Dell XPS 14: Slim, Stunning, and Surprisingly Powerful

Dell’s latest foray into the fiercely competitive 14-inch laptop market is one of my favourites. The XPS 14 arrives with a promise of premium design and robust performance. Having owned four over the last decade, I couldn’t be more excited to dive into this review and see if Dell’s newest offering keeps this love affair alive.

Design and Build Quality

The XPS 14 is a testament to Dell’s continued commitment to sleek aesthetics and durable build quality. Available in graphite or platinum finish and CNC aluminum construction, it exudes a premium feel and boasts an elegance unlike any that have come before it!

However, some users, like me with my chubby fingers, did find the lack of a front indentation a little tedious to open at times. But that being said, the lack of the front indentation does add to the elegance and style of the Dell XPS 14. And with something as small as this, I can forgive the style over function, just this once. To be completely honest, I quite often open my laptops from the side because I have issues opening the laptop from the front. Don’t ask me why; it must just be the chubby fingers again.

Once you have the XPS 14 open, that is where things get different. At first, I wasn’t sure if it was a good difference or a bad difference, as having an LED-lit capacitive function key row seemed a bit weird and took a little bit to get used to. Due to the smaller keyboard, thanks to the lack of the function row, I found my muscle memory while touch typing would often have me pressing the wrong key or forcing me to look down at the keyboard to hit the escape key, as there was no tactile feel to the function row keys. After a few days of using it, it wasn’t hard to get used to the function row, but I honestly prefer the more traditional function row keys.

And now to one of the biggest design changes of the Dell XPS 14: the invisible touchpad.

You heard that right. No longer are you getting that ugly square of a touchpad; it is now just seamless glass. This could easily look like another design element to keep the look of this laptop sleek and clean, but unlike the function key row, the touchpad was surprisingly good. Actually, it was downright awesome. I hate using touchpads on laptops and often have them turned off, as I have a habit of clicking it while typing or moving objects without realizing. But I found this incredibly responsive, and that is without the muscle memory of using a normal one.

Performance

Underneath its sleek and stylish exterior, the XPS 14 houses Intel’s Core Ultra 7 155H processor and Nvidia’s RTX 4050 graphics, a combination that promises solid performance whether you’re gaming, creating content, or need an office workhorse. In everyday use, the laptop handles everything you can throw at it with ease, offering snappy performance for productivity tasks. If you are a content creator on the go, you’ll find it’s more than capable of handling everything you throw at it, like photo editing and video rendering, though it won’t replace a good dedicated workstation.

However, if you are on the lookout for a gaming laptop, this isn’t the one for you. I was able to play World of Warcraft and Farlight 84 on the XPS 14, and it was great; no lag or tearing. Just a man enjoying lying under a duvet, getting some W’s, and missing all the drops in Mythic Dungeons while it’s 1 degree in Melbourne. I would never normally game much on my laptops and especially in bed. But it’s been so cold in Melbourne of late, and my little MMO wireless mouse and the Dell XPS 14 were a dream.

I did attempt to play Cyberpunk 2077 as I wanted to push the XPS 14 to its gaming limits, and that is exactly what it did. It wasn’t unplayable, but it loaded without too many issues, and the game looked absolutely breathtaking. Though I had to lower quite a few settings, it played really well, which surprised me. And though the XPS 14 may not be a gaming laptop, and I wouldn’t be playing games like Cyberpunk on this, but for the older games like the ones I normally play, this laptop is perfect!

Display and Multimedia

The XPS 14 is not a slouch in the display category—it offers either a stunningly impressive 3200×2000 OLED touchscreen or the more budget-friendly 1920×1200 500-nit panel. The OLED variant, by far, has vivid colors, deep black levels, and a great pixel density of 260 PPI, and both panels have an impressive 16:10 aspect ratio. This is great for productivity, giving you slightly more vertical space than a standard 16:9 display, which makes it perfect for video and picture editing and other content creation. Whether you are editing pictures, playing games, or watching your favourite Netflix series, the display will definitely satisfy you.

I know that the OLED display version isn’t within everyone’s budget, but if you are going to get the XPS 14, this monitor is life-changing on a laptop. Truest colors when editing images or video or just watching YouTube videos; it’s as sharp and clear as could possibly be needed, and the 120Hz refresh rate allows for smooth visuals, especially while gaming.

Connectivity and Ports

Connectivity-wise, the XPS 14 offers a decent array of ports. On the left side, you’ll find two Thunderbolt 4 Type-C ports, which provide versatile connectivity options for external displays and peripherals. On the right, additional ports include a UHS-II MicroSD card slot and a 3.5mm audio combo jack. Dell also includes a Type-C dongle to make up for the lack of USB Type-A and HDMI monitor ports, although using it with the included 100W charger really limits available ports.

Battery Life and Cooling

One of the XPS 14’s strengths is its battery life. With a 6-cell 70Wh battery fitted, it managed to squeeze out over 9 hours of runtime in my video playback test, which, for this compact size and performance, is a mighty fine performance. A better performance than some of those actors in Rebel Moon (Didn’t hate it, just didn’t like sections).

This laptop packs a dual-fan cooling system and shared heat pipes for both the CPU and GPU, ensuring efficient and even cooling. Users can control thermal performance through a variety of different performance modes within its MyDell software, all the way from quiet to high-performance settings.

Conclusion

The Dell XPS 14 stands out due to its elegant design, sturdy build quality, and remarkable battery life. It caters to users who value aesthetics, portability, and everyday performance. However, if you need top-tier gaming capabilities, other alternatives might offer better overall value. And though the invisible touchpad and LED-lit capacitive function key row may take a little getting used to, that time is well worth it when you lay your eyes on this sleek and stylish laptop.

If you’re seeking a stylish and capable laptop for everyday tasks or for content creating on the go, the XPS 14 is going to be finishing high up on that shortlist! I told myself I don’t need a new laptop, but after reviewing this unit; I’m telling myself the opposite!