CNET
Dell XPS 13 Plus Review: Redesign Stands Out, But Its Battery Life Is a Disappointment
The new design of the Dell XPS 13 Plus stands up visually, but it also makes for an unconventional experience. 0:00 Intro 0:18 Invisible Touchpad 1:35 Keyboard & Backlit Touch Strip 3:28 Size/Thickness 3:46 Configurations, Price, Displays (including OLED & Touchscreen) 4:50 Processor (i7), Thermals/Fans 5:31 Webcam (720p) compared to MacBook Air M2, Look Away…
Rob Parker
August 23, 2022 at 4:34 pm
Hi. In the title… its, not it’s
·
August 23, 2022 at 4:35 pm
Why are dell still persisting with Intel on a super thin and light like this 🤦♂️ at least have an AMD option
A Y
August 23, 2022 at 10:28 pm
Because the probably received subsidies from Intel to stick with their chips.
Cameron Bosch
August 23, 2022 at 10:38 pm
@A Y Considering Dell is Intel’s biggest customer, I wouldn’t be surprised.
Rahul Chawla
August 23, 2022 at 4:39 pm
“its” battery!
MajorBreakfast
August 23, 2022 at 4:40 pm
3:08 Yep, that ESC key is annoying. I never got used to the lack of haptic feedback on the Apple touchbar. It felt really great getting the physical ESC key back on the MacBook. Not sure why Dell is now doing a repeat of the situation in Windows-land. Haptic feedback for whether one has hit the right key is just one of those things that is essential why typing blind.
·
August 23, 2022 at 5:57 pm
Dave2d says the esc key isn’t a big issue on this laptop because of the positioning. He said he got used to it
Cameron Bosch
August 23, 2022 at 9:32 pm
@· Dave2D hasn’t been himself since the new studio. That review was trash.
Mahesh Thapa
August 23, 2022 at 10:13 pm
@Cameron Bosch dave said dell ESC key is easier to hit consistently than MacBook ESC key. Doesn’t mean he likes it. Also, why do you think he is getting trash? Any particular reason why?
Cameron Bosch
August 23, 2022 at 10:37 pm
@Mahesh Thapa His reviews have gotten more clickbaity and less full than before 2020 or so. His 2021 Legion 5 Pro review was straight up mocked for being so bad; he talked about design for a long portion of the review, even though it is one of the most subjective parts of the review and it still looks cleaner than most Alienware, MSI, and many older gaming laptops with their gamer aesthetic. And I have no issues with the trackpad being off center on the Legions, because on a gaming laptop, of course you’re going to be using a mouse while gaming, so it would be a no brainer to disable it. And he glossed over the price, performance, and screen, three of its best features of it.
And the Pixel 6 review he did was also really bad. There have been a few “better” reviews he’s done, but Jarrod’s Tech, Andrew Marc David, MobileTechReview, Matthew Moniz, and Just Josh have become more of my watched reviewers.
As for the XPS 13 Plus, the QC issues of the laptop are so bad, Dell was forced to recall the Best Buy units. You heard that right, the laptops were so poor in the QC department, Best Buy didn’t want them.
C Alvz
August 23, 2022 at 4:53 pm
Looks way better than MacBooks but nowhere near as efficient sadly
C Alvz
August 23, 2022 at 4:54 pm
Makes the latest MacBooks look outdated but it’s not quite as efficient.
jpdemer5
August 23, 2022 at 5:09 pm
LOL. The M2 runs Windows faster than the Dell does.
andyH_England
August 23, 2022 at 5:38 pm
Looks like form over function. Quite a few issues, and as this is a first take, possibly QC issues. Other reviewers like Just Josh had it choking in performance and had to reinstall Windows, which was a bit of a saga. For me, in an ultrabook, number one is battery life, and sadly this fails at the first hurdle, so what it looks like or how it performs (Max Tech showed it is a long way behind the M2), is moot. An easy pass for those looking for a go to portable device.
Sean Andersen
August 23, 2022 at 6:40 pm
@jpdemer5 And quietly w/o fan noise or need for a power outlet.
Cameron Bosch
August 23, 2022 at 9:37 pm
@andyH_England I agree with you. Even Apple learned not to mess with the basics (the hard way, but they at least have macOS; Dell has Windows, which many other OEMs also use) while Dell seems tp be going down a half a$$ed path of following Apple but not to the correct degree or for the right reasons. I mean, even the MacBook Pro 14 has better a port selection than the XPS 15 since 2020, and do I need to bring up how bad the XPS 9315 is…
MrJG
August 23, 2022 at 5:34 pm
Dell laptops’ battery life seems to be a disappointment consistently thoughout their range. I have a Dell and I like it. It’s a solid build, but I can bearly get through a 2 hour seminar or meeting with the battery. Really frustrating.
Sean Andersen
August 23, 2022 at 6:38 pm
Why aren’t they making a decent ARM based unit? You switch from always looking for a power outlet to completely forgetting to even plug it in to charge during a week.
M T
August 23, 2022 at 5:39 pm
The only drawback is Windows
Sternkrieger
August 23, 2022 at 5:41 pm
Never thought that Dell would one up Apple by being the first to remove the headphone jack on their laptops, lol!
And seriously, this thing just seems like a failed copycat at Apple’s 2016 MacBook Pro with Touchbar, and it can’t even get the battery life right! Also, no visual indication of where the trackpad ends is a sever oversight that would annoy consumers.
Cameron Bosch
August 23, 2022 at 9:38 pm
Heck, Apple learned nit to mess with the basics and almost lost their creative professionals in the process. Dell doesn’t have that luxury or the luxury of having their own OS; combined with their QC issues, I think they’re going to fail at this hard.
1488 Dental
August 23, 2022 at 5:42 pm
Yeah it’s so thin it has no ports and barely any battery life. Dell trying to keep cheaping out but while acting like they are Apple
Mitch
August 23, 2022 at 5:57 pm
If the Dell xps 13 plus had better battery life and thermals, then I would have bought one as well as recommended it to numerous people that I’ve instead been steering towards Apple silicon products or AMD based machines. If Intel cannot put out a competitive product, Dell needs to offer other options. Hopefully ARM based windows laptops see some improvements in the near future. Otherwise, the xps 13 plus is the most modern looking laptop I’ve seen and I would love to have that form factor with a more energy efficient processor!
Dabaydestrian
August 23, 2022 at 6:08 pm
Trash. Just buy a MacBook instead
山乇丂ᑎIᑕᕼOᒪ
August 23, 2022 at 6:12 pm
The function row is nothing like the Touch Bar on MacBook. I keep seeing people refer to it and treat it like it’s the same. The MacBook bar was an actual touch sensitive screen, the Dells are just capacitive zones with lit up icons.
Cameron Bosch
August 23, 2022 at 9:33 pm
Which is honestly worse because it provides no benefit to the user while making it annoying for people who use those keys.
Lancers262
August 23, 2022 at 6:20 pm
Has Intel’s latest generation processors reached its limits on battery life? I have seen much improvement in terms of ultra portable laptops having long battery life.
Mike Mo
August 23, 2022 at 6:22 pm
Multiple Double-15 second unskippable ads in the middle of the video will always make me unsubscribe. Y’all will learn.
Randy Quinn
August 23, 2022 at 6:35 pm
Just a PSA BEST BUY no longer sells this laptop, as over time it has worsening overheating and battery issues. Check their site, it is no longer there, nor is it in stores. The salesperson told me Dell issued a recall.
Cameron Bosch
August 23, 2022 at 9:34 pm
Hahaha, that sounds about right for a mess of a machine like this! 😂
Unknown94
August 23, 2022 at 6:42 pm
Nice laptop
NaNJa
August 23, 2022 at 9:08 pm
* Battery increase in exchange for thinness/weight: YES, always, please.
* 1080p front webcam: NAH, I do not care what quality camera my electrical tape is blocking, get rid of the front-facing camera all together! At least as an option, there is always external cameras as options, and very soon, our much higher quality phone cameras.
* Keyboard layout: I was worried, but typed on it in person and the key spacing was surprisingly well-placed, honestly very surprised.
* Capacitive Function Row: I was not a fan of the capacitive touch concept initially, then I realized one absolutely KEY takeaway for my use cases… It allows the user to LOCK the F1-F12 keys in place instead of the stupid laptop feature keys! This is an absolutely incredible feature for someone such as myself who prefers to have easy access to the F1-F12 keys for keyboard shortcuts while working in apps and doing light scripting/development. A God-send … But that said, making the Delete and Escape keys capacitive seems very short-sighted, in my opinion.
* Ports: 2 USB-C, 1 for powering the device, is not nearly enough. Carrying a portable hub however does not add much weight or take much space in my bag, so it is not the biggest issue.
All in all I found this laptop to be one of the most well engineered laptop currently on the market, so I went and ahead and purchased it for myself as I was in need of a working mobile workstation.
Brian Hartman
August 23, 2022 at 9:36 pm
That keyboard looks like a nightmare. Key separation and key feel is important to me. I’m not a big fan of that design.
And why would you have a *hidden* trackpad, for crying out loud‽ It wouldn’t make a lot of difference to me in the end, because I just end up disabling trackpads anyway, but it really seems wrongheaded to hide the trackpad.
In all, I think the keyboard would be the dealbreaker for me.
Cameron Bosch
August 23, 2022 at 10:40 pm
For me it would be that and the ports. Bluetooth on Windows sucks worse than on Samsung devices when they first dropped the headphone jack. It’s actually impressive how bad it is. And once you plug in the charger, you have to use a dock for the second port or else you’re out of ports.
Lucas
August 23, 2022 at 9:47 pm
I hate that kind of keyboard
Numbers&Letters
August 23, 2022 at 9:52 pm
the Dell Adamo is still the best looking Dell laptop
Cameron Bosch
August 23, 2022 at 10:40 pm
I agree. I almost bought one for school back when I bought the Studio XPS 13. Man, have times changed…
Mohammed Mesum Hussain
August 23, 2022 at 10:27 pm
They need to make one powered by an ARM chip and running Fedora or Pop OS.
iblackfeathers
August 23, 2022 at 10:29 pm
dell xps max = also with an invisible, un-demarcated keyboard with no visible letters, numbers or symbols. completely blank.
D A
August 23, 2022 at 10:35 pm
Thanks Dan! Great review! I tend to agree that it looks more like change for change sake instead of change for improvement sake. IMHO – The XPS 13 Plus is an engineering marvel that looks more like a “proof of concept” device than a next gen premium PC. I’m sure Dell will listen to customer feedback and make the correct decision for future models. Remember how fast they got rid of their nostril cam and corrected the more recent defective track pads? 🙂
Mark Holle
August 23, 2022 at 11:29 pm
Kudos to Dell for going for the fences but battery life means it fades out at the warning track. I love how I can just grab my MBA without any doubt that I might need a charger.
Shah Kiro
August 24, 2022 at 1:39 am
Good innovation, but too bad it really looks like unlikeable, and the functionality looks so boring… and I don’t know why people still like using 13″ instead of 15″/16″ for good wide view
Sinus Lebastian
August 24, 2022 at 3:42 am
the no headphone jack and the quality control issues kill this for me. I like the keyboard and the idea of thin and high performance, but this wasn’t great execution. I’d like them to refine this design more before I considered getting it. I have an m1 macbook air and I like it much better
Sam Sadhu
August 24, 2022 at 4:04 am
Now i miss the MacBook touchbar 😕🤔
Devnull
August 24, 2022 at 5:28 am
Is this a review of Dell XPS 13 or Macbook Air?
Mai Elizabeth
August 24, 2022 at 7:57 am
Not a fan of edge to edge keyboard. Make my life miserable when holding the laptop without accidently press any buttons.
Syavia's Shorts
August 24, 2022 at 8:23 am
I have a laptop, but it’s a battery life with a PC
Dr. Jé
August 24, 2022 at 9:07 am
This keyboard is Amazing to type on ! 90WpM 96% accurate, vegan.
Dr. Jé
August 24, 2022 at 9:30 am
I was watching this video and fell asleep omg😮💨🤣🤣😭😭
Dr. Jé
August 24, 2022 at 9:36 am
I’m back up. Cool video
Phillip Lemmon
August 24, 2022 at 9:47 am
So basically Dell cheaped out on this one…..
LMFAO 🤣🤣🤣
Daqban Tzyu
August 24, 2022 at 12:55 pm
It’s a rejuvenation of the ancient Latitude E4200…
Crescent Beach
August 24, 2022 at 1:43 pm
Fan noise quite noticeable and it gets hot. Mediocre battery life. 720 p camera. Lack of headphone jack. Limited ports. WTF Dell? For a premium price? The Macbook Air M2 doesn’t have ANY of these shortcomings. It also runs Windows faster. Let me say that again: it runs Windows 11, ARM edition, faster. I appreciate Dan’s pointing all the individual problems, but I think at this point in the integrated CPU/GPU landscape, EVERY windows laptop should be compared with apple products- including running ARM versions of windows. One last point: a necessarily specced out Dell (in order to attempt-and fail- to compete with mac performance) costs MORE.
Fish Ball
August 24, 2022 at 3:36 pm
It’s good to try something new as long as Dell doesn’t replace the mainstream XPS 13 with this design.
inbox me on👉👉telegram@officialSurvivalGear
August 24, 2022 at 7:02 pm
🍹🍹🍹
Thanks for watching and commenting you have been selected amongst our shortlisted winner’s dm an claim your prize
mattfm101
August 24, 2022 at 10:41 pm
I get crap battery life on the new xps 9520
Tim W
August 24, 2022 at 11:56 pm
I bought a Dell gaming laptop and it was the worst experience I ever had….I bought extra warranty which Dell couldn’t do to fix my laptop….Offered me a new one which was cancelled a month later? I waited 86 days for a refund after sending in the bad one? Which they sold on eBay? Didn’t belong to them? I will neer buy Dell again, bed product, worst customer service