Having a reliable laptop computer is kind of a necessity these days. I have answered numerous questions on Quora and other computer related forums on this topic. However, sometimes people find it difficult to choose between 2 equally good brands and similar laptop specifications. In this post, I am going to compare Dell and HP laptops in terms of reliability, after sale service and overall support. If you’re still clueless about which laptop you should buy, you can read my step-by-step guide here.
Both, Dell and HP are leading laptop manufactures in the world. Dell is known for their well-built business and home laptops series such as XPS, Inspiron, Vostro. They also have a popular gaming laptop brand called Alienware. On the other hand, HP is an industry leader in terms of market share. HP has a significant presence in business and home computers through their Spectre, EliteBook, and Pavillion series. HP is also trying to gain in gaming laptops market with HP Omen gaming machines. Dell and HP laptops are in the similar price range, starting from as low as $350 for entry-level laptops. So it is kind of confusing to choose between them.
Laptop Reliability Study
Square Trade has done an intensive study on reliability of popular and major laptop brands. They performed it on 30,000 brand new laptops which consisted of netbooks, entry-level and premium laptops. They have come up with data as shown in the image below. According to them, HP laptops are much more likely to malfunction within the first 3 years. HP came last in terms of reliability and malfunction rates, with every 1 in 4 HP laptops facing some sort of hardware failure in first three years. On the other hand, Dell laptops proved to be more stable and consistent over the years.
Support and Warranty
As per a recent survey by Laptop Magazine, Dell scored much higher rank than HP for it’s after sale support and overall assistance. Dell assigns personal tech support people to its customers which makes it a customer-centric brand. On the contrary, HP has a lot to achieve in this area. HP has an upper hand in other aspects of design, value, and selection but Dell shines when it comes to support, warranty and innovation.
In conclusion, if you’re looking for a reliable machine and a long-term investment, you should definitely go for Dell Laptops. If style, number of choices and value for money are your requirements, HP has an upper hand.