Verdict
The Dell XPS 13 ( 2024 ) is an fantabulous Windows ultrabooks with a sleek , sylphlike frame , beefy performance and a solid display . Its port selection is a number stingy , and its battery liveliness is n’t as substantial as other Arm - base ultrabooks , though .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
The new Dell XPS 13 ( 2024 ) is the former Windows ultrabook to tag along with the AI style , packing in all the merriment of a Copilot+ personal computer and the Snapdragon X elect SoC into a small form element .
Much like theMicrosoft Surface Laptop 7and theSamsung Galaxy Book 4 Edgebefore it , this new XPS 13 ( 2024 ) tamp down in Qualcomm ’s novel Snapdragon X Elite SoC inside , although into a small laptop for an excellent blend of power and portability .
With this in mind , the specific variant of the XPS 13 ( 2024 ) I have here – the XPS 13 9345 infrastructure model with 16 GB of DDR5 RAM , a 512 GB SSD and a 13.4 - inch 1920×1200 FHD+ 120Hz display – will lead you £ 1099/$1299.99 , which is in and around the price rag we ’ve get along to expect from these Arm - based Windows ultrabooks .
Whether this is one to go for though as one of thebest ultrabookswe’ve quiz is a different matter entirely – I ’ve been testing it for the last twosome of week to regain out .
Design and Keyboard
come with the redesign shell of more recent XPS laptops means the raw XPS 13 ( 2024 ) is but gorgeous . Even against both Microsoft and Samsung ’s choices , Dell ’s entry offers a slender and slight construction that ’s well-nigh unseamed . With a smooth CNC’d atomic number 13 finish too , it ’s also not short of a agiotage feel , while a 1.19 kg free weight make it supremely loose , and in this Platinum colourway , it await sublime .
Alongside the newAsus Zenbook S 16 ( 2024 ) , this XPS 13 ( 2024 ) is easily one of the considerably - looking laptops I ’ve had in my hand . It hardly contract up any space on a desk or in a bag , especially being just 14.8 millimeter duncish .
That slender frame may look gorgeous , but in the hunt club for those extremist - modern looks , it has lead to an unfortunate forfeiture .
Whereas the likes of the Surface Laptop 7 and Zenbook S 16 ( 2024 ) prove that New Windows ultrabooks have for the most part learn their moral when it comes to connectivity , the XPS 13 ( 2024 ) ’s pair of USB 4 - capable Type C port wine are deplorable . They ’re profligate port , sure enough , but you only get two USB - Cs . In 2024 , that feels hilariously go steady , and more consanguineous to a 2016 MacBook .
The keyboard here is an interesting one which goes against the texture of laptops offer a chiclet - vogue design . Instead , the XPS 13 ( 2024 ) provide minimal gaps between paint for a unseamed design .
This pick take some getting used to , but after a few mo , I was up to speed . It ’s one of the best keyboard I ’ve used on a laptop of late with a inadequate , but extremely positive travel that ’s a joy to apply . It is also backlit , although that ashen backlighting is n’t the most even underneath the key . Much like other XPS laptop computer in recent days , this new XPS 13 ( 2024 ) has opted for a disjoined capacitive function wrangle that ’s permanently lit .
As for the trackpad , there ’s no delimitate boundary for it below the keyboard tray , which can be a second jarring at first as it seems like the integral area could be the trackpad . However , its push are reactive , and its Gorilla Glass area is silky suave , unlike being spooky on some other laptops I ’ve tested .
Display and Sound
The XPS 13 ( 2024 ) , in its various configuration , is uncommitted with everything from a 13.4 - inch FHD+ 120Hz IPS screen like I ’ve baffle in the base of operations model here right up to a 3 K OLED variant with the same screen size .
With this in idea , the display here palpate a little off the mark against the high-pitched declaration jury from both Microsoft and Samsung in their respective choices .
There ’s nothing wrong with the gore on this base model at all . It ’s a burnished , responsive dialog box that makes productivity task a breeze , and looks fantastic .
assume out my tintometer also backed this up with a elevation luminance of 463.5 nits which means this is sufficient to be used both indoors and out , and to harness the office of Dolby Vision HDR support . It is a small way behind the 527.4 nits of the Surface Laptop 7 , though .
So too is the colour truth , as the XPS 13 ( 2024 ) mustered near - perfectsRGBcoverage with 99 % , although bothAdobe RGB(75 % ) andDCI - P3(77 % ) numbers are below the requisite 80 % level where we ’d say it ’s possible to apply a laptop computer exhibit for more colour raw workloads .
A shameful level of 0.17 means they ’re quite deep for a non - OLED screen door , while a 7000 K white gunpoint is near images having a slight blue tinge . The 1680:1 contrast proportion is better than the Surface Laptop 7 ’s though , leave to better dynamic range .
The speakers are a low full stop for this young XPS 13 ( 2024 ) against the other ultrabooks , though , and specially against modern MacBooks . They go as you ’d expect tinny laptop computer speakers too with a tinny top end and a generally thin strait . You ’re better off dumbfound with a headset if you’re able to .
Performance
As with both the Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 and Samsung Galaxy Book Edge 4 , the XPS 13 ( 2024 ) opts to move away from the Intel / AMD magnate stations we ’ve seen in laptop and have become used to for years in favour of the fresh 12 core Qualcomm Snapdragon X elect SoC both for AI - based feature and efficiency .
With this in mind , its C.P.U. benchmark scads in the likes of Geekbench 6 and Cinebench R23 are in and around where we ’d expect them to be with its effect being warm , and sitting between the Microsoft and Samsung choices . Multi - core performance with the Snapdragon X Elite is peculiarly impressive for a first generation , while single heart and soul performance lags a bit behind .
The XPS 13 ( 2024 ) felt reactive for Clarence Day - to - daylight workloads while also stay on jolly quiet under burden . There was still some buff noise during those benchmark examination , and it also got reasonably warm .
The issue with the Snapdragon X Elite here , as it is in the other ultrabooks we ’ve examine with the bit deep down , is its graphical horsepower . A sub-2000 account in the 3D Mark Time Spy mental test is behind this laptop computer ’s self-aggrandizing blood brother with a discrete RTX 4050 inside , as well as older choices with an RTX 2050 in spite of appearance , such as theAcer Nitro V15 .
16 GB of DDR5 RAM furnish decorous dynamic headroom for intensive task , while the 512 GB SSD suffices in terms of offering solid room for installing a range of apps . It ’s also reasonably brisk too with measured read and write speeds of 5027.42MB / s and 4375.45MB / s severally .
Software
The XPS 13 ( 2024 ) runs full - fat Windows 11 , marking a divergence from Arm - based Windows laptop computer of quondam which shipped with the locked down - S variant . It comes with some software pre - installed , such as McAfee and Dell - specific apps including MyDell where you may toggle basic options for the showing and battery power direction .
In employing the Snapdragon X Elite , the XPS 13 ( 2024 ) benefits ( or not , depending on your perspective ) from being a Copilot+ PC , meaning there ’s a range of AI feature broil into Windows across dissimilar apps . This array from the addition of the co-pilot key on the bottom course to more advanced generative AI features in apps such as Photos and Paint .
The add-on of the Copilot key mark the first ‘ new ’ key on a keyboard for over thirty years , and it act as a viewing button for Microsoft ’s Copilot AI help which you’re able to require for info , drop a line some text , or all style of other thing . While this may not be the primary standoff of the Copilot+ PC , it ’s the cornerstone for its existence .
Generative AI functionality is present in the Photos app , where you could add filter to photos you take or add an intriguing desktop , while in Paint , you could prompt it to create artwork found on your prompts in a range of mode from pixel art to a watercolor painting . Photos also has an image creator which generates an image with the common AI quirkiness . It may not be perfect , but it ’s there if you want it .
The most utile chemical element of the whole Copilot+ microcomputer thing though is the Windows Studio effects that are now present with the laptop computer ’s webcam .
These can do everything from auto frame to ensure you maintain eye contact even if you are n’t looking at the screen . That ’s in particular eerie at first , but works in a standardized way to Nvidia ’s AI tools that I ’ve experienced before in webcams include theElgato Facecam MK.2 .
Microsoft’sRecallfeature is still missing , however . This would have taken screenshots every few seconds of use so you could look back and remember things you ’ve looked at , even if you did n’t manually bookmark them in a internet browser or take a manual screenshot using the Snipping Tool . It will be available , although only for Windows Insiders at the here and now due to security concerns .
Of of course , being subdivision - base , the XPS 13 ( 2024 ) has some minor compatibility egress against x86 - based ultrabooks as apps have had to be translate to Arm through Microsoft ’s Prism translation layer . For the most part , I had little issues with compatibility in running a range of mountains of benchmark software , as well as Photoshop and similar apps . The PCMark bench mark app did n’t incline fully on Arm - based Windows in my examination , though , and there have been paper that gage such as Dirt 5 and some VPN apps also decline to load from elsewhere , too .
Battery Life
In possibility , one of the major benefits of Arm - base laptops such as the XPS 13 ( 2024 ) is that they grant longer battery life because Arm expect less might to go .
With both Microsoft and Samsung ’s laptops , this led to some class - lead endurance figures , although with the XPS 13 ( 2024 ) , they were n’t quite as unattackable .
To be clear , the 12 hours and 25 minutes it garnered in a television loop topology test at 150 nit light is still excellent and mean it ’ll comfortably last for a exercise day with juice to spare . It is behind the Surface Laptop 7 by 10 time of day , which puts into perspective how expert Microsoft ’s candidate is in terms of stamp battery life .
The XPS 13 ( 2024 ) also recharges reasonably quickly too with its 60W power brick taking 32 minutes to get the 55Whr cell from zero to 50 % charge , while a full boot shoot 78 bit .
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Should you buy it?
Where the XPS 13 ( 2024 ) excels is with its machined aluminum frame that ’s both wondrously sturdy and at 1.19 kg , immensely lightweight .
The dual USB - degree Celsius port connectivity of the XPS 13 ( 2024 ) feel especially restrictive and is n’t on par with the competition .
Final Thoughts
Against other XPS laptops in the past , the unexampled XPS 13 ( 2024 ) is a return to human body for Dell in volunteer a posh , modern ultrabook with beefy public presentation , a reactive presentation and decent battery life . Its keyboard also impress , as does its Gorilla Glass trackpad .
However , it ’s in the context of the other sleeve - based Windows ultrabooks , such as theMicrosoft Surface Laptop 7and theSamsung Galaxy Book 4 Edge , where the XPS 13 ( 2024 ) falls short with a poor port selection , light bombardment life , and a show that while dependable , lacks a minuscule bit of brightness and overall contingent .
Make no bones about it , this is an first-class Windows ultrabook , but faces such unwavering competitor with the above competitor and theAsus Zenbook S 16 ( 2024)that have in mind it is n’t the best - in - class option it once was . For more options though , check out our list of thebest laptopswe’ve try out .
Trusted Score
How we test
Every laptop we retrospect goes through a series of uniform hinderance designed to gauge key factors , include figure quality , performance , screen character and electric battery life .
These admit conventional man-made bench mark and scripted tests , plus a series of real - universe verification , such as how well it run popular apps .
FAQs
The Dell XPS 13 ( 2024 ) weighs just 1.19 kilogram .
Test Data
Full Specs
