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Dell XPS 13 review – simply the best!

By Maurice L. Bays
28 April 2019

MSRP: $1,999.77

$1,879.81

Amazon.com

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PROS

They have improved the webcam Processors have been upgraded Battery life is much better A cool new color to choose from

CONS

Not the biggest upgrade Some of the higher end models feel a bit overpriced in places

BOTTOM LINE

It is fair to say that Dell is not reinventing the wheel with the Dell XPS 13. However, they have certainly addressed some of the major issues that people had with the previous model of their most popular and showcase laptop. These changes do make this one heck of an interesting laptop.

Dell has really had to step up their game in recent years. Companies like Huawei have really started to bring it so Dell has gone back to their popular XPS design and have given it some upgrades. As you will see in this Dell XPS 13 review, this is certainly going to be one of the stands out laptops of 2019.

The Need To Know

The Specs

Here are the official specs for the Dell XPS 13 taken directly from their own website. Please keep in mind that these specs are for the base model of this laptop.

Width: 302 mm
Height: 116 mm
Depth: 199 mm
Weight: 1.21 kg
Screen Size: 13.3 inches
CPU: 8th Generation Intel® Core™ i5-8250U
Graphics: Intel UHD Graphics
Memory: 8 GB
SSD: 256 GB
Camera: 720p
Ports: 2x Thunderbolt™ 3 with Power Delivery & DisplayPort (4 lanes of PCI Express Gen 3) 1x USB-C 3.1 with Power Delivery & DisplayPort, 1x headset jack
Battery: 52 WHr 4-Cell Integrated Battery
Audio: Dolby Atmos Sound System
Wi-Fi: Killer 1435 802.11ac Wi-Fi

The General Feeling

You have to say that the Dell XPS 13 is one of the best laptops around. While they have not changed a ton of things for this laptop. The things that they have changed have made this what was already a fantastic laptop even better.

No matter what your needs for a laptop are, the Dell XPS 13 is going to be able to take care of you. No matter if it is work or play, this is a laptop that is aiming to do it all and do it all with some serious style!

The Asking Price

No doubt when you came to this Dell XPS 13 review the price was one of the first things you wanted to know our feelings on. Now, of course, it does depend on where shop as some stores may be cheaper than others.

However, the general asking price for the default model of the Dell XPS 13 is currently right around the 900 bucks mark. In all honesty, this is not out of line at all with what other companies are charging right now.

As you would expect, Dell is offering beefed-up versions of this laptop. These include things like an upgraded Intel Core i7 Processor, 16 GB of memory a touchscreen that is 4K (which is probably the thing that will make or break getting the upgraded version for you) and a much larger SSD. The highest-end version of this laptop is going for over 2 grand!

How Is It Built?

If you look at the last model of this laptop and then look at this one, at first glance you will wonder what is the difference? There actually is not a lot in terms of the overall design and aesthetic of the laptop, but that is not a bad thing at all.

The original was already a well-made and sleek laptop. So it is great that they decided not to change the overall look of the device just for the sake of doing so which must have been tempting for them to do.

One big change that they did make was the webcam. It is now on top of the display. This means that when you are chatting to someone you are not worried about how many double chins you have. This was a design change that was worth them doing and the laptop is all the better for it. Granted it is not the best camera, but its placement certainly helps it a great deal.

In general, despite its lightweight and rather a small stature the Dell XPS 13 has a very nice feel to it. It feels solid and not cheap and flimsy like some smaller more compact laptops can tend to feel. This gives you much more confidence when you are dragging it to class, work or just dropping it on the bed so you can watch a movie on Netflix.

What About The Screen?

The screen is one of the things that I am most excited to talk about in this Dell XPS 13 review. The default model of the laptop has a very impressive screen at around 13 inches in size this screen is great if you are working or playing video games. It is a nice high-quality full HD screen and everything that we looked at was impressive.

What makes this screen so good though is what Dell call “Dell Cinema”. This is them basically going above and beyond to make the display as good as possible. The blacks are nice and dark and they utilize this thing called, a superior dynamic range which really does bring things like movies and games to life.

The color spectrum, the high contrast ration and the fact that the screen is very generous with its viewing angle to make everything look great. When I am working I like my screen tipped back a little, but if I am watching a movie on the bed I will have it more straight, I never noticed any difference no matter where I had the screen!

Now if you have a lot of money to burn you can get the upgraded version. While this Dell XPS 13 review is based on the default model. It is worth noting that the upgraded version does have a very smart 4K touch screen. Of course, if this is worth the extra thousand bucks is entirely up to you.

How Long Can It Go (The Battery)

As well as the camera the battery has also seen a big improvement with the Dell XPS 13. In terms of the base model, Dell has said that you can expect to get a full workday out of this battery.

Tests have shown that on average the Dell XPS 13 gives you three more hours of battery life than its older brother did, of course, our own tests were not quite as impressive as Dells, but this new battery is certainly much better than the last one.

Of course as good as this new battery is when you have the 4K beefed-up version of this laptop it is not going to last as long as the default model. However, the improved battery will still last that little bit longer than had they used the one from the previous model.

The Software & Features

To be honest with you these days it does not matter what laptop you look at. Most of them use Windows 10 and offer you some of their own apps and ideas for you to play around with and the Dell XPS 13 is the same in that regard.

There is not a lot of apps that are preloaded and taking up unwanted space which is nice. Dell has included their Dell Mobile Connect which makes connecting to your phone and transferring stuff much easier.

Dell Update is another add on and this is actually quite handy as it will get the update files from Dell and install them when needed. If this works as it is intended to, it is going to make your life a lot easier.

They have also included Dell Power Manager which gives you a better look at your laptop’s battery and what is using too much juice. This may not be the most exciting feature to talk about in this Dell XPS 13 review, but it is sure to be a feature that some people find very handy.

It also has a fingerprint reader which is hidden into the power button. This thing is really cool and like something James Bond would use. It works great and ideal if you like to have a bit of security on your laptop to stop people from being able to use. It.

The Final Say On The Dell XPS 13

Dell really has done a great job with the Dell XPS 13. Now granted it may appear to be the same laptop that Dell released to the masses last year….. and it kind of is. But to be fair they made very smart changes to it, changes that were made with getting better performance and having a longer-lasting battery in mind. These changes actually make this a much better laptop.

The asking price may not be exactly cheap (especially for that 4K version) however during our Dell XPS 13 review we have been very impressed with what Dell has done here and we do feel that by the time 2019 comes to a close this will be seen as one of the better laptops released.

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