Lost me at Intel

The markdown percentage does look high, however $959 is absurd and $358 isn't anything special. As Hunter2020 emphasized, the 768p TN display is worth avoiding.

Options under $400 I would consider first, at least based on specs:
- https://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-ThinkPad-T580-15-6-inch-Quad-Core/dp/B09MDNQWJG?tag=nbcnewsnet-20
- https://www.amazon.com/ALLDOCUBE-Windows-GTBook-15-1920x1080/dp/B0BF4BCSNW?tag=nbcnewsnet-20
- https://www.amazon.com/HP-Computer-Processor-Graphics-Bluetooth/dp/B09KT2XNTV?tag=nbcnewsnet-20

It seems that touchscreen on an adequate 15.6" display is hard to find at this price point, without other deficiencies such as having only 4GB RAM. However there's this for $440 as of writing:
- https://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-IdeaPad-3i-Touchscreen-Fingerprint/dp/B09NMVLY7T?tag=nbcnewsnet-20

(went ahead and re-added the NBC affiliate codes to these links)

What a joke.  3.8/5 rating for the display, the most important part of the PC!  1366x768 at 15.6 inch is no good.  Too pixelated.  If it were 14 inch laptop, might attract more attention.

I've been checking laptop prices in Germany and nearby countries (through Geizhalz) for the past few months, and you could generally find better laptops at that price. 5300U, 8GB+256GB, and FHD IPS laptops were usually available at €300-350 including VAT. But the screen of the laptop in the article is most likely TN, and it is only HD too. Not worth it.