XPS 16 (9640)vsXPS 16 (Nova Lake, 2026 Edition)
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XPS 16 (9640) vs XPS 16 (Nova Lake, 2026 Edition)

How these two compare on everything we measure — where the AIs rank them, what reviewers and buyers say, and how they price. We don’t crown a winner — the differences are the point.

XPS 16 (9640)
by Dell · 16-inch laptop with dedicated graphics
AI rank #3.0$2040–$2330
Reviewers
/5
Buyers
4.2/5
vs
AI rank #2.0
Reviewers
/5
Buyers
/5
Short answer?

Take XPS 16 (9640) if you weight buyer ratings and a lower price; take XPS 16 (Nova Lake, 2026 Edition) if the AI ranking matter more. That's where they diverge — elsewhere they're close.

How this is made

Built from what 2 AI models (Perplexity · Gemini) recommend for real buyer questions, layered with reviewer test summaries, Google buyer ratings, street prices and press. The short answer and verdict are derived from where those signals diverge — not written by hand for either product.

Independent — not a vendor, not advertising, not a paid review. How we score →

Act I

The numbers

Side by side, how the AI models rank them, and which wins each buyer-question.

IIIIII
01

Side by side

Every signal we hold, on one shared scale. The leading side is lit — but the tally below doesn’t crown a winner.?

#3.0
AI rankcombined avg · lower is better
#2.0
Reviewersout of 5
4.2
BuyersGoogle rating
$2040–$2330
Street pricelower is cheaper
02

Which is better for what

Across the buyer-questions both appear in, who the AI panel ranks higher — and the widest gaps.?

Best Laptops for Programming XPS 16 (Nova Lake, 2026 Edition) by 1#3 vs #2
Across 1 shared questions: XPS 16 (9640) higher in 0 · XPS 16 (Nova Lake, 2026 Edition) in 1
Showing the 1 widest gaps
Act II

What people say

Where the AI panel and reviewers line up, and what reviewers and buyers think.

IIIIII
03

What buyers say

Aggregated Google Shopping ratings — the score, the aspects owners rate, and a real quote.?

4.2
108 ratings
Keyboard design & functionality2.5
Premium build quality4.5
Performance & reliability4.5
Design & aesthetics4.0
I've proudly used many Dell XPS models over the past couple of decades. I loved the premium look, power and reliability in both laptop and desktop models. Because of some design choices in recent years -- ie., no function row keys -- I strayed to other Windows laptops from Lenovo, HP and Asus. Now, however, I'm back in the XPS fold. This newly redesigned and, happily, renamed XPS is everything I w Picky Laptop Buyer · dell.com
Google ratings
Act III

Price and the verdict

How they price, who each is for, whether you can trust the claims — and our read.

IIIIII
04

How they price

Street price across retailers, the tier each lands in, and how it’s moved.?

$2040–$2330
across 1 retailer
tier Mid-range
current street price
current model
05

The verdict: which to buy

Our read of everything above — who leads each point, and who each is for.

XPS 16 (9640)
AI panel rank
XPS 16 (Nova Lake, 2026 Edition)
XPS 16 (9640)
Reviewer score
XPS 16 (Nova Lake, 2026 Edition)
XPS 16 (9640)
Buyer rating
XPS 16 (Nova Lake, 2026 Edition)
XPS 16 (9640)
Lower price
XPS 16 (Nova Lake, 2026 Edition)

Net: XPS 16 (9640) leads 2 of 4 · XPS 16 (Nova Lake, 2026 Edition) 1.

So which one?

Each leads on different points — pick the one strong where you shop.

Take XPS 16 (9640) if…

…you weight buyer rating and lower price.

We don’t crown a winner. Both are strong; the differences above decide it for your use. Where a signal is missing, we leave it blank rather than guess.

as of June 29 · 1 shared buyer questions?

06

Common questions

The questions people ask comparing these two — answered from the data above.

QIs XPS 16 (9640) or XPS 16 (Nova Lake, 2026 Edition) better overall?

The AI panel ranks XPS 16 (Nova Lake, 2026 Edition) higher (avg #2.0 vs #3.0), but it’s close — reviewers and buyers split differently.

QWhich one is cheaper?

XPS 16 (9640)$2040–$2330 vs across retailers.