Dell’s Laptops: Dell, XPS and Alienware; Premium Is Retired

Dell sells its home laptops under three names: Dell for everyday machines, XPS for its thinnest and most premium models, and Alienware for gaming. The Dell Premium name was retired in January 2026, when XPS came back, and Dell Pro is the separate line for work. On Dell’s US store on 23 October 2026 the everyday Dell line started at $599.99, XPS at $699.99 built to order, and Alienware at $1,199.99.

Every price below is the “Dell Price” on Dell’s US store, read on 23 October 2026. Dell often shows a higher crossed-out “Estimated Value” beside it; Dell’s own footnote calls that an estimate from third-party retailer data, so we do not treat it as a list price.

The names at a glance

Name	What Dell says it is	Models on the US store	Starts at
Dell	Everyday laptops for home, school and daily tasks	Dell 14, 15, 16; Dell 14 Plus, 16 Plus; Dell 14S, 16S; 2-in-1 versions	$599.99 (Dell 15)
XPS	“Our thinnest, lightest, most premium consumer laptops”	XPS 13, XPS 14, XPS 16; XPS Googlebook	$699.99 (XPS 13, build your own)
Alienware	Gaming	Alienware 15, 16 Aurora, 16X Aurora, 16 Area-51, 18 Area-51	$1,199.99 (Alienware 15)
Dell Pro	Business laptops	Dell Pro, Pro Essential, Pro Rugged, Pro Precision	Not covered here

Dell’s January post put it plainly: two brands, “Dell for personal use and Dell Pro for work”, with XPS, Dell and Alienware as the personal-use lines. The same post says Dell had simplified its product naming the year before and was now “bringing back a few names you know and trust, like XPS and Precision”. Plus remains a step inside the Dell family on the store; Premium is gone.

Inside the Dell line: plain, Plus and S

Model	Starts at	Chip in that model	Screen	Notable
Dell 15	$599.99	Intel Core 3 100U	15.6-inch FHD, 120Hz	AMD version $629.99
Dell 14	$799.99	Intel Core Series 3	Up to QHD LCD
Dell 16	$999.99	AMD Ryzen	16-inch	Intel version $1,099.99
Dell 16 Plus	$1,299.99	AMD Ryzen AI	Up to FHD+	Intel version $1,399.99, up to QHD+ Mini LED
Dell 14 Plus	$1,379.99	Intel Core Ultra	Up to QHD+ Mini LED	2-in-1 from $1,339.99
Dell 16S	$1,269.99	AMD Ryzen AI 400	2.8K OLED	Intel version $1,549.99
Dell 14S	$1,399.99	Intel Core Ultra 5 322	14-inch FHD+

Dell describes the plain Dell models as everyday laptops for school, working from home, browsing, streaming and video calls, mostly with integrated graphics. Its FAQ says the 14S and 16S are “targeted at young professionals and creators, offering more powerful processors, graphics, and elevated display options.” The numbers are the screen size, so a Dell 16 Plus is the 16-inch Plus model. The Plus and S prices overlap: on the day we read them, the cheapest 16S cost less than the cheapest 14 Plus.

The old Inspiron name has not fully gone. Dell’s store still listed a 14-inch Inspiron 2-in-1, filed under the Dell laptops line.

Two different machines carry the 14S name. The one Dell announced at IFA on 2 September is 13.5mm thin, 1.15kg, with Core 5 or Core 7 Series 3 chips, Wi-Fi 6E and four colours, “available in North America this fall” with pricing to come. The Dell 14S on Dell’s US store today (model DS14260) is 15.4mm and 3.28 lb, with a Core Ultra 5 322 and Wi-Fi 7. Check the model number on the order page before buying.

What the steps up add, on Dell’s spec sheets

	Dell 15	Dell 16 Plus	Dell 14S	XPS 13	XPS 14
Configuration read	Core 3 100U, 8GB, 512GB	Core Ultra 7 256V, 16GB, 1TB	Core Ultra 5 322, 16GB, 512GB	Core 5 320, 8GB, 512GB	Core Ultra 5 325, 16GB, 512GB
Price	$599.99	$1,399.99	$1,399.99	$799.99	$1,989.99
Screen	15.6-inch FHD, 120Hz	16-inch QHD+, 300 nits, 60Hz	14-inch FHD+, 400 nits, 60Hz	13.4-inch 2.5K touch, 500 nits, 30–120Hz	14-inch 1920×1200, 500 nits, 1–120Hz
Ports	USB 5Gbps, USB 2.0, USB-C 5Gbps, HDMI 1.4, SD slot	Thunderbolt 4, USB-C 10Gbps, USB 5Gbps, HDMI 2.1	2 Thunderbolt 4, 2 USB 5Gbps, HDMI 2.1	2 USB-C	3 Thunderbolt 4
Wi-Fi	Wi-Fi 6	Wi-Fi 7	Wi-Fi 7	Wi-Fi 7	Wi-Fi 7
Battery	41Wh	64Wh	70Wh	52Wh	70Wh
Weight	Up to 4.19 lb	From 4.12 lb	3.28 lb	2.2 lb	From 3.00 lb

In this comparison, the cheapest Dell 15 (affiliate link to Amazon, opens in a new tab) is the one with a non-backlit keyboard, a USB 2.0 port, an HDMI 1.4 port and Wi-Fi 6; the Dell 16 Plus and Dell 14S add Thunderbolt 4 and Wi-Fi 7. On the XPS 13 (affiliate link to Amazon, opens in a new tab), Dell’s spec sheet lists the two Thunderbolt 4 ports only “with Intel Core Ultra processors”; Dell’s May blog post calls the ports on the base model USB-C 3.2 Gen 2.

XPS: back, and wider than before

Model	Starts at	Chip in that model	Screen	Weight
XPS 13	$699.99 built to order; $799.99 cheapest ready configuration	Intel Core 5 320	13.4-inch 2.5K touch	2.2 lb
XPS Googlebook	$999.99	Snapdragon X Elite	13.4-inch 2.5K touch	2.2 lb
XPS 14	$1,989.99	Intel Core Ultra 5 325	14-inch, 1920×1200	From 3.00 lb
XPS 16	Not read today; $2,199.99 launch configuration in January	Intel Core Ultra Series 3	16-inch	3.6 lb, per Dell in January
XPS 16 Creator Edition	No Dell.com price when read	Nvidia RTX Spark	16-inch 3.2K tandem OLED	Not stated

The XPS 14 and XPS 16 returned at CES in January; Dell called them its thinnest laptops at 14.6mm. Dell’s store refused our browser on the XPS 16 page, so its price here is the launch figure from Dell’s January blog post.

The XPS 13 followed in May as, in Dell’s words, “the most accessible XPS ever built”, and Dell’s blog sets it directly against the MacBook Neo, the cheapest model in Apple’s MacBook lineup. The XPS name now runs from a 13-inch laptop priced against Apple’s cheapest to a 16-inch creator machine. Dell lists a touchscreen, backlit keyboard and Wi-Fi 7 as standard on every XPS 13, and describes a dual-fan design; why a laptop fan gets loud covers what makers say about fan noise.

Two newer XPS models are outside the usual Windows laptop. The XPS Googlebook runs Google’s Android-based Googlebook OS on a Snapdragon X Elite; our Googlebook comparison sets it against Acer’s and Lenovo’s. The XPS 16 Creator Edition, announced on 7 October, uses Nvidia’s RTX Spark chip with up to 128GB of unified memory; Dell said Best Buy would take US pre-orders first, with Dell.com “soon after”.

Alienware: gaming only

Model	Starts at	Graphics, per Dell’s store
Alienware 15	$1,199.99 (AMD), $1,249.99 (Intel)	Up to RTX 5060
Alienware 16 Aurora	$1,599.99	Up to RTX 5070
Alienware 16X Aurora	$1,949.99	RTX 50 Series
Alienware 16 Area-51	$3,899.99	RTX 50 Series
Alienware 18 Area-51	$3,999.99	RTX 50 Series

Dell’s own FAQ points gamers to Alienware rather than the everyday Dell line, which it says is designed for productivity and light gaming, mostly on integrated graphics. At CES Dell said it would double Alienware’s laptop lineup in 2026, adding a roughly 17mm ultra-slim model and a new entry-level one. The Alienware 16X Aurora is one of the machines in our gaming laptop shortlist, which collects outlets’ review scores.

Questions people ask

What happened to Dell Premium?

Dell retired the name in January 2026. Its premium consumer laptops went back to the XPS name, which Dell had dropped in its 2025 renaming. Dell’s blog says XPS now covers its thinnest, lightest, most premium consumer laptops.

Is XPS still a Dell laptop?

Yes. XPS is back as Dell’s premium consumer line, with the XPS 13, XPS 14 and XPS 16 on Dell’s US store in October 2026, plus an XPS Googlebook and an XPS 16 Creator Edition announced in September and October.

What is the difference between Dell, Dell Plus and Dell 14S?

All three are in the everyday Dell line. Dell says the 14S and 16S offer more powerful processors, graphics and display options than the Dell 14 and 16. On Dell’s spec sheets the Plus and S models we read add Thunderbolt 4 and Wi-Fi 7, which the cheapest Dell 15 lacks.

Is Inspiron discontinued?

The name is fading rather than gone. Dell’s US store files Inspiron under the Dell laptops line, and on 23 October 2026 that line still listed one Inspiron, a 14-inch 2-in-1. The other everyday models there carry the Dell 14, 15 and 16 names.

What is the cheapest XPS laptop?

The XPS 13. Dell’s store prices it lowest when you build your own; its cheapest ready configuration has a Core 5 320, 8GB of memory and 512GB of storage. Dell’s May blog said it starts lower still for eligible students.

What is the difference between Dell and Dell Pro laptops?

Dell is the consumer brand, for home, everyday computing and gaming; Dell Pro is for business, with security and fleet-management features, Dell says. Dell Pro uses series numbers 3, 5, 7 and 9, where higher means thinner and lighter with longer battery life.