Dell has unveiled what it claims is the world's smallest 13in laptop, with a revamped version of the Dell XPS 13. The company has overhauled the spec of the Ultrabook, redesigning the screen and boosting the internals of the laptop.
The XPS 13's display is now virtually edge to edge, with just a tiny 5.2mm bezel running around the perimeter of the display. The panel itself has been upgraded too, boosting the maximum resolution from a rather paltry 1,366 x 768 on the current model to a "Quad HD+" 3,200 x 1,800 touchscreen - although that's a premium option rather than the standard spec.
The laptop has the same aluminium/carbon fibre casing as the original, and will weigh between 1.2kg and 1.3kg, depending on whether you go for the touchscreen or not. Inside, it will run Fifth Generation Core i3 to i7 processors (depending on the spec you choose), up to 8GB of RAM and an SSD of up to 256GB.
The company claims to have improved the laptop's battery life, with a stated runtime of 15 hours. That should just about get you through a working day without a recharge, once that's translated into real-world use. Prices start from $799 in the US; we're still waiting for UK pricing and availability.
That means it's both cheaper and smaller than the 13in MacBook Air, although Apple appears to have a new 12in MacBook Air up its sleeve that promises to raise the bar for ultrathin laptops.
Dell has also revamped the XPS 13's bigger brother, the XPS 15. This now boasts a 4K touchscreen display (3,840 x 2,160) although the internals remain largely the same as last year's model - it doesn't even get a bump to the latest Fifth Generation Intel processors. Prices for the 4K model start at a hefty $2,349.
Gaming laptops
Gaming fans might be more tempted by the revamped Alienware range. Dell claims both the Alienware 15 and 17 laptops are more than 20% thinner than their predecessors, shipping with the latest quad-core Core i7 processors and NVIDIA GTX 980m graphics.
Both those laptops are compatible with the Alienware Graphics Amplifier - a chunky external unit capable of housing a full-length, double-wide, desktop graphics card, that can be used to boost the laptop's 3D performance and drive external displays.
Prices for the Alienware 15 start at $1,199, while the 17in model costs from $1,499.