New XPS 13 touchscreen mini review

Post by **Genom** » Wed Mar 25, 2015 1:46 pm

So the wife has been on a aging Lenovo laptop I got for cheap off woot a few years back and has used and abused this thing and it's done well. She finally managed to break a keycap, and since it's a PITA to source just 1 replacement for some reason, and the thing feels slow as molasses to me, I figured it would be time for an upgrade. She wanted something easier to carry and with a touch screen in case she needed to use it for work (not gonna happen), I started looking at ultra portables in the sub 1500 price range. I figured if I am going to spend now, make it something that will last a good long time.

So after plenty of time reading reviews and the like, I settled on a XPS 13 with the touchscreen. It's something retarded like 3800x1800 on a 13" screen, with a 256GB SSD and a i7.

Short of it, this thing is great. It's a almost full size keyboard, the screen has almost no bezel, so it looks huge, and the laptop itself is tiny. Under 3 pounds, battery actually lasts a fair amount (I've been on it for the past 3 hours while I clean and setup a fresh windows install on a spare SSD to then clone over to the 840 pro), and playing Hearthstone and watching youtube and I am at 56%. It's fast enough that I can actually run WoW on it and it's playable (Built in Intel gfx of course, so not at the screen max res, but 1920x1080 is playable).

Sound is pretty decent for such a tiny thing as well. Case feels solid and the bottom appears to be carbon fiber with the top being aluminum. Plain to look at, but that means it's not such a huge target like Apples glowing logo tends to be for sticky hands.

My only caveat/issue is the trackpad. While it has lots of nice features, one thing about it is the sensitivity is a bit off. I tend to use trackpads softly, and it has a hard time with that sometimes, getting jumpy, but if I use more pressure, it works fine. No real settings for it however as it runs a unified MS driver so there are no extra controls for it. Touchscreen is relfective so of course, fingerprints are very noticeable and unavoidable. But it otherwise works great.

Paid $1400 for it with a free upgrade to the 256GB SSD, and I am very happy with it. So far I've had it for almost a month and my wife has ignored it but I use it around the house and it's been great. If you are looking for a ultraportable and dont mind spending on good quality, this sucker is fantastic. Seriously good bit of kit.

Post by **FlyingPenguin** » Wed Mar 25, 2015 3:56 pm

So happens I have this laptop on my short list if I decide to upgrade this year. However I have no interest in the ultra-sharp touch screen. The standard non-touch screen is more practical for me (has better battery life, and I have absolutely no need for touch on a laptop).

It's a gorgeous laptop with great battery life. I was just yesterday reading the review on it on PcPer.com:
http://www.pcper.com/reviews/Mobile/Del ... ttery-Life

ZYFER · Post by **ZYFER** » Thu Mar 26, 2015 7:07 am

I currently use a MSI GS70 Stealth. Though it is 17", it is just twice as heavy as that Dell XPS 13 you linked. Not bad for a gaming laptop.

Losbot · Post by **Losbot** » Fri Mar 27, 2015 10:38 am

ZYFER wrote:I currently use a MSI GS70 Stealth. Though it is 17", it is just twice as heavy as that Dell XPS 13 you linked. Not bad for a gaming laptop.

Those are nice gaming laptops (GS70). I'd buy the latest one with the Nvidia 960 in it.