M14x R2 is out now

The R2's bluray CAN fit in an R1, so I don't see why not

There was a bluray drive available for the R1, but no one knows the link or the model/brand. HIDevolution offered it last year in their customization.

 

M14X order page is down now , which means they're updating the selections

 

Hope they update them with ivy bridge soon!
It doesnt make sense alienware releasing a 2012 refresh a few days before a new generation of processors gets released!
Its starting to look good tho as most shipping dates are mid may+ and all the speculation seems to add up!
I cant see a reason why they will ship r2's with sandy bridge...that will give them a huge disadvantage compared to their competitors.

Ive read online on a few different sites that ivy bridge proccesors will be released for desktops and laptops on the 29th of this month but the ultrabooks will have to wait til june time

 

Fingers crossed !

 

Ivy was officially released 4/23 and will be available for sale 4/29.

 

Just spoke to a UK rep about IB, he was coy about it but claimed the price would go up if IB was announced for the M14xR2, smell like BS?

 

Stinks of it
Why would they release the 2012 models with a previous generation processor? xD
The dell rep told me when i ordered my m14xr2 that the ivy bridge processors wont be available for alienwares til june...i think he was wrong confusing aliens and ultrabooks
Ive also read a few times here on NBR that the price shouldnt increase with IB

 

Kinda makes me think that the long ship times have to do with the R2 upgrade and IB. I don't think it would be within the best interest of dell or their customer base to have the m14xr2 come out just before IB and not include IB in the orders(which is why a lot of people think the long delay in r2 shipping maybe BC dell is waiting for IB?)

 

Based on the Batman Arkham City, I just ran the same benchmark plugged into my TV. The same extreme settings, 4xmsaa. On the M14xR1, 555mGT at gaming clocks 750/1000 I get 17fps. So the fact that the 640m gets that is pretty amazing. Its not worth an upgrade to me for 3 or 4 fps, but for those who are looking to purchase even the bottom line 640m are now going to get some serious power = or > the 555mGT.

The previous test was on

http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m14x/657917-m14x-r2-out-now-11.html

 

I'm pretty sure the rep said the price would go up just so he wouldn't lose a sale with you and make a bonus for himself. Gotta watch out with some of these deceiving reps.

As I mentioned in another thread, a small group of liars/scammers hurt the image of the company, even though the majority of the reps are great people. That small pocket of individuals is driven by personal greed.

 

Quick, possibly stupid question, since I'm hearing conflicting reports. Will I be able to play games like Skyrim, Amalur, Dragon Age, Mass Effect on high settings on the R2 without having to worry about it overheating/crapping out mid-game?

 

The order page is still up actually. If you try searching Alienware M14x on Google, you'll get the broken link page but if you navigate to Laptop's and then click on the M14x, it still works.

 

Yes you'll be able to play those games at higher settings since the card in the R2 acts as a nVidia 560m. The R2 offers better heat management than the R1 due to the kepler GPU. Most of the people who crap out mid-game have had massive piles of dust gathering for almost a year in their laptop which contributed to the over-heating with no cleaning on their behalf.

Take care of your laptop and it will take care of you

 

So a couple shots of compressed air every now and again will let me play at high settings? You just made my decision a lot more difficult

 

I meant for the temperature (the compressed air comment).

You can play on high settings out of the box.

Been playing BF3 all night all on high+ 64 player (low shadows). The R1 can handle anything you throw at it.

The R2 is a better choice since you'll be future-proofing your gaming and as mentioned, get better battery life for when you're on-the-go.

 

You should also make sure that you get the 1600x900 display upgrade. Not just because of how good the upgraded 1600x900 display is, but because of how bad the stock 1366x768 display is.

The 1366x768 display makes it difficult to fit much onscreen because it makes things onscreen large, and it has terrible image quality due to low contrast. The 1600x900 display provides a much more multitasking-friendly workspace and delivers a noticeably better quality picture.

The only reason you should buy an Alienware M14x with the stock 1366x768 display is if you require large text for eyesight-related reasons. Don't skip the upgrade either for budget reasons or to trade it out for another upgrade.

The difference between available displays (1366x768 vs 1600x900) is far more noticeable than the difference between other available upgrades such as the processor, so if it comes down to the two, then take the display upgrade.

If you have budget issues that prevent you from simply getting a decent configuration, then it might be in your best interest to consider cheaper non-Alienware laptops.

 

Yeah , I'm getting that upgrade too

Thanks for the advice

 

Hey I just have a question. Some people are saying that if I order the m14x with i7 2670QM, they will actually ship it with the ivy bridge processor instead. Is this true?

 

That has NOT been confirmed, only complete and total reckless speculation. Expect to receive what you order.

 

Wasn't this pretty much confirmed by Bill (official Dell employee)? His hints were pretty much straightforward. Or maybe only applied to the M17x? I'd say as long as you ordered after the refreshes came up last week, you are good to go with IB.

 

Um not true...

If your ship date is in May, you will get upgraded to Ivy.

 

Hmm I just spoke with a dell sales rep, and he said that ivy bridge will be included in the m14x on May 1st. He also said that it's possible that current orders placed for the sandy bridge m14x will be automatically upgraded to and shipped with ivy bridge. But he said that there is no 100% guarantee, and to be safe, it's best to just wait until May 1st and purchase it with ivy bridge then. The only thing I'm concerned about is, what if they raise the price?

 

Wow you actually got some info on ivy bridge out of a rep, well done!
Ive tried many times and its like drawing blood from a stone lol
If my m14xR2 doesnt come with ivy bridge, and im sure it will, i will just return it! Will suck tho as it would delay me getting a laptop for another few weeks

About price and how they are going to release ivy bridge is in the air for now, we will just have to wait and see!
This is one big waiting game...

 

Link/Source? Sandy Bridge chips aren't just going to disappear. If they exhaust their supply then likely they will, but I'm sure they have a boatload of chips in stock. Heck there are still machines made with first gen i5/i7

 

It's in the thread in the main Alienware section. If you can't put the clues together and you feel more comfortable waiting for the information to be posted, wait it out. Either way, it's been confirmed.

The only Sandy Bridge chip I see they will use for now is the i5 2450m since the dual core Ivy's don't come until June.

Either way, there's a reason why everyone's system will not ship until May 17. If you ordered an i7, it will be Ivy.

 

Thanks to WaR that offered this up. Too much speculation and wishy washy without solid confirmation...

http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...oming-speculation-thread-115.html#post8464412

Just saying "trust me" only goes about a half millimeter on the internet.

I question because Sager and Clevo's are selling refreshed models already with Sandy Bridge chips. Most people Sandy Bridge doesn't matter. It's backwards compatible, so it's not a stretch to think it'd ship with Sandy Bridge.

 

Any ideas on if the Msata will help eliminate some of the heat on the right palm rest?

 

I'd like that rep's name, please. j/k

No more wishy washy: trust me.

So many different types of embargoes my head is spinning.

Let's review: When's that embargo date? April 29? 30? Either works. (Public knowledge, so I'm not violating any particular embargo that may or may not be the topic of discussion, just in case my friends from PR are watching. ) When's the first ship date of the first order for an R2? You guys are saying May 17. I'd have to look that up, but let's go with it.

Most of the statements I posted on that thread were actually cleared through PR. The one where I get all corp-speak and say something like "when the newest component becomes available, we'll ship it," is the one you might want to focus on. At any rate, Monday morning should be the hour of reckoning. Here's where the first official word will be posted.
Press Releases | Dell

What's that ship date again?

EDIT: Oh yeah. We're selling refreshed models with Sandy Bridge, too.

 

Guys I need some help.... Can you suggest some good headphones within 100$ to compliment the m14x? Is the Razer Carcharias any good?

 

There ya go..straight from the horses mouth.

 

Thanks Dell-Bill B.

I guess it's odd that I order one thing but should expect another. Not sure why they didn't wait until April 29 and just start taking pre-orders then. But whatever.

I wasn't saying the Dell rep was wishy-washy only the other posters that state "just because". It wasn't until I was thrown at that original post by Dell-Bill B that it incurred any amount of confidence.

 

Hmm this worries me, i ordered the day after the refresh was released with an EDD of may the 16th, the rep told me i get what i ordered when i asked him about ivy bridge
Will the new refreshes only ship with sandy bridge if the customer purposly asks for the 2nd gen processor?

 

The Swedish sales-reps seem quite adamant about the fact that if we order from Dell.se right now we get Sandy, no matter what anyone else says. I saw the post where Bill said they're keep them a bit in the dark, but I still don't feel like gambling.

 

Bill said that he would help any one out if they mistakenly received Sandy instead of "unnamed product".

Going to order mine this week.

 

So the fact of the matter is some will still likely will be shipping with Sandy Bridge then.

 

Yeah it seems that way

 

I am going to assume that, if you buy directly from the website then you have a higher chance of getting a Sandy Bridge. Not that SB is in any way bad, after the press conference and news about the new Ivy Bridge DRM, SB might not be a bad idea for some.

 

Remind me Monday, and I'll take this offline with you and fill in the blanks. It has to do with marketing practices and basic tenants. Nothing earth shattering.

I was totally kidding with you, as I'm wont to do. I have a blast with you guys out here and try to make it as fun for you as it is me by being silly sometimes.

That rep is in the dark for good reason: we simply could not communicate this wacky launch plan to the frontline without there being a breakdown somewhere. It's just so outside what they're used to, and they're creatures of habit. Great folks for the most part, but we would put undue communications demands that are outside their normal skillset if we laid it all out. I suggest you leave your order as is (unless you ordered M14x with the lowest CPU). You will be happy Monday morning at around 0801, CST.

"You have 11, sir. Care to double down?"
Always double down on 11.

Wish I could speak directly to this.

There will be no grey area. Without talking specific unnamed components that shall remain nameless with no name, we sell the same thing on the web we sell over the phone, whatever that might be.

There will be one, single exception, but I doubt anyone on this thread will order the config I'm referring to. I will spell this out Monday morning if it's not covered in the press release. It's nothing to really worry about.

 

I don't understand how this should be nameless since it's been announced. All Dell has to state is that it will be Intel third gen i5/i7 compatible. Or shipping with Intel Ivy Bridge quad core. But whatever, it is what it is.

 

Cheers for clearing things up again bill as best you can!
Guess the little exception your talking about is the i5 processor as ive heard on the grape vine that ultrabook IB processors wont be around til june time
Guess theres alot of speculation and questioning as these laptops pricetags are quite a hefty gamble
Risk it for a biscuit

 

It's been announced, but no one is taking orders for IB now. If you look at HP's announcement on their blog, all those systems are not shipping until June 24 or later. You can announce future products with IB, but you cannot sell current products with IB yet. We are selling systems right now, so if we sold them with IB, we'd be violating embargo. Once sales embargo lifts- not announce embargo- we can sell systems specifically with IB. Right now, we cannot sell IB. We can announce on any product we're not taking orders for, but we cannot offer a config with IB yet.

 

Welps looks like I'm gonna be waiting til the 24th of June to get a new Alienware. Either that or I just build a new desktop right now.

 

for the pice/quality it's not worth it! also this headsets tend to have issues with bad wires.

 

Will the 650m 2gb be able to run 1920x1200 with GW2/Tera? Medium settings at least?

Haven't been in the laptop scene for a while so I don't know how the mobile cards scale.

I currently run a 6970 in my desktop, what would the 650m be equiv to in a desktop computer?

 

650m for Medium settings in Tera Online is more than enough

 

on 1920x1200?

27.5 inch monitor

 

OK so you can buy a mobo for the r1 for $200-300 now, so you think you'll be able to buy a r2 mobo for 200-300 later? That's even after the fact it probably won't work lol

 

Even the 555m can run this on Ultra so I know the 650 will definitely perform, especially with an overclock.
Edit: Didn't see the part about using the monitor.. But I'm sure it will still run well.. Atleast High if not Ultra.

 

This m11x is my wife's (as soon as they bring back the skullcap design on the laptops). I'm not buying another "sleek" alienware

 

So if one can play things like Skyrim, Tera, Dragon Age, (Guild Wars?) on high/ultra settings exactly what power are they giving up by going with an M14x instead of a M17x?