Asus took the initiative last month to launch its 2019 13.3-inch ZenBook UX333 series complete with Whiskey Lake-U ahead of everyone else including Dell. Most competitors are expected to announce their own updated Ultrabooks with Whiskey Lake-U at CES 2019. How does Asus' new 13.3-inch ZenBook compare to the current Kaby Lake-R XPS 13 lineup?
In terms of raw CPU performance, both the older Core i5-8250U and i7-8550U in the XPS 13 series can still consistently outperform the newer i5-8265U in the ZenBook UX333FA. We are able to see the performance delta over time between the two models by looping CineBench R15 Multi-Thread in a loop as shown by our graph below. The i5-8250U XPS 13 scores almost 14 percent higher even after accounting for Turbo Boost fluctuations after prolonged processing stress. Keep in mind that the i5-8265U in the Asus is supposed to directly succeed the i5-8250U.
The performance advantages come at the cost of core temperature. The i5-8250U in the Dell averages at around 89 C compared to just under 80 C on the Asus when subjected to similar stressful conditions. Furthermore, PCMark 10 scores are within single-digit percentages of one another to suggest just minor performance differences during day-to-day loads.
Outside of the processor, there are pros and cons to the connectivity of each model. XPS 13 9370 owners must deal with the lack of HDMI and full-size USB Type-A while ZenBook UX333 owners have no Thunderbolt 3 and are still reliant on a proprietary AC adapter. Additionally, the Dell display is much brighter albeit with more ghosting. Differences like these are arguably more impactful to most users when compared to the minor gap in processing power.
Price is also in Asus' favor. The UX333 retails for $850 USD with a Core i5 CPU, 8 GB of RAM, and a 256 GB SSD whereas the XPS 13 9370 starts at $930 USD with just half the RAM and storage capacity. The UX333 will eventually have discrete GeForce MX150 options as well for much faster graphics potential and we can't forget about its superior webcam positioning, either.
We recommend checking out our dedicated reviews below for more information on the XPS 13 and ZenBook UX433.
Asus ZenBook UX333 | Dell XPS 13 9370 | |
---|---|---|
CPU | Core i5-8265U or i7-8565U | Core i5-8250U or i7-8550U |
GPU | UHD Graphics 620 or GeForce MX150 w/ 2 GB GDDR5 VRAM | UHD Graphics 620 only |
Display | 1080p only, no touchscreen, matte or glossy, ~250 nit | 1080p or 4K UHD, touchscreen optional, matte or glossy, ~400 nit |
RAM | 8 GB up to 16 GB LPDDR3 | 4 GB up to 16 GB LPDDR3 |
AC adapter | Proprietary AC charger and port | USB Type-C charger |
Wireless | Intel 9560 | Killer 1435 |
Ports | 1x USB Type-C Gen. 2, USB Type-A, HDMI, 3.5 mm combo audio, MicroSD reader | 2x Thunderbolt 3, 1x USB Type-C, 3.5 mm combo audio, MicroSD reader |
Battery | 50 Wh | 52 Wh |
Dimensions | 16.9 x 302 x 189 | 11.6 x 302 x 199 |
Weight | 1.19 kg | 1.21 kg |
Starting Price | $850 | $930 |
Cinebench R15 | |
CPU Single 64Bit | |
Dell XPS 13 9370 i7 UHD | |
Asus ZenBook 13 UX333FA | |
Dell XPS 13 9360 FHD i7 Iris | |
Dell XPS 13 9370 FHD i5 | |
Dell XPS 13 9360-4764 | |
Dell XPS 13 9365-4537 2-in-1 | |
CPU Multi 64Bit | |
Dell XPS 13 9370 FHD i5 | |
Dell XPS 13 9370 i7 UHD | |
Asus ZenBook 13 UX333FA | |
Dell XPS 13 9360-4764 | |
Dell XPS 13 9360 FHD i7 Iris | |
Dell XPS 13 9365-4537 2-in-1 |
3DMark | |
1280x720 Cloud Gate Standard Graphics | |
Dell XPS 13 9360 FHD i7 Iris | |
Asus ZenBook 13 UX333FA | |
Dell XPS 13 9370 i7 UHD | |
Dell XPS 13 9360-4764 | |
1280x720 Cloud Gate Standard Physics | |
Dell XPS 13 9370 i7 UHD | |
Asus ZenBook 13 UX333FA | |
Dell XPS 13 9360-4764 | |
Dell XPS 13 9360 FHD i7 Iris |
PCMark 8 - Home Score Accelerated v2 | |
Dell XPS 13 9370 FHD i5 | |
Dell XPS 13 9360 FHD i7 Iris | |
Dell XPS 13 9370 i7 UHD | |
Asus ZenBook 13 UX333FA | |
Dell XPS 13 9365-4537 2-in-1 |
Asus ZenBook 13 UX333FA AU Optronics B133HAN05.C, IPS, 13.3", 1920x1080 | Dell XPS 13 9370 i7 UHD ID: Sharp SHP148B, Name: LQ133D1, Dell P/N: 8XDHY, IPS, 13.3", 3840x2160 | Dell XPS 13 9370 FHD i5 SHP1484, IPS, 13.3", 1920x1080 | Dell XPS 13 9365-4537 2-in-1 Sharp LQ133Z1, IPS, 13.3", 3200x1800 | Dell XPS 13 9360 FHD i7 Iris SHP1449, IPS, 13.3", 1920x1080 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Display | |||||
Display P3 Coverage | 67.9 | 68.9 | 68.9 | 64.4 | 51.6 |
sRGB Coverage | 97.4 | 98.4 | 96.6 | 92.9 | 77.4 |
AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage | 69.2 | 69.5 | 69.6 | 66.1 | 53.3 |
Response Times | |||||
Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * | 54.4 ? | 69.6 ? | 62.4 ? | 48 ? | 41.2 ? |
Response Time Black / White * | 37.6 ? | 44 ? | 45.6 ? | 28 ? | 30 ? |
PWM Frequency | 3759 ? | 1008 ? | 19530 ? | ||
Screen | |||||
Brightness middle | 276 | 478.5 | 428 | 348 | 461 |
Brightness | 263 | 466 | 405 | 306 | 418 |
Brightness Distribution | 89 | 86 | 87 | 78 | 85 |
Black Level * | 0.21 | 0.43 | 0.26 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
Contrast | 1314 | 1113 | 1646 | 1740 | 2305 |
Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 4.85 | 3.09 | 3.8 | 2.79 | 5.4 |
Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 8.24 | 5.94 | 7.2 | 5.53 | 12.2 |
Colorchecker dE 2000 calibrated * | 1.6 | 2.06 | |||
Greyscale dE 2000 * | 5.7 | 2.4 | 4.4 | 3.47 | 5.4 |
Gamma | 2.08 106% | 2.063 107% | 2.21 100% | 2.54 87% | 2.15 102% |
CCT | 7424 88% | 6883 94% | 7067 92% | 6564 99% | 7258 90% |
Color Space (Percent of AdobeRGB 1998) | 63 | 69.47 | 62.8 | 60 | 48.6 |
Color Space (Percent of sRGB) | 98 | 98.36 | 96.4 | 93 | 76.9 |
Total Average (Program / Settings) |
* ... smaller is better
Source(s)
https://www.notebookcheck.net/Asus-ZenBook-13-UX333FA-i5-8265U-Laptop-Review.386521.0.html
https://www.notebookcheck.net/Dell-XPS-13-9370-i7-8550U-4K-UHD-Laptop-Review.296596.0.html
https://www.notebookcheck.net/Dell-XPS-13-9370-i5-8250U-4K-UHD-Laptop-Review.279736.0.html
www.notebookcheck.net/Dell-XPS-13-9360-FHD-i5-Notebook-Review.183736.0.html