The key trend for 2012 as far as computing goes seems to be the ultrabook and new models seem to be being announced as fast as we can keep up. Now we have new for you of Dell’s first ultrabook offering, the Dell G276c Battery XPS 13, another to add to the list of growing competition in the market.

We recently told how the growth of ultrabooks in 2012 may not be as successful as many manufacturers hope and that it may be 2013 before any real advances are made into the dominance of Apple’s MacBook Air. However this news from analysts doesn’t seem to have stopped the major players having a stab. Also we told how future ultrabooks might be coming down in price but that’s not the case with the XPS 13, which starts, at $999. However this is still several hundred dollars less than the starting price of the 13-inch MacBook Air.

The Dell Inspiron 1521 Battery XPS 13 laptop actually looks very stylish and as you would expect is slim and lightweight. Rather cleverly Dell Inspiron 1000 Battery has managed to include a 13-inch display in a form factor that appears smaller, by using a thin screen border. According to the WSJ review of the XPS 13, Dell Latitude d500 Battery has managed to achieve this by using edge-to-edge glass and when sized up against the MacBook Air with the same sized display the Dell Latitude 131l Battery model is noticeably smaller. Walt Mossberg of the WSJ states that “there’s a lot to like” about the XPS 13 and plus points included its fast performance, design, build, backlit keyboard and screen. However the battery was pointed out as being a “major downside,” lasting around 2 hours less than that of the MacBook Air in informal tests.

The $999 version of the XPS 13 run Windows 7, has 4GB of memory, a 128GB solid-state drive and an Intel Core i5 processor. There’s a USB 2.0 port as well as a USB 3.0 port and also a Mini Display Port. Doubling the SSD will take the price to $1299 or you can double the SSD and include a better processor for $1499. The model that Mossberg reviews was a higher-end configuration but he points out that he would imagine the base model to be suitably speedy too. It’s also noted that the display is of a lower-resolution than that of the MacBook Air. As far as release goes this article reports that shipping is due to start in North America next week while other regions are expected to release the XPS 13 at some point later in March.

You may also be interested in a video that you can view below this story that shows a hands-on look at the Dell XPS 13. Ultimately it seems that the Dell N956c Battery XPS 13 is a pretty good all round ultrabook and the pricing to us seems reasonable for high-end specs such as the SSD. However if you have concerns about battery life then you may want to consider an alternative, which is a shame considering the rest that this ultrabook has to offer.

It would be interesting to find out what our readers think about the Dell XPS 13. Maybe the battery life isn’t so important to you and the Dell xps m1330 battery XPS 13 is going to be your next computing purchase? Alternatively maybe the battery performance is enough to put you off opting for this ultrabook?

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