.
- Keyboard gets hot under load.
- CPU throttles under load.
The Dell Precision 5560 is good for media consumption. It's portable thanks to its thin and light design, and its battery lasts around seven hours of video playback, enough time to get through a couple of full-length movies. You get a bright and colorful 1080p display with good color accuracy out of the box, and you can also upgrade to a 4k display if you want even sharper images. Unfortunately, although the speakers sound full and get very loud, they cause a buzzing sound at higher volume levels. Also, its IPS display isn't ideal for dark room viewing as it has a low contrast ratio that makes blacks appear gray in dim settings.
- Easy to carry around thanks to thin and light design.
- Battery lasts around seven hours of video playback.
- Display gets bright enough to combat glare.
- Speakers sound full and well-balanced.
- 4k display option with full DCI P3 coverage.
- Terrible color accuracy out of the box.
- Blacks look gray in dim settings.
- Display doesn't support touch input.
The Dell Precision 5560 is a great workstation. It's available with Intel 11th Gen CPUs and discrete NVIDIA GPUs, which are powerful enough to handle demanding workloads like graphic design, 3D animation and modeling, and video editing. It has a fast SSD for quick file transfers, a comfortable keyboard that you can type on all day, and its memory and storage drive are user-replaceable. However, it gets hot under load, and there's some thermal throttling on the CPU.
- Thunderbolt 4 support.
- CPU and GPU can handle demanding workloads.
- No thermal throttling on GPU.
- Fast storage drive.
- Relatively quiet fans under load.
- No USB-A or HDMI port.
- Keyboard gets hot under load.
- CPU throttles under load.
The Dell Precision 5560 is good for business use. It feels well built, and it's easy to carry around thanks to its thin and light design. It has a comfortable keyboard, a large and responsive touchpad, and a display that gets bright enough to combat glare. The battery lasts a little less than nine hours of light productivity, so depending on your workload, you might have to plug it in for a quick charge to get through the day. Its Intel CPU performs well and can handle demanding workloads like large number-crunching in Excel. Unfortunately, it doesn't have any USB-A or HDMI port, and the webcam's video quality is mediocre as the image looks soft, underexposed, and noisy.
- Sturdy aluminum chassis.
- Easy to carry around thanks to thin and light design.
- Display gets bright enough to combat glare.
- Comfortable keyboard and responsive touchpad.
- CPU and GPU can handle demanding workloads.
- Battery lasts around nine hours of light productivity.
- No USB-A or HDMI port.
- Mediocre webcam video quality.
Changelog
- Updated Sep 16, 2022: Added mention of the Dell Precision 5570 (2022) as an alternative with a brighter display.
- Updated Aug 22, 2022: Added mention of the Dell Precision 3571 (2022) as an alternative with newer Intel 12th Gen CPUs.
- Updated Aug 08, 2022: Added mention of the Lenovo ThinkPad P15 Gen 2 (2021) as an alternative with a wider port selection.
- Updated May 19, 2022: Review published.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the Dell Precision 5560 with an Intel Core i7-11800H CPU, an NVIDIA Quadro T1200 discrete GPU, 16GB of memory, and 512GB of storage. The screen, CPU, GPU, memory, and storage are configurable; you can see the available options in the table below.
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Our display and performance results are only valid for the configuration we tested. If you come across a different configuration option not listed above, or you have a similar Dell Precision 5560 that doesn't correspond to our review, let us know, and we'll update it. Some tests, like black uniformity and color accuracy, may vary between individual units.
You can see our unit's label here.
Popular Laptop Comparisons
The Dell Precision 5560 is a great workstation that stands out for its thin and light design and sturdy build, as well as for the quality of its keyboard and touchpad. However, there are newer laptops with more powerful CPUs and GPUs, like the newer Dell Precision 5570 and the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) with Apple silicon.
The Dell Precision 5570 (2022) is a newer version of the Dell Precision 5560 (2021). They're identical in design, so it's mainly an internal upgrade and some tweaks here and there. The newer 5570 has Intel 12th Gen processors instead of Intel 11th Gen and an NVIDIA RTX A1000 GPU option. It also has a slightly tweaked keyboard, giving it more tactility. Unlike the 5560, the 5570 isn't available with Intel Xeon processors, which means it doesn't support ECC memory either.
The Lenovo ThinkPad P1 Gen 4 (2021) and the Dell Precision 5560 (2021) are both thin and light Windows mobile workstations with Intel 11th Gen CPUs and NVIDIA discrete GPUs. The Dell is slightly more compact, making it easier to carry around, and its build feels sturdier. It also has a much better touchpad and longer battery life. On the other hand, the Lenovo has more ports and doesn't get as hot as the Dell under load. Performance is very similar between them with the same configuration; however, the Lenovo offers more powerful GPU options, up to an NVIDIA RTX A5000 and GeForce RTX 3080.
The Lenovo ThinkPad P15 Gen 2 (2021) and the Dell Precision 5560 (2021) are both mobile workstations. Choosing between them depends on what you care more about. If you just want performance, the Lenovo is a better choice as it has higher-end GPU configurations, and its more robust cooling system allows the GPUs to run at a higher wattage. On the other hand, if you prefer a sleeker and more portable device that offers a better user experience, then go with the Dell.
The Dell Precision 5560 (2021) is better than the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2019). The Precision 5560 performs better as it's a newer device with more powerful Intel 11th Gen CPUs and NVIDIA dedicated GPUs. It also has a more comfortable keyboard, and its memory and storage drive are user-replaceable, which you can't do on the MacBook Pro 16. However, the MacBook Pro 16 has a sturdier build and a much better webcam.
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