Soldato
Be interested to hear what you think real as a friend has the XPS 13 and it is a very capable machine but I'd quite like an XPS 15 myself at some point so your thoughts are most welcome!
Dell XPS 13 Range
- Thread starter real
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Soldato
I will report back when I get it. What i didn't realise is Dell assemble their laptops in China which i don't think they have always done. The one I ordered on Monday is expected to arrive in the country on March 3rd.
I may not ever receive it as they seem to have messed my delivery address up by not shipping it to the address i specified. Instead of sending to where I live it was going to get sent to my parents (this was the old address listed on Dells site). I emailed them about this yesterday but instead of correcting the address to my current one they have now missed off my street address so its currently getting delivered to a postcode. I wasn't aware putting someones address in a few text boxes was so difficult
I went for the FHD model with 16Gb ram and a 512 SSD, not because i needed the extra ram or storage space but because it comes with the larger battery. I did consider getting the one with a 4k screen but i decided i would rather be £300 better off and have better battery life. So unfortunately I can't give opinions on the 4k screen for this model which is meant to be very nice.
Don
Currently posting from my new XPS13.
It's gorgeous.
It's gorgeous.
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The XPS 15 doesn't have adaptive brightness, at least on the 4k version. I believe Dell have released a fix for the XPS 13 in any case.
Soldato
With the XPS 13, any chance the FHD screen is usable at 100% scaling?
Soldato
Thanks, tried in John Lewis I could read it OK but yes its a bit small.
Ordered the FHD version to replace my Surface Pro 4.
I picked up the XPS 15 last night and first impressions are good. Although the 13 and 15 are based on the same design the 15 has a very different feel not only due to the size but due to the noticeable additional weight.
The screen is gorgeous and the extra processing power, compared to the 13, immediately became apparent. This feels much more comparable to my desktop which was just as important to me as the additional screen space.
The screen is gorgeous and the extra processing power, compared to the 13, immediately became apparent. This feels much more comparable to my desktop which was just as important to me as the additional screen space.
Soldato
May as well put in my 2 cents on the XPS15 and hijack this thread . I'm not going to go over benchmarks which can be found in reviews online but there are a few things about the XPS15 i thought worth mentioning after owning it just over a week.
Firstly i'm getting an average of 6.5 hours battery life with the larger battery FHD version. I think this could improve as I haven't messed about with any settings since i got it. This is with the majority of the time spent web browsing with some word processing and up to a few hours watching videos at 40% brightness(which is bright).
The screen is good and many people have commented on it and the thin bezel but i have noticed the slow response times when watching and films/videos on the device. I haven't tried gaming yet but i'd imagine this would be more of the same. The FHD version actually has worse response times when compared to the 4k version according to notebookcheck. Whether or not you will notice this depends on how much moving content you view and how fast your previous monitor was. For static content it's a dream to use, i got so used to glossy screens that i worried i wouldn't like the look of the matte screen but everything looks good. I have a display with an excellent response time on my previous laptop so i never saw this as an issue until now so maybe i was spoiled all those years?
Finally build quality is excellent and many have commented on it and the screen. It feels solid and the keyboard and trackpad (trackpad especially) are excellent to use. I read reviews that said the key travel was too short but i've not had any issues with it.
. I'm not going to go over benchmarks which can be found in reviews online but there are a few things about the XPS15 i thought worth mentioning after owning it just over a week.Firstly i'm getting an average of 6.5 hours battery life with the larger battery FHD version. I think this could improve as I haven't messed about with any settings since i got it. This is with the majority of the time spent web browsing with some word processing and up to a few hours watching videos at 40% brightness(which is bright).
The screen is good and many people have commented on it and the thin bezel but i have noticed the slow response times when watching and films/videos on the device. I haven't tried gaming yet but i'd imagine this would be more of the same. The FHD version actually has worse response times when compared to the 4k version according to notebookcheck. Whether or not you will notice this depends on how much moving content you view and how fast your previous monitor was. For static content it's a dream to use, i got so used to glossy screens that i worried i wouldn't like the look of the matte screen but everything looks good. I have a display with an excellent response time on my previous laptop so i never saw this as an issue until now so maybe i was spoiled all those years?
Finally build quality is excellent and many have commented on it and the screen. It feels solid and the keyboard and trackpad (trackpad especially) are excellent to use. I read reviews that said the key travel was too short but i've not had any issues with it.
Caporegime
I had an XPS 13 with the i7 and the 1080P display as a work machine for a while.
Nicely built machines overall, however for the price, it still manages to look a bit cheap. The soft touch patterned plastic around the keyboard is remeniscent of a £200 Packard Bell from the purple shirts, although it is nicer to the touch. The screen bezel also feels a little like matte paint, and is very easy to mark accidentally.
The other major annoyance for me is that you can't open it with one hand, you have to pry it open because the bottom of the laptop isn't substantial enough in weight.
Performance wise it seemed great, and the screen was excellent in terms of quality, battery life was more than I'm used to also. However the lack of USB 2.0 or a disk drive, and the fact that it required Intel RST drivers to be built into a custom Windows install in order to change the OS, makes it an utter pain. It took three people, four weeks, several phone calls to Dell, some BIOS tweaks, a custom OS build, and two memory sticks inserted at the same time, just to install Windows 7 onto it. (compliance)
The keyboard wasn't nice to use either, the travel on the keys is too short, and they are too flat. It was like typing on an Apple keyboard, but worse. Some of the keys are odd sizes too (for example the return key) which means that you often strike the wrong key when typing at any real speed...
In the end I went back to my previous Dell Latitude E7250 with the i5 and 768P display, because it felt more substantial, you can open it with one hand, the screen resolution is more usable, and the keyboard is much nicer.
Not greatly impressed, and would be seriously hacked off with all these little niggles if I had spent so much money on one! They are pieces of art, not practical machines. Even Macbook Pro's manage to be beautiful AND practical.
Nicely built machines overall, however for the price, it still manages to look a bit cheap. The soft touch patterned plastic around the keyboard is remeniscent of a £200 Packard Bell from the purple shirts, although it is nicer to the touch. The screen bezel also feels a little like matte paint, and is very easy to mark accidentally.
The other major annoyance for me is that you can't open it with one hand, you have to pry it open because the bottom of the laptop isn't substantial enough in weight.
Performance wise it seemed great, and the screen was excellent in terms of quality, battery life was more than I'm used to also. However the lack of USB 2.0 or a disk drive, and the fact that it required Intel RST drivers to be built into a custom Windows install in order to change the OS, makes it an utter pain. It took three people, four weeks, several phone calls to Dell, some BIOS tweaks, a custom OS build, and two memory sticks inserted at the same time, just to install Windows 7 onto it. (compliance)
The keyboard wasn't nice to use either, the travel on the keys is too short, and they are too flat. It was like typing on an Apple keyboard, but worse. Some of the keys are odd sizes too (for example the return key) which means that you often strike the wrong key when typing at any real speed...
In the end I went back to my previous Dell Latitude E7250 with the i5 and 768P display, because it felt more substantial, you can open it with one hand, the screen resolution is more usable, and the keyboard is much nicer.
Not greatly impressed, and would be seriously hacked off with all these little niggles if I had spent so much money on one! They are pieces of art, not practical machines. Even Macbook Pro's manage to be beautiful AND practical.
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Soldato
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So you're moaning that an ultraportable is too light? Isn't it a problem that could only seriously impact an 'unidexter'?
I have a high-end XPS13 (now one model back I think); it's very pretty, well built, and fits my requirement. I would never want it as my only, or even my main, device.
Caporegime
It wasn't the biggest issue I had with it, but it could have been overcome with a slightly less stiff hinge as well, for example.
Your only options are to pry it open with both hands, or lift the screen up slightly, which lifts the front of the laptop up as well, and then insert your hand into the gap to hold the body down. Total PITA.
Your only options are to pry it open with both hands, or lift the screen up slightly, which lifts the front of the laptop up as well, and then insert your hand into the gap to hold the body down. Total PITA.
Soldato
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Could we have found the ultimate 'First World Problem'?
Caporegime
Several other people commented on it as well.
Its a nice machine if you want something small, relatively light, and showy-offy.
Its a nice machine if you want something small, relatively light, and showy-offy.
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Soldato
I was seriously considering a XPS 13 but have just learnt that the panel is only 93% sRGB. Bit disappointing considering it is supposed to be all about the display.
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Soldato
Delighted with my Full HD, i5 8GB version.
Much better then my Surface Pro 4, Windows 10 behaves! Double battery life!
Getting an Android tablet to fill my touch screen void.
Much better then my Surface Pro 4, Windows 10 behaves! Double battery life!
Getting an Android tablet to fill my touch screen void.
Soldato
Have you noticed any issues with adaptive brightness? Reading that it can't be switched off on the FHD model.
Soldato
I've got the same model as POB and haven't noticed anything untoward with the brightness. I wasn't even aware that this problem existed until you mentioned it here. A quick search reveals that Dell have released an update that allows you to disable it, so I guess it's no longer a problem. The update is available here. I'm not sure if applies to the FHD version though, as there are a number of comments on various forums that imply it applies only to the UHD version...
I took my XPS 13 with me on holiday, where it was my only computer for three weeks. While I would have liked a bigger screen, I was glad not to have to lug around a 3kg beast, so it was a worthwhile tradeoff. I even managed to do some light gaming in the form of Civilization V, admittedly with all the settings on low, but graphics aren't really important for Civ V so it was fine.
I took my XPS 13 with me on holiday, where it was my only computer for three weeks. While I would have liked a bigger screen, I was glad not to have to lug around a 3kg beast, so it was a worthwhile tradeoff. I even managed to do some light gaming in the form of Civilization V, admittedly with all the settings on low, but graphics aren't really important for Civ V so it was fine.
Soldato
The firmware patch only addresses the issue for the UHD model unfortunately. I have been reading quite closely about these two models over the last couple of days, as I need a small laptop for photography editing and Office work. Was going to wait for the new 13" MacBook Pro, but that's looking increasingly like it won't be available until the Summer.
This so called auto brightness adaptive feature would make editing photos a nightmare. Dell really need to release a fix for the FHD model.
This so called auto brightness adaptive feature would make editing photos a nightmare. Dell really need to release a fix for the FHD model.