New XPS 12 4th Generation i7 - Expected Battery Life

Hi atsats,

XPS 12 is offered with a 6-cell lithium-ion battery. The battery backup depends on the usage of the system and the applications you run on the system. Please refer to the below link for more information on battery tips.

http://dell.to/WxMQag

Safe rule of thumb:  take the manufacturer's quoted battery life and divide by two for normal usage;  divide by 3 if you use the system all the time.

Thanks, but that link does not give a battery life projection under the conditions listed. I'm looking for  the number of hours that the battery can last under some assumptions.

Dell forecasts 8 hours of battery life for the 4th gen i5 XPS 12, but does not make a similar projection for the i7, which uses more power. Undoubtedly, the battery life is less than 8 hours for the i7 - but by how much (again under some usage assumptions)?

Thanks ejn63

That would be disappointing. I have a 3rd gen i7 15z and I'm getting about 4 hours on it with varied, light usage (email, web browsing, no video).

So, if this still holds for the 4th gen i7, Intel (or Dell) didn't improve things with the latest release.

Interestingly, the Lenovo Yoga 13 3rd gen i7 gets close to 8 hours (with the same usage pattern above). So, theoretically, it's possible for Dell to offer this as well.

You're absolutely right, I should compare similar-sized batteries. Thanks for pointing that out.

My point with the Lenovo comparison is that it is possible through design to get long battery life (by making the battery as large as possible). Dell should invest more along those lines.

In any case, I took the plunge and ordered one of these. I'll post back with my experience when I get in about 2-3 weeks.

If the i5 gives 8 hours from Dell, subtract an hour for an i7 for a 7-hour theoretical estimate.  Real-world will probably be 3.5-4 hours at best.

You can't compare an XPS 15z (large battery) with an ultrabook tablet (much smaller battery).  As for the comparison to the Lenovo, you'd also have to compare the size of the battery inside the system.  Some manufacturers shrink everything down so that the inside is basically 90% battery (ever looked inside an iPad, for instance)?