Dell XPS 13 9310 2-in-1 gets refreshed to include Intel Tiger Lake, Xe graphics, Evo, and Thunderbolt 4, but RAM and storage continue to be non-upgradeable

The 2019 Dell XPS 13 7390 2-in-1 introduced a much needed design change as well as internal upgrades to Intel Ice Lake and Comet Lake-U processors. This year, the Dell XPS 13 9310 2-in-1 gets refreshed to Intel's 11th generation Tiger Lake CPUs with Intel Xe graphics. Like its last gen counterpart, the XPS 13 9310 2-in-1 is Intel Evo-compliant for an all-round responsive computing experience.

Dell offers the XPS 13 9310 2-in-1 in two chassis designs — a CNC machined aluminum in platinum silver with black carbon fiber composite palm rest and a CNC machined aluminum in frost with arctic white woven glass palm rest.

The XPS 13 9310 2-in-1 continues to sport a 13.4-inch InfinityEdge 16:10 touch display that is available in FHD+ (1920x1200) and UltraSharp 4K UHD+ (3840x2400) options. The UHD+ display offers a peak brightness of 500 nits and supports HDR400 with 100% sRGB and 90% DCI-P3 color gamut coverage, and a 1500:1 contrast ratio. The FHD+ variant has an 1800:1 contrast ratio, 100% sRGB coverage, and 500 nits brightness. Both display variants are Dolby Vision-certified, have a 0.65% anti-reflective coating, and a 178-degree wide viewing angle. The display is protected with an Edge-to-edge Corning Gorilla Glass 6 covering.

Internally, the 2020 XPS 13 9310 2-in-1 receives the customary upgrade to Intel Tiger Lake CPUs — buyers get to choose from among the Core i3-1115G4, Core i5-1135G7, and Core i7-1165G7 options. RAM options are available from 8 GB to 32 GB LPDDR4X-4267 except for the Core i3 version, which is capped at 3733 MHz memory speed. The storage can be configured with options of 256 GB, 512 GB, and 1 TB PCIe Gen3 NVMe SSDs. The RAM and storage are soldered on-board and cannot be upgraded down the line.

Dell continues to offer the MagLev keyboard, now in the Gen 2 iteration, in the new XPS 13 9310 2-in-1. Whether MagLev would appeal to the user or not purely depends on personal preferences and how quickly one gets used to the shallower key travel. Users can also optionally purchase the Dell Premium Active Pen that offers 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity. The power button doubles-up as a fingerprint reader. The infrared webcam also supports Windows Hello-based facial recognition login as well.

Thermal design is largely unchanged from the 2019 version. There is a dual-fan setup with an ultra-thin vapor chamber. Dell said that the 2020 XPS 13 2-in-1 uses dual carbon liquid crystal polymer fans to maximize airflow rejection with increased number of fan blades and reduced blade thickness.

Port selection is also similar to what we have seen with the 2019 XPS 13 7390 2-in-1 with the 2020 XPS 13 9310 2-in-1 now offering Thunderbolt 4 ports. Dell provides a USB-C to USB-A adapter in the box. A microSD card reader and a 3.5mm combo audio jack are available. The Killer AX1650 Wi-Fi 6 chipset provides wireless networking and Bluetooth 5.1 connectivity. A 51 WHr battery rounds up the specifications.

The Dell XPS 13 9310 2-in-1 will be available in the U.S. and Canada on September 30 with prices starting from US$1,249.99.