Dell has reacted to the market’s general unhappiness with being locked-into a purchase of Vista with a new PC and has started offering XP on their home machines again:
"Amid significant customer demand, the computer maker said on Thursday that it has returned to offering the older Windows version as an option on some of its consumer PCs.
Like most computer makers, Dell switched nearly entirely to Vista-based systems following Microsoft's mainstream launch of the operating system in January. However, the company said its customers have been asking for XP as part of its IdeaStorm project, which asks customers to help the company come up with product ideas."
Customers have spoken and it seems that Dell has listened. Good move.