Dell Launches Laptops, Tablets, Gaming Systems, Monitors & More at CES 2015

As I was reading Dell’s CES 2015 announcements, I to remember a ‘Dell-free’ time in my life … and had to go back more than 20 years, during which time I’ve had an OptiPlex, Dimension, Inspiron, XPS or Alienware system close at hand. With the recent buy-back Dell has seen resurgence in both innovation and performance, highlighted by their new offerings.

Dell XPS 13 and 15

What I have loved about Dell through the years is how they have always allowed me to simultaneously pursue my gaming hobby and also my love of ultra-portables – even when not at the same time! Dell has always pushed affordable performance, and as a result have always been a popular brand. At CES this year they played to those strengths and the result is some great looking new products.

Here is a summary of key items they introduced:

• Smallest 13-inch laptop on the planet, the XPS 13, features the world‘s first virtually borderless infinity display, powerful mobile performance and up to 15 hours of battery life, all in the size of a typical 11-inch laptop
• New Alienware 15 and 17 gaming laptops provide gaming excellence on-the-go with desktop-class graphics and full-throttle power
• Venue 8 7000 Series tablet now available with a series of ‘firsts’ – world’s thinnest tablet, best tablet display technology available and first tablet with Intel® RealSenseTM Snapshot Depth camera
• Updates to the Inspiron lineup take innovation mainstream with optional 4k Ultra HD touch display, Intel RealSense 3D cameras and 5th Generation Intel® Core™ processors
• Stunning, curved Dell UltraSharp 34 Monitor provides users with a truly immersive visual experience

XPS 13 and 15: Elevate your computing experience

I have to be honest, the announcement from Dell that really made my jaw drop was the XPS 13. You have a high performance 13″ Ultrabook sporting the latest technology for the category, incredible display options and a super-value base price. Oh, and they have essentially packed a 13″ system into the body of an 11″ computer, which is thinner and lighter than the 11″ MacBook Air! And the XPS 15 adds an UltraSharp 4K Ultra HD touch display along with best-in-class performance and updated ultrathin body.

The XPS family of devices has always been designed to be the best balance between form and function. Taking that mentality to new heights is the Dell XPS 13, the smallest 13-inch laptop in the world with a virtually borderless infinity display and the power to get work done anywhere. The XPS 13, with Windows 8.1, is designed to be the best-performing notebook of its size, featuring the longest battery life of a 13-inch notebook with up to 15 hours of run time on a single charge. The laptop’s optional UltraSharp Quad HD+ infinity display, with 5.2mm bezels, boasts an incredible 5.7 million pixels, so movies and presentations burst with eye-popping color and precise detail. The 5th Generation Intel Core processors and solid state drives provide performance and responsiveness, and the remarkably light form factor starts at a mere 2.6 pounds[4]. Connecting while on-the-go has never been so effortlessly stylish.

The XPS 15 continues to surpass expectations by delivering vibrant color and resolution in a new UltraSharp 4K Ultra HD touch display, coming soon on Dell.com. Boasting more than 8 million pixels, the 4K Ultra HD screen option is the highest resolution panel available on a 15-inch laptop today. Rich, saturated color and stunning brightness allow users to see more content and enjoy finer details, perfect for watching movies, consuming web content, or editing photos and videos, and delivered with the XPS 15’s trademark powerhouse performance and ultrathin form factor.

Alienware 15 and 17: Gaming excellence on-the-go, desktop-class graphics at home

Alienware has always meant three things – awesome gaming performance and great looks at a great price. But the focus is first and foremost on performance. Dell recently launched the powerhouse Alienware 13 which demonstrates this, and now have announced the Alienware 15 and 17:

The new Alienware 15 and 17 laptops are suited for every gamer’s needs and designed for performance and gaming scalability whether using the Alienware Graphics Amplifier to power a command center at home or taking high frames per second (FPS) matches on the road. Per the Alienware brand’s commitment to quality materials and a superior user experience, the new notebooks are constructed with elements such as copper, aluminum and carbon-fiber composites for a rigid and performance-focused mechanical design.

Dell Venue 8 7000 Series: Innovative design, groundbreaking features

Dell has also broken free of the many ‘me too’ tablets with the highly anticipated Venue 8, featuring a stunning display, Intel RealSense Snapshot Depth Camera and a quad-core Intel processor for top notch Android tablet performance.

The Venue 8 7000 Series, first unveiled at the Intel Developer Forum (IDF) last September, is now available for purchase on Dell.com in the United States and in select Best Buy stores across the country. The much-anticipated tablet features a series of ‘firsts.’ Based on the Intel® AtomTM processor Z3500 series, it is the world’s thinnest tablet at 6mm, and it features the best tablet display available today, a stunning 2560×1600 OLED infinity edge-to-edge display.

The Venue 8 7000 Series is also the first to integrate the Intel RealSense Snapshot Depth Camera, which captures a depth map for every picture taken. Together with the Dell Gallery application, people will have much more flexibility when editing photos with selective filtering and refocus functions to change the brightness separately on a foreground object or background object, or refocus on any part of the picture. In addition, customers will be able to do simple linear or area measurements with a photo, like measure the length of a sofa or the area of a room. The Dell Gallery also organizes photos into smart albums and gathers photos from Dropbox, Picasa and Facebook into one place. They are then sorted automatically into smart albums by timeline, geography or facial recognition. One of the most exciting and innovative devices Dell has ever produced, it is fitting that the Venue 8 7000 is recognized as a 2015 CES Innovation Award Best of Innovation Honoree.

Dell Inspiron 7000 and 5000 Series: Stylish PCs with innovative new features

I have so many good memories of the Inspiron laptop series that it was great for me to read about Dell pushing the Inspiron 15 5000 and 7000 series as well as a 23″ All-In-One configuration. These are feature-packed devices that will be workhorses for years for just about anyone!

The Dell Inspiron family is proud to unveil a new suite of standout offerings, including the Inspiron 15 7000 Series laptop with Windows, a 2015 CES Innovation Award honoree. The Inspiron 15 7000 Series launches at CES with new 5th Generation Intel Core processors and a 4K UHD touch display option – the sharpest, brightest display ever offered on an Inspiron. The 4K Ultra HD display gives people an astonishingly clear, crisp, wide-angle viewing experience, ideal for watching movies or editing photography or video while on-the-go. The ultra-mobile Inspiron 15 7000 Series notebook’s sleek, lightweight design allows you to easily bring your 4K projects and entertainment with you.

Today, Dell also launches the innovative Intel RealSense 3D Camera Front F200 on the Inspiron 15 5000 Series laptop and Inspiron 23 All-in-One desktop. The 3D camera enables new ways to interact in gaming, entertainment, collaboration and content creation, allowing users to download from a library of new apps in the Intel App Showcase that take advantage of the camera’s depth sensing capabilities. Users can play with gestures in the immersive apps and use the Intel RealSense 3D Camera Front F200 for 3D scanning and 3D printing[5]. The Inspiron 15 5000 Series also boasts the new 5th Generation Intel Core processors for responsive performance and almost 8 hours of battery life.

Dell UltraSharp 34 Monitor : See, feel and live every moment

Finally Dell wowed show attendees with their 34″ curved WQHD monitor with integrated powerful speakers. Now if I can only figure out how to get one for my desk at work …

First previewed at Pax Prime in August 2014, the curved Dell UltraSharp 34 Monitor will be available for purchase Thursday, Jan. 8, on Dell.com. Users will enter new dimensions of gaming and multi-tasking with an immersive, panoramic, curved screen that surrounds the senses with amazingly detailed WQHD resolution. At 34 inches with a 21:9 aspect ratio, the U3415W is the ideal size for a curved monitor. The curved screen optimizes the field of view and minimizes eye movement to deliver a more comfortable viewing experience than a flat screen. Rich and engaging sound from the powerful 18W integrated speakers transports users further into the digital world, while connectivity features support multiple monitors and peripherals for massive screen real estate.

All of these innovations nabbed Dell some serious kudos at CES 2015:
2015 CES Innovation Award Best of Innovation Honoree

Tablets, E-Readers and Mobile Computing Category
•Venue 8 7000 Series Tablet

2015 CES Innovation Award Honorees:
•Alienware Area-51
•Latitude Education 13” Laptop and Mobile Cart
•Dell UltraSharp 34 Monitor – U3415W (Curved)
•Dell UltraSharp 27 Monitor – UP2715K (5K)
•XPS 13 Laptop
•Inspiron 15 7000 Series Laptop

Pricing and Availability

One of my first thoughts was … great, now when are they going to be available? Here are the estimates from Dell:

· The XPS 13 will be available beginning Jan. 6 on Dell.com in the United States starting at $799.99
· The XPS 15 with the 4K Ultra HD display will be coming soon on Dell.com in the United States for starting at $2,349
· The Alienware 15 will be available beginning Jan. 6 on Dell.com in the United States starting at $1,199
· The Alienware 17 will be available beginning Jan. 6 on Dell.com in the United States starting at $1,499
· The Venue 8 7000 Series will be available beginning Jan. 6 on Dell.com in the United States starting at $399.99
· The Inspiron 15 5000 Series with Intel Real Sense 3D camera will be available beginning Jan. 6 on Dell.com in the United States starting at $749.99
· The Inspiron 15 7000 Series will be available beginning Jan. 6 on Dell.com in the United States starting at $1,099.99
· The Inspiron 13 7000 Series 2-in-1 will be available in Best Buy and on Dell.com in the United States in March
· The Inspiron 23 All-in-One with Intel Real Sense camera will be available beginning Jan. 6 on Dell.com in the United States starting at $1,599
· The Dell UltraSharp 34 Monitor will be available beginning Jan. 8 on Dell.com in the United States starting at $1,199.99

As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. If you are shopping on Amazon anyway, buying from our links gives Gear Diary a small commission.

About the Author

Michael Anderson
I have loved technology for as long as I can remember - and have been a computer gamer since the PDP-10! Mobile Technology has played a major role in my life - I have used an electronic companion since the HP95LX more than 20 years ago, and have been a 'Laptop First' person since my Compaq LTE Lite 3/20 and Powerbook 170 back in 1991! As an avid gamer and gadget-junkie I was constantly asked for my opinions on new technology, which led to writing small blurbs ... and eventually becoming a reviewer many years ago. My family is my biggest priority in life, and they alternate between loving and tolerating my gaming and gadget hobbies ... but ultimately benefits from the addition of technology to our lives!