Pros & Cons
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- Ultra performance
- Top-end build quality
- Vivid display
- Supports 256GB RAM, four storage drives
- Excellent connectivity and security
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- Pricey
- No 4K or OLED screen options
- Short battery life
Dell Pro Max 18 Plus Specs
| Boot Drive Capacity (as Tested) | 1 |
| Boot Drive Type | SSD |
| Class | Workstation |
| Dimensions (HWD) | 1.19 by 15.8 by 11.0 inches |
| Graphics Memory | 24 |
| Graphics Processor | Nvidia RTX PRO 5000 |
| Native Display Resolution | 2560 by 1600 |
| Operating System | Windows 11 Pro |
| Panel Technology | IPS |
| Processor | Intel Core Ultra 9 285HX |
| RAM (as Tested) | 128 |
| Screen Refresh Rate | 120 |
| Screen Size | 18 |
| Secondary Drive Capacity (as Tested) | 1 |
| Secondary Drive Type | SSD |
| Tested Battery Life (Hours:Minutes) | 4:20 |
| Weight | 7.17 |
| Wireless Networking | Bluetooth 5.4 |
| Wireless Networking | Wi-Fi 7 |
Mobile workstations excel with demanding workflows, ranging from graphic design to AI development, with professional-grade hardware and enterprise-grade reliability. Dell’s Pro Max 18 Plus (starting at $3,614; $9,193 as tested) is a power player in this category, pairing Intel’s Core Ultra 200HX-series processors with Nvidia’s latest RTX Pro “Blackwell” graphics to deliver performance as massive as its 18-inch display. With extensive connectivity and security, ISV certifications, and room for up to 256GB of memory and four solid-state drives, the Pro Max 18 Plus checks every box for serious creators and engineers. A powerhouse in every sense, it earns our Editors' Choice award for high-end mobile workstations.
Configurations: Enterprise-Class Power and Expandability
The Pro Max 18 Plus relies on top-tier mobile components, with prebuilt systems starting at $4,644. That gets you a 20-core Core Ultra 7 265HX processor, an RTX Pro 1000 GPU, 32GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD. Meanwhile, customizable models start at a slightly lower $3,614, featuring a 14-core Core i5-245HX processor and integrated graphics. Our unit came fully loaded: a Core Ultra 9 285HX (5.5GHz turbo), an RTX Pro 5000 with 24GB of VRAM, 128GB of CAMM2 DDR5-6400 memory, and dual 1TB PCI Express 5.0 drives configured in RAID 0 for a 2TB striped volume.
This laptop provides many ISV certifications to support professional workflows. All models include an 18-inch QHD+ display and Windows 11 Pro, with Ubuntu Linux available at no cost. A three-year onsite warranty comes standard.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)This laptop’s standout expansion capabilities include slots for four M.2 storage drives (as mentioned, two are filled in our test loaner) and an eye-popping 256GB of RAM. Achieving that latter capacity requires Dell’s CAMM2 modular memory, a standard the company helped pioneer. Those preferring traditional memory can opt for SODIMM configurations, though they max out at 192GB using four 48GB modules. Notably, SODIMM models can be converted to support CAMM2 post-purchase.
The Pro Max 18 Plus’ primary rival is the HP ZBook Fury G1i 18, the only other mainstream 18-inch mobile workstation available at the time of publication. (We haven’t tested it yet.) It also competes with high-end 16-inch models offering similar hardware, including Dell’s own Pro Max 16 Plus, HP’s ZBook Fury G1i 16, and the Lenovo ThinkPad P16.
While online pricing suggests the Pro Max 18 Plus is competitively positioned, I'm avoiding direct price comparisons, as these systems are typically purchased through enterprise channels in bulk orders.
Design: Big, Bold, and Built for Battle
The Pro Max 18 Plus makes no apologies for its large size and commands attention through sheer size alone. Starting at 7.2 pounds with a 1.2-by-15.8-by-11-inch (HWD) footprint, it can serve as a replacement for a cafeteria tray.
Visually, however, it’s understated. A small Dell logo on the lid is the only branding, and the dark gray chassis complements its productivity-first identity. While the minimalist aesthetic is a serviceable fit for professional environments, Dell could have done more to signal the premium nature of this machine.
Regardless, Dell's build quality is excellent. The chassis feels rock-solid in the hand, and Dell’s sustainability efforts show in the use of recycled materials, including bio-based rubber feet. Durability is also essential: the Pro Max 18 Plus passes MIL-STD-810H testing, ensuring it can withstand the wear and tear of daily use. Additionally, several design choices support long-term usability: The USB-C ports are modular and replaceable without touching the motherboard, and the battery is mounted to the frame rather than the board, reducing stress on internal components.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)The Pro Max’s extensive connectivity starts on the left with a 2.5Gbps Ethernet jack, an HDMI 2.1 connection, dual Thunderbolt 5 (USB-C) ports, a full-size SD card reader, and an optional SmartCard slot. On the right: an audio jack, a Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C) connection, two 5Gbps USB-A ports, and a Noble security-lock slot. The power adapter connects to either of the Thunderbolt 5 ports. For wireless, it supports Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 from an Intel networking card and offers 5G wireless broadband.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)Biometric options include multiple fingerprint reader choices—our unit features the top-tier FIPS-certified model—and an infrared webcam. The latter includes a sliding privacy shutter and delivers above-average video quality from its 1440p sensor.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)Dell's software utilities include its Dell SupportAssist app for diagnostics and support, and its Dell Command app for system updates. IT and security features include Intel vPro Enterprise remote management, self-encrypting drives, and Dell’s Control Vault 3+ hardware-credential-management solution.
Screen and Size: Wide, Weighty, and Wonderful
The sheer size of the Pro Max 18 Plus stands out every time I use it. Coming from an ultraportable ThinkPad X-series, I find myself lifting my hands slightly higher to reach the keyboard, an adjustment that underscores just how substantial this machine is. The expansive 18-inch screen feels downright luxurious, wide enough that I occasionally shift my head to take in its full span. In many ways, it’s reminiscent of using a desktop.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)With a resolution of 2,560 by 1,600 pixels, wide viewing angles, and an anti-glare surface, the Pro Max 18 Plus' screen is well-suited for productivity. Its brightness and color vibrancy are excellent, and the 120Hz refresh rate makes scrolling feel effortlessly smooth. Thanks to its sheer size, I haven’t needed to use Windows' text-scaling features; fonts and UI elements are comfortably legible at the default settings. It’s also easy to dock two windows side by side and view their contents without excessive scrolling, which adds to the desktop-like feel. Regardless, it’s puzzling that this is the only available display option; the smaller Pro Max 16 Plus provides a higher-resolution OLED panel with touch support.
Inputs and Sound: Sufficient, With Small Improvements Possible
Dell’s keyboard is satisfactory. Ample key travel, a flex-free deck, and a soft cushion at the bottom of the keystroke provide tactile engagement. The white backlight complements the dark gray keycaps and clean typeface well. The layout has quirks, however: The arrow cluster squeezes half-height up and down keys between full-size left and right, inviting typos. And, if Function Lock is enabled, the dedicated Home and End keys are unavailable as they are paired with F11 and F12.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)The giant touchpad gets just about everything right: a stutter-free surface and quiet, sure physical clicks. Meanwhile, the speakers are reasonably loud, although their bass notes are barely present, and the overall sound signature is slightly muffled, as the speakers are tucked beneath the palm rest.
The Pro Max 18 Plus has a well-behaved cooling system. During regular usage, the three fans aren’t noticeable. While they become audible when the system is performing intensive tasks, the noise level remains acceptable and shouldn’t bother others in an office or at home.
Performance Testing: A High-Horsepower Heavyweight
We tested the Pro Max 18 Plus in elite form: a Core Ultra 9 285HX processor with 24 cores and a 5.5GHz turbo clock, Nvidia RTX Pro 5000 professional graphics, 128GB of DDR5 CAMM2 memory running at 6,400MHz, and dual 1TB PCIe 5.0 SSDs striped together in RAID 0 for a 2TB volume. This setup represents the pinnacle of mobile workstation hardware.
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With few laptops to match its specs, we included several systems to contextualize its performance. The most powerful among them is the HP ZBook Fury 16 G11 ($3,564 as tested). Next is the Lenovo ThinkPad P16 Gen 2 ($4,019 as tested). We also included an entry-level workstation, the HP ZBook Power 16 G11 A ($2,629 as tested). Rounding out the group is Dell’s own consumer-grade 16 Premium ($2,799 as tested).
Productivity and Content Creation Tests
Our primary overall benchmark, UL's PCMark 10, puts a system through its paces in productivity apps ranging from web browsing to word processing and spreadsheet work. Its Full System Drive subtest measures a PC's storage throughput.
Three more tests are CPU-centric or processor-intensive: Maxon's Cinebench 2024 uses that company's Cinema 4D engine to render a complex scene; Primate Labs' Geekbench 6.3 Pro simulates popular apps ranging from PDF rendering and speech recognition to machine learning; and we see how long it takes the video transcoder HandBrake 1.8 to convert a 12-minute clip from 4K to 1080p resolution.
Finally, workstation maker Puget Systems' PugetBench for Creators rates a PC's image editing prowess with a variety of automated operations in Adobe Photoshop 25.
The Pro Max 18 Plus set the tone early, crushing the PCMark 10 general-performance benchmark by more than doubling the 4,000-point baseline we typically look for. (Though it did fall behind in the PCMark Storage test.) The gap between the Pro Max 18 Plus and the other units only widened from there. In Cinebench’s multi-core test, its Core Ultra 9 285HX delivered a score more than 50% higher than the Core i7 and i9 HX-powered ThinkPad and ZBook Fury.
It continued to impress in real-world workloads. In HandBrake, the Pro Max 18 Plus completed our video encoding test in a blistering 2 minutes and 14 seconds, untouched by the competition. Adobe Photoshop also demonstrated potent content creation performance, with the Dell machine maintaining its commanding lead.
Graphics Tests
We challenge each reviewed system’s graphics with a quintet of animations or gaming simulations from UL's 3DMark test suite. The first two, Wild Life (1440p) and Wild Life Extreme (4K), rely on the Vulkan graphics API and measure GPU speeds. The next pair, Steel Nomad's regular (4K) and Light (1440p) subtests, focuses on APIs more commonly used for game development to assess gaming geometry and particle effects. A fifth test, Solar Bay, emphasizes ray-tracing performance.
While 3DMark is primarily designed for gaming systems rather than professional workstations, it still provides a snapshot of overall GPU and system performance. The Pro Max 18 Plus’ numbers clearly show that it operated in a league of its own, delivering results that substantially outpaced the field.
Workstation Tests
First, we measure workstation performance with SPECviewperf 2020 (version 3.1), which renders, rotates, and zooms in and out of solid and wireframe models at 1080p resolution. The three subtests represent PTC's Creo CAD platform, Autodesk's Maya modeling and simulation software for film, TV, and games, and Dassault Systemes' SolidWorks 3D rendering package.
Next up is Blender, an open-source 3D content creation suite for modeling, animation, simulation, and compositing. We record the time it takes for Blender 4.2 to render three distinct scenes to measure CPU and GPU rendering performance.
Then, we run an automated extension, PugetBench for Creators from workstation maker Puget Systems, in Adobe Premiere Pro. The extension executes and times real-world video editing tasks, such as file export, high-resolution encoding with various codecs, processing and decoding different types of source media, and applying GPU-accelerated special effects. (The Dell Pro Max didn’t complete the Adobe Premiere test due to an issue with the benchmark itself, so we excluded that chart below.)
Finally, we also use PugetBench for Creators to test DaVinci Resolve Studio 18 video editor performance on systems suitable for that challenging app. As with Adobe Premiere, these automated tasks and features push the CPU and GPU, letting us gauge real-world media creation speeds.
The high-powered RTX Pro 5000 inside the Pro Max 18 Plus delivered exceptional results in SPECviewperf and the GPU portion of Blender, outgunning the RTX 4000 Ada in the ThinkPad and decisively outclassing the others. Its dominance extended to the CPU portion of Blender and DaVinci Resolve. In short, this is one of the most potent workstation laptops you can buy.
Battery Life and Display Tests
We test each laptop and tablet's battery life by playing a locally stored 720p video file (the open-source Blender movie Tears of Steel) with display brightness at 50% and audio volume at 100%. We make sure the battery is fully charged before the test, with Wi-Fi and keyboard backlighting turned off.
To gauge display performance, we also use a Datacolor SpyderX Elite monitor calibration sensor and its Windows software to measure a laptop screen's color saturation—what percentage of the sRGB, Adobe RGB, and DCI-P3 color gamuts or palettes the display can show—and its 50% and peak brightness in nits (candelas per square meter).
Solid battery life would have elevated the Pro Max 18 Plus to legendary status, but it fell short of expectations. Lasting only 4 hours and 20 minutes, it has barely half the lasting power of the ZBook Fury and less than half of the ThinkPad, which reached an impressive 9 hours and 50 minutes. While the Pro Max’s endurance doesn't render it unusable, the laptop is unlikely to last through a workday without a charger, particularly if the system is heavily stressed.
Display performance paints a different picture. The Pro Max 18 Plus shines with more than 500 nits of brightness and covers 99% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, making it well-suited for creative professionals. While the ThinkPad proved a touch brighter, it couldn’t match Dell’s color.