Dell Laptop Copilot DC16256 Review UK (2026). Tested & Rated

Every laptop manufacturer promises the world on spec sheets. Fast processors, all-day battery, brilliant displays. Then you actually use the thing for a few weeks and reality sets in. I’ve spent about a month with the Dell Laptop Copilot+ DC16256, using it everywhere from coffee shops to trains to my home office. Time to see if it lives up to the hype or joins the pile of disappointing hardware.

The 16-inch display runs at 2K resolution (1920×1200), which gives you that bit of extra vertical space compared to standard 1080p. It’s an IPS panel with anti-glare coating and 300 nits brightness. Not the brightest I’ve tested, but usable outdoors if you find some shade.

The Ryzen 7 350 is brilliant for everyday tasks. I regularly had 20+ Chrome tabs open (because who actually closes tabs?), Spotify running, a few Word documents, and Excel spreadsheets without any slowdown. The 32GB of RAM means you can basically throw anything at it. I even ran a Windows virtual machine alongside my normal work and it didn’t break a sweat.

Photo editing in Lightroom was smooth. Batch processing 200 RAW files took about 4 minutes, which is respectable. Premiere Pro worked fine for 1080p video editing, though 4K footage did cause some occasional stuttering during playback. That’s the integrated graphics showing their limits.

Colour accuracy is decent. I measured about 96% sRGB coverage, which is fine for general use and casual photo editing. If you’re doing professional colour work, you’ll want to calibrate it or look elsewhere. But for most people? It looks good. Vibrant without being oversaturated.

The battery capacity is 54Wh, which is… not massive for a 16-inch laptop. I’ve seen gaming laptops with 90Wh+ batteries. So expectations should be managed from the start.

Key travel is about 1.4mm, which is decent for a modern laptop. There’s a slight mushiness to the bottom-out that takes some getting used to. But after a day or two, I was typing at my normal speed without issues. The layout is sensible, with a full number pad on the right (which I actually use, unlike most people apparently).

One nice touch is the fingerprint reader built into the power button. It works reliably and is much faster than typing a password. Small thing, but it makes a difference when you’re opening the laptop dozens of times a day.

The keyboard area gets noticeably warm during heavy tasks, but never uncomfortably hot. You can use this on your lap without burning yourself, though it’s not ideal for extended sessions. The palm rest stays cool, which is what matters for comfort.

For normal office work and web browsing, the fans stay off or run at barely audible levels. Push it hard and they ramp up noticeably, but it’s not the jet engine sound you get from some gaming laptops. Perfectly acceptable for library or office use during light tasks.

The full-size SD card reader is genuinely useful if you work with cameras. No Thunderbolt is a shame at this price point, but the USB-C port does support Power Delivery so you can charge with a universal charger. Port placement is sensible, with nothing blocking the mouse area on the right.

The 720p webcam is fine for video calls but nothing special. In good lighting, you’ll look presentable on Zoom or Teams. In dimmer conditions, expect grain and noise. There’s no physical privacy shutter, which some people care about.

Microphones are actually decent. The dual-array setup picks up voice clearly and does a reasonable job of filtering out keyboard noise and background sounds. I’ve used this for client calls without complaints.

Speakers are the weak point. They’re bottom-firing, which means they bounce sound off your desk. Volume is adequate for video calls or casual YouTube watching, but there’s no bass whatsoever. Music sounds thin and tinny. You’ll want headphones for anything serious.

At 1.87kg, it’s not exactly lightweight but it’s manageable for a 16-inch laptop. I’ve carried it in a backpack on my commute without issue. The charger is reasonably compact, and the USB-C charging option means you can leave the brick at home if you have a compatible power bank.

The Dell’s main advantage is that 32GB of RAM and 1TB storage. If you regularly run virtual machines, work with large datasets, or just like having 50 browser tabs open, that extra memory matters. The ASUS has a faster CPU on paper but less RAM. The HP is cheaper but you’re getting half the storage and RAM.

For students or professionals who need serious multitasking capability, the Dell makes sense. If you need maximum CPU grunt for video rendering or compiling code, the ASUS might be better. If you’re on a tighter budget and don’t need loads of RAM, the HP is worth considering.