Alienware m15 / i9-8950HK Review by Ultra Male

Moral of the story, the Alienware m15 simply does not have good enough cooling, no matter what Dell states. It’s probably worse than clevo counterparts in the cooling department.

 

The brand new bigger brother Alienware m17 ain't much better. All thin and lightweighted notebooks have overheating problems. Adding in the +$450 usd unlocked i9-8950Hk doesn't make it any better on such models. Only milking more money out of your pocket. This regardless of brand. But none of the other Notebook OEM's is like Alienware... Advertice it with useless 5.0GHz overclock options. This is in reality the same as fooling / trick / lure the Customers into the buy button.

 

Maybe they fixed their issues right when I purchased.

I hadn't had a chance to check GPU temps, I am assuming since it's a 2060 maybe it'll run fine.

Looks like they released a OC vBIOS, don't know if it's worth trying.

 

Wait for GP testing...

 

I would but, with the release of the m17 getting the 1440p 120hz display I had returned my m15 for the m17. you can see what I'm running now in my sig. But I did notice some battery drain on heavier titles like The Witcher 3, or anything that was more demanding than say Overwatch. But, it is great to see that dell realized they made a mistake and are sending the proper power supply.

My M17 came with the 240w and I kinda wish they would make a custom power supply. It's a touch big compared to the competition. Though I've had no problems carrying it around in my Area 51M back pack.

 

My friend just got his m15 with 2060 & i7 8750H. It came with 180w AC.

 

If your friend got it from Dell then they sent the wrong adapter and he should contact them. If he got it from another location then it could be old stock. Regardless your friend should see if Dell will provide the 240W adapter.

 

Imagine how much better the 8950 would run if it came in the 51m chassis.

 

I’m glad they didn’t go the bga route. Why would anyone want a 8950hk chip in such a massive laptop. Especially when the 9900k literally DEMOLISHES IT! I’m glad they went this route, thermals are actually decent too. Somehow they achieved better cooling than even Clevo could offer in that department.

 

My m15 performs marvelously on stock paste undervolted. Just saying.

 

Undervolted yes. But on stock voltages it overheats easily. Compared to other laptops from Clevo they can stay at or below 80c with both gpu and cpu loaded those laptops being equally as slim and bga.

I’m not hating on Alienware but I’m just saying that if your paying for something this expensive/flashy it should offer good performance without any compromises.

 

How is undervolting a compromise?

That aside, every laptop represents a compromise if you think about it, including the Area M-51 (size, weight, useless battery life, performance compromised compared to a desktop in absolute terms and on value basis).

Performance of the m15 would actually be fine for most poeple without undervolting (around 5-10% lower). Temps are are higher, but still not crazy (CPU in the 80s without Turbo Boost, GPU in high 70s).

 

BTW, needing to undervolt a laptop just to make it perform the way it should is not good. That performance should be there out of the box. You shouldn’t NEED to install XTU or throttle stop just to limit the cpu voltage. The bios should be doing that already whilst maintaining boost clocks. Just look at Lenovo’s y740 it has a voltage stepping feature for the cpu. I’m sorry to say but for the price The M15 is unacceptable.

Yes I forgot that these machines are meant for gaming. For these situations the m15 should be good enough for cooling but for something which is cpu heavy, such as rendering you certainly won’t be getting turbo boost clocks and you’ll be reaching or even hitting 90c.

As a GAMING machine these temps are reasonable.

 

I'm using it mostly as a *portable* computing device (but yes, most games I tried push stable 30fps in 4K on max settings and VR flies maxed out). For any serious computing though you simply can't beat the desktop or the cloud.

 

With the price range being at a desktop replacement equivalent, it should at least offer better performance. You shouldn’t have to rely on a desktop to be the powerhouse for you. Look at my setup, my Clevo laptop has a 8700k which believe it or not doesn’t throttle under rendering loads and maintains a boost clock. Granted these are with modifications done but even with a stock 6700k it would give the m15 a good run for its money offering better single core and quad core performance but lacking in the multi-core department.

I’m not saying Alienware did a horrendous job at cooling but just looking at how well Clevo does I’m frankly surprised as to why they haven’t surpassed or even copied the heat sink designs. Look at their beast of an alienware area 51m and the decent cooling it offers for a crazy hot 9900k. If Alienware puts their mind to it they can solve these issues...

 

We need to understand something...Dell uses too much voltage on their laptops.

Even on the Area-51m I can do -100mV and it'll drop temps by 10C+.

I haven't tried the m15 yet, hoping to have a whole day with it next weekend.

 

AFAIK no laptop manufacturers specify the voltage of the CPU, that is determined by the VID provided by the CPU. Yes Intel gives it more voltage than required, but tuning EVERY CPU would be difficult if not impossible. They just care about stability.

 

I think @Johnksss can provide some insight on this matter. I thought manufacturer's can also specify a voltage.

I know for the Clevo P775 series there was a -100mV undervolt already applied within the factory BIOS.

 

Any undervolt would be to the stock CPU VID. I know that the XPS 9550, 9560, and 9570 all read the CPU's VID and used that (I've owned many of each and they all had a different stock voltage).

*on edit*
I think it would be far too complicated to expect a laptop manufacturer to go through and qualify a voltage for each CPU model. It would be far easier to just use what Intel already provides.

 

I can see a few issues with that argument:

1. The m15 is much cheaper that Area M-51
2. Even if it was the same price, anyone requiring reasonable battery life would have to reject a desktop replacement as a valid choice
3. It does offer WAAAY better performance on battery, which must be the primary reason people shell out so much on laptops

That's a pretty twisted argument. Why shouldn't I? With a desktop I benefit from actual and ultimate configurability and upgradability, the dollars are going to go much further in terms of performance, and if I my pockets are deep enough to consider a top-spec Area M-51 I can start looking at dual Xeon workstation and/or SLI Titan setups that will completely wipe the floor with any "desktop replacements". Yes, if you can only afford one machine and you must have a laptop because you need to be able to work (or play!) on the go, then there are going to have to be compromises and surely you won't pick a desktop replacement for that purpose.

As explained above, you are comparing apples and oranges, whereas you should be comparing either the Area M-51 with your Clevo, or the m15 with the likes of Razer 15 Advanced and Gigabyte Aero 15x X9.
Focusing on the latter from the m15 user's perspective, I think the m15 is a superior machine in terms of stock performance (the 2070 is a 90W variant while both Razer and Gigabyte went with 80W dGPU) and, as I had a chance to find out, Dell offers unparalleled premium service (mobo replaced in two BDs, whereas apparently Gigabyte and Razer users would have to RMA and wait for a month if they are lucky).

The actual Apple Mac Book Pro 15 might also be a contender. Battery life form factor and service would be slightly better but then you get some weak AMD GPUs, can't open the laptop and it costs twice as much.

 

Mine is stable at - 150mV, likewise the GPU frequency curve on the low end. Good luck.

 

I'm a bit surprised Dell haven't come up with optional automatic undervolting in AWCC. Probably way too focused on stability, as you say.

 

For me anything above -125mV would crash.

 

To be fair the marginal improvement between -125 and -150 is fairly small, I'd think 100Mhz on all cores without TB under full load maybe (same temp obviously).. I'm getting ca. 3.5Ghz in CB20.

 

Where does Lenovo say this? Is this Auto undervolt or overvolt just like Vega/radeon 7?

 

When I first hear about how much voltage to their cpu I nearly sharted myself. It explains so much why they always run hot.

Toothpaste thermal compound too. . .but everyone besides gigabyte seems to do the same.

 

Let me highlight a few things that the m15 does bring (or will soon) to the table.

• OLED, which means super low response times (no smearing), HDR the way it was meant to be, huge color palette and better daylight visibility
• 8 core cpu's
  • for those who don't remember the 8700k to 9900k changeover, Intel got a lot more refined about clockspeeds for the same heat levels when they brought 9th gen improvements to the desktop
  • you won't get a dramatically improved heat level, but the chip will be refined, not exactly the same as today
  • even if you can't use those cores all the time at top speed most programs aren't going to need top speed on more than 4 or maybe 6, so you'll have TDP headroom
  • testing of preliminary Clevo boxes yielded 90% of 8 core desktop speeds on extended CB runs - and 10% isn't likely to be noticed unless you bench
  • drop a 2080ti into an amplifier and you possibly have something that runs cooler and as fast in games as the 51m
• 6 core cpu's that are cooler than 8th gen
  • most people only aim for the top, but along with 8 cores you are also going to get better improved 6/12 cpu's as well, like the 9750
  • that means better clocks and better thermals than before as Intel has been forced to coax more out of the existing processes
  • not saying they'll be stunning but many of you simply wanted 8950 power at lower heat levels and I suspect you are about to get exactly that or better in the 9750h

Travel weight, adapters plus machine is going to be half of the 51m. You'll still have to wait 4-6 months for 4K screens on the 51m. 51m will not get OLED for years.

 

Check @B0B review on the unit, he mentions that when the cpu and gpu are at full load the cpu voltage ‘steps down’ to allow cooler temps and therefore a better gaming experience due to lower clocks and lower tdp etc. Lenovo know how to do a few things right unlike SOME laptops here...

 

BTW I've found a CPU for @Ultra Male 's new machine, once he gets bored with desktop replacement toys

https://ark.intel.com/content/www/u...inum-8180-processor-38-5m-cache-2-50-ghz.html
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07LDRWRGL/

This scales to 8 CPUs, so theoretically one can build a proper 224 core desktop system

 

Lol! Ultra would be OC'ing that in a moment I'd bet

 

It basically means they undervolt and underclock forcefully while others give you that control.

 

Which in my opinion isn’t a bad thing, do you know that most laptop cpus are actually throttled when gaming. Even the massive Clevo laptops with ‘desktop’ cpus... I know because it used to happen to me until I switched to a 35w 8700t which allowed the turbo clock to run 24/7 no matter what.

Edit: and this isn’t the first time, msi and Alienware used to be notorious for something called ‘bd prochot’ throttling (which I’m sure you definitely know of)

 

Its true that a lot of laptops throttle out of the box, but if th epower delivery is up to snuff and you remove thermal limitations, a lot of those can run at boost clocks 24/7.

But with the Lenovo there is no chance to remedy it now even when the thermals are not an issue. It also might mean that they skimped on power delivery components to have just enough juice for set power.

 

That is likely true actually because Lenovo are known for using power bricks that just about power all the components. Which is one reason I don’t buy laptops from them as the power brick is usually working overtime and heating up like crazy in the process. This is why many Lenovo psu’s die, well I’ve noticed that at my repair shop anyway.

 

It's an old thread. Dell offer the new m15 r2 with the LEGENDARY design outside they still selling the old m15 r1.

What baffle me is that it seems Dell have gone back to old sins. The older Aw m15 is offered with 240w psu if you go with 2060 graphics and above.


But if you go into their webpage and customize the new m15 r2 with 2060/2070 you will get an option (180/240w power adapter). Why would they do that, sir? Hope that the buyers don't see it and send with an 180w psu? Or is it other reasons for this? Make it look a lot better on the sales page if they offer a stronger power adapter without cost?


Edit. Yeah, Dell really screwed up this time as well... https://www.reddit.com/r/Alienware/comments/c8wmpc/180w_for_new_m15_r2_rtx_2070maxq/essf7b6/


If you find an better place post this info, even delete it (people should know about it), You can do that. Thanks

 

True, but I usually fix that by upping the VR Current Limit (AKA ICCCacheMax) in XTU or increasing the power limits. That, in addition to a good thermal paste job and it fixes the issue. Out of the box, today's laptop never run at the advertised speeds.