Dell Unveils Refreshed XPS Laptops With Dedicated Copilot Key, Intel Core Ultra Processors

Viraj Gawde — Thu, 04 Jan 2024 12:29:06 +0000

Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is set to commence next week. Ahead of the tech show, some brands have already announced new products. American PC manufacturer Dell has also announced new XPS laptops and UltraSharp monitors. The XPS lineup usually comprises 13, 15, and 17-inch variants. However, this time, the brand has refreshed the XPS series with new screen sizes, a unified design, and the latest hardware.

Dell XPS laptops announced

Introducing the new XPS 16, XPS 14 and XPS 13.

The new Dell XPS laptops come in 13 (9340), 14 (9440), and 16-inch (9640) screen sizes. All three variants come in OLED touch and non-touch options. The 13.4 and 14.5-inch models are offered in FHD+, QHD+, and 3.2K display resolution whereas the 16.3-inch XPS can be opted in either FHD+ or 4K variant.

The new Dell XPS laptops sport a premium design with an aluminum chassis and Gorillas Glass 3 for the display. The power button doubles up as a fingerprint scanner. All three models have a glass touchpad that spans across the entire area below the keyboard. The machines feature a backlit lattice keyboard with gap-less keys. There is also a new touch function row that can switch between the media and function keys. The laptops have a 1080p webcam and are equipped with quad speakers with support for Dolby Atmos.

The Dell XPS laptops are the first to come with a Copilot Key

Under the hood, the Dell XPS laptops are equipped with up to Intel Core Ultra 9 processor paired with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 GPU. The base model has integrated Intel Arc graphics and no dedicated GPU. All three models can be configured up to 64GB LPDDR5x RAM and 4TB SSD storage. The XPS 13 and 14 are backed by a 55 and 69.5WHr battery units respectively with support for a 60W adapter. The larger XPS 16 draws its power from a 99.5WHr cell with support for a 130W adapter.

The new Dell XPS laptops start at $1,299 for the 13-inch variant whereas the 14 and 16-inch models are priced at $1,699 and $1,899 respectively. The lineup is offered in Platinum and Graphite color options. The exact availability of the laptops has not been revealed yet although Dell says soon.

Dell XPS 13 Plus, the first OEM PC certified for Ubuntu 22.04

Divyansh Mehta — Thu, 21 Jul 2022 07:22:56 +0000

The Dell XPS 13 Plus is the first OEM PC certified for Ubuntu 22.04 Long-Term Support, according to an announcement from Dell and Canonical. This comes ten years after Project Sputnik introduced a groundbreaking mix of Linux preloaded on a commercial notebook (LTS). This makes it a simple process to have a PC that simply functions without having to worry about whether or not each component is prepared to work with Linux.

The laptop already had Linux-equipped Developer Edition units that started at $1,289.00, but they still come pre-installed with the 20.04 LTS operating system. The end of normal support for this version is set for 2027, and the end of life is set for 2032, so long-term support releases do exactly what they say on the tin. As each component of certified devices is verified in a lab to ensure compatibility, your device will have the correct drivers loaded to ensure that all of its functions operate as intended.

That certainly applies to laptops that come pre-installed with Linux on Developer Edition models, but it also holds true if you’re upgrading an older computer that was pre-installed with Windows 11. Barton George, a marketing executive at Dell, was one of the persons in charge of Project Sputnik. He said that the Developer Edition label was added on purpose, to prevent users from inadvertently purchasing a Linux laptop to save a few dollars and experiencing an unexpected experience, in an interview with Forbes in 2019. It seems unlikely that the authorized list will remain this small indefinitely given that Dell already offers Ubuntu on a variety of other devices.

There were many improvements included in the Ubuntu 22.04 LTS package, which was launched on April 21 this year. These include improved Bluetooth audio device support, new touchpad gestures, and improved battery management.

There are several ways, according to Dell, to configure your XPS 13 Plus and its “capacitive touch function row” with a hardware-optimized version of 22.04. A new XPS 13 Plus laptop may be ordered and is expected to ship starting in August. If not, you can run a fresh install and be ready to go if you’re in a rush (and you should be). The final option is to postpone the upgrade process until Ubuntu 22.04.1 is released on August 4 so you may do as little work as possible. This will turn on the upgrade path for all LTS users.

Dell XPS Archives - Gizmochina

Dell Unveils Refreshed XPS Laptops With Dedicated Copilot Key, Intel Core Ultra Processors

Dell XPS laptops announced

Dell XPS 13 Plus, the first OEM PC certified for Ubuntu 22.04