Dell XPS 13 is better than the MacBook Neo
But can Dell maintain the starting price of S$1,229?
The Dell XPS 13 feels like an anomaly for a newly-launched Windows laptop. At 1kg and just 12.7mm thick, it’s said to be the thinnest and lightest XPS laptop ever. Which sounds incredible as XPS is well-known for its premium thin-and-light laptops. For a new model, which also happens to the most affordable XPS yet, to be the lightweight champ of the series? That’s unthinkable.
The rest of the Dell XPS 13 is equally impressive. Its 13-inch screen is relatively sharp with a 2.5K resolution, with a refresh rate that goes up to 120Hz. It’s powered by a new Intel processor, albeit a more cost efficient one with fewer cores than the Intel Panther Lake chips in this year’s crop of notebooks. But you still get Wi-Fi 7, and going by the Geekbench 6 numbers floating online, this new budget chip ain’t too shabby, especially for single-core performance.
Given its lightweight design, I wasn’t expecting too much when it comes to battery life, but Dell claims that the XPS 13 can stream Netflix for up to 17 hours on a single charge.
Here’s the most important detail: It starts at S$1,229, which would have created a stir even a year or two ago. But in today’s RAM-starved economy? That’s an amazing price. It’s why the XPS 13 has been hailed as the answer to the Apple MacBook Neo, which is arguably the best budget laptop now.
Now, when it comes to the specs and the hardware, it’s no contest. The XPS 13 wins on almost all counts. It’s thinner and lighter, with a similarly sturdy build. The display is just as sharp as the MacBook Neo, but with a higher 120Hz refresh rate. And it’s a touchscreen, too.
There’s a backlit keyboard on the XPS 13, which doesn’t sound like a big deal — until you’re using your smartphone as a fill light while taking notes in a dark lecture hall. You also get more storage (512GB) with the base Dell XPS 13, though tellingly, both laptops come with just 8GB RAM for their base model.
Both laptops skimp on the ports, with only two USB-C ports. But again, the XPS edges it with two 10Gbps USB-C ports compared with one on the MacBook Neo. Now, we could also debate on the merits of macOS and Windows, but I’m just going to stop here.
To be fair, the Apple MacBook Neo is still cheaper, even after Apple raised the starting price of the MacBook Neo from S$849 to S$999 recently. So I can’t help but wonder if Dell can maintain this affordable pricing for the XPS 13. The Dell product guy I spoke to seemed confident that there was sufficient stock, at least for Singapore, for the next two quarters.
So if you’re keen on the Dell XPS 13, you should pull the trigger sooner rather than later. Which is contrary to the usual advice about consumer electronics. But everything is topsy-turvy now, what with price hikes for five-year-old game consoles. Alternatively, you could consider an older 2025 laptop, which has a lower SRP, probably has more RAM or storage, and is more likely to be on sale.
This week, we tried Samsung’s latest wireless speaker, which looks and sounds great, had our hands on DJI’s new gimbal camera, and played a new HD-2D title from Square Enix.
Samsung’s latest Music Studio 7 is more versatile than you’d think. It can be part of a home theatre setup, a stereo pair for music listening, and also works in a multi-room audio group. And it looks good in all those settings, thanks to a minimalist design that also happens to be easy to clean. More importantly, the sound is balanced, and room-filling.
The DJI Osmo Pocket 4P is a significant upgrade over the Pocket 4, thanks to its dual-lens system. From shots taken in broad daylight to night, low-light ones, everything looks great with the Pocket 4P. But it’s a tad heavier than the Pocket 4, despite having the same battery capacity. A great choice for those planning to shoot a vlog for their next vacation.
The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales takes the HD-2D art style used by previous Square Enix titles and puts it into an action RPG in the vein of the classic Zelda games. It looks lovely, and the music is great, too. So is the combat, which is simple at first glance, but becomes interesting with the magicite system. However, the exploration falls flat due to limited enemy variety and the overworld being mostly the same despite the big time jumps in its time-travel story.