Best Buy was listing the 16GB configuration of Dell's 2026 XPS 13 at $799.99 when Windows Central reported the price on October 21, a $200 cut from the $999.99 Dell charges for the same machine on its own site.
The XPS 13 in question is the redesigned, entry-level model Dell put out this year, built as a cheaper on-ramp for first-time Windows buyers rather than a power-user machine. The configuration on sale pairs an Intel Core 5 Series 3 320 processor with 16GB of RAM that's soldered to the board, meaning buyers have to pick their memory amount at checkout since it can't be upgraded later. The SSD is swappable, and Dell offers the XPS 13 with up to 4TB of storage.
Other specs, per Windows Central, include a 13.4-inch touchscreen running at 2560x1600 resolution with a 120Hz refresh rate, a 0.5-inch-thick chassis weighing 2.2 pounds, two Thunderbolt 4 ports, an IR sensor for facial sign-in, Wi-Fi 7, and a battery the outlet says runs close to 15 hours per charge.
The laptop has drawn praise from reviewers since launch. Tom's Hardware gave it four and a half stars, with managing editor Matt Safford writing that it's "an excellent Windows-based answer to the MacBook Neo" for students and mainstream users who don't need extra CPU or GPU power. Windows Central's own Cale Hunt called it the "perfect starter PC," while colleague Zac Bowden argued the MacBook Neo's run as computing's best value is over because of it.
Why now instead of Black Friday
Shoppers usually wait for Black Friday, when laptop prices tend to bottom out for the year. Windows Central's Alexander Cope pointed to a different pressure this time: an industry-wide RAM shortage that's been pushing laptop prices up rather than down. Whether that trend eases or worsens by late November is unclear, which is the outlet's reasoning for grabbing the Best Buy price now rather than gambling on a deeper discount later.
Neither Dell nor Best Buy has said how long the $799.99 price will hold, and deal pricing on both retailers' sites tends to shift without much notice. Anyone comparing options should also check Dell's own site directly, since promotional pricing there can move independently of what Best Buy is charging on a given day.
For now, the gap between Dell's list price and Best Buy's discounted one is the clearest signal of where this particular laptop's price floor sits heading into the holiday shopping season, RAM costs permitting.
DDFiled by The Deals Desk
Price drops and sales on tech worth buying, with the price, the retailer and the time it was reported. Prices move; every deal says when it was seen.
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