*** XPS 13 Owner's Lounge ***

A place for all of the XPS 13 owners, PM me if you want something linked on this page.

 

I ordered one again (Developer Edition that is with Ubuntu). The last time I ordered it, it came with some weird keyboard layout so I refunded it before even opening it. Hoping to get a proper English US Keyboard this time.

 

Did you get the XPS @Spartan@HIDevolution ?

 

It will be delivered in 4 days.

 

I'm interested in seeing how it is, I want the same spec 2 in 1 version.

 

@custom90gt

Very elegant







Is anyone interested in the Ubuntu factory image? I took a backup before setting up anything

 

Cool. very interested in how that works. I can't use it personally for my main OS since I have to many windows programs I use for work. But that looks awesome. Now, take off those FUGLY stickers!

 

They're off! gonna start setting it up now. My first time with Linux

 

The white colorway is low-key sexy.

 

The XPS white is AWESOME. My workstation is the XPS 8940 special edition in white. It's awesome looking. With the mods it's a beast!

 

DELL XPS 13 9310 Factory Image (Ubuntu 20.04)

 

My wife loves her 9310 2-in-1 and it runs great for her. I probably should have got her the white version after seeing the pics, but I did put a d-brand skin on it.

 

care to share a pic?

 

White looks great. I wonder if some of the whites will yellow over time.

For reference, I am still using a XPS 9550 from 2016, with similar design elements, but in black. Still looks new after 6 rough years. I expected the soft carbon fibre deck to get sticky but nothing (I clean with water and a microfibre cloth). Really impressed with the physical durability of the laptop.

I broke a hinge and the power jack but I won't blame Dell there. The keyboard may be on its last legs. . .

 

@custom90gt pics please. I'm wondering about the long term color retention on the white. My last white computer discolored on some keyboard keys. Oh, what are the specs of your wife's 2 in 1? I think I want the white 2 in 1 to match my workstation.

 

That only happens when plastics containing benzene (IIRC) experience prolonged exposure to UV. That could happen if the keys are made this way. While you'll likely have long disposed of the computer before such time, it would be possible to restore the keyboard by popping off the keys and putting them in hot water with some hydrogen peroxide. Since the chassis and deck are made of metal and carbon fiber, there should be no discoloration concerns.

 

The yellowing of plastics is "hotly debated" on the internet. As there are so many plastics and coatings, it is difficult to know what the cause is for a given part.

I worked at a sporting goods store and some plastics yellowed with little or no UV exposure (they were in the store and/or in factory boxes). An engineer and some manufacturers speculated yellowing might be some combination of time, exposure to air, exposure to chemicals, exposure to light, exposure to extreme conditions.

For sure, some plastics "prematurely" brittled after a few years. Not sure that was correlated to yellowing. Maybe in some cases but not all.

I suspect the "hydrogen peroxide" whitening process could weaken some plastics. As there are so many plastics and coatings, there can not be a universal conclusion.

We see some computer keyboards and cases yellowing over the longer-term, so that is a risk with the white Dell keys and case. Frankly, I can't tell if the clear rubbery coating on my black XPS 15 has yellowed.

The yellowing thing drives me bonkers. But, laptops usually are upgraded after say 4 years so the risk is mitigated, IMHO.

 

@Spartan@HIDevolution and @kojack

Sorry for the long delay, work has been busy as of late.

His and hers:

 

Awesome pair right there. I just bought a new inspiron 5406. Hope it works good for me

 

How's the new xps working? BTW, PM'ed you a question, have a quick look. Thanks!

 

Haven't had time to use it for more than 30 mins.

I disabled PMs. I get 200 emails a day I have no time. Sorry.

 

Ok, mosey over to my 5406 thread and have a look at my ram options, what are your thoughts on it? 12gb of faster ram or 16 gb of ram of slower, but all running in dual channel?

 

faster RAM

 

Ok, I will leave it as is, and sell the other ram. Thanks. I am putting 64gb into this soon anyways.

 

any idea when the next xps 13 model would come out? I see that alder lake is just around the corner

 

@Papusan I just saw this new driver on my XPS 13 9310 page, I don't need this I assume

 

Nope. Probably a replacement for "Intel Dynamic Platform & Thermal Framework Driver".

Edit. Yep, Dell's never ending love for your pc Nice way to reduce RMA/Tech costs.

 

Any experiences with the 9310 related to fan noise and battery runtime? On battery i'll run it just watching YT and surfing the web with different browsers (50+ tabs open). I'm in the decision between 9310 and a Macbook Air M1 16GB.

 

Guys.... I just had a scare. My 5.5 year old XPS 9350 suddenly wouldn't post, just boot to a black screen (no logo). Thankfully I was able to disconnect the battery and wait a bit, which fixed the problem.

Other than that, I have not had any issues, save for a battery replacement due to swelling (easy $50 fix).

 

Dell announces the XPS 13 Plus with an all-new design and cool new features

 

Awesome industrial design; thanks for the heads up @Spartan@HIDevolution .

 

You like the KB and the touchpad design choice? And you'll have to be used to dongles more than ever. Do Apple offer headphone jack for their Macbooks? From what I know, Apple have gone the opposite route and added more I/O ports vs previous gen models.

Dell has been on a port-culling spree with the XPS 13 lineup for quite some time now, and the new XPS 13 Plus 9320 loses even the microSD card slot and the 3.5 mm headphone jack that were present in the XPS 13 9310. You get just two full-speed Thunderbolt 4 ports, so be prepared for "dongle hell".

CES 2022 | Dell XPS 13 Plus 9320 gets upgraded to 28 W Intel Alder Lake-P, screams minimalism with capacitive function keys, seamless haptic Forcepad, and no headphone jack

 

I kind of like the looks of the new XPS but lack of microSD is a no-go. The only time I can accept a PC without such a slot is when I can put two SSDs in since my requirement is for a "dual drive" solution with one drive for the system and applications, another for media storage.

It is ironic when "premium" laptops offer different limitations (limited port selection, no SD/microSD card slot et al) and "lesser" models from the same OEM provide them.

 

That's pretty sexy...and seamless touchpad is great, XPS all has wide gaps on the touchpad edges, dust always builds up inside.

 

Hrmmmm. not a fan of the fake function row. And the look of the square flush keys makes me feel like it's gonna be impossible to clean. (but I guess junk will just get stuck under the keys and maybe you just won't see it as much?) I guess the touchpad is nice looking at least, but how do you right click? Man i sound old