CES 2017: Dell launches XPS 27 AIO and Canvas display as direct rival to Microsoft Surface Studio

High-end desktop PCs are officially 'in' this year

Dell is taking aim at the Microsoft Surface Studio with the launch at CES 2017 in Las Vegas this week of the XPS 27 all-in-one (AIO) and Canvas 27 display.

On first impressions, the device looks like an Apple iMac. However, it shares more similarities with the Microsoft Surface Studio, offering a 4K IPS display with optional touchscreen functionality. The touchscreen version of the XPS 27 has a pivoting stand that allows it to tilt and move to a horizontal position.

This isn't it's selling point, though, according to Dell, which has stuffed the AIO with 10 speakers, aiming the machine at those who want desktop speakers that can deliver high-quality audio.

"Co-created with Jack Joseph Puig, Grammy award-winning producer and director of creative innovation at Waves Audio, the new XPS 27 AIO, and its Precision business sibling, crank sound to a whole new level with built-in audio quality that previously required an external sound bar," Dell said.

"With full frequency range high-fidelity audio built in, they deliver the best sound available in an AIO with 10 speakers pumping out sound at 50W per channel."

On the inside, the Dell XPS 27 packs either a 6th-generation Intel Core i5-7400 or i7-7700 processor, coupled with AMD 400 series graphics, up to 32GB of DDR4 RAM, 2TB of hard drive space and 1TB PCIe SSD storage. There's also two USB-C ports, five USB 3.0 ports, an HDMI output, a Gigabit Ethernet connector headphone jack, and SD card reader.

The Dell XPS 27 is available to buy in the US now priced from $1,499.99, but there's no word on UK availability yet.

While the XPS 27 AIO shares similarities with the Surface Studio, the Dell Canvas 27 is the company's answer to Microsoft's creative desktop machine.

It's essentially a Surface Studio without the PC, arriving as a 27in QHD slanted touchscreen display that can be hooked up to 'most' Windows 10 machines. Like the Microsoft alternative, the Dell Canvas also ships with its own hockey puck-style controlled, dubbed 'Totem, that pulls up a circular menu that can be used for controlling Windows and specific apps when attached to the screen.

Dell says that the Canvas will start shipping in April this year but there's no word on pricing just yet.