The Lenovo Yoga 9i for 2023, which is now in its eighth generation, is a premium convertible laptop with Intel's 13th Gen P-series CPUs, high-res touch displays, inking capabilities, outstanding audio, and a sleek design. The 2022 Yoga 9i model is our pick when it comes to the overall best laptops you can buy today, and the 2023 model is expected to also make a claim for the top spot. Dell's XPS 13 (2022) is another extremely popular laptop, though it's perhaps been overshadowed recently by the more premium XPS 13 Plus. Still, The XPS 13 is a top pick if you need a super compact Ultrabook for way less money than the Yoga 9i. Let's take a close look at how these PCs compare to help you get the right laptop.
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Lenovo Yoga 9i (2023)
High-end convertibleLenovo's Yoga 9i for 2023 gets a performance upgrade with Intel's 13th Gen P-series chips, but it otherwise remains mostly the same as the 2022 model. If you want arguably the best laptop on the market today, the Yoga 9i's convertible design and premium features are sure to satisfy.
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Dell XPS 13 (2022)
More affordable clamshellDell's XPS 13 (2022) is a much more affordable clamshell alternative to the Yoga 9i. It's not as powerful and doesn't have as many high-end features, but it should net you better battery life and still comes in a sleek aluminum chassis.
Lenovo Yoga 9i (2023) vs Dell XPS 13 (2022): Pricing, availability, and specs
The Lenovo Yoga 9i (2023) was announced at CES 2023 and is now available to configure at Lenovo's official website. Note that while you can build a Yoga 9i, it's not expected to ship until late April. Lenovo pegged that starting price at $1,500 during the laptop's announcement, but it seems that prices are starting closer to $1,700. Lenovo's website is the first (and main) retailer, though third-party sellers will no doubt jump on board as the laptop saturates the market. The starting price is higher than previous models, but that's mostly due to Lenovo scrapping any hardware lower than a Core i7 processor (CPU), 16GB of RAM, and 2.8K OLED touch display. There really aren't any low-end models of the Yoga 9i anymore, and those looking to spend less on a similar laptop might want to check out the sibling Yoga 7i (2022) that we favorably reviewed.
Dell's XPS 13 for 2022, also known as the XPS 13 9315, is readily available now at Dell's official website and third-party retailers like Amazon and Best Buy. Looking at the Dell website, models with a Core i5-1230U CPU, 8GB of RAM, 512GB solid-state drive (SSD), and FHD+ non-touch display start at about $799. If we look at a configuration that's closer to what Lenovo offers for its introductory model, a Dell XPS 13 with Core i7-1250U CPU, 16GB of RAM, 512GB SSD, and FHD+ touch display costs about $1,199.
You can spend a lot less money — in some cases almost half the price of the Yoga 9i — on the XPS 13 and still get one of the best Dell laptops on the market today. However, as we'll see in the comparison below, the Yoga 9i has a whole lot of extra features that help justify its price.
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Design and features
The Yoga 9i (2023) really hasn't changed physically compared to the 2022 model. It was indeed redesigned in 2022 with softer curved edges, a new 16:10 aspect ratio for the display, higher-res FHD webcam, larger touchpad, and more. Our Dell XPS 13 (2022) vs. Lenovo Yoga 9i (2022) comparison has more information about the older laptop.
The design changes that Lenovo made last year have carried forward for the 2023 model, and of course you still get the unique soundbar hinge that helps set the Yoga 9i apart from other convertible laptops. The hinge, which house dual 2W tweeters, rotates around with the display to prevent muffled audio. The tweeters are joined by two more 3W woofers on the sides of the laptop. Altogether, and with the help of Dolby Atmos, the Yoga 9i can deliver an outstanding audio experience. The Dell XPS 13's dual 2W stereo speakers are good in their own right, but they won't measure up to the Yoga.
The Yoga 9i's camera is also an upgrade over the XPS 13. Dell seems to be hesitant to upgrade its cameras to 1080p (no doubt due to some issues with the extremely thin top bezel), and the 720p front-facing camera can't measure up to the 1080p camera in the Yoga. Both laptops do have an IR camera for facial recognition, but only the Yoga adds a privacy shutter. Both laptops also feature fingerprint readers for extra security.
Dell's XPS 13 is a clamshell laptop, meaning it doesn't have the 360-degree hinges that allow the screen to rotate around for tablet mode. This allows the XPS 13 to have a smaller overall footprint and to be thinner and lighter than the Yoga 9i. It's not as versatile, but it is easier to carry around. The thin build does give Dell an excuse to cut back the port selection, which it does. The XPS 13 has just two Thunderbolt 4 ports, and anyone wanting to set up a workstation will likely need to invest in a great Thunderbolt dock to expand connectivity.
Lenovo seems less inclined to strip back ports on its premium laptops, and the Yoga 9i comes at you with two Thunderbolt 4, USB-A 3.2, USB-C 3.2, and a 3.5mm audio jack. You can always connect a dock, but the native port selection will do a much better job of keeping dongles and adapters out of your workflow when using the best Yoga 9i accessories. Both laptops also have Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5 for wireless connectivity.
The XPS 13's keyboard lost a bit of travel for this generation, but it's still great for long days of typing. Below the keys is a touchpad that makes great use of the available space. If you appreciate deeper key travel, the Yoga 9i might be a better choice. Key presses feel softer and typing is quiet, plus there's a row of shortcut keys along the right side for quicker access to your most-used apps. Below the keyboard is a huge touchpad that offers precision pointing.
Display
The Yoga 9i (2023) has two 14-inch touch display options, both with some impressive specs. They're OLED displays for incredible color and contrast, they support DIsplayHDR 500 True Black, they offer 100% DCI-P3 color reproduction, and they have a 16:10 aspect ratio. The more affordable option has a 2880x1800 (2.8K) resolution wiht 90Hz refresh rate, but you can also step up to a 3840x2400 (UHD+) resolution with 60Hz refresh rate if you need the extra pixels.
These high-end OLED Yoga displays, combined with the laptop's convertible design and soundbar hinge, make watching TV and movies a dream. Thanks to accurate color reproduction, they can also be used for some design or editing work.
The Yoga 9i's 2.8K and UHD+ OLED touch displays are some of the best screens you'll find in a laptop today.
Dell split its XPS 13 lineup into standard and Plus models last year, reserving the OLED screen for the latter. It also made finding a UHD+ version of the standard XPS 13 quite difficult, to the point where most people have written it off. A UHD+ touch display with 90% DCI-P3 color and anti-reflective finish is listed in Dell's documentation, but good luck finding a model at any retailers.
You'll more commonly see a 13.4-inch display with FHD+ resolution, 16:10 aspect ratio, 500 nits brightness, and 100% sRGB color reproduction. The FHD+ displays come in touch (with anti-reflective finish) or non-touch (with anti-glare finish). The displays also top out at 60Hz; for anything higher you'll have to check out the Yoga 9i's 2.8K OLED screen.
Performance and battery
Lenovo has so far limited its Yoga 9i (2023) specifications to one Intel Core i7-1360P CPU, 16GB of LPDDR5-5200MHz RAM, and an M.2 PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD available in 512GB or 1TB capacities. This could change in the future after the laptop's release in April, but so far it's all that Lenovo is advertising.
The 13th Gen Intel Core processor generation bump is one of the biggest changes to the Yoga 9i (2023). The Core i7-1260P in the 2022 model and the Core i7-1360P in the 2023 model have the same 12 cores and 16 threads, but you get a higher 5GHz boost clock (compared to 4.7GHz) for Performance cores and 3.7GHz (compared to 3.4GHz) for Efficient cores.
The Yoga 9i (2023) has the same 75Wh battery as the 2022 model. In our Lenovo Yoga 9i (2022) review, Editor-in-Chief Rich Woods was able to get about four hours of real-world life in a laptop with 2.8K display (running at 60Hz). This battery life is expected to carry forward into the 2023 models.
Dell's XPS 13 (2022) uses 12th Gen Intel Core U-series chips running at a much lower 12W compared to the 28W P-series in the Yoga 9i. Dell offers both Core i5-1230U and Core i7-1250U variants, each with 10 cores and 12 threads. You get less overall performance, but battery life doesn't take as much of a hit. You'll especially see a performance difference when multitasking.
In our Dell XPS 13 (2022) review, we noted that the 12W CPUs feel a bit underpowered. The flipside is that battery life can go for about seven or eight hours with optimized thermals, which is much better than the Yoga 9i. Ultimately, you'll be choosing between battery life and performance here. The CPUs are joined by either 8GB, 16GB, or 32GB of LPDDR5-5200MHz RAM and either a 512GB or 1TB M.2 PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD.
Lenovo Yoga 9i (2023) vs Dell XPS 13 (2022): Which laptop should you buy?
Choosing between these two laptops might not be as difficult as first suspected. That's especially true now that Lenovo has removed some of the Yoga 9i's lesser configurations, boosting up the starting price to around $1,700. Considering the XPS 13 (2022) starts at about $800, you can spend almost half as much and still get a sleek clamshell Ultrabook.
The XPS 13 doesn't offer as many high-end features as the Yoga 9i — the 720p camera, the lack of OLED screens, the dual 2W speakers, and the underpowered CPUs are notable — but there's always the XPS 13 Plus if you love the look of Dell devices and need a higher level of hardware. And the standard XPS 13 is still a great laptop; it's just sort of been relegated to a more casual market where buyers are looking to spend less and still get a laptop that looks like a million bucks.
There's also the matter of the Yoga 9i's convertible design that adds a ton of versatility and inking support for creative types. The Yoga 9i can fill many roles and is one of the best Lenovo laptops out there, but you'll have to pay quite a bit for the privilege. Again, if you like the XPS design but want a laptop that can change modes, be sure to check out the XPS 13 2-in-1.
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Lenovo Yoga 9i (2023)
Lenovo's Yoga 9i (2023) costs a lot more than the XPS 13, but it brings better performance, higher-res displays, better audio, and a versatile convertible design.
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Dell XPS 13 (2022)
The XPS 13 (2022) costs a lot less than the Yoga 9i, but it won't deliver as good of performance and it lacks many of the same high-end features. It's still a compact and sleek Ultrabook for more casual users who don't want to shell out big for the Yoga.