Luke Larsen / Digital Trends

So , what are people so insane about ? Well , a lot of the divisive design conclusion found in theXPS 13 Plushave been brought over to the raw XPS 14 and XPS 16 , leaving you with no “ safe ” options that stage a more conventional laptop pattern . When it comes down to it , there are three major thing the great unwashed are complaining about .

Soldered RAM

This certainly is n’t a feature that Dell had in its marketing cloth , but in this young multiplication of XPS equipment , everything will be soldered , meaning these equipment ca n’t be easily access for upgrades or repairs . While this was always on-key of the XPS 13 , the XPS 15 and 17 recently made our list for thebest upgradable laptop computer you could buy . That ’s certainly not going to be true of the XPS 14 and 16 .

With Dell ’s get-up-and-go into more sustainable laptop designs withConcept Luna , I would have loved to have view Dell go in the opposite direction with these new devices . rip up laptop computer is n’t something the middling laptop owner does , but it go a long path toward winning over tech enthusiasts and making sure these devices are n’t lead as much to the pot of unrepairable and non - reusable old laptop filling e - waste material bins .

Capacitive function row keys

This one is one of the big features that carry over from the XPS 13 Plus . Essentially , the function quarrel of physical key have been replaced with capacitive contact button that perch up .

As someone who spend a lot of time with the XPS 13 Plus , I did n’t think these capacitive touch button were as bad as people say . I certainly grew used to them over time . But I think they do pose a real problem on the XPS 16 in particular . This is a laptop that ’ll be marketed toward originative pro and programmers — people who might have heap of good reasons to trust intemperately on the function row of keys .

As Apple learned with its MacBook Pros in the late 2010s , forcing edgy , but visionary features on a laptop for professionals is n’t a groovy idea . It ’s unmanageable to pull off experimentation in user input on these types of machine , even if it ’s a bold and modern change .

Seamless haptic trackpad

Let ’s get real here : I love haptic feedback trackpads . When done right , they ’re far superscript to physical ones , as catch on the MacBook Pro , Surface Laptop Studio , and innumerous other gadget . This admit the XPS 13 Plus , in my opinion .

But what people seem to dislike about Dell ’s attack is n’t the haptic trackpad itself , but more the fact that it ’s inconspicuous . There ’s no distinction between the trackpad and the ribbon quietus — it ’s all one individual surface . It ’s certainly what gives these laptop computer such a clean and forward-looking look — I ca n’t deny that . But from a more practical position , masses have always quetch that not being to see or feel the edge of the trackpad lead to times when your digit run over the side without knowing it .

Do I believe this is a little overblown ? credibly . I think people have a problem with this in hypothesis more than in substantial use . But it ’s a strong enough view that people have become turned off by the idea as a whole .

Not all bad

Look , there ’s sight of good hooey in the change across the board this year . Dell has embraced 120Hz as a standard refresh rate , even on the base configuration of displays for all three laptops , which is awesome . I also care the young size , specially the XPS 14 . I ’ve always wanted Dell to extend a modest laptop with distinct graphics , and now we have one . I even prefer the uncomplicated approaching to the lineup , giving customer a clearer range of a function of devices to choose from .

But between the design modification mentioned above and tweaks like removing the full - size SD lineup slot , Dell had to have been quick to take some heat for this . It was a bold move .

Either way , I ’m excited to get these devices in for full reviews and give them a fair tremble . But it ’s percipient that as of now , Dell is campaign an uphill battle against public percept .