Dell XPS 13 review: The first budget laptop to rival Neo raises the bar for all PCs

Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. Dell's new XPS 13 dropped with a singular purpose in mind: compete with (and take down) the MacBook Neo. Does it do that? It depends. But it absolutely does raise the bar for "budget" Windows laptops -- something PC makers realized they could no longer avoid post-Neo. Perhaps, then, the question is not so much about the Dell XPS 13's relationship to Apple's most affordable MacBook and more about how it relates to other inexpensive Windows devices. Seen in that light, the XPS 13 is the best budget Windows laptop on the market right now. That's not hyperbole. The XPS 13 would be a fantastic device even if it weren't considered "budget" -- it's exceedingly thin and light, has an…