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    Alienware Review *Thumbs up*

    Discussion in 'Notebook News and Reviews' started by Nucleo, Feb 11, 2005.

  1. Nucleo

    Nucleo Notebook Enthusiast

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    Hi all. I'm new to the forums and recently purchased an Alienware Area 51m 5500 and here's my review. This is posted in the boutique forums as well.

    --Ordering Process--

    Ordering my laptop couldn't have been any easier. Point, click, and before I knew, I had ordered a new rig. [ :D] I plan on using it mainly for college and gaming on the side. Here's the specs:

    Warranty: 1-Year AlienCare Toll-Free 24/7 Phone Support with Onsite Service
    Operating System: Microsoft® Windows® XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2
    Case: Area-51m 5500 Case with 15.4" WideSXGA+ 1680x1050 LCD Display - Conspiracy Blue
    Processor: Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor w/ HT Technology 3.0GHz 800MHz FSB w/ 512KB Cache
    Motherboard: SiS648FX + SiS963L AGP8X Chipset
    Memory: 1GB DDR PC-3200 at 400MHz - 2x512 SO-DIMMs
    Video Card: Area-51m 5500 ATI MOBILITY™ RADEON™ 9700 Module with 128MB DDR
    Sound Card: Sound-Blaster Pro Compatible 3D Audio
    Hard Drive: 40GB 5400 RPM ATA100
    Smart Bay One: 24x10x24 CD-RW / 8X DVD Combo w/Software
    Ethernet NIC: Integrated 10/1000Mb Gigabit Ethernet NIC
    Modem: 56K Modem with V.92 Technology
    Free Alienware T-Shirt: Free Alienware® T-Shirt - Black
    Desktop Enhancements: Exclusive AlienGUIse Theme Manager
    Free Alienware Mousepad: Free Alienware® Mousepad


    --Phase Game--

    Ah, the dreaded phase game. For many, it is a test of patience. For me however, it was fairly quick. After Alienware had recieved my payment, it shipped in 8 days - much quicker than I expected.

    --Packaging--

    3 days after my laptop left the factory, it arrived FedEx ground. Alienware takes shipping VERY seriously, and as soon as I saw the packaging it arrived in, all thoughts of it being mishandled were relieved.

    --Quality--

    The first thing you notice about this laptop is the color - Conspiracy Blue. Ohhh what a color. *drools* The paint is smooth and there are no scratches anywhere.

    The 15.4'' Widescreen is a beauty to stare at. The colors are not washed out at all and there is no noticeable ghosting. There is one dead pixel at the top of my screen that is always red. I rarely notice it so no biggie.

    There is absolutely zero flex with this laptop. The magnesium alloy chasis is wonderful, and this rig feels very solid.

    The keyboard is the best keyboard I have used on a laptop yet. Your hands do not feel cramped at all and again, no flex whatsoever.

    The touchpad is very nice. The integrated scrollbar is useful, although I don't use it much as I have a mouse attached most of the time.

    There are 4 speakers. Two below the LCD and 2 up front. The sound is okay. For a laptop, they are definitely above average.

    The rubberized grips are a great feature, especially for someone like me who tends to drop things. And of course the coolest thing is the Alieneyes. They glow blue when on battery power, green while plugged into the AC adapter, and red while hibernating.

    The fans do a good job of keeping the laptop cool while playing graphically intense games like Unreal Tournament 2004. I purchased an Antec notebook cooler to be on the safe side and reversed the fans. There is a noticeable decrease in temperature and I no longer worry about anything frying on me. [xx(] The fans are somewhat loud for a laptop, but not distracting at all.

    Batterly life is dreadful. A little more than 2 hours max when running programs like Word, Excel, or surfing the web. While gaming, don't expect to be gaming too long - maybe an hour at most, but I haven't tested it yet.

    Gaming is awesome with this rig. The 9700 handles everything I've thrown at it so far. Oh, and did I mention....this laptop is fast!

    --Satisfaction So Far--

    I've experienced 0 problems so far. No blue screens or random shutdowns. So far she's been nice to me. [:X] I've only had once scare - no sound! My palms were a bit sweaty for quite some time until I realized the manual sound on the side was turned all the way down. Owned by the Alien! [ ;)]

    --Summary--

    Pros: Great build quality, great big 'ol screen, faaaaast!
    Cons: Battery life is only decent, just a bit pricey.

    Would I buy from Alienware again? Abso-friggin'-lutely. The best computer I have ever owned so far.

    Edit: I'll add some pics soon! [} :)]
     
    Nucleo, Feb 11, 2005
    #1
  2. Ballin4life

    Ballin4life Notebook Evangelist

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    Thats great news, good to see someone actually getting a positive out of Alienware.
     
    Ballin4life, Feb 12, 2005
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