Is the m14x the right laptop for you?

After using this laptop for about a month, I want to assist people who are interested in buying it. First of all, this is not a gaming powerhouse computer. I wouldn't advise paying more than 1400 total with upgrades. The reason is that the graphics card is a real bottle neck. Nvidia's gt series aren't for serious gamers. There are many other competitor's that offer better performance for around the same or even a lower price, like msi, asus, even some configured hp models. With the current m11x starting at 699, with the almost identical Gt540m compared to the gt555m, maybe that seem's like a better value, if you don't need a quad core i7. The m14x is a great laptop, but it isn't an amazing deal, just realize the limits of the gt555m.
Personal pro's and cons. Overall a great purchase. Purchased it on a Wednesday, got it on Thursday (29 hours later) from alienware.com.

Pros:
Core i7 quad core sandy bridge processor.
Solid sturdy build.
AlienFx Lighting
1600x900 resolution on a 14" screen.
Decent/adequate graphics
Keyboard has great feel and feedback.
Trackpad decent for usual computer usage.
Not heavy for what it is. Not dense, (like macbooks, which feel so heavy because they cram so much into so little space)
Speakers plus sub woofer are amazing. Very deep bass. Probably the best ever on a 14 inch laptop.
Cons:
Battery life (average 3 -3.5 hours web browsing with no fx lights, lowest brightness. About half of the stated 6 hours by alienware)
Could have had an optional gtx of amd 6000 series instead of a bigger 3 gb gt555m upgrade. Stock gt555m is adequate, but could have been better, and is found on cheaper laptops.
Better price for value in other gaming notebooks. (asus, msi, toshiba) not taking portability into account.
Heat!!! Do not game on your lap. It gets hot on the bottom to the point where you cant touch it.
Would have loved capacitive touch sensitive buttons on the bezel.
Although aggressive looking, doesn't have the shock value like looking at a m15x or higher.
Moisture from my fingers show up on my lcd screen, makes a keyboard outline of moisture when you open the screen after closing it. Remember to wipe your keyboard down after gaming before closing the lid.
Fingerprint resistant but not finger oil resistant, really hard to remove the oils left from your hands. They soak into the soft touch finish.

 

that is because you are playing at the higher res aint it?

the difference in performance between the m11x and the m14x is quite noticeable, due to the more powerful gpu, but I agree with you if they put a 1600*900 res they should have put a gtx 560, it would be great, or a 6850m or even a 6870m

 

Hmm I've been able to run Dirt 3 and Crysis 2 at almost max settings and native rez fine

 

For Alienware I prefer the AMD's card, at least they should have put the 6850m ir 6870m like Mr MM said, the only thing I disappointed about M14x is that GT 555M.

Or Maybe because of I'm an AMD users/fanboy? lol

 

they could have even put the ati 6770 in it. similar speed, but much lower wattage. Guess they wanted to use an optimus capable card

 

But I dont see any good hear from the Optimus, nothing but trouble when on battery.

 

Because this is being donated to my fiance in about six months when I order my M17xR3, I got the 720p screen on this M14x. Having the 1080p screen in the M15x was beautiful and all, but everyday usage was somewhat difficult due to the small size of everything. Turns out, the 720p screen on this M14x is the perfect size. You're talking an instant FPS boost in games over the 900p screen, everything *looks* normal in size, it was cheaper, and you get that "maxed out" feeling when playing a game.

 

+1

I'm always plugged in - if I want to go mobile I have an iPad or iPhone to use. Optimus has been nothing but a pain in my butt, quite frankly.

 

iphone have less battery life than m14x xD

 

How many FPS? I was leaning towards the 900p screen because it's brighter and that should help reduce the glare of the screen.

 

I play crysis 2 on 1600x900p reso on medium settings, i.e. the advanced setting, i get around 25-40 fps. If you max it out, it gets kind of choppy. And id get the 900p screen, its a small investment for a better screen. I just hate 1366x768, even on my smaller 13 inch hp screen.

 

Hi, I'm looking to buy a M14x.

You can skip to the bold text for the questions.

Here's my story. I bought a m15x ±3years ago and 1 year ago the gpu fried.
I don't have it on me neither recall all the different parts but the gpu was running at 2.5ghz iirc, 8800m gtx 512mb, 4gig ram.

Rest of the laptop is ok, but only dedicated gpu was working, not my 8800M gtx. After calling Alienware (bought by dell after i bought my laptop), they told me they were not making 8800M gtx anymore. The only place they told me to look was ebay (><). My warranty was only 1 year and it was over. So i checked ebay and gpu were 700$ used. So I said " it, why spend 700$ when it might fry again..."

So.... I bought a gaming pc....

Now I'm looking for another laptop, but i dont want top of the line (meaning 2K+). I want to spend a max of 2K, so I tought I'd give alienware another shot because i want to use the pay/month thing. I looked at the maxed out m11 but the screen is just too small to play games imo.

I don't care if the graphic aren't maxed out, i just want it to look good and not lag. (I'm using my pc when playing game, but if I'm out of town or outside, i want to have a laptop able to run games smoothly.

So I'm looking for info on customizing the m14. I have a couple questions.

1) Is the cpu upgrade worth it?

2) The screen... 1366x768 or 1600x900. Seems like a dumb question but 1600x900 is 900p (never heard of 900p) and the other one is at 720p. On my old m15 i have a resolution of 1900x1200. Will miss that.. =/
Also for the screen, Dell - Help Me Choose: Display says that the 720p is anti-glare, and the 900p is nothing... then what is it?

3) Hard-drive choices are bs... I think i might try to order by phone instead of online just to ask if they can put me an 120'ish intel ssd, enough for games space and plug an external hard drive for useless stuff.
Because 256gig is nice, but since you cant have 2hd, you will need an external hd so i think 120gig is going to hold all my games. like i said, my stuff are on my main pc.

If I can't get a smaller SSD I'll just get the 500gb one, but i wanted ssd

4) GPU: I'll do the same thing as above, and try to get a better gpu that fits inside.

5) Sound card: Will my sound card makes my speaker sound that much better? I dont plan on plugging speaker in the laptop.

6) Wireless card : I have 26mbps and I'd like to have all of it without pluging a cable.

7) Warranty... I might just take the 4 years because last time it was expired... but I'm not sure yet.

Thanks. I'm sorry for the long post and the mistakes. lol

Also... why are the prices different from the M14x and M17x. For the same HD it's 50$ more. For the same # of months (McAfee) it's 50$ more, etc...

 

1) For games the CPU upgrade is useless, the 2630QM is more than enough.
2) The two screen are the same for the question about "anti glare" you'll just get a better res with 900p and also a better brightness so take it.
3) If you want to buy a SSD, buy it on newegg, not on Dell because it's overpriced.
4) You can't upgrade the GPU.
5) You can't change de soundcard, it's just a software that make the sound quality better.
6) I don't know if the stock wifi card is good, I personnaly took the better one to have internet everywhere with my SIM card.
7) Yes, if you can take the 4 years.

I just checked on Dell and for McAffe it's the same price... Anyway this thing is a crap, and for the HD I think you are talking about the screen, it's normal that for the M17x it's a higher price because the screen is bigger and I think it's another type of screen than the M14x.

 

op, sounds like a m14x hater. just saying. its a great laptop, i run everything maxed out at 16x9 and get great performance.

 

Yeah and the with the almost identical Gt540m compared to the gt555m is totaly fasle, the GT555 is really better than the GT540 :/
You can check here http://www.notebookcheck.net/Computer-Games-on-Laptop-Graphic-Cards.13849.0.html
The FPS difference is about 10 / 20 FPS. I don't call that "almost identical".

 

I am not an m14x hater, I clearly stated that its a great laptop, please don't be ignorant before you troll my posts. The m14x is great for a 1400 dollar laptop. All I'm advising is not to spend more than that on this laptop. There are clearly better value for performance in other laptops if you go above that price. I stated that because i see many people here willing to spend around 2 grand for the upgrades that wont necessarily increase gaming ability.

 

But its still the most powerful 14 inch laptop there is.

Anythig that's "better" usually is bigger and has no battery life.

If you want a normal computer with long battery but still want a great gaming machine, the m14x is perfect. Just gotta think a little bit more into your posts

 

What? Check on the customizing page, you will see the exact same hard drive going for a higher price in the M17x by 50$. It's the -same- hardware, . There is no reason why it should be more expensive. It's like selling a beer for 5$ at a bar and the same beer for 9$ in a casino (Weird example but it works)

 

yes, that's exactly what I'm saying, it is okay for portability, not the best since it uses a carried over m11x battery, But without ignoring the competition, there are better price for value gaming laptops out there. Everyone's seriously acting like the m14x is some machine sent by god lol. I just want people to know before they purchase that the m14x is good for moderate gaming, but not portable gaming because of battery life and lower gpu clock speed on battery. If portability and an hour longer battery life wasn't the case for someone, I'd suggest the Asus g53 for around 1199. My m14x battery life is 3 hours with wifi/bluetooth/alienfx off, screen dimmed all the way, and not even doing much besides word processing. If that's the case, why make it even portable with limited battery life. I love my m14x, but imo, its a glorified m11x. I really dont know what you're talking about "long battery life." If you had an m14x you'd know what im talking about. It barely gets over 3 hours with wifi on and web browsing, not even using its gt555m gpu. Here's a contradiction, a little more portability with less than average battery life? Lets think more into that. Sorry if I'm breaking you alienware fanboy's hearts, just looking at things from a less ignorant point of view. I would reccomend the m14x to anyone if they dont mind the gpu trade off for portability. Just dont know why it's meant to be portable with a 3-3.5 hour battery life using the intel 3000hd gpu, come on dell, stop ruining alienware, the m14x should have had its own battery design.

 

@niko2021:

I haven't received my M14x yet so I'm not doubting you or anything but is the battery life really only just over 3 hours?? How come there are people and review that claim at least 4+?

It just doesn't sound right with people doing the same tests but getting way different results - I get this funny feeling Optimus is the culprit.

 

yeah, 3-3.5 hours average, I'm not surprised tho, it uses the m11x battery. I guess its okay for school, but iirc it has a 300 battery cycle life. Really dont want to replace after 2 years lol. I'd still advise people to buy it, but not really use it much for portability. My old hp dv3 gets 7-8 hours web browsing, so i just use that. I love this laptop, but i wish it had its own battery and a gtx or amd 6000 series battery option, even if it lowered battery life. I haven't heard of anyone getting the advertised 6 hour battery life, real bummer. Heard of people getting 2.5 average =/

 

Portabilty can mean light weight too, personnaly when I talk about portabilty I mean weight because I'll need to carry it every day to school but I wont power it on in the bus. So weight is the only factor for me.

 

Only 300? Brutal. Thanks for the heads up though!

 

If you dont like your m14x, return it. Alot of people are here for research into getting the m14x, and having a whole thread devoted to the bad points only and insulting us by calling us "just alienware fanboys" doesnt help. Ive seen plenty of people getting almost 6 hours of battery out of theirs and gameplay of Metro 2033 maxed playable.

Again, if you dont like it, return it and its okay to tell a good hearted opinion of why you don't like it, but dont make a whole thread to bash it.

 

And where's your m14x? haha jk

 

I like my alienware m14x, but whats wrong with pointing out some flaws in design, quality, or components? A design flaw would be the m11x battery. Quality would be, at least for me, sticking keys, which i fixed by removing hard plastic at the base of a few keys, and for components, should have had more upgrades for gpu like the m15x. A lot of people had quality issues as well. Though I would have paid 100 or more for a better gpu, I'm happy with it. But for being a high end gaming laptop, their quality has been lacking, which is probably dell's fault. I think the m14x is a great laptop if you received it great. For me, the 3 hour battery life against the rated 6 hour? Can't blame me for being a little disappointed about these issues. Currently in the process of rma-ing the battery. I also just wish there were better upgrades that you always see on the m15/17x. I pointed out good and bad reasons about it. But believe me, its great, but not as perfect as you make it out to seem. You're probably in lust waiting for your dream m14x =p

 

No, Im not in "lust" about the m14x and certainly not making "ignorant views" like you so said trying to insult most of the m14x forum users. I could make a whole list of reasons why I dont like the m14x but its a fine enough machine for my needs. I just hate people coming on with problems like with your battery amd saying its a bad machine overall. Yeah it shouldnt happen and it sucks. But stuff happens, even to companies like Dell. Give them a bit more leanway rather than saying quality sucks because your battery needs to be RMA'd.

 

I made a list of the pros and cons. It's just a computer, idk how you get insulted personally. And I am disappointed that my battery life is half than expected, and my keys were sticking, but glad i fixed it with a half an hour of work. The machine is great, but its not amazing, like there ARE other laptop that are clearly better spec wise for the price. A lot of people have had issues with dents, build quality, etc. After dell took over alienware, their quality has went down, especially the old m11x hinge issue. when put head to head against the cheaper asus g53, the asus would win hands down, and all the m14x would have over it is its flashy lights, which are really sexy though, dont buy this laptop and think its gonna be a beast gaming machine, you're gonna get let down, it plays older title's great, and newer games semi good. And even though cooling mats are available, i swear i can fry an egg on the chassis when gaming, a laptop shouldn't get that hot under any circumstances. I made a lot of other threads about how great the m14x is, but I'm not gonna lie and say this is a perfect machine and mislead a lot of people, this laptop is great if you need portability with limited battery life when not gaming, and when you are gaming, realize that it plays games moderately well. And as a portable gaming machine, don't do it. You'll get maybe an hour or so of laggy gaming due to the lower gpu clock speed when on battery. Come on, I'm not bashing anyone, I'm actually helping you by informing you of the pro's and con's. I'm sure the people who had defective units in any way, would rather have a repair than a return, cuz this machine is sexy.

 

While I agree every laptop has pro's and cons, I think rather than just bashing a laptop for some of its faults you should look to improve it.

Poor battery life of 3 hrs. Well there must be a reason for that? Faulty battery or was the nvidia card enabled?
Sticky keys. well that is a fault which you could have used your dell warranty for.
Poor battery whilst gaming. The low clocks can be manipulated with msi afterburner. Though with a quad you cant expect to use it full power and have over an hour of life.
I expect with sensible gpu clocks and turning off TB you could probably game for 1.5hrs

 

No, I like reviews that points out the pros as well as a lot of flaws and design issues. These are my personal pro's and cons, might be different for someone else, or someone else might not even agree with me. M14x is a great laptop, but it's not great for everyone. Many people are actually considering other laptops on these m14x forums. And I like that because it shows that not everyone's falling for alienware just because of the hype, and wouldn't make a wrong purchase. That's what this thread is about. It depends if you want to sacrifice components for somewhat portability, and pay a premium for it. I didn't want to offend anyone

 

No offense taken. Every laptop out there is a compromise between cost, heat, lcd, and performance. No laptop for sale today is perfect, how else would they get us to shell out another 1400 dollars six months from now for the latest and greatest.

 

This.

The m14x is simply a computer, its not like its advertising that its the perfect laptop. I think you got yourself thinking that, sir.

 

Forums are where people trade information about how to get the most out of the computers they have. It's also a great place for the manufacture to get feedback about what people do and do not like about the computer.

My M11x went through 1 return due to the screen defect and 2 screen replacements due to the hinge problem. But I still enjoy the computer for the purpose that I bought it for.

Due to my previous experiences with Alienware I like the M14x but I am also going to wait before buying it to see if there are problems within the next four months.

 

I wish I had your patience

Loved my m11x r1 even though it was replaced 3 times (hinges, dead motherboard, and final return would power off randomly on battery). The only thing that forced me to sell it was the screen size and quality. I am hoping the 14" on the m14x will fill that gap whilst still being mobile when it arrives. At least you get a decent onsite warranty which alleviates my worries of any faults