A step in the right direction.
If you recall from our first Dell XPS 18 review in the August 2013 issue, we were surprised by how much we liked the 18-inch AIO/tablet hybrid. As much as we enthused, however, there were a few issues that kept us from recommending it outright. Haswell was right around the corner, which would have offered better CPU, GPU, and battery performance over its then aging Ivy Bridge processor. We also didn’t like that it only had a paltry 32GB caching drive. With the XPS 18 Mark II, Dell is attempting to address those issues.
Aesthetically, it uses the exact same design as its predecessor, with a chassis measuring 11x18.2x0.6 inches. It has a one-inch bezel around its glossy 1080p display. The 10-point capacitive touchscreen uses an IPS panel and still looks as good as ever. While its 5lb weight doesn’t make it as portable as a traditional tablet, it is lighter than most gaming laptops we’ve reviewed. It also has two feet that kick out, so you can either use it standing on a desk or flipped to lay nearly flat. Our unit also came with a stand that raises it 3.5 inches off the table and gives you about 40 degrees of t ilt, so you could use it standing up.
Another nice thing about the stand is that it conveniently has space beneath it that allows you to stow away the included wireless keyboard and mouse. Both devices are Bluetooth and, unlike most other AIO peripherals, don’t take up USB ports. This is appreciated, especially considering the XPS 18 only offers two USB ports. The only other ports you’ll see include the headphone jack and SD card slot. One thing we criticized about the original XPS 18 was that it lacked ports, and unfortunately, that hasn’t changed. We’d have liked to at least see an HDMI-out so we could beam the feed up to an HDTV if need be.
Luckily, improvements have been made under the hood. Our configuration sported a 2GHz Core i7-4510U along with 8GB of DDR3. There’s still no discrete GPU this time around, but it’s excusable in this relatively portable form factor. Compared to its Ivy Bridge predecessor, it performed roughly 47 better in 3DMark 11. While that sounds fantastic, it’s really more of a reminder of how bad Ivy Bridge’s integrated graphics were. When we fired up Valve’s Left 4 Dead 2, a notoriously non-taxing game to run, we hit an average 13fps trying to max out the game. Ouch!
So, the Dell XPS 18 is still far from a gaming rig. Compared to our zero-point’s 630M, which is by no means a great mobile GPU by today’s standards, it still got its butt handed to it, losing by 30–50 percent. CPUside, it performed up to 20 percent better than its old XPS 18 Ivy Bridge counterpart, but compared to our ZP’s 3GHz Core i5-3330 Ivy Bridge CPU, it lost by 15–42 percent. It just goes to show that clock speed still matters and that a newer CPU microarchitecture doesn’t mean all that much if it’s stuffed into a thin form factor that can’t accommodate high TDPs. One key addition Haswell does bring to the table is improved battery life. Compared to its predecessor, its battery life increased by roughly 50 minutes, bringing the total to 255 minutes in our video run-down test, which is great.
Another improvement is the 256GB SSD, which allowed the AIO to boot up in 14 seconds, or roughly half the time the original XPS 18 and its HDD took to boot. We do wish it came with a bigger SSD, however, preferably one twice the size, but we suppose external drives are always an option.
The new Dell XPS 18 isn’t perfect and it makes some compromises as a result of its hybrid form factor, but it largely implements the changes we requested the first time around to deliver some modest improvements across the board. In the end, however, if you’re considering the XPS 18, it’s probably because you’re looking for an AIO that you can move from work to home to possibly play with the kids, and in that regard, the XPS 18 currently has no equal. JIMMY THANG
SPECIFICATIONS
CPU - 2GHz Intel Core i7-4510U
GPU - Intel HD Graphics 4400
RAM - 8GB DDR3
Storage - 256GB SSD
Optical - N/A
Display - 18.4-inch 1920x1080 IPS touch-screen (glossy)