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Dell unveiled a new XPS 13 Plus at CES in Las Vegas 2022, a PC whose design has been completely redesigned. We were able to take it in hand before its release, enough to have a small overview of the machine.
At CES in Las Vegas in January 2022, Dell showed off a new kind of XPS line laptop. This XPS 13 Plus breaks the codes of the XPS we are used to and all the aesthetics of the chassis have been redesigned. The result is resolutely modern, almost futuristic even, but frankly successful. The anodized aluminum, the ultra-thin borders of the screen and its 16:10 format also contribute to its “premium” aspect, dear to the XPS series.
New design for the XPS 13.
A hidden trackpad
At first glance, if you find something wrong, it’s normal. The PC does not have a trackpad! In reality, it is hidden under a glass plate embedded in the palm rest. If some were skeptical – in particular because of the absence of a real click – the haptic feedback proves to be perfectly effective, and we finally find the area covered by the “touchpad” very naturally.
The touchpad is truly invisible.
The keyboard with flat keys, which do not protrude a millimeter from the chassis, could also be scary in terms of efficiency and typing quality. In fact, the keys are very reactive and pleasant, but the space between the keys having been reduced to a minimum, we can expect regular typing errors by overflowing on the key next door. These have been enlarged compared to those of the previous XPS 13; this may compensate for the problem, but we will verify this during our test over several days of use.
The keys do not protrude from the chassis.
The function and multimedia keys above the keyboard are now tactile, nothing embarrassing a priori for these shortcuts that we only use from time to time. The up and down arrow keys are, for their part, really small, which could inconvenience some users of office suites or developers, for example.
The function and multimedia keys are now tactile.
A limited connection
On the component side, the PC had an Intel Core i7-1280 P here, but a Core i5 configuration will be available as well as 8 to 32 GB of DDR5 RAM and up to 2 TB of SSD. Unfortunately, there is a connection limited to 2 USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports and nothing more! Fortunately, a USB-C / mini-jack adapter will be present in the box. For the rest (USB-A, HDMI, etc.), you will probably have to get a hub on your own.
The connection is very limited…
In terms of screens, Dell very rarely disappoints, but we will of course have to wait for our full test to find out more about these different aspects, and in particular the performance delivered by the 12th generation Intel processors. We do not yet know the release date or the price of the Dell XPS 13 Plus, but the PC should not take long to arrive on the market.