Dell XPS 13 review: fast with class-leading 15 hour battery life on low-cost 1080p model
Brett Howse / AnandTech : Tweets: @dell , @mims and @jeffjarvis Tweets: @dell : “Dell has crafted a fine looking laptop...” @AnandTech says in review of our XPS 13: http://www.anandtech.com/... http://twitter.com/... Christopher Mims / @mims : the best laptop you can buy is no longer the Macbook Air cc @JoannaStern http://www.anandtech.com/... Jeff Jarvis / @jeffjarvis : .@MichaelDell: Can we get a Chromebook version of your brilliant new laptop? Please? http://www.anandtech.com/... @craignewmark
Context & Ripple Effects
This AnandTech review lands five weeks after CNET's take on the same machine, which found only decent seven-hour battery life at $799 and flagged a $500 upcharge for the high-res touchscreen. Brett Howse's testing flips the weak spot into the headline: the cheap 1080p configuration runs fifteen hours, class-leading for the category.
The reaction rounds out why it matters — Christopher Mims declares the best laptop is no longer the MacBook Air, while Jeff Jarvis petitions Michael Dell for a Chromebook version, reading the hardware as good enough to carry any OS.
First-order effects
- Budget-conscious buyers get the best endurance without paying the display premium CNET flagged — the $500 touchscreen upcharge becomes optional, not the price of a good laptop.
- Apple's MacBook Air loses its default-recommendation status, at least among reviewers like Mims, as the XPS 13's thin-bezel design plus battery life takes the crown.
Second-order effects
- Rivals must now match both the bezel-slimming design language and real-world battery numbers, since AnandTech shows the low-cost SKU — not just the flagship — sets the benchmark.
- Jeff Jarvis's public request for a Chrome OS variant pressures Dell to consider the same chassis across operating systems, widening the line beyond Windows.
Third-order effects
- The pattern holds across the corpus: The Verge names the late-2015 refresh the best Windows laptop, and the line is still topping Windows-laptop reviews in 2019 and 2020 — suggesting one strong chassis template, iterated annually, can anchor a franchise for years.
- If reviewers keep crowning Windows machines on battery and build rather than raw specs, the ultrabook market reorganizes around design-led flagships challenging Apple on its traditional turf.
The trend: Premium Windows laptops are closing the gap with the MacBook Air by competing on battery life and industrial design, turning annual refreshes of a single winning chassis into a durable franchise.