Price for a Dell Latitude 5420 laptop with a low Intel Core i3 processor, only 4GB of RAM, and a tiny 128GB solid state drive starts at $1,119.
A system with greater specifications will cost much more. The specific setup we tested is no longer offered, but a comparable model with a more recent Intel Core i7-1185G7 processor is frequently available for about $2,000 today.
The Latitude 5420 now plays in a higher level. Any laptop can be purchased for under $2,000, and this Latitude lacks the capabilities to hold its own against the competition.
Fantastic keyboard
The keyboard of the Dell Latitude 5420 is excellent and makes the most of the laptop’s thick profile. Touch typing is simple because the keys have a lengthy travel distance and a solid action with lots of feedback at the conclusion. You may start working at full speed right away without worrying that a missing keystroke would cause an unexpected typo.
Given that it is a 14-inch laptop without a numpad, most users won’t feel crowded by the arrangement. For typical office productivity, the left-side Tab, Caps Lock, and Shift keys are huge for a laptop of this size. To switch between Office apps or access hotkeys, the shift and tab keys are frequently utilized.
All models of the Latitude 5420 come included with keyboard backlighting. Only three brightness settings are available, one of which is off. Even on the highest setting, it doesn’t shine too brightly but does the job.
Several ports, both new and old
Need to link your laptop to a lot of devices? You can use the Dell Latitude 5420.
Dual Thunderbolt 4 ports with Power Delivery and DisplayPort mode offer contemporary connectivity. These adaptable connections are capable of charging the laptop, charging a range of USB-C or Thunderbolt devices, and powering an external monitor.
The laptop is charged using one of these ports by the provided charger, but you can also use a USB-C monitor to charge it or a USB-C hub or dock that supports power delivery to supply power.
There are numerous ports available for older devices. Two USB-A 3.2 ports, HDMI 2.0, Gigabit Ethernet, a 3.5mm combination audio connector, and an SD card reader were all present on our test device.
The speakers make a strong sound.
The Dell Latitude 5420 appears to have been available at any time in the previous ten years. Its thickness is three-quarters of an inch. It may sound thin, but current laptops like the MacBook Pro, Dell XPS 13, and HP Spectre 14t are more impressive in this regard.
And the stats don’t provide the complete picture. The majority of cost-effective laptops have a tapered design that results in a thinner profile than the reported thickness of the laptop would imply. The Latitude 5420 is not. Most of this laptop’s width and depth are three-quarters of an inch thick.
Drafting and building
This laptop is a member of the Latitude 5000 series and was made with bioplastics that are kind to the environment. It has a 19.3-20.9mm profile and weighs 1.40 kg. This prevents it from being among the tiniest gadgets available, but we still think it is worthwhile (later you will see why).
In this case, two hands are required to open the lid. The matte screen features a prominent chin and forehead as well as narrow side bezels. Thankfully, the latter is put to good use because it houses the privacy shutter, the IR sensor, and the Web camera (optional FHD sensor).
Let’s examine the keyboard while we are here. The response is comparatively clicky, and the key travel is acceptable. Yet, it is quiet, which is crucial for office work. Despite the touchpad’s absence of dedicated buttons, we found it to be fairly comfortable for use at work because it provides good gliding and precise tracking.
Ports
There are two Thunderbolt 4 ports and an optional Smart Card reader on the left side of the device. The security wedge slot, an RJ-45 connector, an HDMI 2.0 connector, two USB Type-A 3.2 (Gen. 1) ports, an audio jack, and a MicroSD card reader are all located on the right side of the device. You can also see the SIM card slot on the back.
Exhibit quality
Model number Innolux CYHFW-140HCA Full HD IPS display for Dell Latitude 14 5420. (N140HCA-E5C, CMN14E7). It has a 14-inch (35.56-cm) diagonal and a 1920 x 1080 resolution. In addition, the screen aspect ratio is 16:9, the pixels have a 157 ppi density, and their dimensions are 0.161 x 0.161 mm. When seen from a distance of at least 56 cm, the screen can be deemed Retina (at this distance, the typical human eye cannot discern the individual pixels).
With a maximum variance of 14%, the maximum measured brightness is 283 nits (cd/m2) in the center of the screen and 263 nits (cd/m2) on average throughout the surface. On a white screen with maximum brightness, the Correlated Color Temperature is 6700K (average), which is a little lower than the 6500K sRGB ideal.
You can see how the display works from a uniformity perspective in the example below. The example below demonstrates how things work for operational brightness levels (about 140 nits), in this case at 50% Brightness (White level = 144 cd/m2, Black level = 0.11 cd/m2).
If you intend to utilize the laptop for work that requires color sensitivity, values of dE2000 over 4.0 should not occur, making this one of the first parameters you should check (a maximum tolerance of 2.0 ). The 1350:1 contrast ratio is favorable.
To start, there is the CIE 1976 Uniform Chromaticity Diagram that represents the visible specter of colors by the human eye, giving you a better perception of the color gamut coverage and the color accuracy. To make sure we are on the same page, we would like to give you a brief introduction to the sRGB color gamut and the Adobe RGB.
The standard color gamut (sRGB), which is utilized by millions of people on HDTV and the web, may be seen inside the black triangle. About Adobe RGB, it is utilized for printing in professional cameras, monitors, etc. Everyone uses the colors found inside the black triangle, making them a crucial component of a popular notebook’s color quality and color accuracy.
Nevertheless, we’ve also included alternative color spaces, such as the widely used DCI-P3 standard for film production and the digital UHD Rec. 2020 standard. Yet, Rec.2020 is still a thing of the future, and current displays struggle to adequately depict that. The so-called Michael Pointer gamut, often known as Pointer’s gamut, which stands for the hues that surround us every day in nature, is also featured.
CPU choices
You must choose between Tiger Lake and Comet Lake-U before obtaining this laptop. If you choose the former, the device comes with the Core i3-1125G4, Core i5-1135G7, Core i7-1165G7, or Core i7-1185G7, or you can choose the Core i5-10210U, Core i5-10310U, or Core i7-10610U.
Processor versions for the Dell Latitude 14 5420
Below is a rough comparison of the CPUs found in the various Dell Latitude 14 5420 models currently on the market. This will allow you to assess which Dell Latitude 14 5420 model offers the greatest value for your money.
Conclusion
We were pleasantly delighted by this notebook’s performance. at least in terms of computing power. Dell’s decision to divert more power to the CPU cores than the GPU cores appears to be the cause of the poor graphics performance.
Also, the 63Wh unit in this smartphone provides incredible battery life. 11 hours and 49 minutes of video viewing and nearly 19 hours of web browsing were completed. This indicates that the Latitude 14 5420 will unquestionably last you a full workday on a single charge. Sometimes it can operate without being plugged in for a second day.
The IPS display on the Dell Latitude 14 5420 has excellent viewing angles, a high contrast ratio, and a steady backlight. Although this display only covers 53% of the sRGB gamut, its strongest feature is precisely its lack of PWM use.
Also included are two Thunderbolt 4 connectors, a MicroSD card slot, an Ethernet socket, optional LTE compatibility, a Smart Card reader, and a long list of other features.
You get a significant business laptop when you combine that with the IR face recognition, the fingerprint reader, and the support for 64GB of DDR4 memory. Dell is willing to run its CPU hot in order to give you the optimum performance even if its cooling system isn’t actually designed for intense workloads.
