No they aren't actually. Dell laptops are pretty decent. We use them at work and they're pretty decent little machines. I also have one at home and it's solidly built and has lasted ages.
The base models are pretty cheap, but if you want more than the most basic model you have to pay (not as much as apple tax (TM)). Compare novatech's x70 with a dell xps 15.4" with comparable specs and there will be about a £300 difference.
also check a little down in the chat box lynx, ive sent a cpu doing that and it turned up fine, also sent ram (but not in a cue tip box was a bit longer) similar thing tho,
Well ive looked at the XPS range, and tbh not worth the money, i sorta based my judgement just on this, as if i was to buy a laptop it would be a gaming one.