Dell XPS 15 9550 upgrades

Released 2015 · on sale

CPU is soldered BGA (Core i5-6300HQ / i7-6700HQ, Skylake-H, 45 W) - no CPU slot and no upgrade path; the GTX 960M GPU is soldered too. Dell's factory default is RAID On (IRST) SATA mode - install with the RST driver or do a clean AHCI switch. UEFI only, avoid Legacy Option ROMs. TB3/USB-C port is commonly reported to run at 2 PCIe lanes, limiting eGPU performance.

Upgrade guide → What fits, step by step, and official documents.

2x DDR4-2133 SO-DIMM (260-pin): 2 × DDR4 SO-DIMM · up to 32 GB total · 2133 MT/s
1x 2.5" SATA bay (7 mm height limit): HDD / SSD 2.5" (SATA) · max 7 mm thick
1x M.2 2242/2280 M-key (NVMe/SATA): SSD M.2 2242 / M.2 2280 (NVMe / SATA)

Slot map

Schematic of the upgradeable slots (not to scale). Check the owner's manual for their exact positions.

2x DDR4-2133 SO-DIMM (260-pin) 2 × DDR4 SO-DIMM · up to 32 GB total · 2133 MT/s

Both SO-DIMMs are socketed and user-accessible (no soldered RAM on any 9550 config). DDR4-2400/2666 modules physically fit but always down-clock to 2133 (Skylake-H controller cap). Use 1.2 V non-ECC unbuffered modules; ECC/registered will not work. Dell validates 2x16 GB max - single 32 GB sticks are not supported/recognized.

No compatible offers right now.

1x 2.5" SATA bay (7 mm height limit) HDD / SSD 2.5" (SATA) · max 7 mm thick

CRITICAL: the bay only exists with the 56 Whr (3-cell) battery; on 84 Whr units (4K UHD touch) the battery physically occupies it and M.2 is the only internal drive. 15 mm drives do not fit - 2 TB 7 mm SATA SSD is the practical ceiling (not a Dell-documented limit). Some units also need the bracket/cable if shipped as SSD-only.

No compatible offers right now.

1x M.2 2242/2280 M-key (NVMe/SATA) SSD M.2 2242 / M.2 2280 (NVMe / SATA)

Single M.2 connector (2242 and 2280 standoff positions). In HDD+cache configs the 32 GB Intel Smart Response cache module occupies it - disable IRST caching before cloning and remove that module first. PCIe 3.0 x4; no minimum PCIe gen required, so Gen 4 drives work but run at Gen 3 speed. Flash the latest BIOS first (older firmware had NVMe issues, e.g. Samsung 970 EVO).

No compatible offers right now.