Why buy an Alienware?

Ok so another noob question from myself and probably rather irrelevant and certainly too late to answer this question as I have already ordered my AW but I was just wandering why they are so good for gaming. If for example you take a Dell XPS L502x in to account with these specs surely they are better than the M11X R3 but with a cheaper pricetag?


XPS L502x
Processor: Intel Core i7-2670QM (2.20 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 3.10 GHz)
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium
8 GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz (2 DIMMs)
750 GB SATA Hard Drive (7200RPM)
Optical Drive : Tray Load Blu-ray Disc BD-Combo (Reads BD and Writes to DVD/CD)
15.6 in HD WLED TL (1366x768)
Graphics : 2GB NVIDIA GeForce GT 540M Graphics card

 

Yes, the XPS will perform better than an m11x, but they aren't even in the same segment. One is a fairly heavy 15" laptop with maybe 6 hours of battery life, the other is an 11.6" netbook/laptop that is compact and gets closer to 8 hours on battery.

Essentially you're paying a premium for small form factor and design. I previously had an XPS17 L702X and I sold it to buy my R3 because I got really sick of carrying around an 8 pound laptop with an extended battery (required with the i7) sticking out the bottom.

 

The XPS 15.6" laptop probably weighs 4kg? The footprint of the machine will also be substantial I am guessing?

The ONLY reason to get an M11x is the portability of the system. With power brick, the whole package is 2kg and the footprint is relatively small, though obviously not a small as other 11.6" machines. I got one for when working away from my Asus RoG laptop, as I wasn't going to carry that as well as a full sized Thinkpad or Dell from work, whereas the M11x could be carried alongside the other machine.

If you are looking for a top line gaming laptop, then you have the wrong bit of kit - should've gone M18, Clevo, Sager, Asus RoG, XPS, or even Razer Blade if you can find one. But if you want portability then the M11x wins, and there is nothing even remotely comparable to it.

 

Ok that's a fair shout, however what about if someone was interested in an Alienware M14x or M17x, would you recommend they just got an XPS as surely it weighs similar and is similar spec with a lower premium?

 

The M17x is up at desktop replacement size, along with the M18x, so it becomes a question of which do they want to go for. Alienware for the brand, the looks, the lights? I know XPS has good reviews and is Dell's flagship so the quality is comparable, the price is still high, so it'd be down to personal choice at the end of the day.

The M14x is an interesting one... midsized, but bigger, bulkier and heavier than most 14" laptops. The price is also very reasonable for what you get, much like the M11x, but I'd definitely not want to carry it alongside another laptop such as for work. I guess the XPS 13" could game at a pinch, and maybe the LG330, but few other laptops in this size can game adequately, especially since the advent of the "ultrabook" concept. Again, like the M11x, it fills a niche in the market.

 

IMO you either have one of two things:

An M11x + a Desktop replacement.
An M14x.

Unless you are rich or greedy.

 

As stated you are paying for the size, however the M11x R3 is a little monster considering you would spend more on lesser spec machines which only hold the same CPU and only have access to the HD 3000 graphics, suffer from sealed batteries and HDD's such as MAC Book Air 11" or the Asus UX21 or UX31 admittedly these are all good looking bits of kit, however the M11x R3 is not that bad looking imho

You have made the right choice dude trust me, l had the previous XPS 15 L501x spec with an i3 370m and GT420m, this little monster will match it for graphics grunt and only just lag behind on the CPU front at a fraction of the size

 

Thanks Yiddo - that was something I was trying to say but ended up rambling!

The M14x can replace a day-to-day laptop as it is big enough to anything on, whereas the M11x comes with the restrictions of the small format. That's speaking generally, I know the M11x can handle almost anything you throw at it but it isn't the most comfortable screen for big spreadsheets, etc.

 

Do not regret your decision to get the M11x OP i see people on here day by day waiting for the imaginary M11x R4 which does not yet exist because they think buying the R3 means the end of the world, I have never had a laptop sale that did not recuperate less than 75% its retail price and I see R1's going on Ebay for £3-400 over here and selling which is crazy. They will not lose their retail value so if after a few months you want to update just sell up shop.

Personally if I had not got my Clevo on finance with the M14x prices at the moment I would have gone for one because they are top notch, but I do not regret having the best of both worlds either.

 

It just got me to thinking, I purchased the m11xr3 on a whim as I just assumed the AW's would be the best for gaming which is my priority. I want to play it on my sofa mainly or plugged in to the tv so it had to be a laptop so it just seemed right. Then I saw the XPS and that I could have a better CPU and GPU and larger screen for a better price and although not as portable I wouldn't really be taking it anywhere other than house to house in the car. Although if price didn't matter I would have an AW anyday because they look good, are well built and just plain cool I'm worried that maybe I should have taken the higher spec over looks and coolness!

Either way its too late now.... Unless I cancel and get an XPS! Oooh I don't know.

 

I installed The Witcher 2 earlier with all the updates for the enhanced version.

Fired it up and thought I would be funny and switch all settings on but AA/Depth of field and shifted everything else to High. 30fps the majority of the time and even saw upto 40fps occasionally and the lowest being 23 in heavy battles.

Says it all

 

tomcannon, wouldn't worry about it. Second guessing with tech is never a good idea, as a newer, better, faster thing will always come out. Give it go, see if you like the M11x. If not, sell it, get something new. You never know, you might start taking it along to other places once you get used to the size, rather than just having it in the house!

 

You're right. I'm not going to bother now, I haven't even got it yet, plus I change my mind all the time so no doubt it'll be sold in a year and I'll update. Plus the XPS looks crap in comparison and I mean literally. Tech spec isn't everything!!!

 

I was hovering over the buy button for a good month we all do it.

 

tomcannon, if you are truly worried about gaming, then the XPS is not the way to go. A gt 540m is not a true gaming grade vid card. The 540m is more a generalist that is also able to play some games at reduced details. It may be ok at 1366x768, but you aren't gonig to max any settings

Like irishsumo said above, get the m11x because its small and portable, yet somewhat capable.

If you truly want gaming, you'd have to go to much better vid card...and if the m17x or higher isn't in the cards, MSI or Sager might fit the bill

 

Well there's not a hope I could afford anything bigger and better so it'll do for now and maybe I'll have to sort a desktop down the line.

Cheers for the info guys, plus all you lot can't be wrong!!!

 

Sorry but this is wrong apart from the latest most intensive games like Battlefield 3 and Witcher 2 I can max nearly everything including skyrim with everything set to high and see 40fps. People forget that this card is more than powerful enough when it is running at such a low resolution.

OP do not underestimate what this thing can do until you see it first hand, which you will when it arrives.

 

If it makes you feel any better, the palmrest on the XPS gets so hot you can fry an egg.

 

Oh man I missed that he mentioned buying an XPS that thing is made out of plastic that was produced from melted down shopping bags stay well clear of that thing. The screen is worse than the M11 as well that is saying something.

 

The 900p and 1080p panels in the XPS line are decent. Also, lid and palmrest are made of aluminum.

 

I have seen the 900p screen its worse than Asus attempt at high end gaming models.

+ the build quality sucks! My mates after only a week was coming apart.

Should have 'Made in Chernobyl' on the bottom

 

You get an AW knowing that regardless of what happens, in 12 months time your laptop will still be worth more than 75% of what you paid for it. They don't drop the price often and they don't sell in most retail stores (they sell at JB-HiFi here in Aust) which means their 2nd-hand market value does not diminish very much at all. Today you can pickup an R1 for probably half of what it cost when it first came out 2 years ago, and it won't go much lower.

The name "Alienware" is associated with quality and performance. You pay for the aesthetics and you pay for the name. But beyond that, it's still quite competitively priced.

 

Yeah, I fully agree with this. They maintain their value remarkably!
I've seen them around for sale, still with strong prices and they still do sell!

JB have them in Aust, the only place in aus where they're in partnership with Dell.

I love the build quality personally. I really like the look of the new XPS Ultrabook aswell, but I prefer the AW build and the lights... Light up keys FTW!

So all in all, it's really what you want, a large size with bigger, better specs on the inside, or a smaller lappy with still decent specs?
I was in the same boat a month-ish ago, can't remember... anywayyyy... I have no major qalms with it. Handles everything I throw at it just fine and is highly portable... A 15" lappy becomes a pain to lug around after a while. This little tacker is brilliant.

I'm happy with Dell/Alienware as a whole, there's always people that have qalms about certain products, Dell/Alienware included, but at the end of the day, nothing's perfect...

I hovered the buy button a fair bit... but am thrilled that I did.

 

We've all been there and done that. I've built plenty of machines and added them to my cart, usually for the fun of it or just dreaming...

 

True that!
Like maxing it out with everything and looking at the total ang going "holy cow... It'll cost THAT much?!?!".... and then later building it from parts for half the price... LOL.

 

I did that with Alienware machines for about 6 months before picking one up.

It's a great feeling finally receiving an item you've been wanting for a long time, but could never previously afford.

Best brand I've ever owned and I wouldn't trade it for anything.

 

I too used to look at AW, however could not justify the cost, and due to my job and where l end up l always opted for 11.6" net-books/notebooks.

My first 15 inch laptop had a AMD Turion + ati x700 and managed a few trips away but started to show wear and tear around the hinges.

After this had an NC10 which managed a single trip.

Then an HP 311c which managed a single trip, donated to my wife then sold onto a work mate for £100 not bad as it cost £250 from Amazon in 2009

Finally just given the missus my old HP DM1 3101ea it managed a single trip, gave it to a work mate to use on the last trip when his laptop went pop and replaced it with an Asus N55SF which l used for the final 3 month of my trip.

Got back and hummed and ha'd over this forum, l do like my N55SF however l would happily sell it as the little M11x R3 does all that l need and for anything else l have my desktop.

It is the right size, has great battery life and when l next go on my trip overseas it will be handy to have the extra grunt that my HP 311c and DM1 3101ea never had.

The screen size is ideal for report writing, and surfing the web, and the extra CPU/GPU grunt will allow me to use it for HD and gaming with out having to resort to 3rd party programmes to utilises the graphics properly.

So that is Why l have bought an AW

 

I remember when I was going to get my M11x. The R2 had just been announced but not yet released, so every day I would check the Alienware site (multiple times) and build a machine. One morning I went on and the R2 was suddenly available. I built the machine and ordered it in record time. It felt so good to have it in production and when I finally got it... .

The only other laptop I have ever been tempted by is the Sony Vaio Z series. However after owning an Alienware, I don't think I could ever go for another brand.

 

Me too. I had a HP and Toshiba, and both died pretty quickly.
The build of Alienware is my biggest selling point!

 

I love my M11X and as was said on the first page, I too call it a little monster.