COMPUTING · REVIEW ROUNDUP
Dell XPS 13 (2026): what the reviews say
By S. Dahani and the RealDigitalTech editorial team
A premium aluminium ultraportable from $700, with a bright 120 Hz screen and long battery life, but reviewers say 8 GB of RAM is not enough.
© Dell
Quick Take
Key figures
Launch details
Dell presented the new XPS 13 in the summer and it went on sale on 10 August 2026. It uses an Intel Core 5 320 processor and a 13.4-inch 2,560 × 1,600 touchscreen at up to 120 Hz. It costs $700 with 8 GB of RAM and $900 with 16 GB ($800 with a student discount, according to Gizmodo).
What reviewers agree on
- Build quality: a full CNC aluminium frame that feels premium despite the price, only 2.2 pounds (about 1 kg).
- Display: a sharp 120 Hz screen, bright enough (500 nits) to use in direct sunlight according to Engadget.
- Battery life: 15 h 56 min in Engadget's PCMark 10 test; about 7 hours in balanced mode for Gizmodo, and a full workday in power-saving mode.
- Keyboard and audio: a "clacky, bouncy" keyboard and a "boisterously loud" quad-speaker system.
- Storage: 512 GB as standard, more than the MacBook Neo at the same price.
Where opinions differ
| Topic | Favourable view | Reserved view |
|---|---|---|
| Memory | Usable for light tasks on the base model. | Engadget: "8 GB of RAM just can't cut it", with memory use reaching 95 %; both reviewers recommend 16 GB. |
| Trackpad | Large and precise when it registers. | Engadget finds the mechanical trackpad dated; Gizmodo notes clicks fail near the bottom edge. |
| Graphics | Enough for office work and video. | Gizmodo measured a 3-minute GPU render against 40 seconds on the MacBook Neo. |
| Ports | Two USB-C ports with DisplayPort 2.1. | No headphone jack, and no Thunderbolt 4 on the base model. |
Scores: 7.5/10 from Engadget; Gizmodo gives it an Editor's Choice award.
Verdict
The XPS 13 (2026) proves that a well-built Windows ultraportable can cost less than $1,000. Choose the 16 GB model at $900: the 8 GB version feels slow in Windows 11. If you need graphics performance, the MacBook Neo remains ahead.
This article analyses reviews published by other outlets, in our own words. RealDigitalTech did not test the Dell XPS 13 (2026) itself.
Sources
How this article was made: our editorial team selected and read the reviews listed above, compared their results and wrote this synthesis, with AI tools assisting the research and drafting. Every figure was checked against the sources, and the article was approved by the publication director. Our AI Disclosure · Our methodology · Report an error: editorial@realdigitaltech.com