Will Alienware 14 get Maxwell?

The Maxwell 860M has been out for two months now. They may be waiting for the 765M Maxwell variant.

The 860M is a replacement for the 760M, not the 765M. It just happens to perform better than the 765M.

 

Didn't know that. So it might be around $500.00-$600.00 then for the board.


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As if we aren't confused enough, there are also two versions of the 860M, lol. There is a Kepler version and a Maxwell version. The Maxwell version is soldered and would work perfectly in the Alienware 14. The Kepler version is MXM and is currently available in the Alienware 17 and Alienware 18. Both are 28nm.

At this time, we don't know if 28nm Maxwell or 20nm Maxwell will be launched this year. One or the other will.

 

I see. So the 17 and 18 won't see increased battery life with the 860M since theirs is Kepler. Well time to play the waiting game. Lol

EDIT: Found something interesting on eBay. Both the AW 14 R1 GT 750M and GTX 765M motherboard are the same price. Wonder why since the GTX 765M is a whole lot better.

AW 14 GT 750M board

http://www.ebay.com/itm/OEM-DELL-Al...339759213?pt=Motherboards&hash=item2a38b1226d

AW 14 GTX 765M board

http://www.ebay.com/itm/OEM-DELL-Al...271177861?pt=Motherboards&hash=item233876fe85

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^^^^^ - maybe the seller doesn't know the difference

This one's a better price than the GT750m above: New Genuine Alienware 14 R1 Motherboard P N 0TY1XH TY1XH New | eBay but this one is auction style (GT750m) so could well be a bargain: Dell Alienware 14 R1 Motherboard TY1XH | eBay

Not GTX765m boards, but not bad if you need a board to fix a broken 14, I guess....

 

The 860M maxwell version has the only advantage of running on lower power. Which means less heat and more room for Overclocking. But unless you have a custom bios, you won't be able to push that clock speed as much as you normally can thanks to the low power/heat.

I'd say, it would be a lot better if they did put a 870M in there with a separate fan on the GPU. So the 870M draws more power then the 765M but performs WAY better then the 860M and 765M.
Temperatures have been an issue on the alienware 14 on previous models. But looking at the new razer blade 14, the gigabyte aorus x3 (plus). I know it is possible to put 2 fans under the hood of alienware 14. And I wouldn't mind if they sacrifice the optical drive, I only use it as a booting drive very rarely which can be done through USB, or if you really need it external drives are there. Also they can take out the 2.5 inch drive. 2 slots of M2 SSD slots would be more then satisfying.

So yeah. Alienware 14 needs to make a good comeback in order to be a good competitor also being that thick. Otherwise, I'd be disappointed a lot.

 

All of the above would be nice, however, it would involve a total re-design of the system board - something I don't think Dell are about to do any time soon, especially given that it's just a refresh that is more likely. At this point, I think if they do ANYTHING to the 14 at all, it would be a soldered on 860m as that would be the easiest 'upgrade' they could offer.

Sometimes, you've gotta push yourself past the 'easy option' - my heart hopes that Dell do that, my head thinks they won't...

 

There are soldered versions of the 765M, and there will probably be a soldered version of the 865M (whenever it comes out). Let's just hope it's 20nm Maxwell.

 

Awesome!


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Guys, I present to you, Alienware 13 Alienware 13 (2014) Preview - CNET

 

It's a step in the right direction to compete with the 'ultrabook' gaming machines - but perhaps a little to little, and a bit too late methinks.......

860m top GPU still trails 870m in other notebooks.....screen resolution improvement is good - QHD 2560x1440 with that GPU is about as much as I would want, shame it looks like Dell have ditched matte screens again in favour of what looks like the old E2E plexiglass covering we were so used to on the likes of the M18x R1 and others. I'm not a fan of glossy.....bad move there IMHO - although some will love it, I'm sure.

ULV processors ? - more BGA rubbish....at least the 14 you could change the CPU....hmmmm....still, they should be Broadwell.....

Still an inch thick, which for some will be bothersome. Finally Dell have ditched the ODD, which I guess is why it is a tad thinner than the 14....still, the thickness leaves me in hope of good cooling.

Not sure if the 13 retains the aluminium lid casing - would be really poor if Dell ditched that.....

WHERE'S MY MOUSE BUTTONS GONE!!!!!

I have a feeling the new 13 is gonna be like Marmite - you'll either love it or hate it.....

 

I'm sorta bummed out. I mean it looks like a great little laptop for the ultrabook market but it will be using the intel i7 "ULV" processors which most likely means the CPU will be soldered. Wouldn've been great if I could put in my i7 4930MX CPU from my AW 14 in this little guy and just lower the multiplier and voltage if it gets too hot.

Well looks like this is the death of the AW 14. I was hoping to be able to use a GTX 860M board on the AW 14. Oh well.
: (

EDIT: Darn... the screen does like a glossy EDE screen. Why or why?

 

This isn't the death of the Alienware 14, lol. The Alienware 13 and Alienware 14 are actually quite different, and have different target markets.

Also, the Alienware 14 just came out last year. Why would they toss it out after only one year?

 

It IS the death of the 14 if anyone had any hopes or intentions of upgrading it past GTX765m.......I personally don't think Dell will keep a 13" and a 14" Alienware notebook line-up running concurrent with each other as that would be a bit suicidal from a financial perspective, as people will want one or the other, not both - I imagine the 14 will be E.O.L'd shortly after the 13 is released....

 

You guys knew, when you bought the Alienware 14, that it wasn't going to be upgradeable. I don't get your point.

 

Erm...I upgraded mine. Granted, a new MB was involved - probably cost less than an MXM-equivalent GTX765m. If Dell had refreshed the 14 with the same board with an 860m/870m, that would have provided an upgrade path. That's the point.

 

I upgraded mine with a i7 4930MX CPU. Now you are right that the GPU is not upgradable as a single part. Would need a brand new compatible board to do a GPU upgrade.

 

The Alienware 14 you guys purchased was just the R1. You don't know yet whether or not there will be a 960M or 965M. You'll just have to wait and see.

There's no way they'll toss out the 14" model for this new 13". If they do, it will be a mistake. The 13" won't even come with quad-core processors.

 

Actually I take back what I said about the death of the AW 14. I mean they do have the AW 17 and AW 18 selling side by side. Also J.Dre is right. It has only been one year since they released the AW 14 so maybe there still is hope for AW 14 users.

 

Alienware 13 :s this ain't good news for me

@steviejones133 mostly agree to almost all of your points.
- ULV CPU is CRAP, I do a lot CPU intensive tasks and I don't appreciate that whatsoever. I would at least want to have an i7 4710MQ.
- GPU A disappointment. well not a huge one since they said something about new GPU's so perhaps a 865M? dunno though.
- 5.1 Surround sound audio support is gone. this is really bad news for me. Since it renders my audio system useless. (unless one of the jacks is a spidf combo port hopefully)
- What about the screen, is the quality of that IPS as good as the alienware 14? cause the alienware 17 it's display is crap.
- I don't mind the glossy screen, but I like half matte too.
- Judging from the video feed It seems like the two fan exhausts actually both have a fan in it, which is really nice.
- Nice that they've added more screen resolution options, but I guess I'll stick with 1080p on 13 inch. 1440p is nice, but I prefer 60fps gaming. So I going from 14 inch 900p to 13 inch 1080p is a good enough upgrade.
- Also nice touch that they removed the Optical disc drive, as it's something that you literally use VERY rarely, and if necessary you can use an external optical drive

this doesn't convince me to stay at alienware, even though I really want to have an alienware.
I hope what that guy said are base model specs. I would love to buy that laptop with an 870M (perhaps an 865M?) a i7 4710MQ (or HQ) and an spdif 5.1 audio out. That would be actually pretty AMAZING!

 

I reckon tossing out the 14 is EXACTLY what Dell will do - I don't see a specific niche for both 13 and 14 inch models together side-by-side.....especially if they sported the same GPU, which is doubtful because Dell would have refreshed the 14 by now already if they had the intention to do so. I can't see anyone wanting to go for a 14 over a 13 if Dell do NOTHING to the 14....and why would they revamp the 14 when they've just announced a 13?? - they won't. Dell have gone for the 'thinner and lighter and smaller' market with this new 13 - okay, not quite an ultrabook by definition, but it's Dell's 'gaming' answer to the likes of the Blade. Is it good enough to compete with those other offerings?? - if the top GPU is 860m, I think Dell will still lose out big time.....if someone can go thinner, lighter and more powerful, they will search out the Blade etc. as already mentioned several times here. That's why I said 'too little, too late'.......

IF (and we don't know for sure yet) Dell offer more potent GPU solutions, that would be a plus point and would strengthen the 13 over competition. If I were in the market for a small gaming laptop right now, and looking at what's available elsewhere, I'd be hard pushed to choose this new 13 (current announcement spec's and news being valid and accurate) over the competition.

I still maintain that anything over 1080p on a 13/14 inch notebook is overkill - Dell would have been better off adding 2560x1440 to the 17 and 18, not a 13 inch 'wanna-be' ultrabook.

 

I think they'll try the AW 13, it won't work out, and they'll ditch it next year because it's too weak and the ULV CPU's will bottleneck the 860M. I believe the AW 14 is going to stay around and will be updated through the 900M series while the AW 13 has the 860M. There is still going to be a 965M.

The only way I can see the AW 13 replace the AW 14 is if they offered everything the AW 14 has now, including full-fledged quad-core CPU's and better cooling. From what we've seen so far, this isn't going to happen.

Don't know for sure, though. Let's wait and see.

 

A ULV processor like a i7 4650U or even broadwell ULV(even faster than Haswell) should not bottleneck a 860M. I'm betting the 860M will be the 640 maxwell version so it should work out fine. I wouldn't get any base model for the 13 cpu wise if there are options as those might bottleneck the 860m.

Getting rid of the 14 would be weird, we'd be stuck with ULV 13" or a 17". The gap is too much. The 14 makes sense, a 15 would as well, but I doubt they want to dip into the 17s sales. It would make sense to continue the 14 with quad core options and a 870M in the refresh. Even the 17 has a dual core option now at a cheaper price so who knows, maybe the 14 will go away.

 

The AW 14 will stay. It will have better hardware than the AW 13. The AW 13 is targeted toward "ultrabook" users. The AW 14 is targeted at gamers more so than the AW 13. It will be like when the M11x was in the lineup - there will likely be an AW 13, AW 14, AW 17, and AW 18. There's also a chance that the AW 13 won't be around for long. An AW 15 would kill AW 17 sales, as it would be practically the same, minus the 120Hz screen and size.

It will be a good year once Maxwell shows up. The Maxwell 860M we have now is 28nm, and next year, the 960M will probably be 20nm. That means the AW 13 may also have a Broadwell CPU and 20nm Maxwell GPU by the middle of 2015, if it sticks around. If this is the case, the AW 13 may actually be quite a beast for a 13" laptop. If the 960M does come out, and it is 20nm, it will be fine for gaming on that 13" 2560x1440p screen.

Good news, though. This means the AW 14 will have an even better GPU and CPU. I wonder if higher resolutions will be available there as well.

 

What are the chances that dell awaits the alienware 14 update for the rumored High End Maxwell Notebook GPU's (865M, 870MX, 880MX)?
I mean it would make sense. They might have thought. Well if nvidia is supposed to bring out a new GPU in less then a year after the release of the 860M 870M and 880M. I might as well wait with manufacturing a new motherboard with a soldered GPU on it.
I mean if this is the case, I ain't even mad, that's amazing. But too bad that these are all speculations and rumors, so can do nothing but to take a leap of faith.

On the other hand, with the insane delay of the alienware 14, I mean it's "back to school" promotion time, and yet still nothing, I have started considering making a mini ITX desktop PC, with the new announced Inwin D-Frame Mini case. I mean I finished school so the Need for a laptop isn't that huge for me. It was all about that I was a big fan of my alienware m14x r1 and wanted it to continue, and also if there is a problem on my PC I have one manufacturer to face instead when building a PC it's depending on where I buy the pc components from.

I mean It would be amazing to see a Maxwell 870MX in the aliewnare 14. If it will happen

 

Personally, I think that anyone who is hoping that the 14 stays around after the 13 is launched is deluding themselves. I don't see the point in having TWO similar sized single GPU machines - they would kind of contradict each other. The new 13 is not close enough to be considered an ultrtabook, so by that definition, people really wanting ultrabook gaming won't buy one - especially if it only comes with an 860m as rumoured. If the two machines co-existed together, why would one choose one over the other??? - it certainly would not be for sizeable weight reduction because there will not be one. It won't be for dramatic performance increase either, again because there won't be one that we know of.

Sure, the 17 and 18 co-exist together, but there IS a sizeable difference in performance between the two....unless Dell create such a difference between the 13 and 14, they will just be flogging the same dead horse with two machines instead of one, both of which will be contradicting each other in terms of sales.

Has anyone actually thought that the reason behind the lack of a 14 refresh is really just down to Dell's plans to launch a slightly better, slightly smaller form factor gaming laptop?? - why even bother refreshing something that you plan to E.O.L .......

 

Which begs the question: just who is the AW13 supposed to appeal to? Like you said "thin and light" fanatics won't even give the AW13 a passing thought; likewise with the performance nuts. Seems like it's really meant for those wanting something below a 15" but not quite an ultrabook, and don't mind some heft or thickness. The problem there is Dell is shooting itself in the foot with that ULV CPU they're putting in the AW13. Sure thermals are going to be great, but at the expense of greatly compromised performance. I'm still scratching my head at this AW13.

 

I actually agree and was really disappointed when the aliewnare 13 was announced for that very reason. But I contacted the alienware support. And have told them I've been waiting to get an alienware 14 and have been greatly disappointed with the alienware 13 it's announcement. And asked if that means the discontinuation of the alienware 14.

I quote the answer:
Support Agent: "Don't worry, Dell is not planning to discontinue the aleinware 14"
Support Agent: "It is one of our best selling system so there's no reason to stop selling it."
Me: "So you are saying that the alienware 14 is actually subject to get an 800M series GPU right? That would make me so happy"
Support Agent: "that's right. We will continue to provide upgrades to it and I can send you an email once we have the card upgrade on it."

So this made wonder and hope again for me getting what I want. You see, I see it like alienware has two types of laptops a big one and a small one. But both with some versatility. With the big one you either have the alienware 17. Or the 18 with dual GPU's, so a 1 inch difference with a HUGE performance difference for the real enthusiast. And with the small laptops, you have the alienware 13 for the ones who want Really portability above all (that's why the y picked the ULV processor to make a difference between the alienware 13 and 14 I suspect) and the alienware 14 who want's the portability, and as low compromise as possible .

 

Take a pinch of salt with whatever support agents tell you......they are not permitted, or probably don't even have proper authority or knowledge to pass comment on Dell's roadmap for the future. They will just spout some guff at you that they think you want to hear. Remember, you told them that you are 'waiting to get an AW14'......they are sales people....they WANT you to buy a 14 that they have stockpiled to get rid of them! - they will tell you anything you want to hear...once you've bought, and once the 13 has been launched and the 14 E.O.L'd, you will be S.O.L in saying 'but the rep said so.......'

There is not a substantial enough difference in portability/performance to warrant on over the other. What's the thickness and weight difference? - negligible.....what's the performance difference that would make one more beneficial than the other? - probably not significant enough to make me scream out "man, I want a 14 over a 13 because of its better performance...."

That leaves Dell in some sticky territory, unless they ditch one and go with the other. As they have already announced a 13, I reckon the 14 is for the heave-ho.......

I have this terrible feeling that the 'ULV crap filled' 13 will be a massive failure. It does not know what it wants to be. It is trying to be a gaming ultrabook, but it is not...by the looks of it, it does not have the performance that the 14 *could have had* if Dell had manned up and maxed out its potential....the 14 could have taken an MXM card, Dell could have made it a really portable, powerful solution....instead they have gimped out and tried to roll out an 'not-so-ultrabook' tree-hugging piece of poop (that isn't even that thin) in the hope of competing with the likes of Razer etc.....my prediction is that it will fail miserably. I won't entertain buying one, that's for sure.

Let's just say for one moment that Dell DO upgrade the 14 with a better GPU & CPU than the 13, who then is gonna want a 13 that is really not significantly lighter/thinner or more portable than the current 14? - if the current form factors for the 13 and 14 remain in terms of size etc, I can't imagine for one moment that anyone would choose an underpowered 13 over a better 14 (if upgraded) given that size/weight/thickness are not really gonna make a blind bit of difference to anyone wanting 'ultrabook' gaming on the go.....the form factor is too close.

I predict epic fail if the two are available together......I predict maybe 'not so' epic fail (but still fail) if Dell run with the 13 as a replacement for the 14 because it just is not 'thin and light' enough for those to who want ultra portability....especially compared to what already on the table from other manufacturers. People will still want a 'small Alien' but not in the numbers I imagine Dell think they will skim off the competition.

 

Man your entire post was SO FULL OF WIN (in contrast to AW13's EPIC FAIL), but this part right here, I couldn't agree with more. I've always said the AW13 is neither here nor there -- not "thin and light" enough to appease the fanatics, and doesn't have enough performance for people who don't mind a little more heft.

Honestly, it just feels like Dell took the easy way out. "But it's gonna overheat if we put in a full quad core, and we don't want to thicken it too much either, so we're just shove this dinky ULV chip in there and call it a day."

 

This will be so annoying as I actually need a 14 now.... My 18 is just to damn big!!!! and I want a 14 to use for Steam, Home stream around my house. Been waiting to see if they will give it an 860m. 13 sounds interesting bit without as quad core processor with decent weight Home stream just dies.

 

13 really doesn't make sense period - reintroducing the 11" model with those specs on the other hand is what should be happening! a 11, 14, 17 and 18 lineup makes far more sense!

 

Gotta agree. 11 is the true sweet spot if they wanted something below 14. It targets the people torn between wanting a solid preforming laptop, but wanting the portability of a tablet+ keyboard case.

3 years ago the tech wasn't really there to make it work, but now it is. If the Surface pro TWO can play BF4 at bottom settings at almost 30 FPS with its integrated graphics, then an actual laptop at 11 inches should be perfectly capable of getting a decent GPU in there and playing new games at decent settings.

 

Well I totally don't care about the alienware 13 anymore. It's pretty much certain at this point that the nvidia 900m series will release soon. And I hoping the alienware 14 will get a 970m. After all these new cards are also maxwell so the power consumption will be significantly lower than 100W. So should be able to fit in an alienware 14 easily.

 

I prefer 11,15,18

mxm upgradeable graphics in all but the 11... these days the M14x could easily have a mxm slot like the M15x. Unfortunately the lack of which makes all versions obsolete at release in terms of gaming performance.

 

The AW 14 will get the 960M/965M/970M. That's my guess.

 

I have to agree with these points; worst case If the market response is poor to the ULV decision (which is still not the only possibility), they would likely retain the slimmer form factor as too many gamers think thin is sexy without considering heat issues, and introduce either full quad core CPUs (no reason they can't technically if they accept greater heat) or remake the AW 14 with effectively the same thinner design (which I can't see going back and forth).

Let's face it, the AW 14 seriously needs to go on a diet in today's market to be competitive . As I have said elsewhere, I still think there will be one round of the AW 13 with 860m graphics and ULV to get the design out thereand gauge response then I believe just like M11x-R2 there will be a quick follow-on design, probably with quad cores and 900-series graphics as Broadwell comes online. The dilemma is do you gamble and wait?

People keep dissing the idea of a new 15", but I could easily see the 17 drop out completely with a 13", 15" and 18" design lineup. Why? If Dell thinks reducing the size of the 14 to 13 makes sense, why not eradicate the 17 and make a 15 which is nearly as big albeit with a lighter package which is "in"? I'm thinking Dell is taking notes from the Apple lineup, with the Air (11,13) and MBP 15, while keeping hardcore gamer street cred with the 18, or maybe, in the quest to downsize, the 18 drops out and the 17 goes back to a dual GPU configuration alongside a 13 and 15. I still think the AW 13 is the start of a new, thinner design style that is going to hit all the systems in the lineup and this is just the first round.

Let the catcalls and naysaying commence

 

AW 14 has been a money maker for Dell but is not enthusiast orientated. I fully agree with you as I posted above 15 and 18 definitely makes sense. A super slim 13 with ultra thin bezel would be a great addition too.

 

They will never get rid of the AW 17 unless something can adequately replace it. I don't know why everyone thinks they will. They will lose out on a huge portion of the market, and there won't be a 3D option anymore, which is a huge deal for Alienware. They will have a 17" system, and then design models around that size.

Plus, they just redesigned their lineup. Why invest so much into a redesign just to throw it out a year later? That's idiocy. Imagine Honda redesigning their Civic lineup and then never making the Civic again. LOL. That's so dumb.

 

Give me a 13 or 14 with the 970M. I don't mind it being a bit thicker than the competition as long as the cooling stays excellent and quiet and the audio stays above average.

 

I doubt they will drop the 17, if anything they will drop the 18 and return to having the dual-gpu form of the 17 if you choose. This is speculation on the design trend towards thinner/lighter... I think Dell is seriously thinking about what makes sense these days in the market. Again, I'm saying its a possibility, not for certain, but I could easily see it being considered.

On the question of design and changes right after design.... seems to me Dell is quite possibly dropping the AW 14 in favor of a redesigned system, the AW 13, after only one round, which kind of proves the point if it happens. My point also was that its the start of a design trend, I didn't say that overnight all the system would be redesigned, only that I think that is the direction they are going in. Laptops are not cars, we see changes in laptop designs from other manufacturers almost yearly, its a bit unusual actually to sit on a design the way Dell has with the Alienware lineup.

 

Yes, companies do make changes yearly, but not complete redesigns to streamline the entire product lineup. That's more than a "yearly change." That is a generational change.

They just launched their new Area-51 and Alienware 13 to match the laptop lineup. That design is not going anywhere for this generation. They are not going to abandon the Alienware 14, Alienware 17, or Alienware 18 for some 13" gaming ultrabook. You have to think like a business and not some wishful consumer who wants something. The Alienware 14 is capable of housing much better hardware than the Alienware 13, especially now that Maxwell runs so efficiently. It's very unlikely they will toss anything out so soon, and they shouldn't toss it out. They should stuff a 965M/970M in the Alienware 14 and continue dominating the market.

Code:

[x]Alienware invests X amount of money into design the Alienware 14.
[x]Alienware invests Y amount of money into marketing the Alienware 14.
[x]Alienware's expected revenue amount as Z in one fiscal year (June 2013 - June 2014).
[x]Alienware is still selling Alienware 14's after June 2014, which suggests the revenue from Z < X + Y.
[-]If X + Y is greater than the revenue from Z, there is no return on investment, and Alienware is not profitable.

The strategic thing to do would be to upgrade the hardware inside the Alienware 14 by fulfilling a contract from NVIDIA & Intel, make some minor changes to the system design itself, re-brand it as an "Alienware 14 R2", and then sell the crap out of it until Z is much greater. Introducing an Alienware 13 is not hurting anything. It has an entirely different target market! Sure, it's close in design, but from a business's perspective that makes a huge difference.

EDIT: Obviously, this is just a basic example. There are many more things to consider, lol. All I'm saying, if anything at all, is that it would be kind of dumb to abandon such a popular design for something that may not even take off.

 

I never said they were abandoning their entire lineup for ultrabook designs, that is a distortion of what I stated; the move is towards thinner designs and Dell/AW has rightly been conservative on this keeping component maintenance in line, but that they can't ignore this is the desire in the market. With that move I could easily see a jostling of the line up over the next refresh or two to a 13, 14 (or 15) and 17 or 18 inch lineup (the latter 17/18 design with dual gpus). This would make a lot of sense. And I agree a 17 will almost always be part of the game, so going downwards to a 13 and upwards to a 15 (to differentiate) makes the most sense albeit in thinner designs.

Let's clarify design; we aren't talking about the whole look and feel, we are simply talking about thinning out the whole package while keeping the current design styling, that is all. Honestly, I think it's incorrect to assume it's that significant a cost to design a system. It's clear that the trend is affecting even Dell/AW with the move to thinner designs. I don't think they are ever going to go the route of the Razer because frankly it is a poor design from a thermal standpoint. However there is plenty of flex on the thickness particularly with newer components which tend to run cooler each generation for a significant move towards a thinner design, the AW 13 is possibly the test-bed for Dell going forward which is my main point.

I understand you like the AW 14 (I would love to see a refresh with a thinner design as well), but I think the fact they have not refreshed it for so long is indicating some type of change, either a slight redesign of it to a thinner (again, not ultrabook design), or completely being dropped for the AW 13 is more than likely. The design is popular here, but as I said before, I think it's not grabbing market share the way Dell/AW would like and hence the emergence of the AW 13 design; you may consider this "dumb", but popular designs are frequently dropped or changed if the company marketing thinks a change will net them even more sales which frankly is actually pretty smart. They don't lose their initial design investment, they make the most of it by modifying it as they go along.

We'll likely never agree and that is fine, time will tell what will happen but I would bet that the designs of all the laptops, no matter what the line up is, will make a move with this upcoming refresh or the one after downwards in thickness towards lighter designs while keeping the current aesthetic cues.

 

Google M14x R1/R2 and then look at the Alienware 14. I'd say that's a damn redesign of the entire system. This is a NEW generation of products. It's not an M14x R3. It's an Alienware 14 R1. There will be an R2, and maybe an R3. But definitely an R2. And why can't Alienware offer a 13", 14", 17", and 18"? Or maybe 13", 14", 15", 17", 18"? Why must successful form-factors be sacrificed? (By the way, this goes for all of them - 14, 17, and 18 - they are all R1's.)

Of course systems will be thinner as time goes on. That's simply the adaptation to market forces and the inevitable advancement of technology. This is why they are introducing the Alienware 13. They are not trying to replace anything. They are trying to adapt to the market by stepping into "enemy" territory without sacrificing performance. The Alienware 13 allows them to do so cheaply, and still remain competitive with all of their other products.

EDIT: You're right, we'll just have to wait and see what happens, lol.

 

Dell is a smart company that watches the world around them and takes appropriate steps to maximize profits. With the industry trend headed in the extremely undesirable direction that it is, I really don't expect we will see an R2 version of anything on the next refresh. I am just about willing to bet we see them wimping out to compete with the compromised Ultrabook designs from Asus, MSI and Aorus. Offering products that deliver industry-leading performance will become a secondary focus, only to the extent it can be accomplished as a byproduct of maintaining the status quo. I think we are going to see beast laptops replaced by less competent products that are cheaper and only aimed to achieve an entry-level playable average 30-40 FPS on popular games with low to medium graphics settings; nothing more potent than necessary, and nothing most hardcore gamers would be interested in.

I could be wrong here, but as little effort as we have seen go into making the Alienware 18 awesome like the M18xR1/R2, I bet they will stop offering it. It's too powerful and they don't seem to care about that any more. I think their focus is going to be selling a lot more product, to more people that are happy with average performance and willing to trade that off for thin and light. They will make more money on people that don't care about future upgrades, are terrified at the mere suggestion of opening a computer chassis and will buy a new model to avoid it. As long as the product has ample bling, they will be in hog heaven... In other words, I expect the new m.o. will be to prioritize style over substance where their laptops are concerned.

Think about it... Alpha, X51, Alienware 13, Razer Blade, Aorus, NVIDIA Shield... "console replacement" is a paradigm shift from "desktop replacement" that has become legitimized as a viable alternative low-performance gaming platform and many folks are licking their chops over it. We are beset by mediocrity among masses that call themselves gamers, but have no real concept of what constitutes high performance. They are used to having an average experience and perfectly content with it.

 

Noooo... Hope not, lol.

 

I hope not, too... but, I am not very optimistic about the future of "high performance" laptops being available from any of the OEMs.

 

@Dr. Dre:

In the end all I have really stated is that the introduction of the AW 13 is quite possibly a step in a new direction; if it is successful then I think it will get Dell thinking that to compete with the other manufacturers who are selling quite well, they will need to reduce down the sizes of the rest of the lineup (though I disagree with Mr. Fox that this automatically translates to "mediocrity"). Really, do you honestly think this is outlandish or incorrect an assessment? Given the gross differences in size between an AW 14 and most if not all of it's competitors, it does look a bit out of place unnecessarily. I personally think Dell is doing the right thing by not caving into the trend of too-thin, but they still have been producing designs that are by today's technology unnecessarily thick.

 

It's kind of funny in away, I gravitate to the Alienware Laptops because they're thicker. I just believe that proper cooling requires a little breathing room, for example this can equate to bigger Fans (Typically quieter), bigger heatsinks, more ports etc...

to each his own

 

I don't think the Alienware's are that much more bulky in comparison to other laptops in the same arena. The Alienware 17 is less "bulky" than the ROG series from ASUS. I mean, there's a difference between "bulky" and "quality bulkiness." (Not sure if I even understand what I mean, but I suppose I'm referring to how people react when something "feels like quality because it's heavy and big." ) Yeah, the Alienware lineup is thick. But do you not see how much better quality it offers in comparison to other laptops? Literally, hands on experience & side-by-side comparison of a lot of laptops leaves Alienware on top in regards to quality.