Features, specs and Price
When considering lightweight, stylish, premium business class laptops these days, the first laptop series that comes to mind is the Dell XPS series including the Dell XPS 13 Plus .
Gaming laptops are often quite heavy due to their dedicated graphics and thick chassis. So those who are looking for a laptop that is lightweight, easy to carry and can be used outdoors prefer premium business class laptops.
Due to the great build quality, stylish look and above all high configuration, the demand for these laptops has increased a bit.
And in keeping with the demand, the laptop brands are bringing the latest and greatest business class laptops in the market.
In that continuation, Dell has brought XPS 13 series upgraded version XPS 13 Plus. Soon after the announcement of the laptop on January 5, 2022, this new laptop has received a huge response among Dell XPS lovers around the world.
Why? Let's see what new features have been added to this model and what will be its configuration?
Whats new in Dell XPS 13 Plus?
For those who don't know, the XPS 13 is the most popular of the several different models of laptops that fall under the Dell XPS series (eg: XPS 15, XPS 17). Due to this popularity, Dell releases upgraded versions of this laptop model every year. For example:
- Dell XPS 9300 13.3 Inch
- Dell 9310 XPS 2 In 1 Convertible
- Dell XPS 13 (9310)
- XPS 13 (9360, Late 2016 and Late 2017)
- XPS 13 2-in-1 (9365, Early 2017)
In continuation of this, Dell XPS 13 Plus came in 2022. How effective this new model will be in terms of performance will be clearly understood in the next part of the discussion. For now, let's see what is new in this laptop.
12th-generation 28W Intel Core processors
Since the release of Intel 12th Gen Alder Lake processor in October, 2022, there has been some excitement among laptop users when will the laptop with the new processor come. The wait ends on January 5, 2022.
At the world's biggest tech event CES 2022, mainstream laptop manufacturing companies are unveiling 2022 model laptops with Alder Lake processors one by one. There Dell revealed their upcoming performance killer laptop Dell XPS 13 Plus.
It is already known that the new laptop will have 28W variant of 12th Gen Intel processor and the first two variants of Core i5-1240P with 12-core and Core i7-1280P with 14-core will come to the market.
Note here that the previous XPS 13 model had a 15W processor. That is, this new model will be able to provide much more performance than the previous model.
New design, New Look
As Dell XPS 13 series laptops are usually of the 'simplistically gorgeous' type, the Dell XPS 13 Plus is no exception.
Apart from the specifications, the new model has seen several changes in its design and structure. For example:
Zero lattice keyboard
The keyboard of the Dell XPS 13 Plus is completely compact, with what Dell calls a 'Zero Lattice keyboard'. The gaps that are usually seen on the vertical and horizontal sides of laptop keyboards are completely absent on the XPS 13 Plus. Also, there are practically no gaps between the keys.
As a result, the length of the key cap increased slightly and testing results showed a key travel of 0.3mm. Basically, this key board concept has been taken to make the laptop as light as possible by reducing the extra space. This laptop will be a very smooth and comfortable option for those who do heavy typing work.
Graphite for dark and Platinum for White lover
Dell XPS 2022 will have 2 color variants, light and dark. The light variant is color coded Platinum and the dark variant is color coded Graphite.
Both colors have a premium feel so you can choose either color with your eyes closed.
Capacitive function row
Remember the 13.3” MacBook Touchbar? However, Apple did not include the touchbar in later 14” and 16” MacBook models. But for the first time in the Dell XPS lineup, the alternative touchbar of physical Fn keys is connected.
Wait, wait… Dell stopped short of calling this new feature a touchbar, instead you could call it a capacitive function row.
Although it is not as customizable as Apple's touchbar, it has other functions including volume up, down, brightness up-down, in addition to the function key.
This capacitive function of the XPS 13 Plus makes it stand out from other Windows laptops. Even those who had complaints about the MacBook Touchbar are expected to find it acceptable.
Invisible Glass Trackpad
Another significant update to the XPS 13 Plus is seen in the trackpad section. At first glance you might think that the device has no trackpad option.
This is because it is a Haptic Glass Trackpad which is sensitive to the user's touch. Haptic trackpads have been seen on MacBooks before, though.
However, the unique aspect of the Haptic Trackpad added to the XPS 13 Plus is that it is completely borderless and positioned perfectly parallel to the field of the beige panel. As a result, there is no way to tell with the naked eye whether it has a trackpad or not.
Although it may be a bit of a problem on first use, it should not take long to get used to.
ptop lovers.
Display
While the 2022 XPS 13 plus doesn't see any significant updates in the display section, it retains the previous 13.4-inch and 16:10 aspect ratio display.
Also, like the display of the 2021 model had 8 variants such as FHD+ (Touch/Non-Touch) and UHD+ OLED Touch, the display of the 2022 model will also have 4 options.
Although you have to pay some extra amount for the OLED touch display, the improved visual experience is totally worth it.
All in all, it has the same thin bezel InfinityEdge display as before, which can be compared to a borderless monitor.
Improved sound
2022 XPS 13 Plus has 2x Upward firing speakers under the keyboard and two Down Firing stereo speakers under the Base panel.
Where XPS 13 had 2 2.5W stereo speakers, 2022 XPS 13 Plus has added 4 stereo speakers with total 8W output.
Also bundled with Waves MaxxAudio Pro as audio integration software is Waves Nx 3D audio.
Ports
The last update I'll talk about is the output connectivity ports on the XPS 13 Plus.
Interestingly, the 2022 model does not have a headphone jack. According to Dell, the headphone jack has become largely redundant due to the widespread use of Bluetooth headphones, and since the headphone jacks are too long, they are incompatible with the current architecture.
This is why the headphone jack has been removed. Also, the existing Micro SD reader on the XPS 13 has also been removed. As a connection port, XPS 13 Plus will have 2 Thunderbolt 4 ports (USB Type-C) which can also be used for display port and power delivery. It also has a USB-C to USB-A adapter.
XPS 13 VS XPS 13 Plus Configurations
So far talking about the newly added features of 2022 Dell XPS 13 Plus. Now let's compare the configurations of the two laptops head to head,
| XPS 13 (2021) | XPS 13 Plus (2022) | |
| Processor | 11th gen Intel Tiger Lake Cure U, up to Core i7-1165G7 (4 cores, 8 threads @ 2.8-4.7 GHz) | 12th gen Intel Alder Lake-P U28, up to Core i7 (14 cores, 20 threads, Turbo to 4.8 GHz) at 28W sustained |
| RAM | up to 32GB LPDDR4x-4266 (soldered, dual-channel) | up to 32GB LPDDR5-5200 (soldered, dual-channel) |
| SSD | 1x M.2 80 mm PCIe 3.0 x4, 256 GB to 2 TB | 1x M.2 80 mm PCIe 4.0 x4 , 256 GB to 2 TB |
| Display | full HD+, full HD+ touch, 3.5K OLED or 4K LCD | full HD+, full HD+ touch, 3.5K OLED or 4K LCD |
| Graphics | Iris Xe Graphics | Iris Xe Graphics |
| Connectivity | Killer WiFi 6 AX1650 WLAN, 2×2, with Bluetooth 5.0 | Killer WiFi 6E AX1675 WLAN, 2×2, with Bluetooth 5.2 |
| Battery | 52 Wh, 45W power adapter (USB Type-C) | 55 Wh, 60W power adapter (USB Type-C) |
| Dimension | 11.6 x 7.8 x 0.6 inches | 11.6 x 7.8 x 0.6 inches |
| Weight | 2.9 pounds | 2.73 Pounds |
| Ports | 2x USB-C Thunderbolt 4, 1 MicroSD v4.0, headphone jack | 2x USB-C Thunderbolt 4 |