Dell XPS 13 (2024) With Lunar Lake Review: Ultra Light and Extra

Thenew version of the Dell XPS 13is oscillate on the edge of something good , or — at least — something truly unique . There ’s an intrinsic factor at work beyond the number of port and the sloped pattern of the2 - year - old XPS 13 redesign , now withIntel Lunar Lake , that reminds me of the M1 MacBook Air . Something there would make me say , “ Wow , affair are going to change . ” It has nothing to do with the old ARC vs. x86 argumentation . It ’s the dream of the light potential laptop computer , still with a physical keyboard , that can do everything .

But the XPS 13 ( 9350 ) config does n’t get there . It ’s only closemouthed to it in terms of power and barrage fire animation , but the casing is still a poor design that needs to vary . It ’s interesting to look at . I might eventually enjoy the estimation of an invisible touchpad , but not an invisible ESC key that disappears in direct sun .

Dell XPS 13 ( 9350 )

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It skylark a radical design that makes it gruelling to use if you ’re hard of project or working in direct light . While it ’s powerful for its size , it is n’t as zippy as you ’d want a laptop computer for this monetary value .

Pros

Cons

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There are many of the same issues with Dell ’s other XPS products , such as theXPS 14and XPS 16 . It does n’t commute with a new chip . Still , I ’ve wanted to give the XPS 13 a try since Intel first announced its Lunar Lake chips and see what it meant for ultra - thin laptops like this one . My adaptation of the XPS 13 come with the Intel Core Ultra 7 256V and a non - touch LCD . Dell said you get one of these laptops with an Intel Core Ultra 9 288V , which sounds like it would be one hell of an interesting twist , but you wo n’t incur that config available on Dell ’s site or anywhere else .

There are other versions of the XPS 13 with Ultra 7 258V , and just like I say with theAsus Zenbook S 14 , I would await for the higher - last chip first despite the price divergence . The 256V does well enough for canonic productiveness task , but when buying a new laptop computer for anything that demand a bit more juice , I call it will be deserving it . Now that the M4 MacBooks are out , we have a new , high bar for CPU performance across laptop chip shot , so I ’d argue you should attempt to make certain your next laptop computer is as future - proof as potential .

See XPS 13 ( 9350 ) at Dell

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Should that Modern laptop be the $ 1,400 MSRP XPS 13 ( 9350 ) ? It has a fair display , and it sure bet unparalleled . The battery life is incredible , so long as you ’re not doing anything strenuous . It ’s also an fabulously calorie-free laptop computer with such a still , sleek last you ’re handling a endocarp slate more than a electronic computer . At the same clock time , it ’s too pro forma for its own good , specially at this price degree .

Dell XPS 13 Review: Performance

My XPS 13 came with the Intel Core Ultra 7 256V CPU , which is on the down in the mouth end of the in-between - weight Lunar Lake chips . The laptop computer carry 16 GB of DDR5x RAM and 512 GB of storage . All that ’s to say , this is the lower - terminal interpretation of the XPS 13 you may get , and its carrying out may not pair your expectations for what you may have hear about Lunar Lake .

That ’s not to say you should ignore this version totally . If you go for this config for canonic productiveness , it ’s an incredibly speedy machine in such a thin packet . In Geekbench 6 , the Core Ultra 7 256V will nock better than the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus in individual - core stage setting but drop behind slightly behind multi - core . It also wo n’t beat AMD ’s latest genus Strix Point mainframe like the Ryzen 9 HX AI 370 , which you could line up in microcomputer like theAsus TUF Gaming A14 .

It ’s a worse performer in the Cinebench interpretation mental testing , which I regain still underachieve in multi - core preferences by close to 300 points compared to a Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite or the Ryzen 9 HX AI 370 . I ’m still expect for that fabled laptop that will contain the Intel Core Ultra 9 288V , permit alone more with the slightly higher - performance Lunar Lake scrap than just the 258V.

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Of course , any PC with a dedicated GPU will be far better for graphics tests like 3D Mark . The Dell XPS 14 with just an Nvidia Geforce RTX 4050 can topple anything that Intel ’s onboard ARC graphics can try . I ’m still disappoint in the main by the slow times on our Blender test , where we time how long it ask for the PC to render a single image of a BMW under CPU and GPU mount .

Dell XPS 13 Review: Build Quality and Usability

As somebody who uses a passel of laptop regularly , I end up typecast with several dissimilar keyboard regularly throughout my workday . yield that , I should have experience with the newfangled XPS design thanks to my time with the Dell XPS 14 and XPS 16 laptop . Then I return to it with the XPS 13 and its flat panel , no - infinite keyboard , and invisible trackpad , and it still somehow made me palpate like a fish out of water .

I could grow to care it if I spent ages with it and got so used to the space - less keyboard that I would shin to get the same tone on other keyboards . Why would I , though , when the experience is worse than other laptops ?

bad still is the tinge function row , which just disappears when the microcomputer is turned off . sorry , with this eggshell semblance , the clean - up touch keys disappear like ghosts in direct sunlight . The light - up cay may become an accessibility incubus for anybody with vision issues .

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All that is such a ignominy because I would otherwise enjoy using the XPS 13 . This thing is light at only 2.6 punt . For comparison , an M3 MacBook Air press 2.7 pounds . It ’s just a few grams light-colored than an Asus Zenbook S 14 . Beyond the weight unit , it ’s packing WiFi 7 and a bright presentation for indoor and outdoor use . However , there ’s no job worse than routinely reach the wrong key when you ’re typing , just because you ca n’t feel out where your fingers are unless you ’re looking at the keyboard .

Dell XPS 13 Review: Screen, Webcam, and Sound

This 13 - column inch laptop computer has a comme il faut screen , an okay webcam , and mediocre sound quality . The 13.4 - inch liquid crystal display runs at a 1920 by 1200 resolution with a VSS between 30 and 120 Hz . No , it ’s not as ink-black and pretty as OLED , which you ’ll get on prettier configs than the 9350 , but at the very least , it ’s bright .

The 1080p webcam look fair under bright light , but thing start to count fuzzy as soon as any dimmed fluorescent fixture light illuminates you . Without space for physical speakers , there ’s only so much you may expect from the sound on a thin laptop . The XPS is good enough for listening to it by yourself , but it has a thin tone that ’s straightaway plain if you switch off from any 14 - in laptop computer to this 13 - inch one . It can get jolly gaudy , at the very least .

Dell XPS 13 Review: Battery Life

The Dell XPS 13 ’s battery life might be its freehanded selling detail . When Dell and Intel first announced this config at IFA , it was part of the ship’s company ’s claim that you would get secretive to 24 minute of barrage fire life from an x86 cow dung . That ’s a large hope , and we already cognise it was only test in television playback .

In our own video playback tests , where we hightail it down the battery watching a 24 - hour YouTube video , the laptop conked out after 23 hours . That ’s very respectable and the sort of battery you ’d require from such a lightweight design .

As for daily utilization , it ’s also a very strong contender . An full working day of typing on it , without plugging it into any external monitors , resulted in me still have around 40 % barrage fire leave over . I forgot to charge it and could still go half a work day without reach for the plug . The barrage fire debilitate far quicker when supporting more than one monitor , as expected . It ’s a better outcome than I had with the Asus Zenbook with the same splintering , so Dell still has a great internal design to rely on , even if I do n’t jive with the exterior .

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Dell XPS 13 Review: Verdict

The Dell XPS 13 ( 9350 ) palpate like a laptop computer that costs , at most , $ 1,100 , which is where it presently stands on sales agreement before the end of November . I recognise I ’ve already said this design is not my jam , but even at a abject price , I would hesitate to reach for this over something more received . It ’s easy one of the light , most well - equilibrize laptops I ’ve used . It hangs out in my backpack and scarcely put any more weight on my shoulder than the hoard of paperback Word of God I be given to transport around .

Plus , it has an first-class bombardment life that adds to its longevity and keeps me from bringing a charging brick everywhere I go . The charging unit that comes with the XPS 13 is already comparatively small and easy , so that ’s a plus . When put like that , there ’s so much I want to like about this laptop , though perhaps not with this configuration . Then again , the next step up , with the 258V , 32 GB of RAM , 1 TB of storage , and an LCD , costs $ 1,700 MSRP ( currently $ 1,500 on sale ) . The OLED touchscreen version is even more high-priced . Even on sales agreement , I ca n’t imagine buying a super - thin laptop computer for that price when there are other machines you may get .

It ’s a perfectly usable laptop and perhaps one you could begin to roll in the hay . But I ’m a curmudgeon , and I do n’t wish it when I beg a tonality and accidentally tap two . Perhaps I should charge myself for my imprecise digits . Instead , however , I ’ll blame the laptop .

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