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Dell has been pushing the boundaries of what we can expect from thin and light notebook computers with its Dell XPS 13 line of laptops for much of the past decade. The company was one of the first to shrink display bezels to cram 13 inch displays into notebooks about the size of typical 11 inch models. The laptops use premium materials including carbon fiber or glass fiber. And every year new models kick things up a notch with new processors and sometimes new designs.
But this year Dell is taking a step forward and a step sideways.
Six months after launching the Dell XPS 13 9310 with an 11th-gen Intel Tiger Lake processor and 91.5 percent screen-to-body ratio thanks to a 13.4 inch display with a 16:10 aspect ratio surrounded by slim bezels on all sides, the company has begun selling a new Dell XPS 13 9305 model with a 13.3 inch, 16:9 display, a thicker bottom bezel, and an 80.7 percent screen-to-body ratio.
On the bright side, the new model has a lower starting price and a slightly lighter-weight body.
It looks like Dell may have repurposed an older design in order to offer a lower-cost version of its thin and light laptop while still offering 11th-gen Intel Core processor options. I wouldn’t be surprised if there are some folks who’d be happier with the older design anyway – while some folks will extoll the virtues of 16:10 displays, I sometimes find that squeezing extra vertical pixels onto a small laptop screen can have the side effect of making everything look a little smaller on the screen.
But if you’re still trying to figure out which Dell XPS 13 best fits your needs, I’ve put together a comparison based on currently available models. Note that the starting prices are based on the list prices though, Dell often runs sales that bring the prices a bit lower (there’s on going on right now, for example).
| Dell XPS 13 9305 | Dell XPS 13 9310 | |
| Display | 13.3 inch 1920 x 1080 pixels Non-touch (touchscreen not currently available) 80.7% screen-to-body ratio | 13.4 inch 1920 x 1200 or 3840 x 2400 pixels Touch or non-touch 91.5% screen-to-body ratio |
| CPU | Core i3-1115G4 Core i5-1135G7 Core i7-1165G7 | Core i3-1115G4 Core i5-1135G7 Core i7-1165G7 Core i7-1185G7 |
| GPU | Intel UHD (Core i3) Intel Iris Xe (Core i5 or higher) | Intel UHD (Core i3) Intel Iris Xe (Core i5 or higher) |
| Memory | 8GB or 16GB LPDDR4x 4267 MHz | 8GB to 32GB LPDDR4x 4267 MHz |
| Storage | 256GB or 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD | 256GB to 1TB PCIe NVMe |
| Ports | 2 x Thunderbolt 4 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C 1 x 3.5mm audio 1 x microSD card reader | 2 x Thunderbolt 4 1 x 3.5mm audio 1 x microSD card reader |
| Wireless | Killer WiFi 6 AX1650 Bluetooth 5.1 | Killer WiFi 6 AX1650 Bluetooth 5.1 |
| Battery | 52 WHr | 52 Whr |
| Keyboard | Backlit with fingerprint reader in power button | Backlit with fingerprint reader in power button |
| Color | Platinum silver with black carbon fiber palm rest | Platinum silver with black carbon fiber palm rest or Frost exterior with arctic white interior and glass fiber palm rest |
| Camera | 2.25mm 720p camera with array mics | 2.25mm 720p camera with array mics |
| Speakers | 2 x 2W | 2 x 2.5W |
| Dimensions | 11.9′ x 7.8″ x 0.62″ | 11.64″ x 7.82″ x 0.58″ |
| Weight | 2.6 pounds (non-touch) 2.7 pounds (touch) | 2.64 pounds (non-touch) 2.8 pounds (touchscreen) |
| Starting price | $850 | $1100 |
via NotebookCheck
I have the 9310 love it!!
I love the XPS 13, but in meeting with Dell for our quarterly chat about their new products, they will not be introducing AMD to their laptop line-up, at all. A real missed opportunity. I hate to continue to give Intel money for bad behavior, using cash for the C-Level staff, rather than R&D. Although, seems AMD has hit a wall as well, the 4000-5000 series seem almost exactly the same(higher clocks). Sounds exactly like an Intel “tick-tock” cycle. At least the screens have gotten better, though I don’t need a 4k screen in an 11″ machine.
still refreshing the 4k matrix is so tragic? when will the screen refresh be at least 90Hz or 120Hz?
It is 120 right lol