Dell XPS 13 Review
by Brett Howse on February 19, 2015 9:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Laptops
- Dell
- Ultrabook
- Broadwell-U
- XPS 13
Gaming Performance
Normally on an Ultrabook we would not dedicate an entire page to gaming performance, because the integrated GPUs do not perform very well on our gaming tests. However, with this being our first example of Broadwell-U, it is a good time to revisit this and see how the new graphics capabilities of Broadwell compare to the Haswell processors.
With the Core i5-5200U in both of the XPS 13s that we received, we have 24 execution units, compared to only 20 on Haswell-U. In addition, the 14nm process should help with throttling. The FHD model (1920x1080) arrived with a two 2GB memory modules and the QHD+ version came with 2 x 4GB.
First, let's look at the synthetic benchmarks, starting with 3DMark and then moving on to GFXBench.
The 3DMark results begin to show the increased GPU performance of the Gen8 graphics. Broadwell-U outperforms all of the Haswell-U parts on all of the tests, and the QHD+ model gave a fraction more performance as well in a few tests.
The initial results for the new GPU look pretty good, with the new GPU soundly beating the Haswell-U parts. The HP Stream 11, with just 4 EUs, trails quite far behind. GFXBench is one of our newer benchmark choices for Windows 8, and we will add more data as we get a few more devices to test.
Next, let's look at our gaming benchmarks. Due to the low performance of the integrated GPUs, I just ran our gaming tests at the Value (1366x768 ~Medium) settings.
Here we can see once again that the new GPU is certainly stronger, but it is still not quite enough to make any of these games very playable on our Value settings. The Dell XPS 15, with its discrete GPU, carries a huge lead over the integrated GPU offerings. Still, the new Gen8 Graphics with more execution units per processor, as well as a change to the architecture of each execution unit, has made a healthy improvement. The new GPU has only eight EUs per sub-slice now, as compared to ten in Haswell-U, which help in many workloads. Ian has a nice writeup on the changes.
However, our gaming benchmarks are not tested at the lowest possible settings. All of the benchmarks start at 1366x768 with medium settings, so let's drop down another notch.
By setting the games to their lowest settings, some of them are now playable. We are still a long ways off of the performance of a discrete GPU, but slowly integrated graphics are improving.
Finally, we have a new gaming benchmark to add to our repertoire. Anand first used the DOTA 2 bench for the Surface Pro 3 review and it will be our go-to benchmark for devices like this without a discrete GPU. Our Value setting will be 1366x768 with all options off, low quality shadows, and medium textures. Midrange will be 1600x900 with all options enabled, medium shadows, and medium textures, and Enthusiast will be 1920x1080 with all options maxed out.
We do not have any other comparison points at the moment, but it is very clear that a game like DOTA 2 is very playable on a device with an integrated GPU. Frame rates, even with good settings, are very reasonable.
So Broadwell has raised the stakes again, but the end result is Intel's Integrated GPU is still not going to let you play AAA titles with good frame rates. Hopefully we can get some good comparisons between Broadwell-U and the AMD APUs in the near future. It will also be interesting to see what happens on the higher wattage Broadwell parts, some of which will contain significantly more EUs.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
201 Comments
View All Comments
GTRagnarok - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
You can only upgrade the SSD. It's an M.2 form factor.Aristotle16 - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
I bought the Core i3 version and had serious performance issues, to the point of trying to return the device. What I found was, even after doing a clean install of Windows 8.1, that the Intel Dynamic Platform and Thermal Framework Settings (located in the advanced settings of the battery profiles) were set to 0.6GHz@15W for the Balanced and Power Saver profiles, even for plugged in mode. And for the High Performance profile, the battery setting was also set to 0.6GHz. I had not thought to look at that specific setting, but I couldn't accept that this brand new device was slower than my Venue 8 Pro tablet. It's weird that they choose to have this performance setting - even for the plugged in mode mind you - on the standard battery profile that ships with the device and/or OS. So after changing that setting, the device performance is night and day. So just a heads up if you get this and it feels slow, have a look at those settings.mayankleoboy1 - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
Which ssd is being used in them? A m. 2 ssd works definitely give a boost to battery and performanceBrett Howse - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
It is listed in the specifications - Samsung PM851.Chrispy_ - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
Wow, that's a HUGE battery life penalty for the QHD+ screen that delivers very slightly sharper text.It's not like 1080p @ 13.3" isn't already pin-sharp, and the IGP is useless in most games at even super low resolutions, so I'm genuinely thinking the FHD screen is a better choice here....
tipoo - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
I must say, I've been liking Dells output ever since they went private.01nb - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
Posted this yesterday at Engadget:"I have an XPS13 on my desk at the moment. It's definitely the best I've seen from Dell to date, but it's got some issues that would drive me absolutely bonkers.
The touchpad, for starters, is just not there. That is to say it cannot hold a candle to anything the fruit has put out for the past I dunno, 8 years. The webcam placement? I mean, I know you have a lot to do to make that bezel so small, but this is just stupid. Who wants to look at my nosehairs and boogs during a chat? And another pretty annoying bit - Dell, dude.... put a friggin right angle on the damn power plug already! Or please come up with some non-patent-infringing magsafe like tech dammit. This plug is unsightly, ungainly, and flat out terrible for this class of ultrabook.
Otherwise, there is a lot to like - the unreal screen, the size, plenty of speed, etc.
It's just a few minor issues from being able to truly unseat the MBA which i'm sure were made to cut cost. The problem is, with the new (r?)MBA due out any moment, it may not even get the chance."
Dell is on the right track. Hopefully they address the issues in the next version (and release it post-haste).
sporkloudly - Friday, April 10, 2015 - link
Did you have any issues with the buzzing noise everybody seems to be talking about?Laxaa - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
Alongside the new ThinPad, this looks like a very nice machine indeed(and great to see that PC laptops are catching up with MacBooks in terms of performance and design!) My only gripe is that I wish there was a 16GB option.Hrel - Thursday, February 19, 2015 - link
Touch is stupid, any resolution beyond 1080p is stupid. (it negatively affects EVERYTHING, as evidenced in this review.) I don't want actual glass on my laptop.If it weren't for these specific issues, mostly the glass, this would be my next executive laptop. I'm gonna need one next year. So hopefully they can fix these things before then, either that or I switch the company to Lenovo. Doesn't really matter to me, but I do really like what they did with the power adapter/battery.