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Last year, Dell killed off all of its PC brands, including the iconic XPS lineup, and replaced them with a simplified naming scheme. It was a move meant to make it easier for people to discern between the company's many brands, but in reality, it just just made the company's lineup even more confusing. We called it an unforced error at the time, but after seeing how much Dell's PC market share fell over 2025, it's fair to say that rebranding was an absolute marketing disaster. So, with its tail between its legs, Dell has returned to CES some welcome news for its fans: XPS lives! And the company plans to double-down on the brand in ways it never did before. Today, Dell revealed the new XPS 14 and 16 notebooks, which feature a more practical design than the previous models. There's a new function row with traditional keys, instead of the odd capacitive buttons that disappeared in sunlight. And while the company is sticking with its "invisible" trackpad, which sits flush alongside the wrist rest, there's now a light border around the edges that lets you feel exactly where the trackpad begins and ends.So, in short, Dell seems to have solved most of our recent complaints about the XPS lineup. To signify its commitment to the brand, it's also emblazoning the XPS logo on all of these new machines, replacing the previous Dell name. Thats something I could never imagine a less humbled Dell doing. The redesign also gave Dell room to shave off some weight and thickness from both machines. The XPS 14 weighs around three pounds now, a half-pound lighter than the previous generation, while the XPS 16 weighs 3.6 pounds, a whole pound lighter than before. The new cases make both machines look a lot more like Microsofts extra-subtle Surface Laptop, but thats not necessarily a bad thing. Both systems are powered by Intels new Panther Lake Core Ultra Series 3 chips, and they also offer tandem OLED display options.Dell also briefly teased the return of a new XPS 13 later this year, which is set to be the companys thinnest and lightest notebook ever. Dell says itll be cheaper than the XPS has been in the past.The new XPS 14 and 16 will be available on January 6, starting at $1,650 and $1,850, respectively. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/dell-revives-its-xps-laptops-after-a-boneheaded-rebranding-001028029.html?src=rss
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Intel turned up to CES 2026 to herald the birth of the Core Ultra Series 3, a new range of chips offering exceptional performance. It says the mobile processors, formerly known as Panther Lake, deliver great graphics and battery life alongside the aforementioned grunt. And that, for the first time, the silicon has been certified for embedded and industrial use cases, including robotics and smart cities. But, like so many stories about Intel these days, the launch is loaded with so much subtext youll need a copy of Cliffs Notes to understand it.On the face of it, these are just some snappy flagship chips, available in Core Ultra 7 and 9 ranges as well as Core X7 and X9, which ship with 12 Xe graphics cores over the usual four. Almost all of them offer 16 total cores and threads, and all bar two have total NPU performance of 50 PTOPS.Image of the Core Ultra Series 3IntelThese chips are going to be famous for two key reasons: First, Intel claims theyre the most advanced chips ever manufactured in the US. Second, theyre the first to be made using Intels long awaited 18A process, which has dogged the company for several years. 18A was a key plank of former CEO Pat Gelsingers rescue plan to restore Intel to the top of the chip world. But sadly that comeback didnt come fast enough to prevent the CEO from being (unfairly, in my mind) deposed at the end of 2024. It didnt help that, for all of the money spent on 18A, as recently as August 2025, the company was reportedly still suffering from low yields and high defect rates.18A is short for 18 Angstrom, a measurement thats far smaller than the nanometers we currently use to denote transistor size in chips. 18 Angstrom is roughly equivalent to 1.8 nanometers, putting it on the same rough level as the most advanced manufacturing process N2 available at TSMC in Taiwan. At CES, Intels new CEO Lip Bu-Tan said the company was now ahead of schedule for ramping production on 18A, which could mark an important shift in the global chip market. You should expect to see these chips show up in laptops from all the usual suspects, including HP, Acer, Lenovo, Dell, Samsung and the rest across this year. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/ces-2026-intel-hopes-its-core-ultra-series-3-chips-are-the-start-of-a-comeback-000155611.html?src=rss
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Who among us hasn't looked at the ASUS ROG Flow Z13 and said, "That's great and all, but what if it had more Hideo Kojima?" Well, our cries have been heard. Behold, the ROG Flow Z13-KJP, a collaboration between ASUS and Kojima Productions.On the inside, this model is no different than the standard version we reviewed last May. The device takes a Surface Pro-like form factor and beefs it up into something thats more like a gaming laptop. (Ergo, ASUS's pitch of the product as a "gaming tablet.")But on the outside, you'll find a design "for Ludens who dare." The Death Stranding influence is evident, but you may pick up on some Metal Gear-adjacent touches as well. The tablet's gold color, symbols and integrated carbon fiber conjure Kojimas Ludens mascot. This variant is slightly larger than the standard one, most noticeably in the detachable keyboard.ROG Flow Z13-KJPASUSThere will also be matching accessories available, including a mouse, case, headphones and a desk mat. Depending on your region, those may or may not be bundled with the device. (We'll update this story when we find out more.)Fortunately, once the design novelty wears off, you're left with a fairly powerful gaming machine. The Copilot PC has a 13.4-inch IPS touchscreen with a 180Hz refresh rate and 500 nits of brightness. Its port selection is surprisingly generous: two USB 4 Type-C ports, one USB-A port, HDMI 2.1, 3.5mm audio and a microSD slot. The Ryzen AI Max+ 395 chip inside has integrated graphics that punch above what you'd expect. You can configure it with up to 128GB LPDDR5X 8000 RAM.More Kojima than you ever expected from a "gaming tablet"ASUSASUS hasn't yet revealed pricing or availability for the ROG Flow Z13-KJP. You can read more about the standard version in Sam Rutherford's review.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/ces-asus-made-a-special-hideo-kojima-version-of-the-rog-flow-z13-000000768.html?src=rss
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