Did you really think Dell would miss the Snapdragon party? Here is the Dell XPS 13 9345, which also benefits from the new ARM SoC.
Dell XPS 13 (9345)
8/10
Pros:
- Stunning design
- Compact format, increasingly rare
- Very bright display
- The power of the X Elite, a benchmark in 2024
- Battery life far superior to Intel
Cons:
- Only 2 USB-C USB4 ports
- No DCI-P3 support
- Copilot+ label feels gimmicky
How can we trust the future of a new platform in the laptop market? The answer is simple: by counting the number of OEM partners that immediately jump on board. The tests of new Windows laptops powered by Qualcomm’s latest chip are rolling in, and they do seem a bit similar, it’s true.
Here, we have yet another brand to add to Microsoft’s growing list of partners: Dell. The well-known professional brand wasn’t about to let its competitors have all the fun, and is adapting its most iconic model, the Dell XPS 13, for the occasion.
Dell XPS 13 (9345) Specifications:
- Dimensions: 295.3 mm x 15.3 mm
- Display Resolution: 2880 x 1800 pixels
- Display Technology: OLED
- Touchscreen: Yes
- Processor (CPU): Snapdragon X1 Elite X1E-80-100
- Graphics Chip (GPU): Qualcomm Adreno GPU
- RAM: 16 GB, 32 GB, 64 GB
- Internal Storage: 512 GB, 1 TB, 2 TB, 4 TB
- Operating System (OS): Microsoft Windows 11
- Weight: 1170 grams
- Depth: 199.1 mm
Design
You might not believe us, but we have to point it out: the Dell XPS 13 is still a Dell XPS 13. Yes, the chassis is exactly the same as the Intel Core Ultra version we tested a few months ago, which is not surprising when launching a new contender in the performance arena.
And since this is Dell, a brand known for being resistant to drastic design changes, there isn’t much more to add. So, let’s reiterate: we are dealing with a 13-inch format here, which is refreshing in a way, given how much this size has been abandoned in favor of 14 inches. The Dell XPS 13 now feels like a mini PC compared to its competitors, which is definitely an advantage.
And of course, we see the same high-quality craftsmanship Dell has been known for over the years. Large aluminum panels with perfectly rounded edges and no harsh lines, giving it a truly premium feel. It also features Dell’s new design language, which not everyone appreciates, particularly when it comes to the keyboard.
Keyboard and Trackpad
Yes, like its siblings, the Dell XPS 13 has fully embraced what was once reserved only for the “Plus” segment: a trackpad embedded in a large glass panel and capacitive function keys that adapt based on whether the Fn key is pressed or not. This choice has been criticized by some, but we don’t find it disagreeable here.
The keyboard remains as comfortable for our fingers as ever. The wide keys are close together but don’t interfere with each other, everything is very stable, and the actuation distance is excellent. It takes a bit of getting used to, but once you get the Dell XPS 13 in hand, you’ll quickly be convinced.
In this compact format, the trackpad still offers a good amount of surface area and smoothness. However, with the growing availability of haptic trackpads, its absence here is a bit disappointing, even though the traditional clickpad remains effective.
Connectivity
The real sacrifice with the Dell XPS 13, even in the Snapdragon version, is its connectivity. It has one USB 4.0 port on the left, another on the right, and that’s it.
More connectivity is essential on a laptop, even when it’s as compact as this Dell XPS 13 compared to its competitors. If a 10-inch tablet can offer more ports, it’s hard to overlook the lack of options on this Dell XPS 13.
Webcam and Audio
The webcam is still a standard 1080p sensor, fairly typical for its class. However, once again, the integrated ISP in the Qualcomm SoC works wonders in accurately recognizing colors and providing a much more vibrant image.
It’s not quite up to the level of shooting YouTube videos, but it does make you look much less under the weather during video calls.
The audio remains unchanged, which means it’s still disappointing. Dell has done wonders with their 16-inch models, but here it still feels like we’re dealing with mid-range smartphone speakers. While the sound staging is decent, it seriously lacks bass and midrange fidelity.
Dell XPS 13 (9345) – Display
The similarities continue with the display, where the Dell XPS 13 9345 also features a 13.4-inch IPS LCD panel with a 16:10 aspect ratio. Once again, it supports a 120 Hz refresh rate but is set to 60 Hz by default.
The display retains the same strengths… and weaknesses. Our measurements reveal that it covers only 95.3% of the sRGB color space, while DCI-P3 coverage is just 67.5%. This is quite disappointing, especially since DCI-P3 is now a well-established standard. On the plus side, it still offers an excellent maximum brightness of 508 cd/m² for a laptop and a perfect contrast ratio of 2050:1 for an IPS LCD panel.
The average Delta E00 remains impressive at just 0.88, which is perfect, with a maximum deviation of 3.03 in yellow tones. The only drawback is the white point placement, leading to a slightly warm average color temperature of 6217K. Overall, it’s still a very nice display, especially for office work. Creative professionals might need to look elsewhere, but this laptop isn’t particularly aimed at them.
Dell XPS 13 (9345) – Software
On this Snapdragon version, Dell’s software suite is a mixed bag. While the ever-annoying McAfee is still present, the brand’s applications seem to have toned down quite a bit… maybe even a bit too much.
The new style is refreshing, but the options are quite limited… way too limited. It makes us think that the Dell XPS 13 9345 might be in the middle of a redesign, and this version is still being fleshed out. A little message to the brand: you’re on the right track, keep it up!
Dell XPS 13 (9345) – Performance
The Dell XPS 13 9345 is the Snapdragon variant of the lineup. It features the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite X1E-80-100, which we’ve tested multiple times before. It includes 12 cores at 3.4 GHz with a dual-core boost frequency of up to 4 GHz. It also comes with 16 GB of LPDDR5X RAM at 8448 MT/s and 512 GB of PCIe 4.0 storage.
Nothing particularly surprising or standout here. Qualcomm’s configurations are quite standardized.
Benchmarks
There’s nothing especially new to report in this test. Under Cinebench 2024, we get familiar scores of 901 in multi-core and 122 in single-core. What’s interesting is the direct comparison with the Intel version, which scored significantly lower with 690 points and 102 points in their respective categories. Qualcomm’s arrival clearly shows that even in small formats like the Dell XPS 13, the SoC can still deliver strong performance. This might be where Qualcomm is ultimately the most impressive.
The graphics performance, however, still lags behind. The Adreno X1 doesn’t impress much with a modest score of 2119 points on Steel Nomad Light, whereas the Radeon 890M scores around 3000 without any compatibility issues.
On the other hand, Qualcomm excels in the AI department. The score of 1801 points in Procyon is truly impressive and highlights how mobile manufacturers have been ahead in this area. This score is reminiscent of a good previous-generation NVIDIA mobile GPU.
As for the storage, it’s PCIe 4.0—nothing more, nothing less. It’s neither the best nor the worst of this technology, just what’s needed to meet the standard.
Cooling and Noise
Temperatures are much better controlled by the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite compared to its Intel counterpart, that’s for sure.
However, the Dell XPS 13 does tend to activate its fans more frequently compared to other Snapdragon laptops, likely due to its compact size, though the fans are not particularly loud.
Battery Life
A small update here: the Dell XPS 13 9345 features a 55 Wh battery, which is 4 Wh more than this year’s Intel model. This minor upgrade doesn’t change the provided power adapter, which remains compact and supports 60W charging via Power Delivery.
And once again, this is a significant advantage for the Qualcomm version. Under the same conditions, it offers around 16 hours of use compared to 8-9 hours for the Intel version—nearly double!
Dell XPS 13 (9345) – Price and Availability
The Dell XPS 13 with the Snapdragon processor, model 9345, is already available. It starts at 1499 USD for the base configuration we tested, which includes 512 GB of storage and 16 GB of RAM.
