Alienware 17-R2 and mSATA

Hi all,

I am debating getting the 17-R2, and plan on using my old mSATA Crucial M4 with this adapter:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007PPZ2I8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

That will make me having x2 2.5" SATA hard drives (the default 1TB one and the converted mSATA one).

I read that the 17-R2 has x4 M.2 slots and 1 SATA slot, but is it like the Asus G751 where the place that hold the M.2 slots are also compatible with another SATA? This will most likely be the decisive factor in getting the Alienware vs the Asus, as getting a brand new M.2 SSD will just be over my budget.

 

If I'm reading that correctly, the product you posted converts 2.5" sata to msata. You were talking about utilizing the msata you currently have plus the stock 2.5" HDD that is installed in the R2. You read correctly that the R2 has 1 2.5" sata slot and 4 m.2 ssd slots. The product you linked does not appear to be what you are trying to do as it doesn't convert m.2 sata to msata...it reads that it converts a 2.5" sata to msata.

I can't say for sure if the tech exists to convert m.2 slots to msata like you are wanting to do. It would definitely be a strange contraption. Personally, I think you would have an easier time selling your old one and buying a new m.2 ssd. Or even talk to dell on the phone and haggle them down some more...they currently have up to $300 off plus an additional $60 off coupon. See where those prices put you and if it's still not low enough, then talk them down some more on price. If you get the right salesperson, I'm sure you can get at least another $100 off which would cover the cost of a new m.2 drive (paid $100 for my 256gb m.2). They will move on their price...find the number you can afford. Then give them a call and tell them you're ready to buy right now if they can take x amount off to get you within your budget. Anyone paying list price really missed out on saving some more cash.

I'm certainly not trying to talk you out of the Asus (Rog 751jy I assume). I've read great things about that laptop as well. Just wanted to make sure you knew you have options on getting the price to within your budget and still get an m.2 ssd.

 

How are you able to get $360 off? I only found a 10% coupon (-$150) and a $100 off $1499 or higher coupon, but they don't stack and I asked 3 reps who says they can't stack them for me. Which of your coupon gives me $300 off of the 17-R2 $1499 version?

 

With the adapter you mention you can't do that change. We recommend to use only m.2 and 2.5" drives on this machine.

 

I guess what I'm asking is if there's two 2.5" slots in the laptop, one for the 1TB HDD and another for either a standard SSD or for a adapted mSATA into 2.5" size.

 

There's only 1 2.5" drive in the 17 R2. The other 4 slots are for M.2 2280 only.
In order to keep both the mSATA and 1 TB, you would need the mSATA to adapter you linked and an external enclosure for the HDD.

 

Guys I need help. Haven't been able to utilise my new alienware 17 R2 2015 because of it. So I removed the stock 1tb Toshiba drive and all I had was the 256gb msata LiteOn drive with windows. Now I have detection issues with it as I only have my msata and it fails to boot windows if I turn off the system and turn it back on immediately. I also suffered a crash few days after removing the 1tb drive which corrupted my windows. Please note that between today and the day of removing the 1 tb drive I had installed a 500gb SSD in its place. It was present when the crash happened followed soon by detection and booting issues. I could get it to boot but only if I removed the SSD or put it back again depending on what scenario windows failed to load. Now I removed the 500gb SSD because it came from a friends desktop that short circuited 1 minute after its first start and had its own system partitions. Now I'm left with the msata and have to install windows 8.1 on it. Please note that both drives showed up in BIOS. The mSata continues to show in BIOS as the second hdd. I'm running in UEFI secure boot on and Intel Smart Response enabled. Just yesterday downgraded to A00 BIOS.