# Dell XPS 15

10 Hacker News commenters recommended Dell XPS 15 and 12 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 6 of 13 months; owners who said how long report a median of 3.5 years (7 owners).

**Verdict:** Owners say it handles everyday work well and some get long battery life. The most common caveats are trackpad failures, overheating, and battery swelling.

## Why people recommend it

- Good for everyday tasks (2 comments): "it's great as a computer for that floor of the house" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46381707)) "which is perfectly usable" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47169435))

## What people warn about

- Trackpad stopped working or stuck (3 comments): "the battery got pregnant and made the trackpad stop working" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46577966)) "it had a lot of issues over just ~3-4 years: issues with power connector, audio stopping working, touchpad issues" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50231692)) "my top of the line XPS 15 had to be repaired twice due to a "stuck" trackpad issue" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46580295))
- Runs hot, poor thermals (2 comments): "runs hot when I really use it, but it is otherwise fine" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50231590)) "had a lot of issues: coil whine, bad camera placement, terrible thermals" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47250239))
- Batteries swelling or failing (2 comments): "I had two XPS 15's that had swelling batteries" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46550348)) "it often comes out of my bag with no battery" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46166999))
- Build quality and reliability vary (4 comments): "it had a lot of issues over just ~3-4 years: issues with power connector, audio stopping working, touchpad issues" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50231692)) "I've had some issues with it resetting for no apparent reason over its life." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46117024)) "I think it's a manufacturing defect and Dell just never admitted to it" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46117854))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [Apple MacBook Pro](https://hackerapproved.com/p/macbook-pro.md): 928 recommend
- [Apple MacBook Neo](https://hackerapproved.com/p/macbook-neo.md): 707 recommend
- [MacBook Air](https://hackerapproved.com/p/macbook-air.md): 633 recommend
- [Apple MacBook](https://hackerapproved.com/p/apple-macbook.md): 499 recommend
- [Framework Laptop 12](https://hackerapproved.com/p/framework-laptop-12.md): 83 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Dell+XPS+15+laptop&tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Official site](https://www.dell.com/)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Dell XPS 15", https://hackerapproved.com/p/dell-xps-15/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).