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Historical note: Best Buy opened preorders for the first Microsoft Copilot+ PCs on May 21, 2024, ahead of Microsoft’s announced June 18 launch. The listed configurations started at $999.99 and included Snapdragon-powered laptops and a Surface Pro from Microsoft, Dell, HP, Lenovo and Samsung. Those prices were launch-era figures—not current 2026 offers.
For buyers comparing value, the 13.8-inch Microsoft Surface Laptop was the least expensive sensible entry, the Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x offered the strongest display-and-storage upgrade, and Dell’s Inspiron 14 Plus was the practical 512GB mainstream alternative. Every option also carried an important qualification: the first wave used Windows on Arm, so software and peripheral compatibility mattered as much as the advertised AI hardware.
The May 2024 Best Buy preorder lineup
The following prices and specifications were reported for Best Buy preorders on May 21, 2024. A preorder reserved a configuration before retail launch; it did not mean immediate delivery, and estimated arrival dates could vary by model, color and inventory.
| Model | Key configuration | Reported preorder price | Best fit | Main caution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Surface Laptop, 13.8-inch | Snapdragon X Plus, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, 2304×1536 120Hz touchscreen | $999.99 | Lowest-cost premium entry | 256GB storage |
| Dell Inspiron 14 Plus | Snapdragon X Plus, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, 14-inch 2560×1600 touchscreen | $1,099.99 | Conventional productivity | 60Hz display |
| Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x | Snapdragon X Elite, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, 14.5-inch 2944×1840 90Hz OLED touchscreen | $1,199.99 | Display and storage value | Fewer physical ports |
| HP OmniBook X | Snapdragon X Elite | $1,199.99 | Premium HP consumer design | Arm compatibility |
| Samsung Galaxy Book4 Edge, 14-inch | Snapdragon X Elite, AMOLED-oriented design | $1,349.99 | Thin design and Samsung ecosystem | Higher price and limited ports |
| Microsoft Surface Pro, 13-inch | Snapdragon X Plus, detachable 2-in-1 | $999.99 | Tablet and laptop flexibility | Keyboard may cost extra |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop, 15-inch | Snapdragon X Elite, large-screen configuration | $2,099.99 | Premium large display | Different price tier |
HotHardware’s May 21, 2024 roundup is the source for the reported Best Buy prices and configurations.
#1 Best Overall
- It's possible on your Intel AI PC - Equipped with an Intel Core Ultra 7 processor (Series 2), the Aspire 14 Al brings new AI experiences in productivity, creativity and security through a combination of CPU, GPU and NPU. This combo delivers the speed and responsiveness to handle any task with ease -along with all-day battery life of up to 22 hours and smooth multitasking performance. (Battery life was measured under specific test settings pursuant to video playback scenarios)
- New AI Superpowers - Discover the power of Recall (preview), improved Windows search, and Click to Do (preview) on Copilot plus PCs. Effortlessly locate past content, perform natural searches, and interact with text and images – all while ensuring your data remains private and you stay productive. ( Copilot plus PC experiences vary by device and market and may require updates continuing to roll out through 2025; Recall and Click to Do will be coming to European Economic Area later in 2025; timing varies. See aka.ms/copilotpluspcs)
- Indulge Your Eyes - Immerse yourself in a world of vibrant detail with a breathtaking 14" WUXGA 1920 x 1200 ultra high-resolution display. This expansive, panoramic screen is your canvas for entertainment, artistic creativity, and captivating AI experiences that will leave you in awe.
- Smart and Effortless AI - Intelligent AI solutions are at your fingertips with AcerSense. Streamline settings, optimize your video presence, and elevate communication - all with intuitive AI that’s easy to use and enhances productivity seamlessly. Just press the AcerSense key on the backlit keyboard for instant access and experience the magic of AI
- Style and Substance - The Aspire 14 Al boasts a sleek, durable, and lightweight aluminum chassis, with an ultra-modern design and a 180° lie-flat hinge for versatile and convenient use on the go. Ideal for work, study, or creative pursuits wherever you are.
What the $999.99 Surface Laptop included
The base 13.8-inch Surface Laptop was not a bare-bones budget notebook. The reported configuration included 16GB of LPDDR5x memory, a 2304×1536 120Hz touchscreen rated at up to 600 nits, a 256GB PCIe 4.0 SSD, two USB4 ports, one USB-A port, Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4. Microsoft advertised up to 20 hours of local video playback or 13 hours of active web use under its test conditions; those are manufacturer “up to” claims, not guaranteed mixed-use battery life.
The compromise was storage. For web browsing, Office and cloud files, 256GB can be workable. Local photo libraries, development tools, games and large media collections make 512GB the safer target.
How the price ladder changed the value calculation
Surface Laptop versus Dell Inspiron 14 Plus
For $100 more, the reported Dell configuration doubled storage to 512GB and used a slightly larger 14-inch 2560×1600 touchscreen. Its trade-off was a 60Hz refresh rate versus the Surface’s 120Hz panel. Dell also listed up to 15 hours of battery life, another vendor estimate rather than an independent result.
Rank #2
- A PREMIUM PERFORMANCE LAPTOP — Ready for work, school, and creativity. Built for busy days, big projects, and nonstop multitasking. Run video calls, school and work apps, 20+ browser tabs, and AI tools at the same time without slowing down.
- WITH AI BUILT IN — With a dedicated AI chip (Qualcomm Snapdragon X2 Elite), this Copilot+ PC[5] on Windows 11 helps you work smarter and faster. Prompt, create, and automate with ease - ready for even your most demanding tasks.
- A 13.8" TOUCHSCREEN YOU'LL ACTUALLY USE — Sharp colors, real detail, smooth 120Hz scrolling on the PixelSense touchscreen[1] with LCD display[2]. Tap, scroll, or pinch to zoom - whichever feels right for streaming, editing photos, or daily work.
- 20 HOURS OF BATTERY (LEAVE THE CHARGER) — Up to 20 hours of video playback[3] on a single charge. Work from a coffee shop, take it to class/work, or binge an entire season on a long flight — it'll keep up.
- THE PORTS YOU NEED — Two USB-C / USB4[4] ports for fast charging, big file transfers, or hooking up to three 4K monitors when you want a full desktop. Wi-Fi 7 keeps you online and fast wherever you are.
Surface Laptop versus Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x
The Yoga Slim 7x added $200 over the entry Surface but moved to Snapdragon X Elite, 512GB storage and a 14.5-inch 2944×1840 OLED touchscreen with a 90Hz refresh rate and up to 1,000 nits brightness. It was the clearest launch-era choice for shoppers who valued screen quality and storage more than the lowest price. The chassis was about 0.59 inches thick and slightly over 2.8 pounds, with three USB-C ports.
Other models in the first wave
The $999.99 Surface Pro offered a more flexible tablet form factor, but its real laptop cost depended on the detachable keyboard and any pen bundle. HP’s OmniBook X paired a premium consumer design with Snapdragon X Elite at a reported $1,199.99. Samsung’s 14-inch Galaxy Book4 Edge was listed at $1,349.99 and emphasized a thin design, 3K Dynamic AMOLED 2X display family and Wi-Fi 7. The 15-inch Surface Laptop configuration reached $2,099.99, placing it well above the entry models.
Microsoft’s May 20, 2024 launch announcement also named Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo and Samsung as participants, with additional models expected beyond the Best Buy listings.
Rank #3
- Edge-to-edge clarity: Enjoy crisp, expansive visuals on a 16" screen with up to FHD+ and a 16:10 aspect ratio—delivering a wide, immersive viewing experience.
- All-day comfort: Dell ComfortView Plus helps reduce harmful blue light emissions while preserving true-to-life color, keeping your eyes comfortable even during prolonged screen time.
- Ready for business: Flip between effortless productivity and captivating entertainment on a large, immersive screen powered by Intel Core 7-150U processor and graphics.
- Built for virtual connection: Bring your connections to life with an up-to FHD camera, designed with wide dynamic range and temporal noise reduction to deliver crisp, sharp images, no matter the lighting conditions.
- Adaptive thermals: Built-in technology allows your PC to sense when it's on a stable surface and adjusts its power and thermals to run more efficiently.
What made these laptops “Copilot+” PCs?
Copilot+ was a hardware-and-software category, not simply a Windows laptop with a Copilot key. Microsoft’s launch definition centered on Windows 11 systems with an NPU capable of roughly 40 or more trillion operations per second (TOPS), intended to accelerate new AI experiences such as Windows Studio Effects and image-generation tools. Microsoft also announced Recall, but feature availability, requirements and rollout changed after the original announcement; buyers should not assume every advertised feature was active on preorder day.
TOPS measures potential NPU throughput. It does not predict overall laptop speed, battery life or usefulness by itself. CPU performance, graphics capability, cooling, application support, Windows updates and whether a task runs locally or in the cloud all matter.
Why the first models used Snapdragon X
The opening Best Buy wave used Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus or X Elite chips and Windows on Arm. Microsoft said Intel- and AMD-based Copilot+ systems would follow later. X Plus generally represented the lower-cost 10-core option, while X Elite systems used 12 cores and appeared in higher-priced configurations. Core count alone does not establish a fixed performance ranking because power limits, cooling and software binaries differ by laptop.
Rank #4
- Professional productivity in a new, modern design: 16-in AI capable PC with an built-in AI chip, Reach unstoppable productivity with Intel Core Ultra 9 288V vPro (12 TOPS NPU, 12 cores, up to 5.3 GHz) Processor, and a sleek, modular design for enhanced durability, this Dell Pro 16 laptop is a good Replace for Latitude 3550. With the Intel vPro Platform, IT departments get the multilayer security, remote manageability and reliable stability needed to support their business.
- 16.0-inch 16:10 FHD+ (1920 x 1200) Touch 300nits WVA Display with ComfortView Display. Thanks to an expansive 16:10 display with sleek, narrow bezels, Dell Pro 16 can work more productively on a roomier, more detailed screen. Graphics: Intel Arc 140V GPU Ideal for AI-accelerated digital content creation and video editing with creation apps like Adobe. NPU: Supports up to 48 TOPS, Ideal for running AI features like Microsoft Studio Effects during video calls.
- RAM: 32GB LPDDR5X, 8533MT/s Memory; Hard Drive: 1TB PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD. FHD+ webcam: built-in FHD+ webcam for crystal clear video calls. Noise cancellation: enjoy clear, distraction-free calls and recordings with AI noise cancellation for enhanced communication.
- Wireless: Wi-Fi 7 (2x2/160) Gig+ and Bluetooth 5.3. 1 USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps) port, 1 USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) Type-C port with DisplayPort 1.4 and Power Delivery, 1 Thunderbolt 4 port with DisplayPort 2.1 and Power Delivery, 1 HDMI 2.1 port, 1 Universal Audio jack. English Backlit Copilot key keyboard, numeric keypad; Ice Blue power button with Fingerprint Reader.
- Operating System: Windows 11 Home. Ice Blue. Stylish modern design with rounded edges that is easy to carry around.
The Windows-on-Arm compatibility decision
Windows on Arm can be a good fit for browsers, Microsoft 365 and many mainstream productivity applications, especially when those apps have native Arm versions. It is not equivalent to universal compatibility with traditional Windows software.
- Check native support: Confirm that essential applications, plug-ins and developer tools have Arm versions or reliable emulation.
- Expect some emulation: x86 and x64 programs may run through translation, with possible performance, battery or feature trade-offs.
- Investigate drivers: Printers, scanners, specialized peripherals, VPN clients and security utilities may require Arm-compatible drivers.
- Be cautious with games: Anti-cheat systems and launchers can prevent otherwise compatible games from working.
- Ask enterprise questions: Proprietary line-of-business software, virtualization stacks and older plug-ins deserve an IT check before purchase.
If a household or business depends on niche legacy software, an Intel- or AMD-based Windows laptop may be the lower-risk financial choice, even if it lacks the first-generation Copilot+ label.
The Tool Desk
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- Cheapest sensible entry: The 13.8-inch Surface Laptop at $999.99, provided 256GB is sufficient.
- Best display/storage balance: Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x at $1,199.99, based on its OLED panel and 512GB SSD.
- Best conventional productivity value: Dell Inspiron 14 Plus at $1,099.99 for shoppers prioritizing 512GB storage and a conventional clamshell.
- Best flexibility: Surface Pro, after adding the keyboard cost to the headline price.
- Best premium large-screen option: The 15-inch Surface Laptop, although its $2,099.99 preorder price was not a value choice.
These are launch-era judgments from listed specifications and prices, not independent performance tests.
Best Value
- Step Up to Next-Level Performance - Redefine your laptop experience with the Acer Aspire 16 AI. Powered by the Snapdragon X X1-26-100, a premium integrated GPU with up to 1.7 TFLOPs and NPU with 45 TOPs for optimized processing across CPU, GPU, and NPU workloads and delivering best-in-class performance and power efficiency.
- New AI Superpowers - Discover the power of Recall (preview), improved Windows search, and Click to Do (preview) on Copilot+ PCs. Effortlessly locate past content, perform natural searches, and interact with text and images – all while ensuring your data remains private and you stay productive*.
- Built on Brilliant AI Foundations - The Acer Aspire 16 AI harnesses the industry-leading Qualcomm AI Engine with an integrated Qualcomm Hexagon NPU, delivering transformative experiences for creativity, video conferencing, security, and productivity assistants. The Qualcomm AI Engine supports Windows Studio Effects and many other AI-accelerated applications and experiences, to make possibilities endless.
- Screens that Speak to Your Senses - Immerse yourself in a world of vibrant visuals. Enjoy stunning clarity, rich 100% sRGB colors, and sharp detail on the 16" 120Hz WUXGA ultra-high-resolution touchscreen display – acting as a panoramic playground for entertainment, artistic expression, and engaging AI experiences that dazzle the eye.
- Streamline Your Settings with AcerSense - Intelligent Acer AI solutions are at your fingertips. Effortlessly get answers, streamline settings, optimize your video presence, and elevate communication. Experience intuitive AI that’s easy to use and seamlessly enhances your productivity.
Should someone have preordered?
Preordering could secure an early configuration if launch inventory was tight, but it also meant buying before broad hands-on testing. A financially sensible checklist was:
- Verify the exact RAM, SSD, display and color configuration; retailer family pages could combine multiple model numbers.
- Price the complete setup, especially a Surface Pro keyboard and any required accessories.
- Check return windows, estimated delivery and whether the price was tied to a promotional configuration.
- Confirm compatibility for work software, games, printers and other peripherals.
- Treat AI features and battery figures as software- and test-condition-dependent, not guaranteed benefits.
What happened after the preorder event?
The Best Buy preorder window and its $999.99-to-$2,099.99 figures belong to 2024. As of August 2026, Best Buy lists newer Copilot+ systems using Qualcomm, Intel and AMD processors, while Microsoft’s current Surface Laptop family includes different configurations and prices. Check Best Buy’s current Snapdragon search, its Copilot+ category and the current Surface Laptop page for live prices, stock and specifications. Do not back-project current inventory into the 2024 preorder story.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did Best Buy’s $999.99 price include a Surface Pro keyboard?
Not necessarily. The reported $999.99 Surface Pro price was for the tablet configuration; the detachable keyboard and other accessories could raise the usable laptop cost.
Crashes, No Sound, or Screen Glitches?
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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallDid every Copilot+ AI feature work on launch day?
No. Availability could depend on Windows build, region, language, account, app updates, drivers and Microsoft’s rollout. Recall in particular should be treated as an announced feature whose availability and requirements changed.
Are the original preorder prices still current?
No. They were reported on May 21, 2024. Current Best Buy and manufacturer prices, stock and configurations must be checked separately.
The Bottom Line
The first Best Buy Copilot+ preorder wave offered unusually capable displays and 16GB memory from $999.99, but the right choice depended on storage, form factor and Windows-on-Arm compatibility—not the Copilot branding or TOPS number alone. For current purchases, compare today’s configurations and prices rather than relying on this historical launch snapshot.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
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