We are on the downswing of 2025, and I am still doing laptop reviews. This year has been an insane time for laptops! I have before me the Dell 14 Plus with AMD Ryzen AI 5 340 and the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 with Intel Core Ultra 7 256V. I have done a ton of premium laptop reviews peppered with a few Chromebooks and midrange options. But now, I finally get to the more budget-friendly laptops, and frankly, these two babies are pretty spectacular.
Estimated reading time: 15 minutes
I decided to bundle these laptops into one review for a few reasons. Number one, I am running out of time, and I need to get these reviews done! Number two, the AMD and Intel processors offer similar performance, and I am not going to break down the differences. And three, the only design differences are in the 2-in-1, and almost everything else is the same. I do have a preference here, but these are pretty on par with each other.
The quick take here is that I prefer the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 with Intel for its nicer display. The AMD version is also nice, and the performance is on par with the Intel version, but I liked the display more on the 2-in-1. I believe you can get the AMD in a 2-in-1, and you would get the display that’s in this Intel version. My biggest beef with both of these laptops is that the display is not as bright as I would like; 300 nits is just not enough. That and the trackpads are mushy and not that great. The trackpads aren’t a dealbreaker; they can be used, they’re simply not my favorite. But this isn’t a premium laptop, so it is expected. I think both of these are an excellent choice for users on a budget who need the basics.
The Dell 14 Plus is part of the new branding from Dell, and this design is really sharp for a budget laptop. The build quality is also pretty solid, with everything feeling tight and well built. The performance of both the AMD and Intel Core Ultra CPUs was fantastic and on par with what I’ve been seeing from both all year round.
The camera and speakers are decent, not mind-blowing, but decent enough. The battery life is fantastic on both the AMD and Intel, though I felt the Intel held out slightly longer. The price points are what really make this worth buying. The 2-in-1 does cost a bit more, but if you don’t need that, you can just get the Dell 14 Plus laptop. The display does need more brightness. It works fine indoors and in areas without bright sunlight or bright direct light. But once outside, it can struggle.
The Intel version with the glossy display looks nicer to me, but it also suffers more from glare since it is glossy. But the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 has a matte display; it looks less vibrant but doesn’t suffer from glare. The trackpads on both of these are just average, and I wish they were better. Overall, there will always be a give and take in any laptop, but in budget laptops, there will be a bit more. I think these are versatile enough and do enough things right that most users will find them to be excellent.
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Both of these Dell 14 Plus laptops are basically identical in design. Of course, the 2-in-1 is the exception due to its ability to fold over and be used as a tablet. Both Dell 14 Plus laptops come in the Ice Blue color. Both have the Dell logo on the top. They both have the same bottom case with one long rubber foot, two smaller feet, and a large vent across the bottom. The speakers are also on the bottom, and the screws holding the backplate on are visible and accessible.
The port selection is on the left and right, and both laptops have the ports along the left and right sides, but the ports are slightly different. Here’s what you get on the Dell 14 Plus clamshell:
And here is what the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 is sporting:
Opening the Dell 14 Plus laptops up, you are greeted with the 14” displays. The 2-in-1 is glossy and touch, and the clamshell is matte and non-touch. The bezels are here, but not bad at all. They look great. The webcam is at the top, and they do have a privacy shutter.
The deck and keyboard do have a little flex, and the keyboard feels good; it is a little shallow with not as much tactile feedback as I like. But it does the job, and it is not horrible. The trackpad is average size, and it feels a bit mushy, but that may just be that I have been using haptic trackpads for the past few months. The trackpad works well enough, though, and most basic users will be content with it.
Overall, the new Dell 14 Plus design is lovely. I like it a lot. Budget laptops are finally getting some love, and Dell is making something users will be proud to carry around.
Both of these Dell 14 Plus laptops have 14” displays, but they are vastly different. Because the Intel version is a 2-in-1, it gets a touchscreen that is glossy and that looks more vibrant than the clamshell AMD version. That said, the clamshell version gets a matte display that has way less glare than the Intel version.
Both screens are pretty good, with the 2-in-1 looking better to my eye in color. Both displays have 300 nits of brightness, and that’s where my problem is with them both. These are just not bright enough for my liking. They look great indoors and in normal indoor lighting. But outside, the sun and bright light do wash them out. The 2-in-1 does worse outdoors with the glare.
That said, we have to remember that these are budget laptops, and cost-cutting is needed in some areas. I think Dell concentrated on better performance over better display. I think that was the correct choice. Most people will be using the Dell 14 Plus indoors anyway. So a super bright display would just add to the cost. Even though I, personally, would prefer it. But remember, I use premium laptops most of the time, and I can be snooty about these things.
Overall, the displays on both Dell 14 Plus laptops are good. They’re not excellent in my estimation, but I also have a pile of premium laptops I can choose from, and I tend to compare them to that. Which isn’t very fair. I think basic users will be just fine with these displays, but I do prefer the 2-in-1 touch display over the clamshell matte display.
I won’t rehash the software situation here. Basically, you get Windows 11 Home along with Microsoft Copilot. I am still enjoying Windows 11, and I don’t use Copilot much, and I am still not sold on AI. The operating system is working great, though I don’t like the addition of Windows Recall to these newer laptops. You can opt out of Recall when you set the laptop up, so there is that. Overall, this is what you would expect from Windows.
The Dell 14 Plus I have here is rocking the new AMD Ryzen AI 5 340, while the 2-in-1 is rocking the new Intel Core Ultra 7 256V. Both of these processors are pretty great. They are going to deliver the performance basic users need and will actually push out a bit more. Paired to both of these is 16 GB of RAM, and of course these chips have NPUs which help with battery and performance.
I used these laptops for basic tasks like web browsing, email, docs, streaming video, writing, and music. They handled all of that with ease, and I actually never heard the fans kick in. I did try some light web-based photo editing along with some web-based AI image generation, and both Dell 14 Plus units handled it with ease.
The 2-in-1 has a touchscreen that worked perfectly well with all gestures and inputs. Everything moved cleanly, and animations were excellent. The keyboard was excellent for a budget laptop. The trackpads were just okay; they felt a bit mushy and weird to click. Movements were fine, but I felt like these trackpads were maybe one area they saved some money on.
Overall, the Dell 14 Plus is going to deliver the performance most users need for basic computing and day-to-day tasks. I think it could even handle some light gaming, but don’t be surprised if you stress it playing more intensive titles.
The microphone on the Dell 14 Plus is great for video calls, and it is clear and clean. The speakers are decent but certainly not going to be their best for entertainment purposes. Movies and games are probably not going to sound their best. But for video calls, podcasts, and some YouTube videos. These speakers will be perfectly fine for most users.
The 1080p camera on the Dell 14 Plus is pretty clean. It’s not perfect, but it is certainly better than what we’ve seen in the past. It is more than enough for video conferencing and video calls. Maybe it won’t hit the level for podcasting or video production, but it’s for the basic user who needs a decent, clear, and clean cam for video calls. It works great.
Battery life on the Dell 14 Plus is pretty decent, if not excellent. I mean, compared to Dell laptops of just two years ago, this is a powerhouse. I did find the Intel version to last slightly longer than the AMD, but not by much. Let’s just say I got an average of 13 hours of battery life doing daily and normal tasks. That’s with full brightness, a backlit keyboard on, email, web, YouTube, music streaming, podcasts, and web-based photo editing. Battery life will decrease if you start throwing in something like Photoshop, which I am certain this will run, but maybe not at its best. Overall, these little laptops will get you through a day’s worth of normal tasks and probably most of the day if you push them hard.
The pricing of the Dell 14 Plus will vary depending on configuration. The Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 with Intel was a bit more than the Dell 14 Plus clamshell laptop with AMD. But, you can configure these however you want and choose the 2-in-1 or the clamshell. These are priced just at the higher end of budget pricing, and I think they provide enough versatility and value for the average consumer simply looking to do regular basic tasks and don’t need the extra horsepower for power-hungry apps like video and photo editing. Plus, they look really nice. I love what Dell has done with the new design.
The Dell 14 Plus is part of the new branding from Dell, and this design is really sharp for a budget laptop. The build quality is also pretty solid, with everything feeling tight and well built. The performance of both the AMD and Intel Core Ultra CPUs was fantastic and on par with what I’ve been seeing from both all year round.
The camera and speakers are decent, not mind-blowing, but decent enough. The battery life is fantastic on both the AMD and Intel, though I felt the Intel held out slightly longer. The price points are what really make this worth buying. The 2-in-1 does cost a bit more, but if you don’t need that, you can just get the Dell 14 Plus laptop. The display does need more brightness. It works fine indoors and in areas without bright sunlight or bright direct light. But once outside, it can struggle.
The Intel version with the glossy display looks nicer to me, but it also suffers more from glare since it is glossy. But the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 has a matte display; it looks less vibrant but doesn’t suffer from glare. The trackpads on both of these are just average, and I wish they were better. Overall, there will always be a give and take in any laptop, but in budget laptops, there will be a bit more. I think these are versatile enough and do enough things right that most users will find them to be excellent.
The quick take here is that I prefer the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 with Intel for its nicer display. The AMD version is also nice, and the performance is on par with the Intel version, but I liked the display more on the 2-in-1. I believe you can get the AMD in a 2-in-1, and you would get the display that’s in this Intel version. My biggest beef with both of these laptops is that the display is not as bright as I would like; 300 nits is just not enough. That and the trackpads are mushy and not great, useable but not great. But this isn’t a premium laptop, so it is expected. I think both of these are an excellent choice for users on a budget who need the basics.
