Skip to main content

Dell channels Mr T and colors its new XPS 13 gold

dell xps 13 fashion week dellgold
The Verge
When Dell launched its XPS 13 last year, it ticked a lot of boxes. It’s thin, lightweight, has a classy (almost) Apple-like design and as our very own Matt Smith said in our review, it has a simply stunning display. But perhaps you aren’t the kind of person that likes to settle for silver, a color synonymous with second place. Perhaps you want to feel like a winner instead. In that case, you might want Dell’s new Gold edition XPS 13.

Much like Apple’s own forays into altering the metallic color scheme of their high-end notebooks, Dell is now offering its popular model in a gold hue. This isn’t quite like that firm that will literally gold plate your electronics for about as much as the devices cost in the first place, but it still looks rather swanky.

Recommended Videos

This is perhaps an effort by Dell to expand beyond its traditional enterprise focus and give its devices more of a premium-consumer feel; something that may help it tap further into Apple’s fanbase.

Related: $400 will (kind of) get you a Gold Apple Watch

As The Verge points out, though, the inside of the lid is still black, so the gold isn’t so gaudy that it’s likely to scare away traditional Dell fans.

However, anyone wanting one of these will have to pay for it. The gold version is limited to the XPS 13 that packs all of the highest of high-end hardware. It comes with a Core i7 Skylake CPU, 8GB of RAM, 256GB of SSD storage space and a QHD (3,200 x 1,800p) display.

All of that fancy internal hardware means you will need to dish out $1,700 to have the privilege of sporting a gold Dell laptop. If you’re considering getting one, you have until February 2 to decide, as it won’t be available until then.

If you aren’t bothered by the color scheme, perhaps you’ll opt for a similar model for its performance. Dell also announced that a new XPS 13 option would be available on the same date, and will have an Iris graphics core as well as all of that i7 CPU power.

Jon Martindale
Jon Martindale is a freelance evergreen writer and occasional section coordinator, covering how to guides, best-of lists, and…
Why I’m excited about Dell’s new 120Hz UltraSharp monitors
dell ultrasharp monitors ces 2024 ultrasharprefreshrateces

Just ahead of CES 2024, Dell has preempted the show by announcing some impressive new UltraSharp monitors that continue an important trend in display technology.

For the longest time, we've been stuck with 60Hz productivity monitors. Sure, gaming displays were free to keep exploring the upper reaches of refresh rates (now even up to 500Hz), but for those doing content creation or office work, 60Hz has remained the standard for external monitors.

Read more
The Dell XPS 15 has one major advantage over the MacBook Pro
The screen of the 2021 MacBook Pro.

It's no secret that 15-inch laptops (and bigger) are the powerhouses of portable computing. They're used for gaming, content creation, video editing, and serious work.

Two of the best laptops are the Dell XPS 15 and the Apple MacBook Pro 16, each of which recently received updates to faster CPUs and GPUs, but otherwise remained mostly the same. Both are excellent laptops that offer great performance, outstanding build quality, and excellent input options -- but which one is right for you? Well, if it comes down to price, the XPS 15 the much more affordable option. That alone will make the decision easy for some people.
Specs

Read more
Why the Dell XPS 13 Plus still beats the latest competition in little laptops
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Nano Gen 3 front view showing display and keyboard.

Lenovo recently updated its smallest ThinkPad, the ThinkPad X1 Nano, to its third generation. It kept everything the same except for an upgrade to Intel 13th-gen CPUs. Dell did the same with the recent refresh of the XPS 13 Plus. These are both competent 13-inch laptops.

That was a safer direction for Dell, given that the XPS 13 Plus sports an ultramodern appearance. The ThinkPad X1 Nano Gen 3, on the other hand, remains a nice little laptop but its design is getting a bit dated. Can it compete with the more contemporary XPS 13 Plus?
Specs and configurations

Read more