Dell Precision 7550/7560 display/panel upgrade 1080p -> 4k UHD (not OLED)

[TheQuentincc]

HI, 

I finally decided to upgrade my daily laptop with a wonderful 4k display, in this case the BOE NE156QUM-N6C which is one of the best currently available 15.6" UHD IPS display (IPS, 60Hz, 10bit, HDR400, 600nits, full DCI-P3 coverage, )

https://www.panelook.com/NE156QUM-N6C_BOE_15.6_LCM_overview_48042.html

SIDE NOTE ABOUT OLED : I read 2 or 3 times that OLED panel needs to be supported by the laptop bios/firmware otherwise you might lack brightness control

 

My Precision 7550 (which is similar as a 7560) came from the factory with the 1080p DCI-P3 500nits display and the regular camera (not IR). I firstly ordered one of the few eDP "UHD" cable available for the 7550/7560 which is "0CM4DM" part number, however I didn't realised this cable was only made for the IR camera configuration (on which you can't plug the regular camera, futhermore it require display frame and cover replacement to even be able to fit an IR camera, IT'S NOT WORTH the money imho), also this cable have a 40 eDP connector with 0.4mm pitch while my screen have a 0.5mm pitch....

So I ordered a second cable "02KWM2" part number which have the connector for the regular camera, like the previous cable it also have a 0.4mm pitch...

(NOTE : it's a bit weird I can't found a 0.5mm pitch cable for the 7550/7560 because the 4k display version sent to reviewers were using a panel/connector with 0.5mm pitch)

 

I finally ended up buying one of those adapter which works flawlessly : 

https://fr.aliexpress.com/item/1005002211991684.html

(basically you plug the 0.5mm pitch part into the screen, golden pad facing the top, then you bend the cable over to make the 0.4mm pitch connector at nearly the same position as the display connector)

 

I really enjoy this upgrade, the hardest part was to swap the cable, indeed you need to nearly disassemble the whole laptop which is a PITA (even more when you have liquid metal on your CPU).

I'm now looking into upgrading my RTX 3000 to a better card (to handle more pixel in word :p)

 

I can't recommand you enough switching to a QHD/UHD display for your work computer if you have a good view, it require so little more power if you aren't using 3D render at full resolution and it makes text so much clearer, also contrast ratio and brightness are nice improvement, totally worth the 180€ total for the upgrade.