Dell XPS 13 Review
by Brett Howse on February 19, 2015 9:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Laptops
- Dell
- Ultrabook
- Broadwell-U
- XPS 13
Dell launched the 2015 version of their XPS 13 at CES in January, and it made a big impression because of something that was very small. The first thing you see when you look at the XPS 13 is how small the bezels are around the display. At 5.2 mm, they are easily the thinnest display bezels on any laptop made today. Dell claims the XPS 13 is a 13 inch display in the chassis of an 11 inch notebook, and while they have made that claim before, for 2015, it would be hard to argue with them. But the XPS 13 is more than just a display, and Dell has outfitted it with some very modern hardware to give us our first look at an Ultrabook based on the just launched Intel 5th Generation processors, Broadwell-U.
At CES, Dell also told me that the new XPS 13 would have great battery life, with the company claiming that it would get up to fifteen hours. That claim seems hard to believe, with our battery life test topped at just a hair under ten hours by the current leader, the MacBook Air 13. However, this will be our first look at a laptop running on the new 14 nm process from Intel, so we can get a chance to see just how power efficient the new processors are.
Dell is offering quite an arrangement of options as well, allowing the new XPS 13 to fit into a lot more budgets than some of the other premium notebooks around. The base model comes with the Intel Core i3-5010U processor, but if you need more speed you can upgrade to the i5-5200U or i7-5500U. All of the storage options are solid state drives, which is great to see. The base is 128GB, and optional upgrades are to 256GB or 512GB. Memory choices are dual-channel 4GB DDR3L-RS-1600, or a dual-channel 8GB option.
We received two models for testing, with the first being a Core i5-5200U with the 1920x1080 non-touch display, 4GB of memory, and a 128GB SSD, which lists for $900. The second model is the Core i5-5200U, with 2x4GB of memory, a 256GB SSD, and the 3200x1800 touch display. This model lists at $1400.
Update: Originally I had listed the 4 GB model as single channel, but it is actually 2 x 2 GB for dual channel. Sorry for the mistake.
Dell XPS 13 9343 Specifications | |
Processor | Intel Core i3-5010U (Dual-core + HT 2.1GHz 3MB L3 14nm 15W TDP) Intel Core i5-5200U - model tested (Dual-core + HT 2.2-2.7GHz 3MB L3 14nm 15W TDP) Intel Core i7-5500U (Dual-core + HT 2.4-3.0GHz, 4MB L3, 14nm, 15W TDP) |
Chipset | Broadwell-ULT |
Memory | 2 x 2GB or 2 x 4GB DDR3L-RS-1600 (Dual Channel 8GB Max) |
Graphics | Intel HD 5500 (23 EUs at 300-900MHz on Core i3) (24 EUs at 300-900MHz on Core i5) (24 EUs at 300-950MHz on Core i7) |
Display | 13.3" Anti-Glare IPS 16:9 FHD (1920x1080) (Sharp 1420 Panel) 13.3" Glossy IPS 16:9 QHD+ (3200x1800) IGZO2 (Sharp 1421 Panel with Corning Gorilla Glass NBT and Touchscreen) |
Storage | 128GB/256GB/512GB SSD (Samsung PM851 M.2 2280) |
Optical Drive | N/A |
Networking | Dell Wireless 1560 plus Bluetooth 4.0 - model tested (2x2:2 802.11ac 867Mbps capable Broadcom) Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7265 plus Bluetooth 4.0 (2x2:2 802.11ac 867Mbps capable) Intel Dual Band Wireless-N 7265 plus Bluetooth 4.0 (2x2:2 802.11n 300Mbps capable) |
Audio | Realtek HD Stereo Speakers professionally tuned with Waves MaxxAudio Pro 1w x 2 Headset jack |
Battery/Power | 52Wh non-removable 45W Max AC Adapter |
Front Side | Charge Light |
Left Side | Headset Jack Battery Meter 1 x USB 3.0 with PowerShare 1 x mini DisplayPort Speaker AC Power Connection |
Right Side | Noble Lock Slot 1 x USB 3.0 with PowerShare SD Card Slot Speaker |
Back Side | N/A |
Operating System | Windows 8.1 64-bit |
Dimensions | 11.98" x 7.88" x 0.33-0.6" (WxDxH) (304mm x 200mm x 9-15mm) |
Weight | 2.6 lbs (1.18kg) Non-Touch 2.8 lbs (1.27kg) Touch |
Extras | 720p HD Webcam Backlit Keyboard |
Colors | Silver |
Pricing | $800 (i3, 4GB, 128GB, FHD) $900 (i5, 4GB, 128GB, FHD) - model tested $1000 (i5, 8GB, 128GB, FHD) $1300 (i5, 8GB 128GB, QHD+) $1400 (i5, 8GB, 256GB, QHD+) - model tested $1600 (i7, 8GB, 256GB, QHD+) $1900 (i7, 8GB, 512GB, QHD+) |
The display has some choices as well. The base model comes with a 13.3 inch 1920x1080 IPS display, with a matte finish, and no touch capabilities. This is still a respectable 165 pixels per inch, and is a good option to keep the costs down. The upgraded display is quite the upgrade. Dell has worked with Sharp to outfit the XPS 13 with an optional 3200x1800 resolution IGZO panel, which features Corning Gorilla Glass NBT over the top, along with ten-point multitouch. This works out to 272 pixels per inch, and the IGZO panel is a full RGB stripe.
There are a couple of other options as well, such as a range of wireless adapters, with the Dell 1560 outfitted on the review laptops that we received. This is a Broadcom wireless adapter, with 802.11ac support. Some of the options, like the 512GB drive, are only available with the top CPU and upgraded display. Dell does offer some degree of flexibility when ordering, but not all options are available for all devices.
Dell has crafted a fine looking laptop, with some new parts from Intel and Sharp paving the way. On paper this is a great start, so let's get into the finer details.
201 Comments
View All Comments
repoman27 - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
Peter Bright over at Ars mentioned in the comments to his review that Dell told him the 512 GB SSD option was PCIe based. Which would be nice, but it also means that the M.2 slot supports both SATA 6 Gb/s and PCIe if you want to upgrade yourself.And are we seriously OK with the GPU performance here, pushing 4.44x the pixels of the 13-inch MacBook Air with HD Graphics 5500 (GT2)? Not noticeably laggy or overwhelmed during general usage? This just seems crazy since we're talking 25% more pixels than the 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display with roughly half the GPU power.
Also, any idea if the DP port is Dual-Mode, or if it supports DP 1.2 HBR2 and MST? I reckon it should...
voicequal - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
It is DP 1.2, but maxes out at 3840 x 2160 @ 60 Hz on the Broadwell U-series processors. Supports MST with up to 3 independent displays (including the built-in display - same as Haswell). Don't know about dual-mode. https://software.intel.com/en-us/articles/quick-re...repoman27 - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
Thanks for the response. I was more curious if Dell's implementation as shipped with currently available Intel graphics drivers actually supported MST hubs or TMDS modes though. Sometimes the capabilities Intel lists for their GPUs don't always materialize straight away in shipping hardware / drivers.JarredWalton - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
For Windows use, Intel's HD 4600 and above generally run fine in my experience, even with a 4K display. Which isn't to say that gaming or certain other tasks work properly (H.265 video decoding I've heard can be too much for the BDW-U systems, not sure if that's still true), but no one buys a system with Intel GPU for gaming. It can handle it in some cases at lower quality settings, but that's about it.Colin1497 - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
So I'm in the market for a new travel laptop and I really like the idea of this, but it's actually maybe smaller than I want. Can I have an XPS 15 in a 13" chassis, please?Arbie - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
@Uplink10 - 13" is hardly too small for watching movies! Personally, I can enjoy films on a 10" netbook (and actually also on an 8" tablet). This laptop would be terrific in that regard.rpjkw11 - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
I would seriously consider this if it had a 15" screen. My 17", 10 pound laptop gets heavy rather quickly; a lighter alternative would be welcomed when something lighter, but less powerful, would serve.mac2j - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
There's nothing preventing you from swapping out the 256GB SSD for 1 GB right? Nothing proprietary that would make this an issue?mac2j - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
1 TB - sorry.repoman27 - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
I don't think there are any M.2 2280 1 TB SSDs out yet. I think they only accommodate 4 NAND packages, which isn't enough for 1 TB at current densities / # of dies per package.