M14x Pre-Order Configuration Questions... Ask HERE (Part 2)

Please read it all and help me

Hi, right now I own an R1 and I want the new R2. So, I would be very glad if you guys help me with some decisions about my new R2.

First of all, I just can spent an amount of money around 1500 dollars (US) before taxes. So, I guess that it's better if I get the best CPU, GPU, screen resolution and wireless that I can afford because the RAM and HDD are more easy to improve or replace. These because I'll maybe be sticking with this R2 for the next 3-5 years. So, in the next years I'm sure that I can get some bucks to get a great SSD and more RAM.

This are the specs that I want but I'm still wondering if they're the best to me.

CPU: I want the i7-3720QM instead the i7-3610QM.. but, it worth the 150 more bucks? or the i7-3610 is enough to gaming, programming and develope few software. Consider that I'll keep this laptop for 3 years up to 5.

OS: Shall I get the professional or ultimate instead of the home? which are the difference?

Memory RAM: I guess the best for my actual needs is taking the 6gb because right now I've 4gb at 1600 mhz and I feel ok, a little bit times a feel that I need more but in general I'm fine with this amount of RAM. So, 6gb will be enough and if I need more, is easy to upgrade.

Hard Drive: It will really worth the option with 32 and 64gb of ssd? or I should get a normal option without ssd and wait until I can afford a 512gb ssd in a future?

GPU: This is my bigger doubt, it's really grat the improve between 1gb to 2gb? I almost always play in the laptop's screen and sometimes I connect it to an external TV to play in 1080p and I really loved it.

LCD: I really like the 1600x900 resolution but it's really necessary? It makes some difference playing at 1600x900 and 1366x768? when I want to see some series or a movie I connect the m14x to my tv so, I really don't see movies at my laptop.

Wireless card: This is another bigger doubt: which is the difference? it gives less ping while online playing or it's just better range?

Blu-ray: IMO it's not necessary since I own one but if your think that it will be great to have it in my m14x I'm open to opinions.

Thanks a lot to take the time to read my doubts, I really really appreciate it and sorry for my bad english! regards and peace

 

CPU: There are some differences between the 3720QM and the 3610QM, 1) the clock speed, 300Mhz different (although I dont think it would make a different in term of performance), 2) the increase in iGPU clock speed 150Mhz different: Comparison between 3720QM & 3610QM

OS: Follow this link, it is a Comparison between Win 7 Home, Professional & Ultimate

RAM: I think 4GB is good enough for gaming, but if you also multitask or open tons of tab while browsing, more RAM is recommend, for me I have 6GB and I rarely use anywhere near 5GB, the average amount my laptop use is about 3.25GB ~ 4.5GB (during heavy web browsing & multitasking. However, go with the 4GB and upgrade to 6GB later because it is damn expansive if you upgrade via Dell, I suggest you get one from either newegg or ebay, you could save few hundred.

HDD/SSD: If you want SSD, like RAM, dont upgrade via Dell.

GPU: It is same as the GT555M. Go with the 2GB if you going to dual monitor a lot, else go with the 1GB.

LCD: My rule of thumb, the larger the display the better, because the extra 234x180 make a very big difference, and it will give you more space to work, for gaming and movie, the larger than resolution the better (at the expense of framerate for gaming). And one more thing, if you think the letter are too tiny, you can always either downgrade the resolution or use the text magnifier feature in Windows to make the text look larger, and this will not be possible if you go with the 720p, while another is that since you plan to use the laptop for more than 3 years, then 900p is a must, reason is that your laptop will look outdated because of the screen in the next few years due to technology advancement, more and more ultrabook and 11 incher are all at the 720p resolution.

WiFi Card: Sorry cant help, not my speciality

BR Drive: I agree, I doubt you would use it for more than 20 times, since most software, music, movie, etc are all gone Digital nowadays. So stick with whatever it is offer.

 

Thank you A LOT dude, you're the best. I really apreaciate your help and your time to read and Re!!

 

Ordered my new M14x R2
Specs:
3rd Gen Intel Core i7-3610QM 2.3GHz
6GB DDR3 at 1600MHz
NV GF GT 650M w/1.0GB VRAM
500GB 7,200RPM SATA-II HDD
14.0" HD+ (900p/1600x900) WLED
Intel WiFi and WiMAX 6250 a/g/ w/BT 4.0
Internal Bluetooth 4.0

From M14x R1
Specs:
2nd Gen Intel Core i7-2720QM 2.2GHz
4GB DDR3 at 1600MHz
NV GF GT 555M w/1.5GB VRAM
500GB 7,200RPM SATA-II HDD
14.0" HD+ (900p/1600x900) WLED
Intel WiFi and WiMAX 6250 a/g/ w/BT 4.0
Internal Bluetooth 4.0

What do you guys think? Will the ram be less efficient with 6GB than with 4GB because of 4GB + 2GB on dual channel? I heard it's better to have the same value on dual channel like 2x2 / 2x4 etc...

 

Hey guys, I am looking at this config below, gonna order as soon as I figure out the SSD issue. I am buying this to game, no video editing etc. So, three questions, is the I7 below overkill, and is it easy enough to add an SSD drive and will the SSD provide gaming performance. I will order the SSD drive from new egg and I wonder if I should just install the entire OS and possibly my main games on the SSD, at this rate the main games I will want to play will be GW2, Skyrim, & Diablo 3.

Operating System
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit
Processor
3rd Generation Intel® Core™ i7-3720QM (6MB Cache, up to 3.6GHz w/ Turbo Boost 2.0)
Memory
6GB Dual Channel DDR3 1600MHz
Keyboard
English Keyboard
Display Panels
14.0" High Def+ (900p/1600x900) with WLED backlight
Video Card
2 GB DDR5 NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 650M with Optimus™
Hard Drive
500GB 7,200 RPM SATA 3Gb/s
Optical Driver
Slot Load Dual Layer DVD Burner (DVD+/-RW)
Sound
Creative Sound Blaster Recon3Di with THX TruStudio Pro Software
Wireless Networking
Intel® Centrino® Wireless-N 2230 With Bluetooth 4.0

Thanks for your opinions

 

I also got the exact same config as you with the 6GB ram. I heard losing dual channel decreases ram performance by 10-15%, but either way, 6GB should be more than enough since even 4GB is sufficient. You can always upgrade it to 8gb for relatively cheap in the future anyways (which is what I plan on doing).

 

News just in! Dell (UK) has dropped the price of upgrading to 8GB RAM to £30 from £90. I think that's helped me make up my mind.

 

Bargain
Think that's even cheaper than buying it from an external site!
GL with your config =)

 

Cheers mate!

Guess it's still a little cheaper if you go external (can get 8GB for a little over £30 from Crucial - but then you'd have the hassle of selling the 6GB that comes with the machine).

OMG OMG OMG OMG! ORDERED! Wow guys, I'm gonna go out for a drink to celebrate! My first Alienware! Been wanting an Alienware system for almost 15 years when they first started. Catch you later.

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Base Alienware M14x Base
Operating System English Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium (64 BIT)
Memory 8192MB (2x4GB) 1600MHz DDR3 Dual Channel
Keyboard Internal UK/Irish Qwerty Keyboard
Video Card 2GB GDDR5 NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 650M
Hard Drive 500GB 7,200rpm SATA 6Gb/s HDD
Optical Devices DVD+/-RW (DVD, CD read and write)
Sound Creative Sound Blaster Recon3Di with THX TruStudio Pro Software
Wireless Networking Intel® Centrino® Wireless-N 2230 with Bluetooth 4.0
Cables UK 250V Power Cord
Documentation/Disks Western Europe Documentation (EN, FR, IT, GER, DUT)
Bundle N05W4M01
Extended Service 2 Years Next Day In-Home Service with Premium Phone Support
Placemat Placemats (Eng, Fre, Ger, Ita, Dut)
Order Information Alienware M14x Order
Primary Battery Primary 8-cell 63W/HR LI-ION
Processor Intel® Core™ i7-3720QM (6MB Cache, up to 3.6GHz w/ Turbo Boost 2.0)
Camera Integrated Skype HD Certified FullHD Camera with dual digital microphones
Color Choice Alienware M14x Cosmic Black
Avatar Alienhead Glow
TimeZone (GMT + 00.00) Dublin, Edinburgh, Lisbon, London
AlienFx Colour Plasma Purple
Accidental Damage Support 2 years Accidental Damage Protection
OS Customization Alien Cyborg Wallpaper
LCD 14.1" WideHD+ (1600x900) WLED with TrueLife
Additional Software Alienware M14x Resource DVD
Protect your new PC McAfee® SecurityCenter 30 Day trial version
Power Supply MOD,ADPT,AC,DLTA,150W,3P,WW

 

Congrats. I remember seeing Alienwares in store when I was a kid and thinking they were pretty cool. I have to wait to buy my first laptop/Alienware til august.

 

Cheers! It's worth the wait - even ordering it feels great.

 

What do you guys think is faster SATA + mSATA in raid 0 or a bigger drive. Raid is usually faster but SSDs improve with size and I'm assuming the mSATA is slightly slower.

 

Soooo I have an older sister that's kinda awesome, and she offered to buy me a new m14x r2 as a graduation present. She says she doesn't mind getting me some of the upgrades, but I sort of already feel guilty enough letting her buy me a laptop.

I've read some of the posts on these forums, and I think I can live with most of the standard stuff. However, (and I know this is probably a very vague question) is it worth it to maybe go for i7-3610QM processor for 100$ more over the standard i5-2450M?

 

I would say ivy bridge and the upgraded screen are the only upgrades you truly need, the rest (SSD and memory) you can do later.

 

Ditto. i7 3610QM (or better - had to opt for the 3720QM in the UK as that's as low as it gets for us) all the way.

 

I'm thinking that they are using the slower 810 ssd on the raid0 setup to better match the mSATA ssd because of the 810's that here shipped out to the people that somehow were able to get a single 256gb ssd (I think the first few days of R2 and UK could get them)

I just sent back an R1 with the single 256gb ssd and it booted fast and opened programs faster than I've ever seen. So the improvement of the Raid0 my only be in fractions of a second? Raid is new to me so I'm only guessing based an my research over the last couple of days.

 

hi,everyone..
I am very interested in MX14 for the ivy-bridge platform,
but still have 2 questions that may need your help to clearify.
first, does it support SATA-III ? Cuz I am going to replace the HDD with the intel 510 250G SSD.
Second, Does it support intel widi ? because I saw there is an option for the internet equipment called "neat gear widi receiver".. but there is nothing mentioned about the machine whether it will support or not..

thanks your your help.

 

It dose support SATA III 6GB/s , It also support Intel Wireless HD, but currently Intel Wireless HD are out of stock.

 

I was curious as to if there would be any performance increase with the ivy bridge i7 3720 vs the i7 3610? The main gaming I plan on doing on the M14x would be playing Rift, Guild Wars 2, and LotRO. Also, what are the benefits for opting towards the 2GB gt650m vs the 1GB? Would the 2GB be better for specific games like MMOs or would it just be beneficial to future proof? I hope to have this laptop for at least 2 years

Thanks for the help!

 

I don't think you'll see performance increase with the 3720 vs 3610 maybe 1 or 2 FPS, take the 1GB, 2GB is only useful for multiple monitors at the same time, MMO are not better with 2GB it'll be the same with both cards.

 

Thanks! Should I go for any HD or Ram upgrades? At the moment I have the standard 500gb 7200 rpm HD and 6GB of ram. I heard there was no significant performance increase with additional ram.

 

Looking at what you want to do you're probably fine with both of those. Bear in mind that you can easily upgrade both of these post-purchase (likely with better parts and for a far more reasonable price tag too).

I opted for 8GB RAM for two reasons:

1) I wanted paired sticks of RAM (2x4096) - for the performance superstitious

2) Dell UK finally did a vaguely reasonable deal on it.

6GB is more than enough for high-end gaming though.

The biggest saving is from not going too crazy with the HDD though - and you'll be able to find a decent SSD a few months down the line to upgrade to after all the performance reviews that will be out.

 

Yeah 6GB is enough and even if you need more just go with 6GB and buy additionnal ram from another website, same for the HDD, like Devianti said: "I wanted paired sticks of RAM (2x4096) - for the performance superstitious" I also heard it's better to have the same amount of ram in both slots in dual channel but I'm not sure about the performance differences but probably not a big deal.

 

Thanks for all the help everyone! I plan on ordering this bad boy tomorrow! Hopefully it will ship out soon. ETA is May 30

 

You're welcome and good luck! May is gonna be a long month for a few people on these forums.

 

I am planning to order aan alienware m14xr2 from HIDevolution.
How are they??
budget is 1300-1400$.
Was opting core i7 3610 as cpu.
Now in else i am confused.
I read that 1gb gddr5 and 2gb gddr5 wont make much difference until i am doing high resoltuion gaming or using multiple monitor setup.Is that true?
Is the extra 100$ premium worth it?
Also should i go for 500gb + 32gb ssd cache or 16gb corsair vengeance(installed by HID evolution) and use 4gb or 8gb as ram disk?

Please Help.

 

Hey.

There's a whole thread on HiDevolution here. http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m17x/562083-hidevolution.html Personally I've not used them so cannot say good or bad about them.

You're dead-on correct about the VRAM. The $100 premium will be worth it if you know you'll be making use of it with multiple displays at high resolutions. If you're single display gaming only, it'll be a waste of cash.

Not sure about your HDD questions, but hopefully someone else will chime in. Welcome to the NBR forums. I'm pretty new here myself.

 

I paid for the 650m with 2gb because I play flight simulator, x plane 10, which easily uses 1.5gb of VRAM.

Just giving my two cents

 

500gb + 32gb ssd cache is the standard option to save money , I'd say go for it and get yourself 3rd market SSDs for future upgrades . (eg 256GB SSD - Notebook and Tech Bargains )

As ram just get 8gb , no point wasting extra money for 16gb rams.

 

Thnx for the advice everyone.
Well, what i meant to ask was that getting a 32gb ssd cache is better or getting a 16gig ram(4gb for ram disk) better for speed?
I mean 16gig ram option will give me a 4 or 8gig ram disk and also future has options for 256gb ssd.!
So 16gig now + 256gb ssd later or 8gb + 32gbssd cache now + 256ssd main drive later?
That is the question!!

 

My laptop got shipped with the 256 ssd samsung 810, i thought i was getting the 830! Is it a big difference between the 810 and 830?
Ive already emailed my rep and the email bill posted to those who got the wrong ssd!

 

810 is SATA ll , 830 is SATA lll , really huge difference.

 

Thought so =/
Cheers for letting me know, i really need this sorted and hope they reply soon!
I paid £360 extra for the ssd and get sata ll =/
Bill did say it was a mistake and a small number of systems were sent out with the 810!

Other than the ssd theres not a problem with my m14xr2, running like a stallion!

 

Hello,

I'm Going to order the R2 in the next few days from US store, and wondering wut kind of student discount i can get and how to get it.
i've heard stuff about 10-15% but when i checked their site it was about 30$

Thanks

 

I talked to a rep, they offer really good discounts on certain models only, their standard discount is only 2%.

I plan on ordering my M14X R2 this week with the following specs:
Processor:
3rd Generation Intel® Core™ i7-3610QM (6MB Cache, up to 3.3GHz w/ Turbo Boost 2.0)
Memory:
6GB Dual Channel DDR3 1600MHz
Hard Drive:
500GB 7,200 RPM Storage + 64GB mSATA Boot Drive
Video Card:
1 GB DDR5 NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 650M with Optimus™
Display Panels:
14.0" High Def+ (900p/1600x900) with WLED backlight
Wireless Networking:
Killer Wireless-N 1202 a/g/n 2x2 MIMO for Gaming & Video and Bluetooth 4.0
Optical Driver:
Slot Load Dual Layer DVD Burner (DVD+/-RW)

My future plans for the computer would be to replace the HDD with an SSD and replace the 2GB RAM with a 4GB, then possibly swap the optical drive with a blu-ray...

What are you're thoughts on the blu-ray sawp? is it very difficult? worthwhile?

Are there any components here that you would change?

Do you reccomend any add-ons from DELL? which ones?

 

I would recommend better get a ssd cache then a boot drive because it can be used for all programs.!

And there is no problam in instAlling the bd drive just take care its slot loading one!

 

Thanks for the reply! The rep I spoke to says that the boot drive will be loading cache to it aswell...

 

Then i guess my rep dint have idea of what he was selling!!!

 

here's my convo with rep

REMOVED: Do not post content from private correspondence, such as email or chat, within the forums.

 

I too am going to order from a foreign country and have it sent to a US address. The rep I talked to about a student discount didn't tell me there was any thing wrong with ordering from outside the US when I mentioned what I was planning on doing.

Fingers crossed they don't cancel my order when I place it.

 

You can buy from anywhere you want but confirm the discount from rep of that country's dell.!

But dell is costlier everywhere compared to us.!
I would rather suggest you to once checkout HIDevolution.com . First of all, those guys are offering direct 35$ discount and also that 6$ extra while charging taxes in name of screen disposal wont be charged.!
Also the rep of that website,ted, is quite knowledged and co-operative and can ship to anywhere in the world.!

Do tell what you decide, what config yOu thinkng and how the experienxe goes

 

Hey Guys,
Quick question. I just ordered a M14x r2 with the screen upgrade (14.0" High Def+ (900p/1600x900) with WLED backlight) and the 3rd Generation Intel Core i7-3610QM (6MB Cache, up to 3.3GHz w/ Turbo Boost 2.0) upgrade. Everything else is stock.

I plan on using the system for gaming, surfing the web, and some light photo editing/storage. Do I need to purchase or download a virus protection or will that slow down the machine. Is the windows firewall/virus protection enough? Also, are there any pre-loaded programs I should delete that I won't be needing. Any other tips you can give me that will help keep my new rig running smoothly are much appreciated!
Thanks

 

Dont worry about bloatware with alienware. Even they know it can slow down system.!
But i would advice getting steam and portal pre-installed. Its free of cost.!

And you need anti-virus these days for sure but buy yourself instead of from dell. They sell it at msrp and you can get them for much cheaper price from market.!

You seem to be new at this. So, if you want i can mail you AVG internet security '11 with license upto feb 2018 for free

 

I'd prefer to go through Dell because I can get a student discount plus a $200 dell voucher on selected models for students.

I'm planning for the stock m14x with the exception of i7 3610, 900p display and 750 GB hdd.

I was planning to order mid-late july but if the NZD dollar declines anymore I will have to order early.

 

Config is good.
In my config ram is 8gb and added a 32gb m sata cache.!

As per the student discount goes, as far as i know you get either the discount or the coupon.
Thats what rep told me.
He sent me 2 quotes one with discout and another 200$ coupon.!
Do check it.!
You can get the 2% discount and enroll for free to dell advantage program and get a 5% cashback coupon!

 

I am a college student in Engineering, going in as a freshman in fall 2012.

This is what I would like to buy.

M14X R2 Stats.

3rd Generation Intel® Core™ i7-3610QM
6GB Dual Channel DDR3 1600MHz
750GB 7,200 RPM SATA 3Gb/s
1 GB DDR5 NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 650M
14.0" High Def+ (900p/1600x900)
Killer Wireless-N 1202 a/g/n 2x2 MIMO
Slot Load Dual Layer DVD Burner (DVD+/-RW)

With accessories/warrenties for a total of about 1550 USD

With that though, I will buy:
- 8 Gb of Corsair Vengeance for 50 dollars
- 256 Gb Samsung 830 SSD for 275 dollars
- A USB DVD drive for 35 dollars
- A hard drive laptop caddy for the SSD drive for 15 dollars
- A Kensington laptop lock for 43 dollars

For a total of about 2,000 USD for engineering school in the uni.

I know that some of the purchases are kind of non-related for this post, but are there any parts of my plans that could use improving?

I MAY be able to get a slight discount of up to 150 USD by asking an Alienware rep to give me a better price, but it's around and over 1900 USD I'd say.

Total budget is around 2k USD (with original costs for laptop included) if there are any more things I may need.

Further Questions:

- I heard that to get SATA III speeds, only the 06 BIOS version or older works. Does SATA II speeds for the SSD make it not worth getting?

- Does anyone also have a setup where you take out the DVD drive so that you can have a SSD main and a data drive in place of the DVD drive? Does it work out well?

- Anyone recommend me buying the M14x Orion backpack or the Anti-Glare screen protector? Any pros/cons?

- Is static electricity protection gear (those bracelet things) necessary to do the work required to put in the RAM, as well as put in and remove drives?

Sorry for the long list of questions, but I'm sure others had had these as well!
Thank you in advance!

- Patrick

 

That would be great if you could send me the AVG internet protection. Ya, I'm not super computer savy but my main goal is to keep my laptop as bare bones as possible without downloading a ton of unnecessary programs. I want to keep it running as fast and smooth as possible. Can I just delete all the pre-installed bloatware without removing any vital programs.
Thanks

 

Hey
Congrats for college and nice thots!
One advice : see hidevolution.com they are gonna do all the dirty work you want and will get you what you want for about same price.!
With all things upgraded and 2 yr accidental cover plan the config is costing about 2k and you havent to do any work.!
Do check them out!


But if you wanna take youR chances then i installed a laptop caddy in my frieds dell xps 15.
I installed a 64gb crucial m4 ssd to make it a boot drive.!
Its not a very hard job but try not messing the internal port connections.!

As for the bios thing, his laptop did not show any tantrums so i did not search about it.!

I personally bought the backpack ecause it is of very good quality and also with laptop you are gonna buy one anyway.
There is an added advantage of showing off an alienhead on your backpack

I did not wear static protection gear because mine was broken and wasnt feelng like buying new at that time
But it is advisable to do so!

Hope it helps!
Cheers!!

 

That is for the M14XR1. The M14XR2 uses different BIOS versions. 02 is the latest, but 01 will work for SATA III just fine.

 

Can someone post the full model number on the 6250 wireless card in their M14x R2?? I want to purchase one online for now until I can get my hands on a Killer 1202.. thanks in advance!