The Dell XPS 13 and XPS 13 2-in-1 move up to 11th-gen Tiger Lake CPUs

The outsides remain unchanged, but the insides get a big upgrade.

Credit: Dell

The Dell XPS 13 and XPS 13 2-in-1 will get Intel’s hot new 11th-gen Tiger Lake CPU. Announced Monday, Dell said both models will go on sale September 30. The XPS 13 9310 will start at $999, and the XPS 13 9310 2-in-1 will start at $1,249.

The Dell XPS 13 9310 looks the same on the outside, and that’s a good thing. It features a taller 16:10 aspect ratio. Its 13.4-inch screen comes in three flavors: Ultra 4K+ with touch, 1920x1200 with touch or 1920x1200 without. All three are rated at 500 nits’ brightness and feature blue-reducing Eyesafe technology, Dolby Vision and 178-degree wide-angle viewing.

For ports, the XPS offers two Thunderbolt 4, microSD and analog combo audio jack. You also get an IR-based Windows Hello biometric camera, along with a fingerprint reader in the power button.

xps 13 black left side view v2 Dell

Dell’s beloved XPS 13 9310 gets a new 11th-gen Intel Tiger Lake CPU.

Dell will offer four different 11th-gen Tiger Lake CPUs: Core i3-1115G4, Core i5-1135G7, the Core i7-1165G7, and the Core i7-1185G7. The Core i5 and both Core i7 options are quad-core and have Iris Xe graphics. The Core i3-1115G45, gives you two cores and steps back to pedestrian Intel UHD integrated graphics.  

For RAM, Dell will offer configurations from 8GB to 32GB of LPDDR4X/4267. This is a nice step up from the XPS 13 9300’s LPDDR4X/3733 RAM. All configurations are dual-channel for increased memory bandwidth, which helps graphics performance.

Storage options rang from 256GB to 2TB of PCIe SSD. Interestingly, Dell opts to use PCIe Gen 3 SSDs rather than take advantage of Tiger Lake’s use of PCIe Gen 4 support. The SSD in the XPS 13 9310, at least, is a standard M.2 drive. 

xps 13 2 in 1 centenario notebook xps 13 9310 ff 4000x4000 v1 Dell

The XPS 13 2-in-1 9310 gets Intel’s 11th gen Tiger Lake CPU

The XPS 13 2-in-1 has long been a showcase laptop for Dell. With this Tiger Lake upgrade, Dell also keeps the outside mostly the same, and offers two of the same display options—perhaps obviously, skipping the non-touch display. 

Similarly, the 2-in-1 skips one of the CPU options offered by its clamshell cousin. You may choose from a dual-core Core i3-1115G4 with UHD graphics, a quad-core Core i5-1135G7 with Iris Xe, and the top option: a quad-core Core i7-1165G7 with Iris Xe graphics.

Cooling on the XPS 13 2-in-1 continues to an advanced copper vapor chamber design, which also helps Dell slim down the laptop.

xps 13 2 in 1 insides of thermals black Dell

The XPS 13 2-in-1 9310 features an advanced copper vapor chamber design rather than thick heat pies.

Like the XPS 13 9310, the XPS 13 2-in-1 931’s memory ranges from 8GB to 32GB LPDDR4X/4267 in dual-channel mode. Unlike the clamshell XPS 13 though, Dell’s 2-in-1 stick to a permanently soldered-in-place SSD (with capacities from 256GB to 1TB). That will annoy users who envision eventually replacing the SSD. Because Dell aims to make the XPS 13 2-in-1 as small as possible, however. the soldered SSD stays. 

The XPS 13s are just two of the small army of laptops we expect to debut soon with Intel’s new Tiger Lake CPUs. From higher clock speeds to better graphics and more, there is much to look forward to in the upcoming generation.

Related stories: 

xps 13 2 in 1 centenario notebook xps 13 9310 lf 4000x4000 v2 Dell

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Gordon Mah Ung

Gordon Mah Ung

PC World (US online)
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