Dell XPS 13 2015

[DotoreN]

I have already made a topic regarding a new notebook/ultrabook: http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/338457-laptop-for-computer-scienceprogramming/

 

But i've done a little more research on the Dell XPS 13 2015, as it's a really popular laptop atm.

 

The laptop has 8gb ram, 256gb ssd non-touch (the one i'm considering).

 

 

Just a few questions for you guys:

 

- Is this a good laptop performance wise for programming?

- Does dell have good customer service? / is it a good brand?

- It's 13 inch and not 15inch (what I used to have), is this small in your opinion or perfect ?

- I heard because it was a "infinite screen" that it can cause problems to certain programs where the res was just glitching/bugging out, not sure whether this issue still exists or if it's no big deal

 

Last and foremost, it has a 11 inch body, isn't this a bit too small/packed to work on?

 

The laptop in general is perfect.. it's powerful, thin, doesn't weight anything but the only downside is the small 11inch body from what I can tell..

 

What is your opinion, is this laptop good for computer science/programming ?

[Nineshadow]

You can do programming on almost anything so...yeah.

[spenser_l]

For most comp-sci programs you should be fine with that laptop in terms of performance. The only thing that might be kind of annoying is the small screen in general, especially if you get the higher res model due to text scaling. This may be more of a relevant issue since if go into computer science, then you'll likely be writing a lot of code on that laptop. 

 

That being said, it's a very nice looking laptop.

[DotoreN]

For most comp-sci programs you should be fine with that laptop in terms of performance. The only thing that might be kind of annoying is the small screen in general, especially if you get the higher res model due to text scaling. This may be more of a relevant issue since if go into computer science, then you'll likely be writing a lot of code on that laptop. 

 

That being said, it's a very nice looking laptop.

 

Yeah, I never worked on a 13 inch laptop so I don't know..

 

I have to travel with it everyday but also work on it without problems (which is more important to me than the portability imo).

 

I think I should either go for the Dell XPS 13 or one of the Lenovo thinkpads, I heard that a lot of people are pleased by the thinkpads. I don't really know what the difference between a thinkpad, ultrabook or notebook is, but if I look at the specs they're pretty powerful, although quite ugly haha.

[Glenwing]

Yeah, I never worked on a 13 inch laptop so I don't know..

 

I have to travel with it everyday but also work on it without problems (which is more important to me than the portability imo).

 

I think I should either go for the Dell XPS 13 or one of the Lenovo thinkpads, I heard that a lot of people are pleased by the thinkpads. I don't really know what the difference between a thinkpad, ultrabook or notebook is, but if I look at the specs they're pretty powerful, although quite ugly haha.

 

13" size is good for portability, and I can live with it for work, although I prefer 14" a little more. Dell is generally a good brand although their customer service is as abysmal as any other large corporation.

 

Notebook is just another word for a laptop. Ultrabook is a term created by Intel, anything labelled "ultrabook" has to meet Intel's spec, which basically means it's thin and light. It's sort of Intel's response to the MacBook Air. ThinkPads are just the brand name for Lenovo's business laptops. They've traditionally focused more on rugged build and durability than portability or sleekness but they're been trying to change this in their more recent models.

[jayctech]

The infinity screen will be a scaling thing. Just get the 1080p model if that's something that concerns you?

[DotoreN]

The infinity screen will be a scaling thing. Just get the 1080p model if that's something that concerns you?

 

Oh 1080 doesn't have this problem?

 

I don't know whether I should go for the Dell XPS 13 or a thinkpad. I think I should go for a 15 incher as writing code might get troublesome on a 13 inch (just my guess).

 

XPS 13 looks sweet tho..

[Warcony]

I have been looking into the xps 13 as well. It looks great but I have heard that there is an issue with the auto brightness not having the option to disable it. Seems to have been intentionally done by Dell so hopefully they decide to allow it.

[ChrisCross]

well the issues you mentioned with the "infinity display" (just a marketing word) are downscaling issues. that is not an issue with your model (1080p)

when it comes to body size i would normaly want a big display with a small body. so maximum screen size with maximum portability. 

the differences between the thinkpads and other laptops are:

-better keyboard

-more durability (metal cage around the motherboard)

-they got this little pointing stick

-spill resistant keyboards

[vembutech]

It looks great in performance.

[iPhoenix]

Just a few questions for you guys:

 

- Is this a good laptop performance wise for programming?

- Does dell have good customer service? / is it a good brand?

- It's 13 inch and not 15inch (what I used to have), is this small in your opinion or perfect ?

- I heard because it was a "infinite screen" that it can cause problems to certain programs where the res was just glitching/bugging out, not sure whether this issue still exists or if it's no big deal

 

Last and foremost, it has a 11 inch body, isn't this a bit too small/packed to work on?

 

The laptop in general is perfect.. it's powerful, thin, doesn't weight anything but the only downside is the small 11inch body from what I can tell..

 

What is your opinion, is this laptop good for computer science/programming ?

 - programming you're going to want more screen real estate - you want more code on your screen and a higher res screen will help immensely with that.  Go for the upgraded panel - honestly it will help a ton (speaking from a guy who went through 4 years of dev school and worked in the industry)

 

- dell can be hit or miss - but that's because they have different "streams" of support - if you buy a business system you're getting WAY better support. - XPS used to be part of that group, but now they're consumer.  This makes the support "average" in my book

 

 - 13 inch is small, but better res screen can make up for it AND this now has a full size keyboard (something that used to be reserved for 14"+ so your typing experience should be good.  My main worry (as linus pointed out) is the amount of flex which can lead to tiresome typing and a poor "feel" to the system

 

 - can't speak on the screen bug issues - gotta do your own research on that one

 

 - see 2 points above on the size issue. :-)