Dell offers a no-nonsense workhorse laptop for the office and WFH with rock-solid performance — don't wait for Black Friday

Photograph of the Dell 14 Plus laptop (DB14255)
The Dell 14 Plus is solid, minimalist, and long-lasting. (Image credit: Windows Central | Zachary Boddy)

Sometimes, people want a simple, gimmick-free laptop that plays it safe when it comes to performance and design so they can use it to get through office work on time and go home to rest.

One of these no-nonsense devices is the Dell 14 Plus, a mid-range AI laptop with great performance and battery life that's currently on sale at Dell for $749.99.

Dell 14 Plus (Intel Core Ultra 7 256V)
Save 32% ($350)
Dell 14 Plus (Intel Core Ultra 7 256V): was $1,099.99 now $749.99 at Dell


"This is a workhorse, so it drops the frills and extraneous features to deliver good performance, solid battery life, enough ports, and a comfortable keyboard. Sure, the display is dim and washed out, and the speakers are tinny, but that won't prevent you from getting the job done." — Zachary Boddy

Windows Central review: ⭐⭐⭐½

💰Price check: $1,099.00 at Best Buy

😍Alternative check: $812.17 at Amazon

Why does the Dell 14 Plus get our personal recommendation?

Full view of the Dell 14 Plus laptop. (Image credit: Windows Central | Zachary Boddy)

The Dell 14 Plus isn't the most glamorous laptop in the world, nor is it a premium powerhouse armed with the best specs on the market for AAA PC gaming.

Yet it doesn't care, for this AI laptop only cares about getting work done. Whether it's typing out documents, video-editing, streaming, or browsing the internet for research, the Dell 14 Plus does it with gusto.

This model features an Intel Core Ultra 7 256V GPU with 47 TOPS NPU and 8 cores that support up to 4.8 GHz, ensuring it has stable and strong performance while in use.

It also includes a long battery life of over 7 hours, a spacious, intuitive, and responsive keyboard, and built-in Copilot+ to make it future-proof for all upcoming Windows 11 updates.

The Dell 14 Plus' only structural letdown is its average screen. (Image credit: Windows Central | Zachary Boddy)

The only major downside of this laptop, other than its steep MSRP of $1099.99, is its display.

While it features an adequate 1,200p resolution and 60Hz refresh rate, the Dell 14 Plus' screen has an average color contrast, middling brightness of 300 nits, washed-out colors, and distracting backlight bleed.

The screen issue can be mitigated with some significant settings tinkering, but the $1099.99 MSRP issue has temporarily been lessened to $749.99 by Dell's exclusive 32% early Black Friday discount.

So, if you want a hard-working laptop purely for work purposes and you don't care about having only a passable display, then we highly recommend the Dell 14 Plus.

FAQ

Can the RAM be upgraded?

No. The Dell 14 Plus' 16GB RAM (LPDDR5X) is soldered, so it can't be removed or replaced by the average consumer. You will need to choose how much RAM you need during checkout.

Is the SSD upgradeable?

Yes. The Dell 14 Plus has an M.2 slot to fit in other, larger SSDs or USB ports to fit in external SSDs.

Does this laptop get hot?

The Dell 14 Plus can get warm under the hood when performing a heavy load of tasks. Thankfully, its robust cooling system will keep it from overheating and tone down the noise of the fans.

Is this laptop suitable for gaming?

While the Dell 14 Plus can run older 2D games, this laptop wasn't built for AAA or even AA PC games, so performance would suffer when running them. You're better off browsing the best gaming laptops for that purpose.

When does Black Friday start?

This year's annual Black Friday event starts on November 28, 2025.

Yet retailers are already dealing out major discounts on various electronics, so it's best to keep an eye out for the whole month for exclusive bargains on your most wishlisted products.


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Alexander Cope
Contributor — Gaming

Alexander Cope is a gaming veteran of 30-plus years, primarily covering PC and Xbox games here on Windows Central. Gaming since the 8-bit era, Alexander's expertise revolves around gaming guides and news, with a particular focus on Japanese titles from the likes of Elden Ring to Final Fantasy. Alexander is always on deck to help our readers conquer the industry's most difficult games — when he can pry himself away from Monster Hunter that is!

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