Linux is way better when it comes to privacy, without any doubt.
Dell is way better when it comes to hardware. Dell believes enough in their products to sell laptops with next business day repair included. It's definetly not cheap to send people to fix a single laptop in the middle of nowhere. Apple doesn't think their laptops are good enough for this to be worth it, so that says a bit about the build quality.
Yeah. I have thought about getting a Dell XPS running Linux for years, but I just can’t ever pull the trigger. I don’t even have great reasons other than I have been a satisfied Mac user for 15 years.
Yes, you do see issues with build quality, but all manufacturers have bugs. Overall, it is still much better than the alternatives.