Dell has released the 2026 version of its XPS 13 laptop, positioning the device as a direct competitor to the MacBook Neo in the thin-and-light segment. The new model features an Intel Core 5 320 Wildcat Lake processor with six cores and is available in configurations with 8GB or 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM.
The base model with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage starts at $699.99. A version with 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage is priced at $799.99, while the 16GB RAM model with 512GB of storage costs $999.99. Dell currently offers a temporary $100 discount for students.
The laptop weighs 1kg and measures 12.7mm in thickness. It includes a 13.4-inch touchscreen display with a 120Hz refresh rate and anti-glare finish. Connectivity is limited to two USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 ports, and the device lacks a dedicated 3.5mm headphone jack.
Testing shows that while the 8GB configuration is functional for basic web tasks, it struggles with multitasking and demanding applications like Photoshop. The 16GB version provides more headroom for intensive workloads. Battery life ranges from seven to 10 hours depending on usage.
