Recently I got myself a Dell XPS 13 9370 (early 2018) Develper Edition with Ubuntu preinstalled. Well, Ubuntu is surely not my favourite so one of the first things I did was to delete Ubuntu and (try to) install Debian. Here I try to summarize my struggles and several solutions I found for the various problems. Also, I will give my humble opinion on this machine.

I do absolutely not aim to circumvent the DebianOn project but rather write this down for my own documentation (as most things on this site).

But first things first. I bought this notebook after lots and lots of research and was a little scared that I would be disappointed. Some people were very negative about it, but mainly because it has no more USB A connectors and no more RJ45 Ethernet connectors (I prefer wired Ethernet for installation). Also, I was “afraid” of the glossy screen even though I got the non-touch version.

After using the XPS 13 now for a little more than 1 month I came to the following verdict.

I got the machine with these specs. They are more than sufficient for me as I still have a desktop with more power for heavy work.

• Platinum Silver with carbon fiber interior
• Intel i7-8550U
• 8 GB RAM
• 256 GB PCIe SSD
• Full HD 1920×1080 13,3“ display

I just found one negative thing about this machine so far. I am neutral about two things and I like all the rest

This is by all meant not a review! Just my personal, subjective opinion.

• This system is VERY susceptible to finger prints and other dirt.

• I miss one USB A connector. The USB C/USB A adapter which is delivered together with the notebook works fine but its handling is suboptimal.
• I have not used the webcam yet and probably will use it only seldom. I like that Dell has placed it in the center as opposed to on the left side as in earlier models. While I understand that the bottom is the only option with the infinity display I can imagine that it is not very flattering

• The notebook has a very nice finishing, all is high quality. Despite how small, light and thin it is, it feels really sturdy.
• The processor has more than enough power for all things I do with it. It even makes me do more on the notebook rather than using the desktop.
• RAM and disk space are more than enough for me as this is not my primary system. The speed is as expected and I am sure it will serve me well for quite some time.
• As a true Linux user I tend to use the keyboard more than the mouse/touch pad and even though the travel is really shallow (usually I prefer Cherry MX Blue) it still is astonishing precise and it feels nice to type on.
• The touch pad has a nice feel and is very precise as well. I like the three finger tap as middle click which is very useful in Linux.
• Even though the screen is glossy, it is not so glossy that you can use it as a mirror, so some kind of anti-reflective coating is applied. It is very bright and even when the sun is shining you can still read it pretty well (which I honestly didn't expect) because it is so bright. And the infinity display is just WOW.
• The noise level is great, of course you can hear it with all cores at 100% but it is still not too loud.
• Even though it will probably not reach the same levels as with Windows the battery life is impressive. With no performance tweaks and even Power Management at a minimum (for Wifi even off) it makes 10 hours.