And no, I'm not being hyperbolic — I gasped the first time I opened up the XPS 15. Its huge display feels like you're staring at the towering monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey. (And yes, I know the XPS 17 is also getting the same design, and I'm sure it'll floor me all over again.) Just like the XPS 13, the display reaches all the way down to the keyboard. There's no more bottom border getting in the way. The XPS 15 features a screen-to-body ratio of 93.9 percent, which means that its bezels are so thin they're practically invisible. In fact, that's even a higher ratio than the XPS 13. I'm still dreaming of the day when bezels disappear completely, but the XPS 15 feels close enough for now.
The laptop's 15.6-inch screen is 5 percent larger than before and has a taller 16x10 aspect ratio. That gives the XPS 15 a bit more breathing room for juggling multiple windows and scrolling through large documents. Larger aspect ratios, like the 3x2 screens that Microsoft's Surface notebooks feature, are simply better for getting work done. These days, I have a hard time using 16x9 laptop screens for anything more than Netflix binges — they're just too cramped to be genuinely productive.
The XPS 15's screen comes in 1080p+ and 4K+ variants (the "plus" just means they've got a few more pixels to deal with that larger aspect ratio). Both displays support HDR and Dolby Vision, but the 4K+ model gets you better color accuracy with support for 100 percent of the Adobe RGB gamut and 94 percent of the DCI-P3 standard. That's also what our review unit came with, and it looks spectacular. Dell has been delivering some tremendous displays for years, but the inclusion of HDR and Dolby Vision support gives its screens a leg up over most laptops. Colors leap off the screen, bright elements shine even more, and darker scenes get added depth. The 4K+ display is perfect for streaming movies, but it's also well equipped for video editors who may need to craft content for 4K HDR TVs.
And even if you're just writing most of the time, you'll appreciate the XPS 15's improved keyboard. The key caps are nearly 10 percent larger than before, and they spread out more widely, which makes it feel like you're typing on a full-sized desktop keyboard. The trackpad is also 62 percent bigger, and it worked just as well handling precise photo edits as it did with multi-touch gestures. It's easy to feel spoiled with the plethora of great PC touchpads these days, but using this one is a reminder of how far we've come.
That sense of progress echoes throughout the XPS. It has the same sleek aluminum case as the XPS 13, as well as sturdy carbon fiber along the wrist rest and keyboard area. It's a far better machine for working on the go too, with an 18 millimeter thin case and a starting weight of four pounds. That's what you'll get with the non-touch screen and 56 WHr battery -- it bumps up to 4.5 pounds with a touchscreen and the larger battery. Sure that's a bit unfortunate, but it's necessary to have a decent running time with dedicated graphics. Our review unit had the larger battery, and we clocked 10 hours and 10 minutes of battery life during our benchmark.
Unfortunately, you'll lose out on port flexibility due to the XPS 15's thinner case. Now you'll get three USB-C ports, two of which support Thunderbolt 3, while the last is just a slower USB 3.1 connection. There's no more HDMI, Ethernet, or USB Type A (though Dell includes a USB C to A cable in the box). You'll have to go the USB-C hub route like the MacBook Pro and many other premium notebooks. While it would have been nice to get at least one more USB-C slot, or a flexible USB A port like we've seen on the HP Spectre x360, at least Dell kept the full-sized SD card reader.
: The ideal 15-inch laptop for creatives){kind=link}
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