Dell XPS 8950 Specifications
price: $1,647 as reviewed
CPU: Up to 12th Gen Intel Core i9-12900K
RAM: up to 64 GB
GPU: Up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 3090
storage: Up to 2TB SSD + 2TB HDD
Supplements: keyboard and mouse
Ports: 7 USB-A, 2 USB-C, 3.5mm combo jack, 7.1 audio stack, Gigabit Ethernet, SD card slot, optical drive
Size: 16.8 x 15.3 x 6.8 inches
Weight: 16.7 EGP
The Dell XPS 8950 (starting at $749) proves that a gaming PC doesn’t need an ostentatious design to be worth buying. As with its predecessor, the Dell XPS 8940, this desktop feels more suited to office settings than your personal gaming den. But despite its nondescript appearance, the XPS 8950 has plenty of power to play the best PC games.
Dell offers a plethora of upgrade options for this desktop, including additional RAM, storage, a liquid-cooled CPU, and even an Nvidia RTX 3090 GPU. Because this hardware is highly customizable, you can add any components you might already have. But no matter which configuration you choose, it will pack a powerful 12th Gen Intel Core CPU.
The Dell XPS 8950 is a durable desktop that deserves a place among the best PCs and the best gaming PCs. I will explain why in this review.
Dell XPS 8950 review: Price and availability
- Starting at $749
- Ornate formations become expensive
Dell XPS 8950 starting at $749 at Dell (Opens in a new tab), although sometimes discounted. This configuration has an Intel Core i5-12400 CPU, an integrated Intel UHD Graphics 730 GPU, 8GB of RAM, and 256GB of storage.
You can upgrade to a liquid-cooled Core i9-12900K CPU, 64GB of RAM, 4TB of storage (2TB SSD + 2TB HDD) and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3090 graphics card. Fully equipped configurations cost roughly $4000 dollar. If you want more than 4TB of storage, you won’t be out of luck.
Our review unit came with a 12th generation Intel Core i5-12600k processor, an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 Ti GPU and 16GB of RAM as well as a 512GB SSD and a 2TB SSD. The costs of this configuration $1,647 (Opens in a new tab) at the time of publication.
Dell XPS 8950 review: Design
- It looks like an average desktop
- Relatively light, does not take up much space
The XPS 8950 is a gaming desktop that doesn’t seem like a part of it. While its minimalist appearance may be a turn off for those who appreciate flashy designs, I love the simple and elegant look of the XPS 8950.
Like its predecessor, the front of the PC has a crisscross shading pattern that also provides ventilation. The sides have no embellishments to speak of while the back offers a variety of ports. There are also a few ports on the front for good measure.
This desktop isn’t that big, measuring 16.8 x 15.3 x 6.8 inches. And with a starting weight of 16.7 pounds, it’s relatively light. Fits great in the best standing desks and the best gaming desks. While the giant rigs are eye-catching, I actually prefer smaller desktop computers. Because of that, I appreciate the XPS 8950’s smaller footprint and weight. It’s definitely nothing like the brutal 40-pound Alienware Aurora R11.
Dell XPS 8950 review: Ports and upgradeability
- Lots of ports on the front and back
- Easy to upgrade components
The XPS 8950 packs almost every type of port you could ask for. Heck, it even has an optical drive!
Up front, you’ll find the power button, the aforementioned optical drive, an SD card slot, a 3.5mm headphone/microphone jack, three USB-A ports and a USB-C port. The rear has a Kensington lock, 7.1 audio stack, DisplayPort, four USB-A ports, a USB-C port, and an Ethernet port.
Unlike the XPS 8940, this desktop computer lacks HDMI ports on the motherboard. Of course, if you bought one with a separate GPU, you should have at least one (and possibly multiple, depending on the card) HDMI port on the same GPU.
However, if your GPU malfunctions, the fact that the 8950 does not have an HDMI output on the motherboard itself means that you will need to use a DisplayPort cable if you want to connect your computer to a monitor. If you want to connect your TV to this gaming device, then you will have no luck unless your device has a DisplayPort port. As someone who loves to play PC games on TV, the lack of an HDMI port on the motherboard is disappointing.
Unlocking the XPS 8950 is very easy. All you have to do is remove the screw that holds the Kensington lock in place and then pull the side panel away to reveal the inside of the device.
Due to the small size of a PC, its internal components are closely packed together. But even with my big hands, I didn’t find it excessively difficult to maneuver. Replacing the GPU, hard drives, and RAM should not be a problem for most people.
Dell XPS 8950 review: Gaming performance
- Amazing gaming performance
- Games generally run at 60fps at 1080p
Our XPS 8950 review sample did not disappoint when it came to gaming performance. This is due to the RTX 3060 Ti graphics card and 16 GB of RAM. The 512GB SSD also provided amazing download speeds.
We benchmarked the XPS 8950’s performance by measuring frame rates in a number of games, both at 1080p and 4K settings, with graphics turned to “Ultra” presets. In this review, we compared the XPS 8950 to the XPS 8940, along with the Corsair One i300 and Alienware Aurora R13.
| Dell XPS 8950 | Alienware Aurora R13 | pirate one i300 | |
| Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (1080p/4K) | 85/41 fps | 105/56 | 123/70 |
| Borderlands 3 (1080p/4K) | 94/36 | 140/58 | 158/68 |
| Grand Theft Auto V (1080p/4K) | 124/37 | 170/56 | 179/65 |
| Red Dead Redemption 2 (1080p/4K) | 78/28 | 63/30 | 123/54 |
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider (1080p/4K) | 108/37 | 153/58 | 171/65 |
On average, the XPS 8950 didn’t exceed the frame rates achieved by the other PCs we’ve compared — even its predecessor. However, titles still play at or above the required 30-60fps range, especially at 1080p. These frame rates are very impressive for a rig that costs much less than the competition above — at least in the configuration we reviewed.
As for my qualitative testing, I shot my perennial benchmark favorites – Doom Eternal and Cyberpunk 2077. Overall, both hovered in the 40- to 45fps range at 4K resolution. I wasn’t surprised by the numbers for Doom Eternal because it’s a well-optimized game. However, I was pleasantly surprised by Cyberpunk 2077’s performance considering it to be one of the worst improved titles.
Dell XPS 8950 review: Overall performance
- Powerful daily computing performance
- File transfer speed and video transcoding
As capable as a gaming PC, the XPS 8950 is more than capable of handling productivity tasks.
In the Geekbench 5.4 benchmark, which measures overall system performance, the XPS 8950 scored 11006 in the multi-core portion of the test. This exceeds the score of its 9019 predecessor, but it lags significantly behind the Alienware Aurora R13 (15329) and Corsair One (17965).
In terms of file transfer speeds, the XPS 8950 copied 25GB of files from an external drive at 1,382Mbps, far exceeding the XPS 8940’s 439Mbps. As impressive as it is, it’s still behind the Aurora R13 (1,894) and Corsair One (3,006).
In our Handbrake video editing test, which includes transcoding a 4K clip to 1080p, the XPS 8950 converted a video in 4 minutes and 38 seconds, while its predecessors accomplished the same task in 6 minutes and 26 seconds. The more powerful Aurora R13 (3:52) and Corsair One (3:28) videos converted in less than four minutes each.
Although I fell behind the competition in benchmark tests, I found the XPS 3950 to be a more than capable PC for everyday work. It never faltered, even when I had 20+ tabs open while playing a YouTube video and using GIMP to edit photos. I’m certainly not quite a power user when it comes to productivity, so I wasn’t expecting my average use to make this excavator clamp. But for my purposes, it does offer the kind of performance I require.
Dell XPS 8950 review: Software
- My Dell app allows you to customize key system features
The My Dell app comes preinstalled with the XPS 8950. This app contains many useful features such as system optimization for performance, audio and visual optimization for streaming content, and power management. The latter is especially useful in the event that you need to reduce energy consumption to conserve energy (and lower your energy bill).
Dell XPS 8950 review: Keyboard and Mouse
- The included keyboard and mouse are solid peripherals
The XPS 8950 comes with a wireless keyboard and mouse. It was easy to type on the spacious keyboard for extended periods of time. Likewise, I found the mouse responsive and comfortable to use.
In terms of customization, the keyboard has 12 programmable keys while the mouse has five. You can also change the DPI of the latter if you feel the cursor is moving too slow or fast. Both devices feature the elegant silver design of the XPS 8950.
Dell XPS 8950 review: Verdict
Like I said above, I tend to favor computers – gaming or otherwise – with simple and modest designs. I love flashy rigs as much as everyone else, but these aesthetic qualities don’t usually provide improved productivity. For a gaming machine specifically, I need it to play recent titles without a hitch. To that end, the Dell XPS 8950 is my kind of gaming PC.
However, if you need a gaming PC that commands attention, the Alienware Aurora R13 is an excellent choice. It’s more expensive overall than the XPS 8950, but the cost may be worth it if you must have a gaming machine that feels like the part. If you want a smaller device that still has plenty of power, the Corsair One i300 is another gaming PC worth considering.
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