Dell XPS 10 - Windows 8 Tablet for Business

The hybrids are taking over

Either spotting a gap in the market or just out of loyalty to its best buddy Microsoft, Dell has released its own Windows RT hybrid slate. Aimed at business users, the 10.1-inch Dell XPS10 is another transformer-style laptop-tablet hybrid, shipping with an attachable keyboard that turns it into a laptop for working on the move.

The Dell XPS 10 falls into a crowded market, with a host of devices aiming to fulfill similar needs. The Asus VivoTab, Samsung Ativ Tab and of course the Microsoft Surface RT are all offering the same USP, and there are other hybrids such as the Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 11 too. While there’s no shortage of big players in the market, Dell’s late arrival doesn’t mean it’s too far behind; no RT device has gained any traction to date.

Dell XPS 10

The XPS 10 fits perfectly into Dell’s line up of high-end machines, joining its XPS 12, XPS 13 and XPS 15 siblings. It looks like an XPS, with a soft black finish and a rubberized texture, and the same rounded Chiclet keys adorning the device’s base station.

The XPS range is certainly high quality, and each component of the 10-inch RT tablet follows this design ethos to a tee. Compared to some notable offenders, Dell has managed to keep the price down to a reasonable level. The base level 32GB device without the keyboard costs $449, the 32GB version with the keyboard dock costs $599, the 64GB without a keyboard costs $499, while the 64GB version with the dock is $649. That’s a significant saving over the Samsung Ativ Tab and it’s still adept for anyone looking for a more productive tablet experience.

Inside the Dell XPS 10 is a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor, clocked at 1.5GHz. Clearly, the performance here will be nowhere near the level of a traditional laptop, and it’s pretty far below the low power Intel Core i5 chips you’ll find on most Ultrabooks

Behind the scenes

Inside the Dell XPS 10 is a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor, clocked at 1.5GHz. Clearly, the performance here will be nowhere near the level of a traditional laptop, and it’s pretty far below the low power Intel Core i5 chips you’ll find on most Ultrabooks. The choice of processor limits the type of things you can do, too. Forget running desktop apps such as Photoshop or even smaller apps downloaded from the internet, they’re not compatible. Any program you run must come from the Windows Store, but Microsoft gives you a full copy of Microsoft Office 2013, which is pretty handy.

That said the loading time for apps was frustratingly slow, and we were continually asked to wait at splash screens even for frequently used ones. We’re not sure whether Windows RT looks for online information before loading the app, or it just takes an age for the Snapdragon processor to load it from the hard drive, but it’s absurdly slow. The second complaint is less about performance but more about reliability. During our week with the device, we suffered hard crashes of Windows RT requiring a system reboot, which took longer due to Windows collecting information.

Truly a transformer?

The Dell has two USB 3.0 ports and a microSD card slot, which will dramatically increase the opportunity for memory. However, unlike the Asus VivoTab and Samsung Ativ Tab, the Dell XPS 10 only has USB ports on the keyboard dock, so if you opt out or leave it at home, you’ll only have a microSD port.

There’s also a handy micro HDMI port, but again it’s located on the keyboard element. This means that Dell intends for you to carry this like a netbook most of the time, which exposes its design to an inevitable criticism.

When combined with the dock, the Dell XPS 10 weighs an ungainly 1.3kg/45.86oz, which is heavier than most full-form Ultrabooks. As a 10-inch device this seems pretty needless, and it certainly weighs you down when working on the move. But the upside of this is that unlike the Samsung Ativ Tab, the added weight gives ballast to the device, so it doesn’t overbalance when typing. This constant tug of war between pros and cons shows why Windows tablets are having such a torrid time. Make them too light and they topple over, too heavy and it’s ungainly, too powerful and it’s too much money, scrimp on price and it becomes inferior. While the Dell XPS 10 certainly carries some hallmarks of the XPS range, unfortunately this hasn’t been extended to the screen. The Dell XPS 13 and XPS 12 have some of the best screens available on a Windows computer, but the Dell XPS 10 only includes a 1,366 x 768 panel, which is lifeless and dull. Our high definition movie tests showed a lack of vibrancy, below even the similar specced Microsoft Surface RT. Considering its name this is a major oversight on Dell’s part and a real shame.

There’s also a handy micro HDMI port, but again it’s located on the keyboard element. This means that Dell intends for you to carry this like a netbook most of the time, which exposes its design to an inevitable criticism

Double your money

Battery life has been a standout of most Windows RT machines, and the Microsoft Surface RT enjoyed a whopping 10 hours away from the mains, but the Dell XPS 10 offers double this, making it the single longest-lasting hybrid device we have ever reviewed. We employed a normal looping HD video test, which is standard for machines with mobile processors, and the tablet lasted 10.5 hours. Let’s put that in context: we started watching a video when we went to bed, and when we woke up it was still going. The second battery in the keyboard dock offers another eight hours, giving an overall total of 18.5 hours of HD video playback.

The huge battery life is truly impressive, and it gives us hope that a concerted push from Microsoft could give Windows RT a future. However, this won’t appease those who will feel that a 13-inch Ultrabook offers similar portability.

Dell XPS 10 Design ·         Device type: Tablet ·         OS: Windows (RT) ·         Dimensions: 9.75 x 6.98 x 0.36 inches (247.7 x 177.3 x 9.2 mm) ·         Weight: 22.40 oz (635 g) the average is 17.9 oz (512 g) Display ·         Physical size: 10.1 inches ·         Resolution: 1366 x 768 pixels ·         Pixel density: 155 ppi ·         Technology: LCD ·         Touchscreen: Capacitive, Multi-touch ·         Features: Light sensor Hardware ·         System chip: Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 ·         Processor: Dual core, 1500 MHz ·         Graphics processor: Yes ·         Built-in storage: 32 GB ·         Storage expansion: microSD, microSDHC, microSDXC Camera ·         Camera: 5 megapixels ·         Features: Auto focus ·         Camcorder: Yes ·         Features: Video calling ·         Front-facing camera: 2 megapixels Multimedia ·         Speakers: Stereo speakers Internet browsing ·         Browser: Yes TECHNOLOGY ·         Positioning: GPS Phone features ·         Organizer: Calendar, Alarm, Document viewer (Office 2013, Office 2007, Office 2003, PDF), Calculator ·         E-mail: IMAP, POP3, SMTP, Microsoft Exchange Connectivity ·         Bluetooth: 4.0 ·         Wi-Fi: 802.11 a, b, g, n, n 5GHz ·         USB: Yes ·         Connector: microUSB ·         HDMI: Yes ·         Other: OTA sync Other features ·         Notifications: Flight mode, Silent mode ·         Sensors: Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass Voice recording Shopping information ·         MSRP price: $500