XPS 13 for college

I am currently a junior in high school, and I am looking to buy a laptop for then. I won’t be purchasing one until the spring/summer of 2017, and I was thinking that I would get an XPS 13 at that time because I like the aesthetic that it has, and the battery life and features that it has are great from what I’ve heard.

What I want to know, if anyone actually knows this, is whether or not there will be a new iteration by then, and whether or not it will be any good. This seems highly speculative, so I understand that this may not be the right time to mention it, with a year and a half until I graduate, but I would like any feedback nonetheless, as well as any other recommendations that anyone has.

Thanks!

Kaby Lake should be released by then. Dell will most likely make a Kaby Lake revision with native USB 3.1.

Cannonlake is meant to release in the second half of 2017, so you'll just miss that revision.


Unless Zen's as power efficient as the Intel parts, and everyone starts making Zen laptops. There's a Zenbook pun here.

I've got one. 9343 model. It's amazing. I run linux on mine, so the battery life isnt quite as good, but I get a good 7-9 hours of light use from it. (word, blackboard, etc...)

My model came with the following:

  • I5-5200u (2.2GHz -> 2.7GHz)
  • 8GB ram (soldered onto motherboard, so there's no upgrading this)
  • 1080p display
  • 128GB m.2 SSD (upgraded this to a 500GB samsung SSD)
  • broadcom wireless (upgraded to the intel one, because linux support is better, nothing wrong with broadcom on windows)

The trackpad and keyboard are, in my opinion, very nice to use. Your finger doesn't stick to the trackpad like on some models, but still provides a bit of resistance. The keyboard has a nice feel to the keys, with a low activation force. The screen is quite something too. I just can't put into words how nice it is to have such a space-efficient screen. That was one of the determining factors for me when I purchased it.

The laptop is pretty powerful as well, you may not notice the power as much if you're running windows, but who knows what will happen in two years. I'm able to do pretty much anything I want short of running intensive games on it.

The laptop itself feels very solid, taking both size and weight into consideration. Obviously, it won't stop a bullet, but if you drop it off the table, it should be fine because there are no spinning parts aside from the fan.

The only downside I see is the cooling. Dell has done a decent job with it, but it still gets up into the 65C range before the fan really kicks on. Maybe I just prefer lower temps, but that's just me. That said, when I'm compiling something, it won't pass 85C and as far as I can tell (haven't bothered to benchmark it) it doesn't thermal throttle.

All in all, it's a solid laptop and I'd say it's probably one of the best options out there if you have the cash for it.

If you've got any questions about the laptop, let me know.

That said, I'm sure they'll have made some changes by the time you're ready to purchase.

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I'm guessing you have the higher res screen? QHD+ vs FHD?

RIght, forgot to mention that one. I only have 1080p. Saw no need for the extra resolution that would only reduce battery life.

Its completely pointless to think about a laptop this far in advance.

You would be better off watching paint dry than to ask for laptop speculation for 2017.

Agreed.

By the time you actually need that new laptop, many top performing choices will be either
replaced by a new series (and have somewhat lesser support from manufacturer) and/or
not the best performance for your money anymore.

You seem to be locked on to Dell, and I dont blame you. Overall, great products and outstanding customer service. But if AMD makes a comeback with Zen, I sincerely doubt Dell will include an AMD-based machine in their store (even if they are compelling), because you know... Intel lobby. Oh pardon me, 'marketing strategies'

I have no particular brand loyalties, but I haven't really heard anything exceptionally bad about the XPS 13 from anyone, and if Dell continues to update it in the future I would assume that they wouldn't magically ruin it. However, I also recognise that this conversation is highly speculative, and I thank you for pointing out the upcoming potential with Zen, because it hadn't crossed my mind at all.