Buying XPS 13 -- some build/upgrade questions

rhouck

2[H]4U
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Apr 15, 2002
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So my current laptop is getting more than a little long in the tooth... Sony Vaio VPCZ1 purchased in 2010, with several white lines on the screen, inability to install Win10 and lack of brightness controls (due to driver issues), and the "J" key works 1 out of 3 presses due to a dog jumping on it.

My needs/wants:
1. Similar form factor: I like my Vaio and XPS 13 seems like it is very similar size/weight
2. Long Battery Life: this is a major priority
3. Hard drive space: Ideally 500gb-1tb (I have 256 in my VAIO and it is constantly full)
4. Graphics/speed: low priority, not going to be gaming, complex video editing, etc
5. QUIET: fan noise drives me nuts. If they had the fanless options in the regular XPS13 (that they have in the 2-in-1) I would probably go for that.

I believe I've decided on the XPS 13 (9360) with i5, 8gb RAM, 1080p screen. Unless there's a compelling reason to go up or down on CPU (i3 or i7). More RAM doesn't appear to be an option without going 4K touchscreen which I don't want (due to battery life).

QUESTIONS:
1. CPU: any reason to go i3 or i7 over the i5?
2. SSD: I'm leaning towards getting the 128gb and replacing it with a bigger drive. Would this https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-960-EVO-Internal-MZ-V6E1T0BW/dp/B01LXS4TY6 be a good option? If not, I'm open to suggestions. Again, not gaming or super heavy use -- size and reliability (and battery life, to the extent that is affected at all) are the primary concerns.
3. Best place to buy: order direct from Dell or elsewhere? I'm in CA if that matters. Not interested in used/refurbs.
 
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I bought the XPS 15 (9560) and put the 500GB version of the 960 Evo in mine. Works great and is snappier than the stock 256GB. I also upped the RAM to 16GB.

Got my XPS from Amazon because Dell didn't offer the i5 with 8GB/256GB. Probably could have ordered it from Dell over the phone, but I had a $200 Amazon gift card that I wanted to apply to the purchase.

I think the i5 is excellent. It easily handles whatever I throw at it, even some 4K video editing. I got the 4K touchscreen and love it. I get 5-6 hours of battery life, but understand that you get a lot more with the 1080p option.
 
Much appreciated. Sounds like this will be a good fit then. Ordered the i5 xps 13 as well as a 960 Evo to throw in. Looking forward to having a new laptop!
 
Best thing to do is to order through Dell (which I'm assuming you did), and to open up a chat and get a few bucks knocked off. Haggling is great.
 
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