Latest XPS 13 9360 1.0.7 BIOS update purportedly bricking systems

In what could be another potential PR headache for Dell, the latest 1.0.7 BIOS update for the XPS 13 may be accidentally rolling back systems. It's recommended that XPS 13 owners do not install this latest update until Dell either reuploads a replacement or directly addresses users' complaints.

by Allen Ngo, 2017/08/23

Independent XPS 13 owners on Reddit and even on Dell's own public forums have been complaining of bootup issues regarding the latest 1.0.7 BIOS update. The "urgent" update, released earlier today, supersedes version 2.1.0 with the intention to improve Thunderbolt Dock stability and numerous suspend/resume issues.

Preliminary analyses of the problem are revealing that the manufacturer may have accidentally uploaded an older BIOS version instead of the "real" 1.0.7 update. Thus, affected users may have inadvertently rolled back the BIOS by several revisions and bricked their notebooks.

Dell has yet to officially respond to the reports of failed installations. As a result, the unverified complaints should be taken with a grain of salt. Nonetheless, the Dell XPS family has had an unfortunate history of BIOS-related issues and we wouldn't be surprised if this new kerfuffle turns out to be the latest. Many of our previous XPS 13 and XPS 15 review units had to have their BIOS software updated or even recalled due to NVMe issues, battery life problems, Turbo Boost speed capping issues, and even CABC brightness issues. The problem extended onto our Precision 5520 test unit as well where a late April BIOS update prevented the system from completing its diagnostic POST sequence.

This 1.0.7 BIOS debacle is still a developing story and we will update with more information when appropriate.