Alienware 17 - yea or nay?

So I am seriously looking at an Alienware 17. Any major problems, and how is support? I am not a fan of Dell laptops, having had a PoS Inspiron E1705. But since this is an acquired company, perhaps it is a different culture?

TIA.

 

You're in the alienware section, so everyone here will say you : YEA ppppp

I'm using it for 6 months now without any issues, be sure to have the latest drivers and firmware, and also a notebook cooler for full gaming experience.

 

It's the excellent support (hardware) that has kept me with AW. You do get dedicated AW support as well.....

 

I love my alien and will definitely purchase another one again!!! _ Probably gonna be a 14 after the next refresh though.

 

I can't speak for the Alienware 17, but the support has been great. When my R2 had a flaky wireless card, one of the Alienware reps got me overnight shipping and a box to send to the depot and it was repaired in a timely fashion. It did take awhile to communicate between him and me, mostly due to horrible internet in NJ, but overall my experience with Alienware/Dell was top notch. Even upgrading the warranty to 2 years was pretty pain free and I got to bargain down the price.

 

Unfortunately, not for me...if next gen. GPUs (GTX 880MX: 20nm ?) are still MXM 3.0b there's no way to upgrade as it is now for the Optimus model (due to secure flash), differently the 3D model might work (PEG), still too much uncertainty for a 4k laptop and overclocking options are very limited (4930MX) I simply am not willing to give up GPU upgradability/Overclocking Dell/Alienware! AW support is the best, hopefully this will not change...

 

Well, I am about ready to pull the trigger, as I need it by mid-Feb.

Anyone get the glossy screen option? I typically use my laptop in my dark bedroom, never outside, and don't want fugly matte.

I wish there was somewhere to see demos of these in person before I buy.

And how late can one add extra years of warranty?

 

It's typically best to upgrade the warranty at time of purchase, you receive the biggest discounts up front. You can upgrade up front, or with 1 day left, though I'd rather not wait that close to the warranty expiring.

 

I suggest you wait until May. A refresh usually comes out at that time with improvements over the current models. Also, next generation hardware will be available. If you can't wait, go for it, you won't regret it by any means. The "new hardware" I speak of is re-branded.

 

No way I can wait until May, LOL. This is mostly for work, not Battlefield 4.

Are you referring to Broadwell, BTW?

 

Nope, was referring the the 880M - it's a rebrand.

 

You won't be disappointed. Mine hums along without fuss or bother. I don't overclock or benchmark but I do game and the M17 is a very capable laptop. The after sale support is usually excellent!

 

Yeah, I'm gonna pull the trigger on this. My only real indecision now rest with how long of warranty I want to spring for, and the HDD setup. I'd like to avoid the SSD's, but the model I want (the second one listed on the Website) only has a 5400RPM or SSD.

Stupid how Dell/Alienware limits your choices. Chose A, you lose choice B...

Anyway, I am mostly trader guy, so I need lots of screen space, and I have a million windows open at once, so lots of RAM and 4 cores to handle it all. Also, some multimedia stuff I do which involves online video (not pr0n), plus, I haven't video gamed in like a year since my desktop GPU bluescreens in 3D, lame- Sapphire HD 6800. Would be nice to revisit the ol' Battlefield. With this powerhouse, I could get a long HDMI cable and just hook it up to my flatscreen.

Kinda glad to be going Nvidia...sick of AMD's crap, both its hardware, and its horrendous zombie drivers that can never be fully wiped.

Thanks to you all - I will detail my purchase as it unfolds...