Big is in –– at least it is over at Dell. On the heels of the XPS 13 and XPS 15 laptops, the company is launching the Dell XPS 17. Available some time in June at a starting price of $1,499, this marks the first time in nearly a decade that Dell has made its premium laptop at this size. Similar to its smaller brethren, the XPS 17 has a lot to offer under its massive chassis.
The XPS 17 is packing a lot of goodies under the hood and if the unit can stand up to our tests, expect to see it occupying a space on our Best 17-inch laptops page.
Dell XPS 17 design
Well maybe it’s not so massive. The name of the game nowadays, is to fit big displays into relatively small frames. The XPS 17 weighs 4.7 pounds (5.5 pounds with touch display) and measures 14.7 x 9.8 x 0.8 inches which puts it on a par with a lot of 15-inch laptops out there. In fact, Dell claims the XPS 17 is smaller than 48% of 15-inch notebooks on the market. However, the 16-inch MacBook Pro is still just a little lighter and smaller at 4.3 pounds, 14.1 x 9.7 x 0.6 inches.
The XPS 17 is cut from the same CNC aluminum as it’s smaller siblings. The metal lid and undercarriage are colored platinum silver. The former has a gleaming Dell insignia carved into the middle, like a shiny accent mark. The notebook’s interior is made of black carbon fiber weave.
Dell XPS 17 display
Similar to the XPS 15, the XPS 17 will also rock one of the highest-resolution displays available on the market. If you go for the 4K model, you’ll get a 3840 x 2400 touch panel with a 16:10 aspect ratio. And if it’s anything like the XPS 15, it’s truly a sight to behold. If you don’t need 4K, you can also get a XPS 17 with a 1920 x 1200 non-touch screen.
Dell XPS 17 specs
Dell has outfitted the XPS 17 with specs befitting of a laptop of its stature. Each configuration of the XPS 17 will be powered by one of Intel’s 10th Gen Comet Lake H-series processors starting with a Core i5-10300H all the way up to a Core i9-10885H CPU with up to 64GB of RAM. The base model storage configuration is a 256GB PCIe SSD with a maximum option of a 2TB PCIe SSD.
And while each configuration of the Dell XPS 17 will feature an integrated Intel UHD Graphics GPU, you can either get an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 Ti Max-Q GPU or a RTX 2060 GPU.
Bottom line
After years of being M.I.A., the Dell XPS 17 is making a comeback in a big way. Targeting power users such as creative professionals, data scientists and students, the XPS 17 is offering the same premium design notes that you’d get from the XPS 15 and XPS 13. However, to signify the step up, Dell has outfitted the laptop with more powerful specs including an Nvidia RTX 2060 GPU.
I’m eager to see how all those bells and whistles will add up during our testing, especially on battery life. Stay tuned to Laptop Mag for the upcoming review.
