Alienware 17 GTX 860M questions

I am considering to buy the new alienware 17 but i have some questions:

What model is it exactly? This way i can actually look up correct reviews.

Any problems i should know about?

Does it have an MXM card?

Does anybody know if it's an GTX 860 kepler or haswell?

Would it be possible to later upgrade to bluray?

Thanks allot!

 

This is the Alienware 17 model... It has an MXM GTX860M Keppler 4GB card which can be upgraded up to an 880M... It is also easy to swap the disk drive and install a blueray drive later on...

 

It's not a 4GB card. It's a 2GB MXM variant of the 860M running 28nm GK104. Performs similarly to that of the 770M.

Pretty much everything is upgradeable.

 

So i ordered the system

 

Another question

I ordered my system with a 500GB hybrid disk, mostly because i plan to add my SSD and 1TB hybrid from my current laptop.
However now i am considering leaving the 500GB adding the 1TB and to purchase an mSata SSD.

So my question is if i order an AW17 without an mSata will i still have the connector below the keyboard?
Also does anyone have recommendations for an mSata ssd? (~250GB, 120 at the minimum).

Thanks

 

Yes, you will still have the mSATA port. However, there will not be a screw to hold the mSATA SSD. You will need to request one from Technical Support after receiving the system. I bought 100 of them off eBay for like $3.95 or something.

The best mSATA SSD's on the market are the Samsung 840 EVO's. You should definitely purchase one of these.

Getting to the mSATA SSD port is tricky, but not difficult. It will take some patience on your end. This video shows it very well:

 

Brother J.Dre, what are the dimensions of these screws and what screwdriver do u use to open up your 17? I've been trying to find a screwdriver which is magnetic but am failing badly at it.

Sent from my LG-D802 using Tapatalk

 

I use this kit to work on laptops: Delcast 10-Piece Precision Screwdriver Set for Laptops & Electronics - Small Screwdriver Set - Amazon.com

I purchased the screws here: 100pcs M 2 x 3 mm Laptop Screws IBM HP Sony Dell Gateway Compaq Acer Sharp | eBay

It took them a long while to show up.

 

I assume it will be the same screw as an mini pcie card, and i still have some of those so no problem there. This was actually the video that raised the question because the person opening the laptop suggests that if you don't purchase a laptop with an SSD there might not be a slot inside.

This video also raised another question which i forgot. My current laptop has been on power for 99% of 3 years this utterly destroyed my battery. And this time i would like to remove the battery till the time i require it.
Will this cause any problems? Throttling and such?

 

Gaming on battery will not work.

 

I asked remove the battery not game on it. Will the system work properly on AC without a battery installed?

 

It should be but it should not be needed to run it like that.

 

That's fine, but technically it's pointless. As Meaker said, it's not needed. You could also knock out the AC adapter by accident and lose everything you've done on your PC.

Every laptop has technology now that stops providing charge to the battery once it reaches 100%. You cannot overcharge your battery or hurt it in anyway.

 

Unfortunately i missed the delivery yesterday but 20 minutes (left an hour early, 10 minutes in the car i got the missed message).

But it's coming today and i am ready behind the door So 2 last questions.
Today my mSata SSD is also coming, I was planning of doing an clean install onto the SSD.
But i keep reading that i you should make an backup with alienrespawn, but i am not sure why? And can i restore an alienrespawn onto the SSD?

My last question is about the power supply i saw quite a few post about the wattage of the adapter. Checking my order i see that i will receive a 180W adapter.
If i don't overclock my system will this be enough? Or will it bottleneck the system? (i7-4710MQ, GTX 860M)

Thanks for answering all my questions

 

You will only be able to overclock 200MHz with a regular CPU. It won't be an issue. The 180W PSU is plenty. Between the CPU and GPU, you're using less than 100W. The rest of the system doesn't require more than 80W to run.

You should make a backup so you can return your system to factory state if anything should go wrong. Windows updates corrupt drivers sometimes, and the only solution is a "fresh" install of Windows. Well, if you have this backup, you just plug in your USB and done. It's simple, fast, and safe. You can restore AlienRespawn on any drive, as long as you make it on a USB 3.0 of 8GB's or larger.

 

The power supply could just squeeze in an 880m (just) so plenty of room for the power conservative 860m.

 

Hey guys, I had my Alienware 17 (i7 4710, GTX860M) few days ago and I facing few times of BSOD while running on battery.

After the laptop restart with BSOD (IRQL not less or equal), the nvidia card can't be detected.

I restarted the laptop manually and nvidia card is detected again.

Another BSOD (IRQL not less or equal) I facing is right after I unplug the power when the laptop is still on.

Nvidia GoForce Experience telling me to update the driver after I get my laptop. Would it be caused by the driver issue?

Has anyone facing this before?

I will try to observe is it ever happen when running on power supply.

 

Hey guys, I had my Alienware 17 (i7 4710, GTX860M) few days ago and I facing few times of BSOD while running on battery.

After the laptop restart with BSOD (IRQL not less or equal), the nvidia card can't be detected.

I restarted the laptop manually and nvidia card is detected again.

Another BSOD (IRQL not less or equal) I facing is right after I unplug the power when the laptop is still on.

Nvidia GoForce Experience telling me to update the driver after I get my laptop. Would it be caused by the driver issue?

Has anyone facing this before?

I will try to observe is it ever happen when running on power supply.

 

Yes that sounds like driver issues uninstall and remove them properly and reinstall the new ones.

as for the unplugging og the battery on 100% charge the battery is basically turned off, a nifty feature they added exactly to help the batteries last longer and get used less if not needed. Its been in alienware for a while now. had alienware m15x with a battery 4-5yrs old still going strong.

 

They have added in extra functionality to improve gaming on battery so keeping the drivers up to date is a good idea at the moment.