Dell's XPS 13 is its first laptop with Dolby Vision
Its latest G gaming laptops are also much more performance oriented.
As it does nearly every CES, Dell has unveiled its latest, revamped XPS 13 laptops. Last year's models were already solid, but there are a few welcome changes. The webcam has been redesigned and is now on the top again, so you'll no longer look like Boris Karloff on Skype calls. Dell managed to shrink the bezels to 4mm and fit it into the size of an 11-inch laptop, despite the 13.3-inch display. And one of the screen options is a full HDR 4K Ultra HD version (3,840 x 2,160) that supports Dolby Vision -- the first for a Dell laptop -- which pumps out 400 nits of brightness.
Though it won't be mistaken for a gaming PC, the XPS 13 has an 8th-gen Intel Core i7-8565U with UHD Graphics 620, so it should handle movies and light gaming pretty well. On top of the Dolby Vision option, a "CinemaStream" feature boosts the bandwidth of videos and music, while the Waves Maxx CinemaSound will kick out better audio. It weighs just 2.7 pounds (the same as last year's model) and the 4K model can run for up to 12 hours on a charge, or 21 hours for the 1080p version.
One other cute feature is the variable torque hinge that makes the laptop easy to open, but stiffens as you lift more to keep it stable. It also comes with up to 16GB of RAM, two PCIe m.4 SSDs and a pair of Thunderbolt ports. You can get it in a new "Frost" color, or silver and rose gold, starting today for $900. Some versions, however, won't be available until near the end of January.
Along with the XPS 13, Dell unveiled an all-new G-series gaming lineup for both beginners and serious gamers. The 15- and 17-inch G7 models are both available with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Max-Q GPUs and up to an 8th-gen Intel Core i9-8950HK 6-core processors, so they'll easily power through any current game.
You can get the 17-inch version with a Full HD 144 Hz, while the 15-inch version has an optional 4K (3,840 x 2,160) 60 Hz OLED touch display. Both models come with up to 32GB of RAM. While they're not the lightest laptops out there at 5.77 and 7.2 pounds for the 15- and 17-inch models, respectively, they're still decently portable. You can get them with two PCIe M.2 storage slots, and with up to 90 Wh batteries, they should run for quite awhile, too.
If you don't need all that power and want to pay less, Dell is also offering the G5 15 and G5 15 SE (special edition in Alpine White). They include an 8th-generation Intel Core i7-8750 6-core CPU, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 Max-Q graphics and a Full HD 144 Hz screen. Other specs, including the RAM, battery and storage options are roughly the same as the G7 models.
The G7 15- and 17-inch models start at $1,099 and $1,380, respectively, but a model with an RTX 2080 Max-Q GPU and OLED screen will no doubt cost you way more. The G5 15 will start at $999, with an update price for the G5 15 SE version that Dell has yet to reveal. All models will arrive on January 19th.
Finally, we need to mention the 14-inch Latitude 7400 2-in-1. Dell said it's the first laptop to come with Intel's proximity sensor that can detect when you approach it. Together with the IR camera and windows Hello, you can instantly log in by just pulling up. For a 14-inch laptop, it's pretty tiny, weighing just 3 pounds, thanks to the very tiny bezels and machined aluminum body. Dell designed it to be power-efficient too, claiming a full day (24 hours) of battery life under preliminary testing.
Other specs include a 1080p touch display, Intel 8th-gen quad-core chip, 16GB max of RAM, and up to 1TB of PCIe/NVMe storage. Dell calls the the 7400 2-in-1 its "flagship" Latitude, and you'll pay accordingly: It'll start at $1,599 when it arrives in March 2019.
