As with most of today’s laptop offerings there are lots of optional upgrades to choose from when buying your XPS 14Z, however we can confirm that no-matter what you choose there will be a second-generation Intel Core processor, a 13-inch body, a 0.9-inch thick design, Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit (or better), WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, a 14-inch HD WLED display (720p), a 1.3 megapixel webcam, a slot-loading dual-layer DVD burner, Gigabit Ethernet, a 58 WHr 8-Cell battery and 1 year’s basic support. We can also confirm that there is 1 x USB 3.0 port, 1 x USB 2.0 port, 1 HDMI 1.4 port and a Mini DisplayPort.

OK, now that we have got all of the boring stuff out the way we can run through the different configurations available to you. For $999.99 you get the Intel Core I5-2430M (2.40 GHz) processor, 6GB DDR3 1333MHz RAM, Intel HD Graphics 3000 and a 500GB SATA HDD (7200rpm). Alternatively you could spend $1,199.99 and get the same model, but you get 8GB DDR 1333MHz RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GT 520M 1GB graphics and a 750GB SATA HDD (7200rpm).

If cost doesn’t concern you, you can choose all of the internal hardware upgrades available to you and pay $1,599.99. This gets you the Intel Core i7-2640M (2.80 GHz) processor, 8GB DDR3 1333MHz RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GT 520M 1GB graphics and a 256GB Solid State Drive – sadly there are no upgrades available to give you a slot-loading Blu-ray burner or a 1080p display.

We guess that if you want a thin laptop with a DVD drive this is definitely a model you should check out, head over to Dell’s website to configure a model to suit your needs.

Like modern-day laptops there is a base model and then various upgrades available which of course will bump up the price. The low-end model will use 2.3GHz Core i5-2410M, whilst the top-end will use 2.3GHz Core i7-2820QM and will also cost you an added $500.

The base RAM stands at 4GB but can be upgraded to 8GB for an added $120 and a 256GB SSD option can be added for an extra $600, as standard you get a 500GB SATA HDD. Graphical options are pretty limited, as standard you get NVIDIA GeForce GT 525M 1GB graphics (with Optimus) for an extra $100 you can GT 540M 2GB graphics (with Optimus), if you want a TV tuner simply add $50 to the graphics which you choose.

You can find out more specifications by checking out the Dell website, prices start at $799.99, however if you choose a lot of the optional extras you can easily spend in excess of $3000.

CNET’s tests show that the Dell competes well against top of the range PC’s and specialist PC’s such as Acer Aspire 5742G-7200 and Alienware m15x, however in all tests the Apple MacBook Pro – Core i7 Sandy Bridge 15.4-inch – 2.2GHz beats it by a significant margin, you can see the benchmark results here.

Will you be buying the Dell XPS 15-L502X?

Just like the MacBook Air, the Adamo laptop had an aluminum casing, used solid-state drives, and was powered by Intel Core 2 Duo processors. However, as Brooke Crothers over at cnet.com recently reported, the Adamo came out quite expensive, with a starting price of $2000.

The hefty price tag was hard to justify for consumers, due to its lack of a high-performance processor and built-in optical drive. The Adamo did however feature a 13.4-inch display with a pixel resolution of 1366 x 768, and a SIM card slot similar to that of a tablet PC or smartphone.

As you can see from an image that’s displayed in a recent engadget.com post by Vlad Savov, Dell is now encouraging consumers to try their latest performance XPS laptops including the XPS 15 and XPS 17, which are priced up at $799.99 and $999.99 respectively.

The XPS 15’s features include NVIDIA performance graphics, integrated NVIDIA 3DTV Play software and built-in high-fidelity 20W JBL speakers with Waves MaxxAudio Technology. The XPS 17 on the other hand, features 22W JBL speakers (including a 12W subwoofer) and a 2MP HD webcam.

You can read more about the XPS 15 laptop via the Dell.com link here, and more about the XPS 17 through the dell.com link here. What do you think of the XPS 15 and 17 laptops?

The new Dell XPS range has a higher class of finish than that of the Studio and Adamo range, along with a few hardware tweaks here and there. Prices start from $899 for the 14-inch, $849 for the 15-inch and $949 for the 17-inch.

Crave has been looking at the hardware to see what you will get for your money, and you will be impressed. The basic configuration gives you an Intel Core i5 460M CPU, 4GB of RAM, 500GB hard Drive – needs to be SSD -, and an Nvidia GeForce 420M Graphics card.

As with all Dell computers, there are a number of upgrade options. First decide what your needs are before you start to add a few dollars onto the standard price. Do you think that the new range of Dell XPS laptops will sell well in the first part of 2011 – especially with the wave of new tablets that is about to hit the market?