The Dell XPS 14 is a premium thin and light laptop with an Intel Panther Lake processor that launched earlier this year as part of the revived Dell XPS brand. Measuring less than 0.6 inches thick and weighing less than 3 pounds, the laptop also has a much more usable keyboard and touchpad than earlier models.At launch, the notebook was only available with Windows 11 pre-installed. But starting today you can also opt for a model that comes with Ubuntu 24.04, saving Linux users the trouble of installing and configuring the operating system… while also saving a little money.Dell is no stranger to Linux laptops. The company has been offering XPS-branded laptops with Ubuntu Linux since 2012. What started off as something of an experimental platform aimed at developers has now become a little more mainstream (the company doesn’t call its Linux laptops “Project Sputnik” or “Developer Edition” anymore, for one thing). But the idea is still that all of the hardware should work out oft he box without requiring users to hunt down drivers or workarounds to get anything working.One thing to keep in mind is that even though there’s no Windows license to pay for with this model, the Dell XPS 14 still ain’t cheap. While the new Dell XPS 13 that was announced this week is designed to cover a wide range of price points (starting at low as $699 for consumer or $599 for students), the Dell XPS 14 costs a lot more.Prices start at $1900 for a model with an Intel Core Ultra 5 325 processor, 16GB of LPDDR5X memory, a 512GB SSD, and a 1920 x 1200 pixel, 1-120 Hz IPCS LCD non-touch display. While that’s $100 less than the price of the same model with Windows 11 Home, it’s still a lot of money to spend on a laptop with an Intel Core Ultra 5 processor.Upgrading to a Core Ultra 7 355 chip only adds $100 to the price tag, but if you want a Core Ultra X7 358H or Core Ultra X9 388H chip with Intel Arc B390 integrated graphics, you’ll have to pay $550 or $700 more.Other upgrade options include support for up to 64GB of RAM, up to a 4TB SSD, and up to a 2.8K OLED touchscreen display with a 20-120 Hz refresh rate. But a top of the line model with all of those upgrades tacked on will set you back $5050… or $5150 if you opt for a Windows license.All of which is to say that 2026 is a lousy time to be in the market for a premium laptop if you don’t have very deep pockets.That said, the XPS 14 is a pretty nice machine with an aluminum chassis, 8MP webcam, quad speakers, 70 Wh battery, a 100W USB-C power adapter, WiFi 7 and Bluetooth 6.0, and three Thunderbolt 4 ports plus a 3.5mm audio jack. Unfortunately there are no other ports, so if you want an HDMI or USB-A port, you’ll need a dongle.