Dell Inspiron i5680-7813BLU-PUS Desktop Review

The Dell Inspiron i5680-7813BLU-PUS is a simple and affordable gaming desktop with modest components, plenty of storage and backed up by an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 card. It clinches our Editor’s Choice award for being more than just a mainstream desktop for casual day-to-day work.

Thanks to a decent combination of features, it packs enough oomph to handle HD gaming and intensive graphics tasks. The best part is that it delivers that experience at a price palatable to most PC gamers in the market.

Pros

• Beautiful low toned design
• Affordable price
• Appealing low-key case lighting
• Butter smooth HD gaming experience
• Fast new Intel Coffee Lake CPU
• Plenty of storage (128GB SSD and 2TB HDD)
• Plenty of ports including USB-C

Cons

• Interior arrangement could have been organized more properly

The Dell Inspiron i5680-7813BLU-PUS might be positioned as a mainstream desktop, but it has both the components and muscle to be an entry-level gaming PC. If you’re looking for more power for your prospective PC and only have a slight budget, the Dell Inspiron i5680-7813BLU-PUS hits a sweet spot to covering both price and power for you.

Under the hood is a six-core Intel Core i7 8700 processor, 16GB of memory, plenty of both HDD and SSD storage (2TB HDD/ 128GB SSD) and a powerful Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 graphics card. In spite of a messy interior, Dell did a good job making a spacious interior for future upgrades. You can always add more oomph to your PC in the future.

Dell Inspiron i5680-7813BLU-PUS Specs

Processor	4.6 GHz Intel Core i7 8700 (six-core)
RAM	16GB DDR4
Storage	2TB 7200 RPM HDD 6Gb/s storage/ 128GB M.2 SATA SSD
Graphics Card	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 3GB GDDR5
Connectivity	802.11 ac/ Bluetooth 4.1
Operating System	Windows 10 Home
Dimensions	17.2 x 8.5 x 18.07 inches
Weight	30.27 pounds
Ports	4 USB 2.0 ports/ 7 USB 3.0 ports

Design and Features

The Dell Inspiron i5680-7813BLU-PUS desktop’s design strikes a good mix of style and restraint. It’s nothing too loud to as a gaming-themed desktops like what you see on most gaming rigs. The chassis is split into two “zones” where one has a smooth, matte silver finish, and the other black strip cut through with ventilation grilles.

The grilles have a simmering Recon blue glow which is a new twist considering the black and red themes we’re used to. I think it is a new design that certainly breaks the old boring trend of flashy RGB lighting. However, whether you like it or not, it’s still one of those topics that’s subject to opinion.

What’s not subject to opinion though, is the fact that the lighting is not adjustable like the more aggressively traditional gaming rigs. But that’s okay because this is a budget gaming PC and the RGB might not be necessary – you get what you pay for. Moving on, the Dell Inspiron i5680-7813BLU-PUS frame is all metal, and most of the chassis that clads the PC is made of plastic mold.

Dimensions and Weight

The case measures 17.2 x 8.5 x 18.1 inches and 30.3 pounds making it a mighty tower and highlight of your work/desk space. Compared to similarly priced competitors, the Inspiron 5680 is slightly smaller to the [Ryzen & GTX 1050 Ti Edition] SkyTech ArchAngel Gaming Computer (20.2 x 8.5 x 18.2 inches).

But has a slightly larger footprint than the slightly pricier CYBERPOWERPC Gamer Xtreme VR GXiVR8060A5 Gaming PC measures a large 18.46 x 7.87 x 17.89 inches. Remember, as a result of the Inspiron 5680 tower being large, you might have to clear up some space to accommodate it on your desk space.

Check out a similar configuration of this unit, but one with a better price tag. The Dell Inspiron i5675-7806BLU-PUS desktop shares similar looks and features but lacks an equivalent memory size (8GB DDR4).

Side Panels and Interior

Unlike the HP Pavilion 790-0020 we reviewed, the Dell Inspiron 5680 design has ventilation to allow for airflow. The left side panel left you through to the interior, although you need to get two screwdrivers out of the way. It’s a pretty easy process and it shouldn’t give you any headache. Inside, you’ll notice the PC has more than enough space for future expansions.

Well, there’s no nifty visual effects like except the blue backlighting, so I’d say the inside is pretty much no-frills. One glaring caveat about the interior though is the poor cable management and generally messy interior. Now, considering you need this PC for its components and performance, I would say that is nothing to worry about.

For users with no experience tinkering with components, they can go ahead and use the system as it is, and no one would be the wiser of the mess inside. However, if you’ve got some upgrading skills under your belt, you can clean up while upgrading the system with your parts.

Ports

The Dell Inspiron i5680-7813BLU-PUS has plenty of I/O to offer too. The highlight of the ports system is a USB 3.1 port that perfectly located at the front deck for easy access. That’s good news for VR enthusiasts as it makes it easy to plug in an Oculus Rift or HTC Vive without having to use the rear ports.

Additionally, there are two USB 2.0 ports at the front and a microphone/ headphone combo jack. We appreciate Dell placing the combo at the front deck. It comes very handy when you need to listen to music or media.

Meanwhile, the rear is home to the bulk of ports on this system. You have 4 USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type ports, two USB 2.0 Type-A ports, Gigabyte Ethernet port for wired connections, and a microphone port. Also, there is an HDMI and DisplayPort connector for switching to external monitors.

The system is able to make double or triple monitor setups thanks to the Nvidia GTX 1060 graphics card ports. Generally, the ports are well laid out so you don’t have cables crisscrossing each other and messing up the workspace.

Dell hands out complimentary mouse and keyboard with this package. For most people, the combo might feel cheap and we recommend upgrading. Whether you’re a gamer or just looking for a tool for typing, you’ll find upgrading is absolutely essential. The two USB 2.0 ports should be the best choice to connect these two devices on.

That aside, the system also supports wireless connectivity; 802.11ac and Bluetooth 4.1. As far as warranty goes, Dell mentions a one year warranty for parts on this desktop.

You don’t need an Optical drive here

The revolution of better and faster storage media like cloud storage is slowly creeping into the PC industry..scratch that! It’s almost taking over PC industry and that we see in the absence of optical drives on PCs like this one. It’s a positive change if you follow trends of time and don’t mind downloading your apps, software, and drives online.

However, for the old school users who still want to play CDs/DVDs from a traditional drive, this may be an inconvenience. Don’t fret though friends, an external optical drive might have to do here.

Conclusion

For about $1000, this Dell Inspiron 5680 configuration nets you a speedy Intel Core i7 8700 processor, a boatload of storage for your games and loading up, Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 card and room for expansion in the future. What all these bring to the table is a smooth HD gaming experience and proficiency for general tasks with little to no fuss.

For less demanding games, the Dell Inspiron i5680-7813BLU-PUS will plow through without breaking a sweat.

However, if you want to handle AAA gaming titles at higher settings and better frame rates, upgrading the GPU to an Nvidia GTX 1070 or 1080 will do you good. That should also ensure you make the best of your professional work (photo and video editing, handling engineering software). Mind you, this is an option for users with a bit more wiggle room in their budget.

Otherwise, if you don’t mind 60fps in HD games the Dell Inspiron i5680-7813BLU-PUS is a winner in its competitive set. As far as performance and pricing go, the Dell Inspiron i5680-7813BLU-PUS strikes a great balance with modern hardware, therefore earning our Editor’s Choice for budget gaming desktops.