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You do get two USB 3.0 ports and a mini DisplayPort, along with a combination headphone/microphone jack. Adapters for HDMI and Ethernet are available for around £15 each but it would have been nice if these had been included as standard. The lack of an SD card slot will be a deal breaker for some.
With a Core i7 processor, 8GB of RAM and a 256GB flash drive, it is no surprise that the XPS 12 is a powerful machine.
The standard basic setup features a Core i5 processor, 4GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD, but even with these lower specs, it should be able to handle most of what you throw at it.
As you can see in the NovaBench test result, the XPS 12 comes in only second to the latest MacBook Pro, which is nothing to be ashamed of. Boot time is also decent at under 10 seconds and it restarts from sleep in less than five seconds.
Playing back HD video was flawless, even with multiple tabs open on Internet Explorer 10, a Twitter app going and downloading a large file from the internet.
The only issue we did have was with noise. The laptop's fans seem to kick in even when under a relatively light load, and can get pretty loud when they really get going. It's not a huge problem, but considering it happens quite regularly, it can become annoying.
While it won't win any awards, the Dell XPS 12's such as dell Vostro 3350 battery, Dell 0XXDG0 Battery, Dell Latitude E4400 Battery, Dell HW905 Battery, Dell Latitude C400 Battery, Dell 00R271 Battery, Dell Latitude 2100 Battery, Dell C9880 Battery, Dell XPS M2010 Battery, Dell MN151 Battery, Dell Latitude D420 Battery, Dell Inspiron 1012 Battery ery life is still decent. I managed to get just under six hours of general use out of the laptop, though that did include playing some HD video and streaming video from the net, both of which seemed to drain the battery a lot.
I suspect with some prudent settings (lowering the brightness of the screen etc) you may be able to get a full day's work out of the XPS 12.
The XPS 12 is an intriguing proposition. It reflects perfectly the duality of Windows 8, which combines the touch-centric Modern UI with the traditional desktop environment.
The XPS 12 combines a powerful laptop with a 12.5in tablet.
As a tablet it is too big to carry around but offers a superb experience when browsing the web or wathcing a film from the comfort of your couch.
As a laptop it provides a full-featured and powerful Windows experience with a great keyboard and decent battery life, though it is let down by a poor touchpad and limited connectivity.
In terms of value, the version with the Core i7, 8GB of RAM and 256GB SSD which we were using costs £1,299 with versions with lower specs available from £999. This is expensive, even for an Ultrabook, but considering you are getting a laptop and a tablet in one, it represents pretty decent value in my opinion.
Once you get past the XPS 12's party piece, and look at it objectively, I think it will appeal to a limited number of people who are looking for a powerful, portable laptop as well as a tablet to use on the couch at home in the evenings. For those people this is a great device.
The XPS 12 is well-built, powerful and features a superb screen, but like Windows 8, it's combination of laptop and tablet in one package make it something of a Frankenstein's monster - albeit a very good looking one.