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ZDNET’s key takeaways
- Dell is bringing again the XPS model identify.
- The corporate has launched new Dell XPS 14 and XPS 16 gadgets.
- The laptops characteristic form-factor tuning and the newest Intel processors.
When Dell introduced it was retiring its common laptop computer strains for a consolidated “Professional/Plus/Premium” naming conference final yr, shoppers had been greater than slightly confused. The XPS was a well-respected product line with a definite identification — would not giving that up dilute the model (particularly for one thing that sounds prefer it got here out of Cupertino)?
Properly, Dell might have discovered the reply. Only a yr later, the corporate is bringing again the XPS model identify with the brand new Dell XPS 14 and XPS 16, plus a 13-inch mannequin that can be launched later this yr.
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 identify and that the flagship lineup could be making a triumphant return in 2026.
“This sophisticated model we rolled out final yr did not do what we stated it will do,” Clarke defined. Whereas discussing Dell’s fiscal efficiency after the model restructuring, Clarke confirmed numbers weren’t the place they needed them to be, resulting in a call to deliver again the XPS in Q3 of 2025.
Clarke additionally hinted that Microsoft’s general 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 individuals are shopping for.
Now at CES 2026, the XPS is again, refined, and, Dell confirmed, right here to remain. In reality, the 2026 fashions even have an “XPS” emblem on the laptop computer cowl for the primary time, a nod to the consumer base that has been requesting it for years.
Dell has additionally integrated modular USB-C ports and an easier-to-remove keyboard design according to overarching improvements in repairability throughout the business this yr, with extra modular, easy-to-fix elements that stretch product lifetimes as shoppers turn into conscious of deliberate obsolescence improve cycles.
The brand new XPS: What’s below 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 an alternative of discrete GPUs, the XPS gadgets characteristic Intel Arc graphics with 12 Xe cores, offering as much as 57% and 78% quicker AI efficiency within the 14 and 16 fashions, respectively. Each the 14 and 16 can be accessible in 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB RAM configurations, with as much as 4TB of storage.
With all this {hardware}, the XPS line is not recognized for being probably the most featherweight of laptops on the block, however this yr’s 16-inch mannequin particularly 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 stated are vastly improved thermals.
By way of battery, each fashions characteristic 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 an alternative, there are considerate modifications that mirror the methods individuals truly use their gadgets, with welcome enhancements to repairability, form-factor tuning, and a refresh with the newest Intel processors.
I am not going to say “I informed ya so,” however there’s something to be stated about producers taking model recognition significantly. Reputations should not constructed in a single day, and advertising and marketing executives ought to know higher than anybody that you would be able to’t shift years of shopper attitudes with one concept.
The brand new XPS laptops can be accessible beginning January 6 within the US and Canada, with the 13-inch mannequin accessible 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.
