Dell’s XPS 13 laptop computer has been a staple amongst Windows ultralights, sometimes providing respectable efficiency for the worth, excessive portability, and beauty.

Apparently, that wasn’t sufficient for Dell, so it launched the Dell XPS 13 Plus. Introduced this yr (alongside a extra conventional 2022 XPS 13), it is a revamped model of the XPS 13 that places efficiency over all the things else.

Wild design selections permit the system to assist a 28 W CPU. With the 2021 XPS 13 carrying a 15 W chip and the 2022 XPS 13 supporting as much as a 12 W one, this can be a notable achievement. But it is also a case of operate over kind. To put it merely, utilizing the XPS 13 Plus felt bizarre. From its tightly spaced keys and capacitive contact operate row to its minimal port choice, questionable construct high quality, and very excessive temperatures, this machine could be irritating to make use of for day by day duties.

As a performer, the XPS 13 Plus has its pluses. But as a go-to laptop computer, some design selections might push you towards different highly effective thin-and-light laptops.

Touch Bar-esque operate row

Dell hasn’t given up on soft-touch enter above its laptop computer keyboards. You can discover a comparable setup on the 13-inch MacBook Pro, although each different MacBook has gone again to actual keys. Dell’s tackle the capacitive contact row is extra restricted than Apple’s Touch Bar, although.

It’s not programmable, for one. It can show Esc, media keys (together with a helpful mic mute button that lights up), brightness controls, the Windows Project button, and a few navigational keys. Alternatively, urgent Fn makes the operate row show Esc and F1–F12, and you may lock that structure in place by holding down Fn + Esc.

Dell did not introduce a Touch Bar-like prime row simply to be totally different. Because the keys use capacitive contact, they’re 1.4 mm thick as an alternative of the three.2 mm of vertical house that might be required with conventional buttons. This resolution saves house and allowed Dell to maneuver the hinges to wider factors for improved system cooling, the corporate stated. But when pushing the laptop computer to max efficiency for sustained durations, the operate row received so heat that it was uncomfortable to the touch.

The operate row is not an space that sees frequent improvements, and I recognize that Dell redesigned it within the identify of efficiency quite than simply as a gimmick. But as somebody who prefers mechanical keyboards, it is laborious to like capacitive contact enter. During my weeks with the laptop computer, I sometimes mispressed keys within the prime row once I most likely would not have if it had normal buttons. Rarely, I by chance brushed the row evenly, registering an enter or two, once I was attempting to make use of the quantity row.

Since the operate row has set controls, there is not any must customise it. But it nonetheless appears like there’s room for extra features. For occasion, there are not any rewind or fast-forward media controls, and in contrast to many latest ultralights I’ve examined, there is not any button or mild on the keyboard to inform you that the webcam is off. There’s additionally no mild indicator for when the quantity is muted.

I discovered the operate row’s vibrant illumination distracting at occasions, nevertheless it’s not possible to show it off. An ambient sensor close to the webcam mechanically adjusts the row’s brightness based mostly on the lighting within the room.

That stated, there are far worse issues than a ho-hum operate row, particularly if the remainder of the keyboard is incredible. Unfortunately, it is not.