Dell Brings Larger Screen, More Power to Redesigned XPS 13

Dell is giving its popular XPS 13 ultra-portable, 2-in-1 laptop a makeover with a new design that offers a 7% increase in screen display size, larger keys and a new camera with the same dimensions. In fact, the new XPS 13, which Dell debuted Tuesday at the annual Computex trade show in Taipei, is 8% thinner and gains a 2.5x boost in CPU performance.

At Computex, Dell also rolled out a new XPS 15 clamshell-based laptop, updated models of its Inspiron and Alienware lines for consumers, and new high-end, mobile and desktop Precision workstations. Dell’s XPS 13 is among the most popular premium laptops among business users, and notably executives, for its thin and lightweight form- actor and narrow bezels. While the XPS comes from Dell’s consumer PC group, it’s made available to customers through the commercial channel, where partners have found it popular.

The XPS 13 is among the first to come with Intel’s new 10th Generation Core processor (codenamed Ice Lake), also announced Tuesday at Computex.

“What we like to say about this product is it’s bigger and better in every way that matters without actually being larger,” said Nicholas DiLoreto, XPS industrial design lead told Channel Futures, during a pre-Computex preview in New York this month.

To accomplish the added real estate without increasing the dimensions, Dell changed the display ratio from 16×9 to the 16×10. The new display also has a marginally thicker bezel on top, allowing for the new camera. Reviewers have historically panned the fact that Dell had placed the camera at the bottom to allow for the ultra-thin bezels. Dell developed a camera that’s just 2.25 mm that it was able to fit on top.

Dell officials said the new display provides better color accuracy and resolution and is available with FHD+ and UHD+ options. The latter panel has a HDE400 panel to support HDR content and Dolby Vision. The company said it has re-engineered the thermal design with separated dual fans to provide better coverage, and to reduce heat dissipation in order to avoid performance hits.

The new XPS 13 will also be the first Dell business class system to offer new technology licensed with Eyesafe, color correction software designed to reduce harmful blue light emissions. Eyesafe’s technology filters these emissions without impacting color gamut performance, said Justin Barrett, CEO of Healthe, provider of Eyesafe.

Healthe’s Justin Barrett

“If you’re familiar with some of the other blue light filtering software solutions that exist, they’re often taking down all of the light spectrum, which throws off the yellow, orange and red, and distorts the color experience in a way that most people are going to want to be using on a daily basis,” Barrett said.

In addition to the XPS 13, Dell has added it to its Alienware and G Series gaming systems.

The new XPS 13 will also have a new MagLev keyboard with a larger touchpad, introduced last year with the Dell XPS 15 2-in-1, and a new hinge design that aims to makes it easier to open and close. In addition to the power boost with the Intel Gen 10 Core processor, the new CPU is the first based on a new 10 nm design — a reduction from 14 nm. Dell has used the size reduction for the redesign, which also made room for …

… a slightly larger battery: 51 WHr compared to 47 WHr.

The XPS 13 also will include Intel’s Killer Wi-Fi 6 chipset. While Dell was able to keep the core dimensions intact, the extras did push the weight up from 2.7 pounds to 2.9 pounds. The new XPS 13 is scheduled for release in July.

Among the other systems Dell introduced at Computex are the new XPS 15, based on a traditional clamshell design and powered by its 9th Gen Intel Core H-class mobile processor. Set for release in the coming weeks, the XPS 15 upgrade will be available in up to 8 cores and with an optional NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 graphics accelerator. The XPS 15 will also come with the option for an OLED display, for engineers and video editors. Like the XPS 13, it will come with an Intel Wi-Fi 6 chipset, and is configurable with up to 64GB of memory and a 2TB PCIe solid state drive.

The new workstations introduced include new desktop and mobile Precisions, which include an update to the Precision 3000 towers and Precision 1U rack workstation line and Dell’s new Precision 5540, the company’s smallest and lightest to date. At a starting weight of 3.9 pounds, the new mobile workstation has a 15.6-inch InfinityEdge display in a 14-inch chassis, powered with either Intel Xeon E or 9^th Gen 8-core processors, NVIDIA Quadro T2000 graphics and configurable with up to 4 TB of storage and 64 GB of RAM.

Dell also introduced a larger and more powerful mobile workstation, the Precision 7540, a 15-inch workstation with several 15.6-inch display options — including one that supports up to 8K resolution.