Dell XPS 13 Kaby Lake
Dell XPS 13 became our top overall laptop by offering a 13-inch screen in a more compact package than its competitors, along with a winning combo of design, comfort, performance and battery life. Since its introduction, everyone has been trying to catch this ultraportable, but no one has been able to knock off the champ. Now, Dell has raised the bar even higher with an update to its XPS 13 (starting at $799; $1,099 as tested) that adds the latest 7th-generation Intel Core CPUs (Kaby Lake), even more battery life and stronger Wi-Fi performance.
You can now order this aluminum machine in a fetching rose-gold color, too, if you're willing to pay more for it. The XPS 13 isn't perfect -- see the webcam -- but overall, it remains our top pick.
Specs
| CPU | 3.1-GHz Intel Core i5-7200U |
|---|---|
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home |
| RAM | 8GB |
| Hard Drive Size | 256GB SSD |
Design
The XPS 13's most striking feature is its Infinity display, which has almost no bezel around the screen. This is what allows Dell to cram a 13-inch screen into a chassis you'd typically find on an 11-inch notebook. It also makes it look like the screen is floating above the base of the system, allowing you to focus more on your content.
The rest of the laptop is just as attractive as before, even if it's not as thin as some competitors. The top and bottom are made of machined aluminum, which gives the frame a durable and rigid feel. The deck on the inside is even better. It uses a comfortable, soft-touch, carbon-fiber material with a subtle-but-cool checkered pattern, which makes typing a real pleasure.
The soft-touch carbon-fiber deck makes typing a real pleasure.
Between the silver XPS 13 and the rose-gold XPS 13, I'll take the sexier sheen of the rose gold. The silver model is handsome, but the gold version pops, and it's more gold and less pink than the 12-inch MacBook. However, the rose-gold XPS 13 costs $50 more, and it's not available on the Core i3-powered base configuration.
Weighing 2.7 pounds for the nontouch model and 2.9 pounds for the touch-screen version, the XPS 13 is lighter than the 3-pound MacBook Air but not as featherweight as the HP Spectre (2.45 pounds) or the 12-inch MacBook (2 pounds). At 0.33 to 0.6 inches, the XPS 13 is also a bit thicker than the Spectre (0.41 inches) and the MacBook (0.5 inches). But you also get more ports on the XPS 13.
The Lenovo Yoga 910, which is a 2-in-1 convertible, weighs 3.04 pounds and measures 12.7 x 8.8 x 0.56 inches, but it packs a larger 13.9-inch screen.
Ports
Unlike skinnier ultraportables, the XPS 13 packs all the ports you need.
You'll find two USB 3.0 ports and an SD card reader, as well as a headphone jack and USB Type-C port with Thunderbolt 3 support. That means you can attach the XPS 13 to two 4K monitors at once. You can also charge the XPS 13 over USB Type-C, though it comes with a proprietary AC adapter.
In comparison, the HP Spectre has three USB Type-C ports, and the 12-inch MacBook has a single USB Type-C port that doesn't support Thunderbolt 3.
Display
You have two display options on the Dell XPS 13, and both of them are pretty great. There's a full-HD, non-touch-screen model with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 and a matte finish. Or, if you want to spend $1,599, there's a quad-HD touch-screen model with a higher resolution of 3200 x 1800 pixels. This glossy panel also offers richer colors, though it's more reflective.
While watching the 4K movie "Tears of Steel" on both XPS 13s, it was clear that the high-res screen was the winner, with far more details in the character's skin and smoother lines in a sniper's scope. In the 1080p trailer for "Wonder Woman," the blue skies of Themyscira were much more vibrant on the touchscreen, as was the red in Diana's outfit. The only issue with the high-res monitor is that it has a bit of glare, so its viewing angles wash out at narrower points than the non-touch version.
Based on our lab tests, the nontouch screen produces a strong 93.6 percent of the sRGB color gamut and the QHD touch version covers 105.7 percent (100 percent or above is great). The nontouch screen is highly accurate with its Delta-E rating of 0.8 (0 is best), but the QHD version is less precise, but much more vibrant, with a score of 4.
The HP Spectre hit 100 percent of the gamut and notched a Delta-E of 1.3, and the MacBook delivered 107 percent and 1 on the same tests.
The XPS 13's nontouch panel isn't the brightest, as it reached 302 nits on our testing (the 3200 x 1800 touch display reached 305 nits) That result is above the category average but below the Spectre (359 nits) and the MacBook (327 nits).
Audio
The stereo speakers on the XPS 13 get plenty loud, but the sound gets a little harsh at maximum volume. But that's at the default settings. When I turned up the bass in the Waves MaxxAudio Pro app, Sublime's "What I Got" sounded more balanced. The guitar plucks mixed well with the punchy drum line.
You can make other tweaks, too, such as Reduce Noise and Revive for streaming, and adjusting the Details in tracks with a virtual knob.
Keyboard and Touchpad
The typing experience on the XPS 13 continues to be fairly comfortable. The 1.2 mm of travel is a little less than the HP Spectre's 1.3 mm, but it offered springy feedback. I reached 71 words per minute on the 10fastfingers.com typing test, which is a bit below the 78 wpm I reached on the flatter MacBook keyboard.
Dell's roomy Precision touchpad lived up to its name, offering smooth and precise scrolling. I had no problems executing various gestures, such as swiping with three fingers to switch apps and tapping with three fingers to launch Cortana.
Performance
We reviewed two models of the Dell XPs 13. One came equipped with a 7th-generation Core i5-7200U (Kaby Lake) processor, 8GB of RAM, a 256GB hard drive and 1080p display. The other included a Core i7-7500U CPU, 8GB of RAM, 256GB SSD and a 3200 x 1800 touchscreen. Both sets of components provided swift performance in everyday use and our lab tests, even if the difference between this generation and the last model isn't that substantial.