CES 2019: Dell refreshes XPS 13 and fixes webcam position

The Dell XPS 13 is getting updated this year at CES 2019, as Dell has taken the wraps off this new sexy machine with even thinner bezels, however what’s most important in this announcement is that it has fixed the XPS 13’s one major flaw – the webcam, which is now being shifted to the top of the screen like the rest and measures an impressive 2.25mm in size.

With the webcam shifted to the top and the expense of having an ultra slim bezel, the IR sensors that support Windows Hello login has been removed, you will still get an optional fingerprint reader should you want convenience over typing your password.

Powering the 2019 XPS 13 is Intel’s 8th Gen Whiskey Lake processor with Core i3, i5 and i7 processor options, customers can configure the laptop with a 4K resolution touch display.

The XPS 13 uses LPDDR3 2133MHz RAM and there’s no discrete graphics option, which can be a let down when it comes to paper specs as similar devices like the ASUS ZenBook 13 has a GeForce MX150, however you get to have two ThunderBolt 3 ports so that you can add on an eGPU if you really want that extra graphics power.

Dell claims that the XPS 13 will have up to 21 hours of power on a single charge, which is pretty impressive even if you were to consider 70%-80% of that claim, it also supports charging over USB-C so that you can use a USB-PD power bank to charge up the device.

Alongside with the announcement, Dell has also announced the Latitude 14 7400 2-in-1 business laptop, which sports an impressive 24-hour battery life and can be fast charged to 80% under an hour, it also has thin screen bezels which has shared some design cues from the XPS 13, thus weighing at a mere 1.35kg, it is also the first laptop to feature Intel’s Context Sensing technology, which unlocks immediately when it senses you are close to it.

The new XPS 13 is currently already available for preorders in the US from US$899.99 (RM3704) and will ship starting January 30th onwards, there’s three two-tone color options to choose from, including the signature carbon fiber and silver, white with rose gold, and a new all-white color.