Math Teacher in Need of a Great Laptop for Teaching - is the Dell xps 13 2-in-1 the ONE?

[Jparks1488]

Hello - I teach hs trig. I need a new computer and am trying to decide between the surface pro 4 and your new Dell XPS 13 2-in-1. What are the benefits to the Dell over the surface pro? I need to have the pen capabilities.

Thank you
Janice

 

[Graybush]

Both are really good laptops. The biggest difference I find between the two is that the Surface Pro 4 has easy portability and has more stylus sensitivity than the XPS 13, but it doesn't have a long battery life.

The XPS 13 is the more powerful laptop CPU wise, but it's a little larger and a little heftier than the Surface Pro 4.

So personally, I'd go with an XPS 13, but if you're on the budget the Surface Pro 4 is a good alternative.

 

[GreyCatz]

Hello - I teach hs trig. I need a new computer and am trying to decide between the surface pro 4 and your new Dell XPS 13 2-in-1. What are the benefits to the Dell over the surface pro? I need to have the pen capabilities.

Thank you
Janice

Hello, Janice:

Here are 2 reviews of your candidates:

Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 (late January 2017) by laptopmag:
http://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/laptops/dell-xps-13-2-in-1

Microsoft Surface Pro 4 (mid-February 2017) by techradar:
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/tablets/microsoft-surface-pro-4-1290285/review

A few highlights:
- The magnetic pen is included in with the Surface Pro 4. Dell charges $49 for the Active Pen with no attach feature.
- The Surface Pro 4 comes with an i5 6300U CPU @ 2.4GHz where the Dell uses an i5 7Y54 CPU @ 1.2GHz.
- The Dell weighs 2.7 lbs and the Surface Pro 4 weighs 1.7 lbs.

Other than that, I suspect it's very much going to be a matter of taste. Battery life is pretty much the same (8 to 9 hours), both displays are praised by reviewers, and the laptops fall within a $100 of each other depending on where you look.

Best of luck,
GreyCatz.

 

[Jparks1488]

thanks so much for your reply and advice -- I will go try them out in a store to get a better feeling for each pen.