Studio XPS 13 materializes on Dell website

Earlier this week we showed you photos of the slick Dell Studio XPS 13, and now it's popped up on the company's website -- sort of. It's currently showing among its laptop lineup, but trying to get to the individual product page gives us an error screen. Starting price is $1,406, sandwiched just between the XPS M1330 and M1730. We think it's safe to say we'll be seeing the official launch soon.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

[Alex @ Dec 20th 2008 2:32PM]

Sweet! Like a baby!

[Rory @ Dec 20th 2008 4:02PM]

Maybe its just me but this thing looks fat compared to my 1330, perhaps it my inner fanboy rearing his ugly head, but i prefer the xps design by a longshot.

[Boards of Canada @ Dec 20th 2008 6:38PM]

Hey John, the new macbook is still 350$ more than the beautiful M1330 but pack less RAM and memory (but have better gpu, but not a 350$ gpu!!)... The M1330 is a better deal and just as nice looking.

If you pump the M1330 to the price of the cheapest macbook, you get 2.4ghz, 4gb of RAM, 500gb of memory and a 8400GS card and 2 years of warranty.

[Boards of Canada @ Dec 20th 2008 6:39PM]

its for the post below.

[1234321 @ Dec 21st 2008 12:40AM]

actually I do some gaming, so that's why I mentioned the 16, right now I'm just talking about the 13 vs the macbook because its all the info we have at the moment, my real decision is about the 16 vs the macbook pro

[1234321 @ Dec 21st 2008 1:07AM]

by the way if anyone looked at the link, it's gone

[JohnTitor @ Dec 20th 2008 2:38PM]

geez, almost a whole pound more than the m1330, makes me wounder how heavy the 16 will come out to

[Totalfixation @ Dec 20th 2008 2:43PM]

After noticing the extra weight, i don't know if i want to switch out my current xps m1330

[JohnTitor @ Dec 20th 2008 2:48PM]

did some more snooping, the m1530 is on the chopping block soon, but the m1330 is staying longer (probably because of the low weight)
right now its looking a little bad, when the m1330 released over a year ago, it had alot over the macbook
but with the new macbook out and its lighter and priced lower than the Studio XPS 13, so it had better be packing some nice specs if it wants to compete

[Les @ Dec 20th 2008 2:55PM]

You guys, this is insane.
John appears to be someone who realizes Mac and Windows are just preferences, and is fine using either.
AND he's stating this on the internet, with out trying to show off his lack of bias to win an argument

bravo John, and all other like him.

[YpoCaramel @ Dec 20th 2008 4:48PM]

I agree. But notebooks of this gen are a bit more heavy than their prior gen counterparts (MBP 07/08 5.2ibs VS 5.6, XPS m1330 VS XPS 13 4.0ibs VS 4.8), given actually by better build quality on the higher-end laptops. The Macbooks get unibody construction that is way tougher than the old ones, and the Studios get their slick leather construction.

On Macbook Uni VS XPS13, in the m1x30 series the blu-ray and SSD upgrades have always been well priced, so hopefully they'll continue to be. Otherwise you have a really good point there.

[Chase @ Dec 20th 2008 2:49PM]

These are great and I love dell, and i would totally buy one if i had the cash, but seriously, take a step back and look at the big picture. $1,406 MINIMUM for a 13" notebook! thats just crazy. i could buy a comparable hp laptop for $850!

[Nomi @ Dec 20th 2008 2:53PM]

Its looks slick though....

[JohnTitor @ Dec 20th 2008 2:54PM]

umm no, I'm sure you're "comparable hp laptop" compares better to the Inspiron 13 (which starts at $650)
which we should note is only 0.05lbs heavier

[Thats What He Said @ Dec 20th 2008 7:59PM]

i mean, no one on this site would ever use an aluminum 13 inch notebook that starts at more than $1400......

[JohnTitor @ Dec 20th 2008 8:33PM]

the XPS 13 is probably Magnesium Alloy like the m1330, not Aluminum

[matthew @ Dec 20th 2008 2:53PM]

i'd probably get the new macbook for that much... its a hard choice though. that's one good looking laptop. might have to put off the "my first mac" purchase till the new mini comes out and go for this

[Manuel @ Dec 20th 2008 2:53PM]

I dont think that people will notice the extra weigth that this new laptop have comparising with the new aluminum macbook that is 4.5lbs.

[Wiilliam @ Dec 20th 2008 3:01PM]

I have the current xps m1330 and loved it. except the keyboard that is.. Couldn't they just change the keyboard instead of removing the 1394 port (which, by the way, i should admit, i've never used!) and making it heavier?!!

The new Macbook looks suitably more tempting now. Like John Titor , I bought the xps m1330 over the previous gen macbook as it was about 150 dollars cheaper, and better spec. now that differential seems to have been reversed..

[Leo @ Dec 20th 2008 5:34PM]

"now that differential seems to have been reversed.."

Oh, really? You already got specs for XPS 13 so you can compare it to MB? Share the specs with us, us wanna know too!

[Thats What He Said @ Dec 20th 2008 8:01PM]

i dont see where in his comment he said "XPS 13"

[cesium @ Dec 20th 2008 3:08PM]

What makes it worth the extra 450? The leather?? Now if they threw in a 8600m or 9600m, then we're talkin

[matthew @ Dec 20th 2008 3:10PM]

yeah i'm looking for specs too... can't just be the leather.. its not even that much... just a small strip on the cover

[JohnTitor @ Dec 20th 2008 3:19PM]

they wouldn't put an old chip like the 8600m in, my guess would be the 9400m
the original leak said there would be hybrid graphics, so maybe a switchable intel X3100 as well
a 9600m would be interesting but the smallest notebook with one is the Zepto A14, which is quite a different form factor than this

[cesium @ Dec 20th 2008 4:08PM]

I swear that MSI had some 13" laptops with an 8600m in them

[JohnTitor @ Dec 20th 2008 6:17PM]

well I've never seen one, but the point is again those are older chips, and they won't use them on a new laptop
not to mention they are the very chips that caused all the over heating and instability concerns, certainly in a 13.3" they would be even more risky

[JohnTitor @ Dec 20th 2008 6:18PM]

I think there's an LG 13" with a 8600m GS, if that's what you meant

[Leo @ Dec 20th 2008 6:37PM]

nVidia 8xxx series is out of question. Most likely 9300 will be used.

[cesium @ Dec 20th 2008 7:43PM]

Yeah, my bad. LG, not MSI. I guess my point with the 8600m was that if there are 13" laptops with them, why not a 13" with the 9600m?

If they put in a 9300 that would be a downgrade from the current 8400, right?

[Thats What He Said @ Dec 20th 2008 8:03PM]

so i guess that 295 GTX is out of the question...

[rudefyet @ Dec 21st 2008 12:14AM]

The fact they subtracted 100 can be misleading, but a 9300M is faster then an 8400M, and it is the direct replacement for the 8400M in the 9-series line-up.

[Glib @ Dec 22nd 2008 3:12PM]

The LG P310 has a 9600M GT in a 13.3 form factor.

[ethana2 @ Dec 20th 2008 3:39PM]

Studio 15n, M1330n, M1530n..
Hopefully we'll see an XPS 13n soon.
I'm thinking I may give my Inspiron 1420n to my little sister and get another, more ridiculously awesome machine..

[JohnTitor @ Dec 20th 2008 4:00PM]

what's really the point, last I remember the price on them were the same as Windows counterparts, and since Ubuntu and other Linux distros are free, you can install it yourself and have Windows for when you need it

[Patriks7 @ Dec 20th 2008 4:06PM]

Actually there is a price difference.. I think it's $50 or $100.. And there is also the point that he won't have to spend time getting Windows off of the computer and then installing Linux..

[alex1jam @ Dec 20th 2008 4:30PM]

hello Ubuntu brother :)

[alex1jam @ Dec 20th 2008 4:28PM]

i will stick with my new m1330 with Ubuntu. mines looks like osX now :) but i wish i had a real Apple Mac and that new nintendo DSi.

[ethana2 @ Dec 20th 2008 5:02PM]

I take it you haven't discovered window-picker-applet, gconf-editor, and DarkRoom ;)

[ethana2 @ Dec 20th 2008 5:03PM]

Actually wait, if you're using the gnome global menu bar/panel applet hack, you probably would be familiar with gconf-editor..

[Abuzar Baloach @ Dec 20th 2008 6:26PM]

Ethana, you say things like that, and it makes me not want to switch to Ubuntu.

[Beastage @ Dec 20th 2008 4:48PM]

Now how about a story how Dell and HP are selling fantastic new all in ones with excellent specs and quad cores for good price?

It is news that everyone missed... didnt Apple planned to show quad core imacs at macworld?

[Patriks7 @ Dec 20th 2008 5:25PM]

No, Apple is trying to break the world record for lowest stock price..

[blah @ Dec 20th 2008 4:51PM]

isn't the photo next to the studio xps 13 the xps m1330?
lol

[JohnTitor @ Dec 20th 2008 5:53PM]

no its actually the m1530
it took its place on the front page, but the m1530 is still up for sale for now

[Uncontrol @ Dec 20th 2008 5:17PM]

i r soooo expensive

[rudefyet @ Dec 20th 2008 5:38PM]

Hopefully they go with the Radeon HD 3470 like the VAIO SR series, I can't see them favoring NVIDIA after the 8600M/8400M disaster, unless of course money is involved. So since the 9400M is integrated, and that would be a downgrade over the current dedicated graphics option, I'll guess 9300M/9500M or HD 3470.

That being said, either choice should make it more desirable over the M1330, it'd be nice to have a laptop that doesn't need the motherboard replaced every 5-6 months.

[cesium @ Dec 20th 2008 8:47PM]

Actually, the 9400m is quite a bit better than the 8400m in the 1330s

[rudefyet @ Dec 21st 2008 12:08AM]

Yes, the 9400M is faster then the 8400M by about 500 points in 3dmark06, but you're going from a chip with dedicated memory to one that's using shared system memory like the Intel GMA chips. Also take note that the 9400M is a chipset and GPU on 1 die, it would completely replace any Intel chipset, therefore you would benefit from things like DDR3 memory, which is more of an upgrade if you don't mind the GPU eating into you're system memory.

The 9300M itself performs as well as the 9400M since it's a discrete graphics solution, and would be a likely evolutionary step over the 8400M instead of using a whole new non-intel chipset. If they chose the 9400M, it would be the first non-Apple computer using the new chipset, and it's not like Dell to be on the leading edge. It'll more likely be a Centrino 2 based laptop like the Thinkpad SL300 or Sony VAIO SR with optional discrete graphics (GMA X4500HD standard) and DDR2.

I wouldn't mind them blowing us out of the water though with some secret new Intel platform or something, doubtful though..

[Alex @ Dec 20th 2008 9:05PM]

From the tiny pics, I wasn't able to see any cosmetic differences. I did notice the extra pound though. Not cool Dell!

[Soulsaber @ Dec 20th 2008 10:37PM]

That is a pic of the M1530! Only the name was changed for unknown reasons.