*OFFICIAL* Alienware 15 R1/R2 Owner's Lounge

I'm always playing in odd postures, like kicked backed in a recliner or lying in bed/bed table, so a keyboard/mouse approach wouldn't work. I have the Alienware 18 for desktop needs.

 

yea i def need a controller, as i dont have a desk and the tallest table is 30 cm off the ground lol (not my house so dont plan on buying a desk for 30 days) a controller will do the trick

 

Hey, same thing here!

 

Anyone know what is the best and most comfortable laptop cooler is, for the AW15? Reviews for many are all over the place. I prefer soft bottom for using on lap, but not that big of a deal

 

To be honest, a cooler will not make a difference!

 

Any tips on cleaning the soft touch palm rests? Its a fingerprint/oil magnet.

 

I think they do, if i had one i would def use it if i had one as when i put the laptop in my lap it does get my legs kind of warm, nothing major but if i had to keep it for 2/3 hours a cooler would be nice to have

sorry, cant help u there, i m trying to wash my hands everytime before u use it lol, if they do get oily i would try with a humid cloth and go really soft on it

 

I owned one of these for my Alienware 14, and just bought a new one for the 15 (SF-15). It actually puts the laptop in a better eye viewing level and provides more comfort, when using in a recliner or in bed. It is light enough for me to bring along to work, in my Vindicator backpack. I have the monster SF - 19 (on that same link) for my 18, as well.

(some of the negative reviews are referring to the larger 17, 19 models. All reviews are lumped together, unfortunately. My SF-15 has handled a ton of abuse.)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EQV0VSU/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

I use these product for my palmrest and for screen cleaning:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0030HG054/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0050R66X8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0029ZDRSQ/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

That sounds like a good thing to use, may grab some

 

To those who are worried about all the reported issues, I just received my AW15 (980m + 128gb SSD, 16gb ram), and everything seems to be working flawlessly. Fans, gpu, no light bleed or cosmetic damage. I'll update if I notice anything.

I'm thrilled to own the 15!

 

Yea, it feels great. Welcome!

 

Hi All,

Just a quick recap for those interested in buying the system.

I purchased my system on the 24/02/15 and received it on the 4/3/15 in the UK.

I had to call up to order my machine as they do not advertise the 980m gpu on the uk website, also because I argued a it they gave me a 10% discount on the whole system so I paid around £1900

My specs:

- i7-4710HQ

- 16gb ram

- 4k screen

- Nvidia 980m GPU

- 512gb SSD + 1TB HDD



My initial thoughts:

This machine is heavy, (Note: for the last year I have been using the new XPS 15).

Feels like a quality build.

Gloss 4k screen looks fantastic, brilliant blacks (same screen as the XPS 15).

Keyboard is very nice to touch and type on, and like the Razer blackwidow keyboard the macro keys on the left side took some getting used to.

Initial installation was very fast and painless, very little bloatware.

The system runs warm on idle.



Gaming:

I tested 2 games:

- League of Legends

Plays like dream but had to lower resolution to 1080p as this game does not scale well to 4k screens.

FPS stayed at a locked 60fps as it was set to sync to refresh rate.

Whilst playing I was able to install MS Office, photoshop and a few other programs in the background without the game dropping a frame.

Computer ran only a little hotter then when on idle.



- Battlefield 4

After a 30min download (including expansions) thanks to Virgin fibre, Game installed very quick

Launched straight into a 48 player DM and loaded with no issues.

screen res was running at 4k with all settings on medium to high (Auto settings)

Played for 2 hours, had fans on, but not that noisy

Frame rate was in 40s and played very smoothly for 4k gaming

Tried to drop resolution down to 1080p in game, but it just reduced the size of the screen and had black borders. I can only assume that you must drop the screen resolution in windows before you launch bf4 to make this work correctly.



Final thoughts:

Bag / Backpack

- I need a new bag for it as it is heavy, I wanted the vindicator backpack but Dell UK are only selling it in 17" and 18", and I don't really want a bigger bag than I need. I read on a forum that the 14" fits the new 15 laptop very snugly but Dell UK does not stock it anymore.

Design

- Before the XPS 15 (Which plays LOL perfectly) I had the Alienware M14x R2 fully spec'd, I prefer the outer shell of the m14x more than the new style as it is all black and a little more sleek. The new metallic outer shell is a bit over the top in my opinion and I am less incline to take my system to work. the inside of the laptop and the touchpad is great it has that nice rubber cushion feel to it. I feel the weight is a bit of an issue, I would have thought it would be lighter as it is now thinner and they are removed the optical drive.

Gaming

- I cannot fault it, it is a full desktop replacement and with the 980m there is really no need for the graphics amplifier.

Am I happy

- Yes and No, No because I wanted to take it work and use as my daily machine as I used to with my m14x r2, but I feel like I will look like a bit of a wanker with the metal outer shell, and also I worry about long term damage to my shoulders from carrying the machine in a messenger bag.

Yes because it games like a boss and is nice very nice to use.

Hope this helps some of you with your decisions on purchasing this machine!

Cheers

Shaun

 

I agree with you, its an Amazing machine, and to me very beautiful. I do take it with me, i bought it with the Vindicator 17 and it fits good, yes bag is bigger but the notebook pocket is tight and it doesnt seem to slide all over the place, so i am pretty happy with it right now. If i will feel it sliding in the future i will just buy a microfiber cloth and wrap the laptop in it then store it in the bag.
Once its in a bookbag the weight is not so important to me, maybe a Messenger bag makes it feel more as it sits on one shoulder, but really 3 kg or what it is, i carry it with the charger and all and its not bothering me, but to each their own feelings
Welcome to the 15 family

 

Thanks for the response Drebkb,

I have been hunting like crazy to try to get a Vindicator 14 backpack in the UK, they are no-where to be found, looks like I may need to order from ebay from an american seller . good to hear the 17 works for you, I just really hope they bring out a 15 for it sooner than latter!

 

Oh going on from my last post, I have also tested Guildwars2.
I have the settings on ultra, and res set to 4k. I get an average of 52-60 fps.

For anyone looking to buy this machine, if you are getting the r9 295m or the 980m get the 4k screen, it is fantastic for gaming.

 

I wanted also a 15, but since i didnt have any backpack or bag where i could place my laptop while taking it with me, i was kind of forced to buy the 17, as i really like it look wise, i know maybe some 15 inches packs from Amazon or such are great but i felt like i needed to spoil my laptop lol.

 

I hear that , I just wanted the 14 one as I wear a suit and tie most days to work, and the smaller the bag the better as far as I am concerned and the backpack is best due to the weight .
also in your opinion do you think it looks plain or over the top in regards to a work bag?

 

For sure 14 if you just want to carry your laptop, power brick and few more things will be good for you.
For the design, well you see it, its all black which is good not too flashy, but the front harder material may bring some attention, but overall i think its not an issue, most people will not notice it i think

 

Nice one, good to hear some positive vibes!

I'll be getting mine in a few weeks!

 

The best option would be the 17 inch Vindicator Backpack with the 17 inch Vindicator Neoprene Sleeve. I already had the Vindicator backpack for my 18 and bought the neoprene as a dual guard. I found that my A 14 got some scratches while traveling "bare" in it's 14 inch Vindicator (possibly from zippers).

http://www.dell.com/content/product...=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&sku=A6897217&redirect=1​

http://www.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/alienware_vindicator_sleeve?c=us&l=en&s=dhs

 

anyone notice about the change on alienwares website specifically the AW15?? i was about to buy an AW15 and called a reseller and she informed me that the 1549.99 correct me if im wrong XD that from an i7, 8GB RAM, 970M 1TB config. its now a i5, 970M, 16GB, 128 SSD + 1TB HDD. and when i checked the site it wont let me configure it anymore -_- was really hoping for a i7, 16GB, 128SSD + 1TB HDD and 970m at least XD

 

Maybe they are lacking some components and they dont want to make you wait too much if you order? maybe just wait a week

 

You are correct, it does look like they changed the configuration, wonder what happened to the i7 with the 970m. I just ordered mine not long ago, i hope there are not issues with the 970 that they just found out about

I wouldnt pay 1649. for a 4th gen i5, may as well go for the base model 17 for the price now

 

you need to call up, that is what I had to do, the ones on the pages are just the ones they do packages on, if you call up and also ask for a discount they can give you upto 10% there and then

 

Backpack, I bought the Everki Atlas from Amazon!

 

By the way, i remember someone said that the new batteries where set to be on express charge, i checked my bios it was too, i just set it as normal, so maybe other guys care to check and put whatever they need most, maybe now the laptop will be less warm too when charging

 

noticed mine charges fast as well, i will have to check the setting, didnt even thing about looking in the bios

 

It seems the laptop isnt as warm, but maybe its not true, anyways i will keep normal charge mode

 

is anyone else having lagging issues whilst using chrome on the new 15?

 

I ordered the 15. I got the 1080p screen because it is matte, and because I think 4k is way overkill nowadays since we don't have the technology to run games with fluidity at that resolution.

I love that it has a classic keyboard too, it's just about the only laptop that still has it.

I hope I made the right choice because that was a lot of money.

 

i have the same 1080p screen, I really like mine, i added more ram and added a evo ssd, the 1tb drive that comes with the laptop is junk

I originally ordered a 13in model and returned it, it was just to small.

 

How easy it is to change the drives?

Mine has a dual 128 SSD + 1TB HDD, but if it's easy I'll probably just replace it with a bigger SSD. I don't care about the hard drive.

 

the m.2. 128 gb is really fast at least in mine, i got the 1tb to keep stuff but since the OS is in the 128gb one is gonna be just a simple swap.
You are going to love this laptop

 

which is your max cpu and gpu temperatures under gaming?

 

mine cpu temps with bios A02 reached 84-85 celsius degree after ten minutes of game with project cars. I returned to bios A00 and temps not pass 74-75 celsius degree in the same situation.
Are you sure bios A02 is something good?

 

Does this need a 7mm SSD?

 

I played for around 4 hours straight, last night, and neither cpu nor gpu went above 70 degrees (Assassin's Creed Unity/Fifa 15)

 

With wich BIOS?

 

Guys! finally received my Alienware 15 after over a month of waiting.. it is much lighter and sturdier than I expected! way better than the old 2013 a17 model. Currently downloading drivers but everything is perfect for me. Well ... my only complain are these awkward as hell key placements.. the last left row of shortcuts are completely unnecessary. Makes the keyboard awkward to type on the right side, instead of the middle

 

Another kind of bad thing is that the aw15 runs a bit warm... at all times. I was just downloading drivers and it was warm even with a laptop cooler

 

Guys, I am having 2 problems. First, after i downloaded all drivers, the battery icon now only displays % left, instead of hours and minutes left. Also, even after downloading dell touchpad driver, the sensitivity of the touchpad doesn't change.

 

I am finding the touch pad is also useless. The scroll feature really doesn't work that well at all. In Chrome it is just about useless.

I wouldnt worry to much about the keyboard. took me about a day maybe to adapt to the shift to the right I don't even touch the macro keys anymore. I do have BIG hands I just put my little finger on the shift key as a reference when I start typing.

 

You ll def. get used to the keyboard, i love how it feels actually, the Macro row on the left is going to take 1 day top and you'll be used to it.
Yes it does run a little warm, try to check the battery mode, since i put it as normal charge is a little cooler, nothing major but seems a little bit.
As for the trackpad, i cant help you, i use IE and it works perfectly there.

 

I take that back.. this laptop runs like a toaster. Cant really use on my lap without it being hella warm.. should this be a deal breaker?! Also, I cannot get nvidia 970m to be primary graphics! there is only "3d settings " option in nvidia control panel. i have tried reinstalling nvidia driver as well

also, I noticed when entering certain windows, such as device manager, the font will sometimes be blurry. sometimes it will be 1080p clear, then some will not... this is strange

 

I have the same on the 980m and I believe this is the new optimus feature, but if you want to use the nvidia gpu as the main one, right click on ur battery and go to powerplan settings, from there you can configure it.

 

Are you also experiencing that the laptop gets hot as hell even on idle? I can't use it on my lap.. also, are you experiencing blurry font? it depends on where but for example, device manager... all the font is blurry. and just now, i notice there is a crank/clickering noise every once in a while (sounds like a frog)

 

also for people burning holes on their laps, get one of these http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/3318081.htm

 

Yep that noise is the Platter HDD spinning up if you have the 1tb drive, as for the blurry font, if you are using a 4k screen some fonts dont scale properly.

On another note, does anyone know the weight of the 1tb hdd, I am thinking of removing it as I hate moving parts in my pc

 

Yea the laptop does get warm on the lap, to me is not going to be such a main concern, but i was hoping better i guess since the fans blow on your legs while you keep it therew isnt much to do.
i can set GTX970m as primary, just go to nvidia settings or on battery there is a way!