Dell XPS is back! I went hands-on with the new XPS 14 — and it's the best kind of apology

Dell XPS 14 2026 — (Image credit: Future)

It's pretty refreshing when a company admits it made a mistake, and that's exactly what Dell has done with the new Dell XPS 14 and XPS 16 laptops. The company initially abandoned the XPS sub-brand for what we thought was a confusing replacement in Premium.

Available for pre-order January 6, I spent most of my hands-on time with the XPS 14, which has received a pretty major redesign and has the potential to make our best laptop list. It's also quite pricey, with a starting price (for now) of $2,049. So I guess blame the RAM crisis? Don't worry, more affordable configurations are coming later. Here's what you get for your money right now.

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Dell XPS 14 (2026): Design

The Dell XPS 14 puts the revived brand in your face in a good way by putting the XPS logo right on the lid, and this machine makes a good first impression. You get a sturdy CNC-machine aluminum chassis that's just 14.6mm thin, which is in between the MacBook Air M4 (11.3mm) and MacBook Pro M5 (15.5mm).

Even better, Dell gives you a 14-inch laptop in the size of a 13-inch system, so it's remarkably compact.

Weighing about 3 pounds, the XPS 14 is half a pound lighter than the previous XPS 14 we reviewed, while the XPS 16 is 3.6 pounds — that's a full pound lighter.

In another reversal, Dell finally got rid of the weird invisible touchpad design on the previous laptops so you can actually see where the pad begins and ends with "subtle etching." Plus, there's an actual physical function key row. Finally!

I tried the improved zero-lattice keyboard, and the feedback felt pretty crisp to me when typing.

The port selection is minimal as you'd expect. You get 3x Thunderbolt 4/USB-C ports with DisplayPort 2.1 support and power deliver, as well as an audio jack.

Dell XPS 14 (2026): Display

The highlight for me is the tandem 2.8K OLED display, which is super bright and colorful in person. While watching the "Avatar: Fire and Ash" trailer, the picture was super clear and vivid.

There's more good news. This screen can go all the way down to 1Hz, which helps save battery life.

For those who want to spend less and want even longer endurance, Dell will also offer a non-touch display with 1920 x 1200 resolution. But at least it gets brighter than the OLED panel at 500 nits vs 400 for the tandem OLED version.

Dell XPS 14 (2026): Specs and performance

The XPS 14 is powered by the latest Intel Core Ultra Series 3 processors and built-in Arc graphics, so you should expect smooth performance.

There's a range of CPU options, including a Core Ultra 5, Core Ultra 7, X7 and X9. And the RAM options go from 16GB to 32GB and a max of 64GB.

The XPS 14 2026 starts with 512GB of storage and is available with 1TB, 1TB and even 4TB.

Dell says that it has redesigned the thermal architecture to improve performance, and you now get up to 50% better graphics performance with the Intel arc graphics.

You also get an 8MP camera on board that is capable of 4K visuals.

Dell XPS 14 (2026): Battery life

Dell is promising a whopping 27 hours of battery life with the 2K display. And it's able to do that because it offers a new 900ED cell battery that's smaller and lighter while offering 70Whr of power.

You should expect less endurance with the tandem OLED panel, and we look forward to putting that configuration to the test.

Dell XPS 14 (2026): Outlook

The Dell XPS 14 is clearly a MacBook Pro competitor, but it's starting price right now is $500 more than Apple's powerful 14-incher, so it's really going to have to justify the premium in our testing. We'll have to see how affordable future configurations are, which are promised for February.

If you want a more affordable MacBook Air rival, Dell is also teasing a new XPS 13 at CES 2026, which will be launching later this year.

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Mark Spoonauer is the global editor in chief of Tom's Guide and has covered technology for over 20 years. In addition to overseeing the direction of Tom's Guide, Mark specializes in covering all things mobile, having reviewed dozens of smartphones and other gadgets. He has spoken at key industry events and appears regularly on TV to discuss the latest trends, including Cheddar, Fox Business and other outlets. Mark was previously editor in chief of Laptop Mag, and his work has appeared in Wired, Popular Science and Inc. Follow him on Twitter at @mspoonauer.

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