Dell made the mistake of discontinuing the XPS laptop line in favor of a series of branded models in addition, Premium again Pro. Agreed a lot too announced last month that makes the absence of XPS short. A year after killing them, Dell pulled an about-face and resurrected its most popular laptop brand.
Dell was so excited about the return of the XPS that it didn’t send me two XPS 14 models to review. And I’m happy to dig into this machine, but I didn’t want to wait until it was fully tested to share my thoughts. So, here are my first impressions as I got this pair of Dell XPS 14 laptops set up for testing.
XPS returns after a year away
The XPS line returns with the XPS 14 and XPS 16 (with the XPS 13 to follow later this year). Dell sent me XPS 14 laptops. Each is based on Intel Panther Lake processorsthe biggest differences are CPUs (each integrated GPU, mostly) and displays (IPS LCD on one, OLED touchscreen on the other).
Here is what I have:
Dell XPS 14 Model No. 1
- CPU: 8-core Intel Core Ultra 7-355
- RAM: 16GB LPDDR5-7467
- Graphics: Intel Arc with 4 Xe cores
- Storage: 512GB SSD
- Display: IPS LCD with 1,920×1,200-pixel resolution
- Price: $1,700 (starts Feb. 19)
Dell XPS 14 Model No. 2
- CPU: 16-core Intel Ultra X7-358H
- RAM: 32GB LPDDR5-9600
- Graphics: Intel Arc B390 with 12 Xe3 cores
- Storage: 1TB SSD
- Display: tandem touchscreen OLED with 2,880×1,800-pixel resolution
- Price: $2,200
I Dell XPS 14 starting at $1,600 with a Core Ultra 5-325 CPU, 16GB of RAM, 512GB SSD and IPS LCD. Dell told me that the Core Ultra 7-355 offering is expected to arrive next Thursday, Feb. 19.
A pair of Dell XPS 14 laptops: the IPS display is on the left, and the OLED touchscreen is on the right.
Getting reacquainted with XPS
The Premium models were direct replacements for the XPS, and were the worst of the new group. Overdesigned and fat, it had many of the pins of the old days of XPS laptops. The XPS 14 corrects two of the most glaring flaws of the Dell 14 Premium: the XPS 14 is too light, and the touch-sensitive icons on the Taskbar (which no one liked) are gone, replaced by physical keys.
I Dell 14 Premium it was a laptop tank. It tips the scales at 3.8 pounds, making it one of the heaviest — if not the heaviest — 14-inch laptops on the market. I mean we were incredibly heavy. Dell said it’s made for “creators on the go,” but I can only imagine it’s for creators who hit the gym regularly. It was hard work to walk around. I took it with me last year to test it out, and it felt like I was carrying lead bricks in my laptop bag. When I gave it to my brother-in-law to take, he asked, “What did they put in this?”
Look at that! A Task Line made of physical keys.
The XPS 14 slides in at close to 3 pounds, which is a very typical weight for a 14-inch laptop. Each model weighs less than 3.2 kilograms. (The low-end model with an IPS display weighs 3.18 pounds, and the OLED touchscreen model is slightly lighter at 3.15 pounds.) Dell has made the XPS 14 lighter without sacrificing build quality, either. It feels as solid as the Dell 14 Premium.
The XPS 14 is made from CNC machined aluminum that is durable. The laptop pulls off a neat trick of looking more rugged than the Premium 14 while being thinner and lighter. The XPS 14 loses the sharp design of the Premium 14 for a more stable, slab-like appearance, and looks like MacBook Pro now. It’s slightly thinner and a few ounces lighter than the 14-inch, 3.5-pound MacBook Pro.
The Dell XPS 14 is smaller and thinner than the 14-inch MacBook Pro.
Another way Dell reduced weight was by reducing the size of the display. The XPS 14 has a 14-inch screen, down from the 14.5-inch panel on the Dell 14 Premium. It’s also smaller than the 14.2-inch display on the MacBook Pro. Side by side, the XPS 14’s display looks smaller than the MacBook Pro’s, but part of the reason is that the XPS 14 has much smaller bezels than the MacBook Pro. For a more compact package and lighter carrying weight, I think I’d be willing to trade 0.2 inches of screen size. (I wouldn’t trade macOS for Windows, but that’s another story entirely.)
After the shocking, shoulder-destroying heft, my favorite part of the Dell 14 Premium was the touch-sensitive features that make up the Work line. If I want to raise or lower the volume or screen brightness, I want to do so with a simple tap or two on a physical key — not on an unresponsive icon to let me know if my intent was true. I also take comfort in knowing that I have the Esc key handy at all times. With XPS 14, there’s no more guessing with the Taskbar. Real Job Keys are back, and they never should have gone in the first place.
Thankfully, the excellent haptic touchpad returns with the XPS 14, but it’s no longer borderless. Dell has added vertical lines on both sides of the touchpad so you can see and feel where its active surface ends. The lines are very subtle, so if you were a fan of the minimalistic look of the Premium 14, you’ll enjoy the look of the XPS 14.
The haptic touchpad now has vertical lines on each side so you can see and feel its boundaries.
The wireless keyboard also returns, but the keys feel firmer than ever with a faster response. The port selection is the same, with a trio of Thunderbolt 4 ports and an audio jack, but the microSD card slot from the 14 Premium is missing here.
And there you have it, the XPS 14 is back and better than the Premium 14 before it. It’s small but very simple while fixing the bug of the touch sensitive line of Taskbar icons. So far, it’s made a good first impression. Check back soon for my full performance review and battery test. And with the OLED model with an Intel Core Ultra X7-358H chip and Arc B390 graphics, I’ll use our gaming benchmarks to see how it handles AAA titles.
