Dell Precision 5530 vs. Lenovo ThinkPad P1 vs. 2yr old Dell XPS15 + eGPU

[yessir]

I'm thinking about purchasing a mobile workstation so that I can have an easier time with 3D modeling (SolidWorks) and number crunching.

Since its important to me that my laptop is thin and light, I'm deciding between the Dell Precision 5530 and ThinkPad P1 both configured with:

• i7-8850 6-Core
• 16GB (2x8GB) 2666MHz RAM
• Quadro P2000 4GB
• 512GB PCIe-NVMe SSD
• 1080p Screen

On the Dell, I added on a fingerprint reader and a larger battery.

The Dell would cost $2493, and the ThinkPad would cost $2504, but I could get another $700 off the Dell if I were to send in my XPS15. I guess the question is does the build quality, extra security, and keyboard of the ThinkPad make it $700 better than the Dell?

 

Also as I'm typing this I was wondering if it's also a viable option to keep using my XPS15 9550 (i7-6700HQ, GTX960M, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD) and get a desktop Quadro P4000 with a Razer Core or something.

 

I am open to any alternative options.

[Electronics Wizardy]

2 minutes ago, yessir said:

guess the question is does the build quality, extra security, and keyboard of the ThinkPad make it $700 better than the Dell?

Where is the security from ? both should be about the same

 

Build wise the dell buiness grade stuff is very good, thinkpad level of good build quality.

 

The problem I see with a egpu is if you want the gpu power you need a outlet and anouther brick to take with you. Thats why I got a mobile workstation(i have a dell m6600), one box to carry around.

[yessir]

6 minutes ago, Electronics Wizardy said:

Where is the security from ? both should be about the same

 

Build wise the dell buiness grade stuff is very good, thinkpad level of good build quality.

 

The problem I see with a egpu is if you want the gpu power you need a outlet and anouther brick to take with you. Thats why I got a mobile workstation(i have a dell m6600), one box to carry around.

I guess I got confused with another laptop I was looking at and thought the ThinkPad had an extra security feature.

 

If I do get an eGPU, then I don't plan on carrying the eGPU around. I'd just suffer through using the XPS when on the road and plug in when at home.

[genexis_x]

Precision 5530 = XPS 15 9570. So it has the same issues expect for QC issues (probably)

 

Where are you from? Budget? Any preference on weight (max kg) and battery life (min hours)? Any other requirements?