*OFFICIALY* Alienware's Stupid Questions

This thread was created to help answer questions users might feel too stupid to ask.

If the topic is/ has been discussed on another thread please kindly answer by linking it.

Example 1: What are the bloat wears in the new Alienware 17, 15, 13?

Example 2: what programs do you need to test your laptop?

Example 3: Can you use a picture of yourself to fool Tobii into unlocking your Alienware?

 

Topic: May 09, 2017
What BIOS has everyone found to be best for 17 R4 with 17 7820HK Kaby Lake & 1080?

http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...4-owners-lounge.797457/page-532#post-10523372

post #5313

 

I don't know if that was best, it was just advised to not upgrade to the latest one.

1.08 & 1.09 seem to be well recommended.

 

Well I have a dumb question : what kind off SSD does the smallest slot accept (the one just under the fan, by the WiFi card) ?

I mean, I looked on the data sheet and it says : slot for a half-sized M.2 drive. I can't find any. So my question is : what SSD do you put in it ? M-SATA ? ...

 

Look after M.2 2242 - 22mm wide, 42mm long. Max size 512GB. A crippled ssd solution in bigger laptops like 15,6-17,3 inches!! Shouldn't be used!! Not even in the smaller 13-14 inches models.

 

Thanks for your answer. No wonder I didn't find any : only 1 available in french shops, a 512 from Transcend (which is not worth the price...).

 

You're welcome!
Yeah, as I said in previous post... A crippled ssd design. Aka Size limits, limited selection, prices and the form factor. Shouldn't be used in laptops nowadays!!

 

That's too bad they chose this 2242 kind... I saw some M-SATA SSDs (850 EVO from Samsung for exemple) which seem quite nice. Had they wanted, it would have fit in term of size.

 

Can anyone confirm if this one will fit the half-size M.2 SSD slot?
http://www.samsung.com/us/computing...e-drives/ssd-850-evo-msata-500gb-mz-m5e500bw/

 

M-sata is almost dead. None ODM should or will use old sata form factor. Same for use of the Crippled half sized M.2 ssd slot. High end 17,3 inches laptops nowadays use 3x fully sized M.2 and 1 or two 2.5" ssd slots. One of the 3 M.2 slots have also newest tech integrated... Aka Optane support with Kaby lake. Less than this is crippled hardware design!!

 

They're really hard to find nowadays. I could only find very few brands offering SSDs in 2242 size, and none were particularly high spec. I ended up with a MyDigitalSSD Super Boot 2 drive. 256gb was the largest I could find.

I wouldn't make it my boot drive (despite the name) given I have an 850 Evo 250gb and planning to get a 1TB drive once they're cheaper - so I just use it for my Steam library.

 

You have to wait a long time if you are looking for cheaper ssd's Prices will rather go up before they go down or are on the same level as today.

 

My battery wear level is 8% after 5 months use, and I keep my laptop always plugged in, is it normal?

 

Stock Dell OS or fresh installed? If stock Dell OS I'd check AW OSD application and disable it, if it still has that 8% wear, you can ask for replacement.

 

Negative, that is an mSATA drive and NOT an M.2 drive. For the half size M.2 drive you want M.2 2242 drives and I believe they max out at 500gb.