ET deals: $400 off Dell XPS 15 laptop with Core i5 and GeForce 640M

When it comes to PCs, having the “best of both worlds” tends to cost more. That’s why you often to see the more bulky and powerful laptops in the same price range as the thin-and-light ultrabooks. They both do well with their intended purpose, but lack key traits that the other possesses.
The most important traits that tend to not overlap are size and performance. But as last generation’s models are starting to be discounted to make room for new Haswell versions, we are seeing prices to drop to new lows and create great bargains. And with the games we’ve seen from Intel and Nvidia — on both the power and efficiency fronts — it is possible now to get serious power and reasonable battery life, all while keeping the machine under an inch thick.
Today’s deal is the Dell XPS 15. This notebook has the power and features of a full-size desktop replacement, with the dimensions of an ultrabook. This wonderful bundle of aluminum, magnesium, glass, and silicon is sturdy, yet light, with a 15-inch display, 0.91-inch thickness and 5.79 lb weight.
Despite the thinness the XPS 15 manages to offer up a 1080p screen, full-power Core i5 (or optional Core i7 quad-core) processor, slot-loading optical drive, backlit keyboard, 65 Whr battery, and Nvidia graphics. It has three USB 3.0 ports — a rarity for an Ivy Bridge laptop — plus dual video outputs (Mini DisplayPort and HDMI), and a card reader.
The model on sale today comes equipped with a Core i5-3230M, 6GB of RAM, 500GB hard drive, and GT 630M graphics for just $899.99, marked down from $1299.99. All models have hefty instant savings attached right now and with the addition of a stackable $100 coupon code we’re seeing the lowest prices ever offered on the premium XPS 15.