New Dell XPS 15 and 17 laptops debut, add 3D, Sandy Bridge

From CNET News.com: The Dell XPS 15, though bulky, was one of our top mainstream laptops in 2010. Updates to the XPS 15 and 17 line of high-end Dell laptops retain the somewhat homely look of their predecessors, but add new second-generation Core i-series processors, upgraded graphics options, increased display resolutions, and even a few 3D models. These are the laptops announced at CES 2011, but they're finally available for purchase.

You can check out the prices for yourself, but they remain pretty affordable. While the XPS 17 with a new 1080p 3D display starts at $1,099, its specs are impressive: 2.3GHz Core i5-2410M CPU, Nvidia GeForce GT550M graphics, that revamped 1,920x1,080-pixel display, 4GB of RAM, and a 500GB 7,200rpm hard drive. An entry-level non-3D XPS 17 starts at $899.

The new XPS 15 starts at a bit pricier $1,069, which is considerably more than the $849 bargain entry-level XPS 15 we reviewed in 2010. This model, however, includes a 2.7GHz Intel Core i7-2620M CPU and Nvidia GeForce GT525M Optimus graphics to go with 4GB RAM/500GB hard drive. The XPS 15 can increase its RAM up to 8GB, whereas the XPS 17 can go up to 16GB.

We appreciate the spec bumps, but they're hardly surprising. Next time, we hope the XPS gets a much-needed design revamp, too.

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