Dell XPS 16 review: Two steps forward, one step back

A key reason for the leaner, quieter, and more compact design this year can be attributed to one major change: no more discrete graphics options. No dGPU means the system can get away with smaller PCBs, a smaller cooling solution, and a thinner profile for an overall lighter model. Users will be sacrificing graphics performance as the integrated GPU of Panther Lake — as efficient as it may be — can't match the raw power of a GeForce RTX 5070 on the outgoing Dell 16 Premium. External GPUs can get around this limitation, but content creators or gamers demanding more graphics performance on-the-go may find better value from the 2025 model.

The slimmer and more focused design of the new XPS 16 can sometimes feel barebones when compared to some competitors. Alternatives like the Samsung Galaxy Book6 Ultra or Asus Zenbook S16 feature more integrated ports or even support for secondary M.2 SSDs to reduce reliance on adapters or docking stations.

The size and weight differences between the new XPS 16 and older XPS 16 (or Dell 16 Premium) are significant. The updated model is noticeably smaller in length, width, and height while being much lighter by about 600 grams. These changes were made possible largely by dropping discrete graphics options and vapor chamber cooling when transitioning to the new XPS 16 design. Screen size has also been slightly reduced from 16.3-inch to 16.0-inch.

The camera has been upgraded from 2 MP on the Dell 16 Premium to 8 MP on the new XPS 16. While IR is supported, there is still no physical camera shutter.

Servicing procedures are completely different from last year's XPS 16 design but otherwise nearly identical to the new XPS 14 as detailed here. Instead of removing the bottom panel, users must carefully remove the keyboard deck to access the motherboard and so the process is slightly more involved.

Upgrade options are unfortunately very limited. The model supports just a single M.2 SSD and no other upgradeable components despite the large 16-inch form factor.

Dell claims 75 percent recycled aluminum for the top and bottom covers, 50 percent recycled cobalt for the battery, 90 percent recycled steel for the keycaps, 100 percent recycled copper for the battery PCB, and 10 percent recycled glass for the OLED configuration. The packaging is fully recyclable and plastic-free.

There are no extras in the box other than the AC adapter and paperwork. The usual one-year limited manufacturer warranty applies if purchased in the US with extension options of up to four years.

Dell has (thankfully) dropped the controversial touch-sensitive keys on last year's model for a more traditional approach. In fact, key size and feedback are identical to the new XPS 14 for the same typing experience between them despite the larger form factor of our XPS 16.

Unlike the keyboard, the clickpad takes advantage of the larger 16-inch form factor as its surface area is slightly larger than the clickpad on the XPS 14 (~15.2 x 9 cm vs. ~15.2 x 7.5 cm). Traction is ultra-smooth, but multi-touch or drag-and-drop actions are still difficult due to the shallow and weak feedback. The "invisible" clickpad arguably still favors form over function.

Two display options are available:

• 1920 x 1200, 100% sRGB, IPS, non-touch, 1 - 120 Hz, matte
• 3200 x 2000, 100% DCI-P3, OLED, touchscreen, 20 - 120 Hz, DisplayHDR 500, glossy

The base display offers a very high contrast ratio of ~2000:1 especially for an IPS panel. Image quality is surprisingly sharp for a matte overlay while the full sRGB colors should satisfy most general users or casual content creators. Deeper P3 colors, HDR support, or touchscreen functionality are available only on the pricier OLED configuration.

Note that VRR is disabled by default. Users can enable VRR via the Windows Advanced Display options. The 1 Hz minimum refresh rate is a unique feature of the base panel not found on most other laptops.

The display comes decently calibrated out of the box with some room for improvement. Calibrating with our own X-Rite colorimeter, for example, would improve the already low average grayscale and color deltaE values from 2.7 and 2.53 to just 1.9 and 1.26, respectively. Our calibrated ICM profile above is available to download above for free.

Outdoor visibility is decent when under shade due to the relatively bright 500-nit backlight and matte overlay. Otherwise, colors become too washed out if under direct sunlight.

We set Windows and Dell Optimizer to Performance mode prior to running the benchmarks below.

The base Core Ultra 5 325 is somewhat slow for an H-series CPU as it's only 10 percent faster than the ULV Core Ultra 7 258V when it comes to multi-thread performance. In fact, upgrading from the Core Ultra 5 325 to the Core Ultra 7 355 configuration is only expected to improve performance by about 5 percent since they both share identical core counts and cache sizes. Users would have to upgrade to the higher-end Core Ultra X7 358H instead for a much more significant 70 percent increase in raw processor performance.