Dell XPS Googlebook launches at $999 in the US, Rs 84,990 in India — first Android-powered XPS laptop, built for Pixel owners and Chrome OS refugees. It arrives with Snapdragon X Elite, 16GB RAM, 512GB storage, and a 13.4-inch 2.5K 120Hz LCD touchscreen, but no OLED, no 2-in-1 hinge, and no desktop-class Android apps yet.
The device is not a Chromebook replacement. It’s not a Windows rival either. It’s Google’s second attempt at a laptop OS. Now branded Googlebook OS, running on Dell hardware for the first time.
And it ships today, according to Tom’s Guide’s review timing and pricing details. No pre-order window was mentioned. The $999 starting price is listed as available now. In India, Dell India’s website confirms the same model at ₹84,990.
Matching the US MSRP’s local-market positioning, not a discount or premium. That puts it $300 below the M4 MacBook Air, and $100 above the Acer Googlebook 14, a trade-off: Dell trades convertibility and OLED for raw performance and XPS build quality. The Snapdragon X Elite chip delivers faster Geekbench scores than Acer’s model, per lab testing cited.
But the OS remains the bottleneck. Android apps run scaled-up, not reimagined for keyboard-and-mouse. Gemini AI prompts appear via cursor wiggle. A novelty, not a workflow.
Touchscreen works. Trackpad doesn’t, haptic feedback feels alien, two-finger scrolling overshot and inconsistent. Dell didn’t fix what Chrome OS users already knew: touchpads need retraining when gestures don’t map. The 2.2-pound chassis, 0.5-inch depth, and Shimmer silver finish follow XPS tradition.
Quad speakers are present but unremarkable. Volume and fidelity match the MacBook Air, not exceed it. No HDR. No stylus support.
No tablet mode. This isn’t for artists. It’s for Android power users who want a laptop that syncs notifications, shares clipboard, and auto-fills passwords without an iPhone tether. IPhone owners?
Dell and Tom’s Guide agree: skip it. The MacBook Neo or Air remain the logical picks. So who buys this? Pixel 9 Pro XL owners waiting for deeper cross-device continuity.
Developers testing Android-native workflows beyond phones. Or early adopters betting Google will ship proper desktop Android apps, and fix the trackpad. Before 2027. Dell hasn’t announced a wider XPS Googlebook lineup.
But if this one sells, more will follow. Next up: confirmation of Windows coexistence mode, rumored but unconfirmed. And whether Googlebook OS gains Linux app support before year-end.
CDFiled by The Computing Desk
Laptops, desktops, processors, graphics cards and the operating systems that run on them.
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