M11x R3 Purchase

You know those times that you are hovering over the BUY button and you just cant force yourself to make that leap?

So I need your help.

This is what I am looking at with the deal of £80 off at the moment.

Alienware M11x Stealth Black
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium (64 BIT)
Intel® Core™ i5 2467M 1.6GHz (3MB Cache
4096MB 1333MHz Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM [2x2048]
1GB DDR3 NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 540M
Hard Drive 500GB (7,200rpm) Serial ATA Hard Drive
Killer™ Wireless-N 1103 - EUR

Total Price
Expires 22 March 2012
- £80.00
£698.99

I need something more than my Eee Pc for gaming in front of the tele and I have always wanted an Alienware. I did not see the difference between the I5 and I7 apart from a leap in price. I can use my SATA II SSD in place of the 500gb and sell that for around £200.

My worries are that:

A. The screen gets terrible reviews, how bad is it really? I am coming from a 10 inch matte.
B. I buy this now and then they release newer CPU's at the same price.
C I lose my job but that is not really predictable.

In your opinion is it a good time to buy an R3? Prices are high in the UK so take into consideration the difference from $.

Many thanks

 

The screen is really reflective and that takes some getting used to, coming from a matte screen. Otherwise, I've never had any problems with it or considered it "terrible" in any way.

 

This is the one thing worrying me. I sit in front of a window at work and love my netty at lunchtime. Currently I have a matte screen on my Asus so I am ok. At home it would not be a problem because I sit in the corner of the room away from all light....decisions decision....been dreaming of getting an AW since I was 16 haha im now 26.

 

I was in pretty much the same boat as you - Always idolized Alienware since their original Legacy range and finally found one at a decent price now that I'm older (and wiser). I was on holiday @ the US at the time so i needed something portable and the M11x R3 was the perfect choice (i already had a G73JH but you know how big that is so this was a HUGE difference).

I don't see anything wrong with the screen at all, it's more than clear enough for me, and the clarity is probably 1000% better than when I'm using my 42" plasma at 1m range. Sure it's a glossy screen, but the entire lid ensemble is 1 single part/piece so i wouldn't want it any other way tbh. You can always get aftermarket matte screen protectors too.

AFAIK they just increased the CPU's they use in the R3 just a few months ago so i wouldn't be anticipating any other changes until the R4 is released (not even announced yet).

Also i'm not so sure about a 500GB 7,200RPM drive going for £200... That's more than i paid for my 128GB Crucial M4 + 8GB Kingston Hyper-X combined.

BTW, here's the size compared to a G73JH -

 

If you're worried about screen glare, you can get:
AG2 Anti-Glare Screen Protector for Alienware M11x Netbook Computer : Monitors | Dell

The M11XR3 is an excellent choice and you should follow your dream.

Like you, I've ALWAYS wanted an Alienware since I was young and finally got my dream machine

 

I have never had an issue with the screen. It is very glossy but I have never once had an issue seeing it. The colors look fine to me, and the screen space is decent for an ultracompact.. I have used my M11x as my primary gaming rig for over a year now and the screen has not once been an issue.

I love my M11x, it is perfect for traveling or taking notes during lectures.. I don't regret it at all.

In all honesty though, a few months ago I got an M17x and have been doing most of my gaming on that... I still use my M11x when I travel but it's mostly a media machine now.. Browsing, movies, music... Some light gaming, and etc.

 

Many thanks for all the replies. +1 reps.

My last worry is that of the 640M as the pre release results looks outstanding and reviews are saying it could be 50% more powerful than the 540M which is why I am undecided to make the leap now or wait for the latest model later in the year (hopefully)

Does anyone know what the R3 was at release so that I get an idea of what I could be expecting if it wait? I suppose the deal at the moment is a lot lower than release price.

 

I'm just guessing, but if you wanted to wait for the R4 i'd guess it would be ~$2,000AUD/$1,200USD. But honestly that extra price you're paying over the R3 may not be worth it if the specs aren't too much better. Again we can't know, cos it hasn't been announced so it may never come out and the R3 may end up being the last M11x range.

 

I am on the verge of purchase now

The last few questions, is it SATA III? and will it be able to run 1600mhz hyperX ram as it is a sandy bridge model with the I5 in it?

Many thanks

 

I own the R2 and bought an R3 for Star Wars when it came out they are fantastic machines for the size.

I went with 2 gig of ram then bought 8gig from Crucial for like £30.

Got my R3 for a little more than you as I went with the i7.
..

 

Yes its SATA III, I have a SATA III Samsung 830 running very efficiently. But yes and no for the RAM. It will run it, but at 1333MHz max.

 

Your Order Has Been Submitted!

I bit the bullet. I could be dead tomorrow.

I will plant my 96gb Kingston SATA II SSD into my R3 and stick with the 4gb 1333mhz RAM it comes with I think I will have the clevo for proper gaming but when the mrs goes to bed and im in the lazy boy I need a netbook and my current Eee Pc has no guts.

Many thanks all!

 

Yes it has SATA III, and it will run Kingston Hyper-X 1600MHz PnP modules, but they will run @1333MHz and at the lower 8-8-8-23 timings.

 

So there is no gain at all apart from the heatsinks?

Many thanks for all the information really looking to receiving this now looking at the movies on you tube it performs like a pro with the I5.

One last question as with all laptops I normally apply my own thermal compound and understand this requires a full dissasembly is there a warranty sticker to prevent the dissassembly or just over the corner of the CPU like some models?

 

How big is the difference from the R2's 335 vs. the R3's 540 when you play SW:TOR or any other games that you have played on both laptops?

 

Enjoy your M11x Yiddo. It'll be a very healthy upgrade from your Eee PC.

 

3DMark06 900pts to 9000 Oh yes I agree! hehe

I use my Clevo for games like Battlefield and Witcher/Skyrim games that deserve to be played at max with 1080p I dont have the time to play the other games on their way ME3 and Diablo so the M11x will allow me to maximise my game time, including ignoring the noobs at work on my lunch!

 

Well the stocks timings are 9-9-9-24 but when they run @1333MHz they drop to 8-8-8-23. I like lower timings, and the heatsinks also make my RAM sticks feel physically cooler than without them, so i'm very happy with the upgrade.

No there are no warranty stickers IIRC but Dell only allows the customer to change the RAM/HDD/Keyboard, and if you repaste it yourself and ever need serious repair work done they may notice that it's been repasted without any prior service calls... They might possibly (there is a very small chance) use that as grounds to void your warranty.

My M11x runs perfect with the stock thermal compound, i would leave it until after your warranty expires before repasting it. Or at last until it becomes an issue and you NEED to do it.

 

just to hijack the thread for a minute as i dont want to start a new one. bought a m11x r3 (i7 and ssd) from dell. then thought no, to small really so was going to return once it arrived. Bought a asus g74sx........both arrived on the same day.

set up asus.....crash.....re-configured......crash. couldnt resist so opened the m11x........im hooked, what a lovely little beast! ok so the real estate is small, the viewing angles are dire but the rest is just fantastic! the keyboard is a joy, never thought it would be big enough but its a dream to type on. And yup, its true! SSD's are wonderfull.

bye bye big fat asus, i suggest somebody in that company learns to set up a laptop correctly before they put them on sale!

off to play a few games now...............

 

Yep I loved my Asus G73 and my Clevo is awesome as well but portability is king and the fact that fast mid range cards find themself into a netbook there really is no contest.

I will still keep my Clevo for future gaming but the M11 is certainly going to be getting more use

 

Haha, it'll be a great way to pass the time.


And to answer your previous question, there is no sticker to remove that would void the warranty. I have repasted my R2 and I can't see there being any way that you could tell... except for a better thermal paste job.

 

Alienware must have some plans for an ultrabook. Seems to be all the rage nowadays, just like they jumped on the netbook bandwagon. And with the 600M cards they might pull it off.

Thinking of buying an M11x myself. Don't really want to wait for R4, who knows when thay will happen.

 

The reason I am not waiting is because:

A. They will be very highly priced for the initial release.
B. They always release a refresh which is miles better a year later i.e 2617m - 2637m.
C. Wait until the bugs and software updates have fixed the problems at release.

The deals are the moment are great as well I am always a revision behind just like I was when I had a 920XM which pulled like a 6 legged camel and it comes out so much cheaper.

 

M11x just arrived in:

Almaty, Kazakhstan 23/03/2012 13:37 Arrival Scan

Too many Borat quotes come to mind