Editor's Note (12/1/15): In the process of writing this review, Dell informed us that a BIOS error was causing XPS 13 notebooks with NVMe-type solid state drives to use more power, and would result in lower than expected battery life. Dell sent us a BIOS update, which will be available publicly in December, that fixed this issue. As a result, we have updated the battery life section of this review.
Design
Not much has changed from the last-generation model, but not much needs to. The XPS 13 combines an attractive and durable aluminum lid with a soft-touch, carbon-fiber keyboard deck that felt great on my wrists as I typed.
However, it doesn't have the flashy hinge of the Yoga 900, and can't rotate its lid 360 degrees.
The bottom of the XPS 13 also has two raised rubber bumpers that run the width of the notebook. They not only keep the aluminum from getting scratched, but also provide an air channel to keep the notebook cool.
As with the previous generation, this model XPS 13 sports what it calls an Infinity display -- that is, a screen that extends nearly to the very edge of the lid. On the touch-screen version of the XPS 13, it looks like the display goes all the way to the edge; on the nontouch version, the bezel is more apparent, but, at a quarter of an inch, it's much smaller than what you'll find on any other notebook.
Regardless of whether you get the touch or nontouch version, the XPS 13 has a much smaller footprint than other 13-inch notebooks. Measuring 12 x 7.9 x 0.3 to 0.6 inches, it takes up less tray table space than the 13-inch MacBook Air (12.8 x 8.9 x 0.11 to 0.68 inches) and Lenovo Yoga 900 (12.75 x 8.86 x 0.59 inches).
The nontouch version of the XPS 13 weighs 2.7 pounds; opting for the touch-screen version ups the weight to 2.9 pounds. That's in the same ballpark as the Yoga 900 (2.8 pounds) and the Mac (2.9 pounds).
Display
It's not a 4K or a quad-HD panel, but I was more than satisfied with the 1080-pixel panel on my review configuration of the XPS 13.
When watching the Star Wars trailers over and over, I noticed that colors, such as the orange of Poe Dameron's flight suit, were rich and vibrant, and there were no artifacts muddying the blackness of space. According to our tests, the screen can display 92 percent of the sRGB color gamut, which is similar to the Yoga 900 (93.2 percent) and way ahead of both the MacBook Air (66 percent) and the category average (80.7 percent).
The screen's average brightness of 318 nits was lower than Dell's 400-nit claim, but the XPS was still brighter than the Yoga 900 (284 nits), as well as the ultraportable laptop category average (299 nits). The MacBook Air was slightly brighter, at 334 nits.
Keyboard And Touchpad
While it has a somewhat shallow travel of 1.3 mm (1.5 is typical of most notebooks), the XPS 13 remained as delightful as ever when I was typing. Its backlit, chiclet-style keyboard was snappy and responsive.
Likewise, the 4.1 x 2.4-inch touchpad had a crisp snap when pressed, and responded instantly and accurately to all of my inputs.
Ports And Webcam
Instead of the Mini DisplayPort on the previous version of the XPS 13, this model has a Thunderbolt 3 port on the left, which can be used not just to connect peripherals such as USB drives, but can also be used to connect to compatible displays.
Placing the webcam in the lower left corner means that Skype callers will get a good look at your nostrils.
The XPS 13 also has two USB 3.0 ports, as well as an SD card slot and a headphone/mic jack.
The one downside to having a bezelless design is that there's no room for the webcam above the display. On the XPS 13, Dell had to move the webcam to the lower left corner, which means that Skype callers will get a good look at your nostrils. At least the details and colors were good.
Heat
After streaming an HD video at full screen for 15 minutes, the lower right corner on the bottom of the XPS 13 hit 97 degrees; that's slightly hotter than our comfort threshold of 95 degrees, but nothing to be too concerned with. The rest of the notebook stayed cooler.
Performance
HOW THE DELL XPS 13 STACKS UP
3DMark Fire Strike
1 of 10
Tests notebook graphics performance.
Dell XPS 13 (2015, Nontouch) Apple MacBook Air (13-inch, 2014)Lenovo Yoga 900Category Average (as of 11/30/15)
214Not Tested840598.79
0 160 320 480 640 800 960
3DMark Fire Strike3DMark Fire StrikeBattery LifeBattery LifeColor AccuracyColor AccuracyDisplay Brightness (Nits)Display Brightness (Nits)Gamut VolumeGamut VolumeGraphics Performance (3DMark)Graphics Performance (3DMark)Hard Drive SpeedHard Drive SpeedOverall Performance (Geekbench 3)Overall Performance (Geekbench 3)Spreadsheet PerformanceSpreadsheet PerformanceWorld of Warcraft (autodetect, 13x7)World of Warcraft (autodetect, 13x7)
Updated with a 6th-generation Intel Core i5-6200U processor, 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD, the latest generation of the XPS 13 will cruise through pretty much anything. I streamed two movies at the same time and churned through a big spreadsheet without noticing any performance hit.
I streamed two movies at the same time and churned through a big spreadsheet without noticing a performance hit.
On Geekbench, which measures overall performance, the XPS 13's score of 6,391 topped the Yoga 900 (6,264), despite that notebook having an Intel Core i7-6500U CPU, 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD. The MacBook Air, which runs a 5th-generation Core i5 processor, scored 5,784.
Despite its high score on synthetic tests, the Dell fell behind both the Mac and the Lenovo on our spreadsheet test. Its time of 4 minutes and 34 seconds, to pair 20,000 names and addresses in OpenOffice, was slower than the Yoga 900 (4:18) and the Apple (4:03).
In duplicating 4.97GB of multimedia, the Dell's hard drive speed of 231 MBps proved faster than the Yoga by about 50 MBps, but slower than the Air's flash memory by 127 MBps.
MORE: Best Gaming Laptops
The Intel HD Graphics 520 in the XPS 13 can handle mainstream games. On World of Warcraft, the Dell averaged a playable 40 frames per second with the effects on Good, and the resolution at its native 1080p. At these same settings, the Yoga 900, which has the same GPU, averaged a slightly better 49 fps. When we increased the eye candy to max, the Dell and the Lenovo performed about the same, at 21 and 18 fps, respectively.
Battery Life
The last version of the Dell XPS 13 lasted an impressive 11 hours and 42 minutes on the Laptop Battery Test (Web surfing via Wi-Fi with the screen at 100 nits). Following a BIOS update, the newest version, which has a higher-capacity 56-wHr battery and a supposedly more efficient Skylake processor, lasted a slightly longer 11:54.
The Dell's endurance is much better than the Yoga 900 (7:57) and the ultraportable average of 8:10. The MacBook Air continues to dominate, with an excellent time of 14 hours, but it also has a lower-resolution display.
Based on our previous experience with the 1080p nontouch and the QHD+ touch versions of earlier XPS 13s, we can reasonably assert that the model with the higher-resolution display will have considerably lower battery life.
Configurations
The XPS 13 starts at $799; at that price, consumers get a 1080p nontouch display, Intel Core i3-6100U processor, 4GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD.
The next preconfigured model costs $999, and has a more powerful Core i5-6200U CPU and 8GB of RAM. This is the version I reviewed, albeit with a 256GB SSD, which increased its price to $1,149.
Stepping up to $1,399 -- the least expensive configuration with a touchscreen -- gets you the same Core i5 processor and 8GB of RAM, but a 256GB SSD and a QHD+ (3200 x 1800) display. Spend $200 more, and you can upgrade the CPU to an Intel Core i7-6500U.
Software And Warranty
As one of Dell's premium notebooks, the XPS 13 refreshingly comes with little in the way of bloatware. The only apps preinstalled are Flipboard, Solitaire, Groove Music, iHeart Radio, Twitter and the ubiquitous Candy Crush Saga. The laptop also comes with a one-year warranty, but Dell didn't fare all that well on this year's Tech Support Showdown. Click here to see who did better.
Bottom Line
The latest version of the Dell XPS 13 has much of what I liked in the previous model: A chassis that's smaller than the competition, strong performance, and a great keyboard and touchpad.
While the battery didn't last much longer than its predecessor, we'll happily take 12 hours of use on a charge.
Our XPS 13 cost $1,149, and had a 1080p nontouch display, Core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD. For $50 more, you can get a Yoga 900 with a Core i7 processor, a 3200 x 1800 touch screen and a 512GB SSD. The trade-off is that the Yoga 900 is larger and has shorter battery life. If portability is paramount, the XPS 13 is an ultraportable you shouldn't pass up.
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