Microsoft Price Hike On XPS 13 Up $100 Now $999

This article was last updated on May 20, 2022

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Dell XPS 13

The $899 price on the Dell XPS 13 (2015) took an early price hike – is time to wait for Apple’s new MacBook Air?

By Stephen Pate – Greed got the better of Dell and Microsoft with the entry-level pricing on the XPS 13 2015 model which was $899 for the Core i3 CPU and 128 GB SSD. Microsoft promoted the XPS 13 at $899 until early March but took a $100 price hike this week.

The XPS 13 2015 features a new border-less screen that gives users a 13&Prime screen in the same size as the 11&Prime Apple MacBook Air. Along with the screen innovation and the use of Intel’s 5th generation Broadwell CPU. Broadwell processors are smaller and used less electricity, saving battery power. They are not faster per se than 4th generation processors. Speed is expected to get a boost in the 3rd Qtr of 2015.

The $899 price got the market’s interest and the laptops sold out the first week. People were definitely intrigued by the XPS 13 despite the Dell reputation for reliability, shorter battery life and twitchy trackpad.

However, priced identical to the Apple MacBook Air, buyers are likely to wait for Apple’s processor refresh of the MacBook Air due next week or the rumored Retina update of the Air due mid-2015.

While the Dell XPS 13 has one advantage over Apple at $1,299 with a very high-resolution screen, Windows 8.1 does not scale fonts for that screen resolution and the screen is not a smooth fit. Apple would never ship a product with a half-baked solution like that.

The hi-res QHD+ touchscreen models are still $1,299 and $1,599 for the i7 model.

A Dell is not an Apple. Dell is an old stodgy brand that has fallen on hard times. Maybe the XPS 13 will be a turn-around for them or maybe not.

People know that Apple makes the best and most desirable laptops. No one is going to say to their friends “Why did you buy a MacBook Air?” The product is accepted as the best-of-breed, even when it has faults.

Whipping out a Dell computer in company will not get you brownie points, like owning the latest LP smartphone or a Windows Phone – both decisions that lack popular acceptance.

Taking a price hike on the cusp of market acceptance is a classic marketing mistake. Dell looks ready to shoot themselves in the foot again.  It crossed my mind that Microsoft saw the XPS 13 at $899 cannibalize sales of their Surface Pro 3.

Available from  available from the US Microsoft Store and Microsoft Store in Canada.

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By Stephen Pate, NJN Network

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