why is dell doing this to m14x?

As we all noticed that the video card (gt555m) on m14x cannot be replaced with another powerful video card, and more and more high graphic intense game will be released in the future. I guess gt555m will be retired earilest next year, so, wat do u guys think about this???

 

Without a doubt the most infuriating aspect of this portable powerhouse.
I'm assuming this is a marketing decision on their part.
Those who want "upgradability" have to fork out more for the M17x.

 

ive just sold my m14x.as want a better gpu and the option to upgrade the gpu.

 

because they can.

 

I agree. m11x should have an upgradable GTX 560M and the m14x should have a 580M. There is no excuse

 

Maybe m15x will do the job. Not that big, not that small.

 

Hahaha

Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Tapatalk

 

Lol, that would melt the motherboard in mins of starting up.

 

There are excuses, unfortunately.

1. This will ensure that down the road, customers will buy a new laptop from Alienware, not a new video card from Nvidia or AMD and keep their old laptop.

2. Profit margin. It's cheaper to solder it on the board than it is to solder a socket and then install a chip.

Can the GT555M even be plugged into a socket? I really don't know if there's aftermarket GT555M chips out there. It could have been designed just for the purpose of being soldered on, which would make it cheaper, which would increase the profit margin.

It always comes down to money. Always.

 

Speaking of money, it could simply be a matter of maintaining a similar profit margin as the other machines. The m11x and m14x are both a fair bit cheaper at base specs than the m17x or m18x from what I've seen.

In all reality though it probably has more to do with space limitations. If you look at all the threads about a possible revision 2 for the m14x, or if you look at the heat threads, it is pretty apparent that you probably wouldn't be able to put a much faster(hotter more power use) gpu in anyway.

 

That was actually sarcasm, a couple other people picked up on that. The m14x and m11x are based on the facts that the GPU is soldered onto the motherboard, and can share a cooling system with the CPU. I dont see it as money for Alienware, I see it more as the fact that a real dedicated GPU with its own board, fan, and everything else would have made the system as big as the m15x or Sager NP1580 (or whatever the GTX 560M/580M 15.6 model is). If Alienware couldve kept the same exact size and stuck a 6990M in, Im sure they would have

 

Well i guess by the time they fitted an mxm style card, that can be upgradeable ,it'll be the m15x. If you wanted better graphics, maybe the m17x was a better option? It's fairly inexpensive for what it is. The m14x probably has the best graphics for being under 15 inches. Can't really ask for much more above decent graphics and portability. seems a bit greedy to ask for graphic cards that are in their own league.