Dell’s great undoing: XPS returns in 2026 after a year of missteps — and the all-new XPS 14 and XPS 16 might be the company’s smartest move yet

At CES 2026, Dell did something PC companies almost never do: it admitted it messed up.

One year after the company tried to retire iconic brands like XPS in favor of a simplified “Dell / Dell Pro / Dell Max” naming scheme, the experiment is effectively over. XPS is back — not as a legacy holdover, but as the centerpiece of Dell’s consumer strategy going forward.

And Dell isn’t pretending otherwise. Vice chairman Jeff Clarke told press in New York that the company “underperformed,” “didn’t listen,” and is now “getting back to our roots.” He even acknowledged that reviewers and customers were right about the branding. For a company that ships hardware into a 280‑million‑unit‑per‑year PC market, that’s a rare level of candor.

But Dell didn’t just bring back the XPS name. It rebuilt the laptops themselves, and they look outstanding because even there, the company addressed some of the biggest complaints.

XPS 14 and XPS 16: thinner, lighter, cooler, and finally listening to users

Dell's XPS 14 and XPS 16 (aka Dell 14 Premium and Dell 14 Premium) are some of our favorite laptops here at Windows Central, especially the XPS 14, as it is one of the 14-inch laptops with an optional RTX GPU in it and is still super compact.

The new XPS 14 and XPS 16 are the first wave of this course correction. Both laptops have been redesigned from the inside out, with Dell emphasizing durability, simplicity, and usability — a stark contrast to last year’s controversial haptic function row experiment.

That experiment is now dead. The physical function row is back. (I've personally loved those LED keys, which were an engineering-thermal decision, not to be "cool," but boy did some users really hate them).

The new XPS laptops feature CNC aluminum, Gorilla Glass, cleaner parting lines, and a calmer tonal palette. For the first time, the XPS logo sits proudly on the lid — something fans have been requesting for years. The touchpad gets subtle etching to define the active area, and key travel has been tuned for more accurate, faster typing.

Dell also leaned heavily into sustainability: modular USB‑C ports, easier‑to‑remove keyboards, recycled steel hinges, and recycled cobalt and copper in the batteries. Both laptops meet the new EPEAT 2.0 standard.

And yes, they do look a bit Apple-ish, but all I can say is in person, they're gorgeous.

Performance meets efficiency: Intel Core Ultra Series 3 and a major thermal overhaul

Inside, the XPS 14 and XPS 16 run Intel’s new Core Ultra Series 3 processors with 12‑core Intel Arc graphics. Dell claims up to 57% and 78% faster AI performance, respectively, and more than 50% faster graphics versus the previous generation.

That last part is critical. Dell is betting big on Intel's new integrated graphics, feeling confident it can replace an NVIDIA RTX 4050 from the previous XPS 14 (2024) and Dell 14 Premium (2025).

It’s a bold strategy, Cotton. Let’s see if it pays off for ’em.

But the bigger story is thermals. Dell redesigned the cooling system with its largest, thinnest fans ever, new insulation gel, and a layout that cuts TDP in half—the result: cooler, quieter machines with significantly better battery life.

And battery life is where Dell is flexing the hardest

Record‑setting battery life and smarter displays

Dell says the new XPS laptops deliver the best battery life in their class — up to 27 hours of Netflix streaming or 40+ hours of local video playback. That’s not a typo.

A big part of that comes from the new 1–120Hz variable refresh rate LCD panel, which can drop to 1Hz for static content and ramp to 120Hz for scrolling or video. It’s the first laptop panel of its kind.

For creators, tandem OLED returns after debuting in 2024, offering higher brightness, better efficiency, and longer lifespan than traditional OLED

Mobility: thinner than ever, lighter than expected

Both laptops are just 14.6mm thick. The XPS 14 weighs around 3 pounds — half a pound lighter than before — and is now physically smaller than the MacBook Air 13 while offering more screen real estate. The XPS 16 starts at 3.6 pounds, nearly a pound lighter than its predecessor.

That's what happens when you ditch NVIDIA, by the way.

Dell also engineered the thinnest 8MP/4K laptop camera it has ever shipped and is the first to use 900ED battery cells, which are 23% smaller and 12% lighter.

I will note that many of us thought the new XPS 14 was actually the XPS 13 (more on that below) because it is that thin/small (it's not super light at 3.05lbs, but it does feel dense, likely due to the 70WHr battery).

The surprise comeback: XPS 13 returns later this year

Here’s the twist: the XPS 13 wasn’t even on Dell’s roadmap 120 days ago. But after the backlash to last year’s branding, Dell fast‑tracked its return. It will be the thinnest XPS ever at under 13mm and the most affordable XPS price point to date.

In other words: Dell is rebuilding the entire XPS portfolio, not just refreshing two models.

Now, I did see the XPS 13 prototype in person, but the press were not allowed to take photos as, noted above, it was literally created just a few months ago, so it's not finalized. But it sure is a looker. Dell initially didn't want to do an XPS 13 because, as I mentioned earlier, the new XPS 14 is smaller than a MacBook Air 13. It felt there would be too much overlap between the two, not enough of a differentiator.

Alas, it said it figured out how to solve that, and it's going to be one hot seller, is my guess.

What about the processor? Dell didn't commit to Intel, AMD, or Qualcomm, at least not to me on the record, but it was very gushing of Qualcomm's potential. Considering the XPS 13 already had a Snapdragon X Elite version, it makes sense for the company to bring back to the new model with the brand-new Snapdragon X2 Elite, but we'll have to wait and see. I sure hope they do.

An even bigger tease? Dell had two XPS placeholders for other XPS devices coming. That's all I can say at the moment about them. Any guesses or wants?

Finally, a global marketing campaign kicks off in February to reintroduce the XPS brand, and Dell says it's going to push hard to win back consumers. I'll say it was refreshing to hear a PC company talk so much about consumers and not just enterprise for once!

Pricing and availability

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The XPS 14 starts at $2,049.00 and the XPS 16 at $2,199.99, with limited configurations available January 6 in the U.S. and Canada.

More configurations — including an entry‑level model well under $2,000 — arrive in February. Ubuntu options and the new XPS 13 land later this year.

[Update: Price correction from Dell]

Dell’s reset moment

Dell’s 2025 rebrand was bold, but ultimately misguided. The company now seems determined to fix that mistake by doubling down on what made XPS successful in the first place: premium design, strong performance, and clear identity.

This time, Dell is listening. And XPS is better for it. I'm legit excited for the company and can't wait to see how these new XPS laptops are, but I'm confident they're going to be the big winner of 2026 (putting aside increased RAM prices, of course).

And as I teased above, Dell has a lot of plans for the XPS brand, by which I mean actually expanding it and trying to drive down prices.

But what about the other brands, you may be asking? XPS and Alienware Area 51 are its top brands for consumer and gaming, respectively, with Alienware staying as its normal gaming range.

That said, Dell is keeping "Dell" for its mid and entry-level laptops, and "Dell Pro" sticks around for enterprise, so it didn't completey reverse course, at least not yet.

Dell just pulled off one of the rarest moves in the PC industry: admitting a mistake and undoing a major rebrand. Now that XPS is back — thinner, lighter, and actually better — I want to hear from you.

• Did Dell make the right call bringing back the XPS name?
• Did the 2025 “Dell 14 Premium” era ever make sense to you?
• And are these new designs enough to win back trust?

Drop your thoughts below. Be honest. Be chaotic. Dell says it’s listening this time — let’s test that.

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