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ZDNET’s key takeaways
- Dell is bringing again the XPS model title.
- The corporate has launched new Dell XPS 14 and XPS 16 units.
- The laptops function form-factor tuning and the newest Intel processors.
When Dell introduced it was retiring its standard laptop computer traces for a consolidated “Professional/Plus/Premium” naming conference final 12 months, shoppers had been greater than a bit confused. The XPS was a well-respected product line with a definite id — would not giving that up dilute the model (particularly for one thing that sounds prefer it got here out of Cupertino)?
Nicely, Dell could have discovered the reply. Only a 12 months later, the corporate is bringing again the XPS model title with the brand new Dell XPS 14 and XPS 16, plus a 13-inch mannequin that can be launched later this 12 months.
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Throughout a press convention in New York, Jeff Clarke, COO of Dell Applied sciences, acknowledged the corporate had made a mistake by discarding the XPS title and that the flagship lineup could be making a triumphant return in 2026.
“This difficult model we rolled out final 12 months did not do what we mentioned it will do,” Clarke defined. Whereas discussing Dell’s fiscal efficiency after the model restructuring, Clarke confirmed numbers weren’t the place they wished them to be, resulting in a choice to carry again the XPS in Q3 of 2025.
Clarke additionally hinted that Microsoft’s total shift to “AI PCs” hasn’t precisely been the hit with shoppers it was anticipated. This, mixed with the elimination of trusted model names, meant much less persons are shopping for.
Now at CES 2026, the XPS is again, refined, and, Dell confirmed, right here to remain. In truth, the 2026 fashions even have an “XPS” brand on the laptop computer cowl for the primary time, a nod to the consumer base that has been requesting it for years.
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Following in that vein, the bodily perform row is again, ditching the LED lights for bodily keys, a way more sensible, skilled alternative that prioritizes on a regular basis performance over gimmicks that look good in a showroom however complicate long-term repairability.
Dell has additionally integrated modular USB-C ports and an easier-to-remove keyboard design per overarching improvements in repairability throughout the business this 12 months, with extra modular, easy-to-fix components that reach product lifetimes as shoppers change into conscious of deliberate obsolescence improve cycles.
The brand new XPS: What’s beneath the hood
The 2026 XPS lineup is being refreshed with Intel’s newest Collection 3 “Panther Lake” processors: Core Extremely 5, 7, X7, or X9. As a substitute of discrete GPUs, the XPS units function Intel Arc graphics with 12 Xe cores, offering as much as 57% and 78% sooner AI efficiency within the 14 and 16 fashions, respectively. Each the 14 and 16 can be obtainable in 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB RAM configurations, with as much as 4TB of storage.
With all this {hardware}, the XPS line is not identified for being essentially the most featherweight of laptops on the block, however this 12 months’s 16-inch mannequin specifically is its thinnest bodily clamshell but: 14.6mm (0.57 inches) thick. This method carries over to the thinnest (however largest) followers in an XPS for what Dell mentioned are vastly improved thermals.
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Shows are equally what you’d anticipate from a flagship lineup. On the XPS 14, you’ve got acquired a 2K non-touch or 2.8K contact display screen tandem OLED. On the 16, the high-end 3.2K tandem OLED scales to 500 nits peak brightness, with each screens providing 120Hz refresh. The Gorilla Glass 3 and ultra-thin bezels retain the premium, power-forward look the XPS is thought for.
When it comes to battery, each fashions function a 70Whr battery that Dell says will present as much as 27 hours of streaming battery life on the 2K show.
The result’s a premium laptop computer that resembles the XPS machine customers love. Dell did not re-invent the wheel right here, and that is exactly the purpose. As a substitute, there are considerate adjustments that mirror the methods individuals truly use their units, with welcome enhancements to repairability, form-factor tuning, and a refresh with the newest Intel processors.
I am not going to say “I instructed ya so,” however there’s something to be mentioned about producers taking model recognition severely. Reputations usually are not constructed in a single day, and advertising executives ought to know higher than anybody you could’t shift years of shopper attitudes with one thought.
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The brand new XPS laptops can be obtainable beginning January 6 within the US and Canada, with the 13-inch mannequin obtainable later in 2026. As anticipated, there are a number of configurations for each fashions. Dell has listed the beginning worth for the XPS 14 at $1,649, whereas the XPS 16 will begin at $1,849.
