The Dell XPS 13 (9300) Review: Return of the King

Dell modified the Windows laptop computer market in a single stroke with the launch of the up to date XPS 13 again in 2015, ushering on the planet of the InfinityEdge show, and transferring the whole trade ahead. We had been lucky sufficient to get an opportunity to take a look at the precursor to the brand new XPS 13 again in November, with a assessment of the XPS 13 2-in-1. Dell had chosen to not relaxation on their laurels, and the 2-in-1 proved to be probably the greatest notebooks round in the event you wanted a compact and highly effective convertible laptop computer. Today we’re evaluating the standard clamshell model of the XPS 13, and whereas it presents most of the similar options and design touches, it does so in a extra acquainted kind issue that many shoppers are going to want.

For the 2020 refresh, Dell has made the refreshing transfer to taller shows, as we noticed with the XPS 13 2-in-1. As a outcome the XPS 13 makes use of 13.4-inch show panel with a 16:10 facet ratio, providing extra vertical area for getting work executed, and a few handy padding to put controls when watching 16:9 content material. The bigger show matches right into a chassis that’s truly 2% smaller than the outgoing design, with the brand new XPS 13 providing a 91.5% display screen to physique ratio.

This is definitely the second time that Dell has refreshed the XPS 13 throughout the final yr. The firm beforehand up to date the XPS 13 in August 2019 to make use of Intel’s 10th technology Core processors, however presumably on account of restricted provide of Intel’s then-new Ice Lake platform, Dell opted to launch that iteration with Comet Lake-U processors. And beneath extra regular circumstances we’d have anticipated Dell to stay with an annual cadence – and thus Comet Lake – for a whole yr. Instead, to some shock, Dell gave the XPS 13 an additional mid-generation refresh, launching the Ice Lake-based XPS 13 9300 mannequin that we’re reviewing right now, and bringing the clamshell XPS 13 to parity with the 2-in-1 model.

The change from Comet Lake to Ice Lake, in flip, is a major one. it means the XPS 13 will get Intel’s new Sunny Cove CPU structure, in addition to the much-improved Gen 11 graphics. Dell presents Core i3, i5, and i7 fashions, with the Core i3 and i5 providing G1 graphics, which means 32 Execution Units (EUs), and the top-tier Core i7-1065G7 that includes the total 64 EUs on the GPU facet. Just as a comparability, the Comet Lake-U solely provided 24 EUs of Gen 9.5 graphics, so even the bottom Ice Lake fashions nonetheless provide a 33% bigger (and far newer) GPU than the outgoing fashions.

The transfer to Ice Lake additionally brings some badly-needed LPDDR4X help, which in flip means a 32 GB most reminiscence possibility within the XPS 13 9300, up from 16 GB beforehand. Although Dell nonetheless lists a paltry Four GB possibility on their specs sheet, a fast have a look at the Dell.com website exhibits that, a minimum of within the USA, it seems that eight GB is the brand new minimal, and that may be a welcome change. Offering simply Four GB of RAM in a premium Ultrabook was at all times a poor selection, even when it did permit Dell to hit a barely cheaper price bracket. On the storage entrance there may be extra excellent news, with 256 GB the brand new minimal, with as much as 2 TB out there, and all drives are PCIe x4 NVMe choices.