Alienware 17 Pre-order Configuration Questions and Order Status Discussion - Part 5

Yeah, I get that. If I had bought the 780M and the 880M came out before my return period was over, I would have returned it also. Mainly because it was replaced with something that's a little bit better. But I wouldn't go through the trouble of selling my system (or the 780M I have) to get the 880M - that's definitely not worth it.

EDIT: Actually, for me, what I stated above would never have happened because I wouldn't have purchased a computer knowing that something new was about to come out. So, scratch what I said above, lol.

 

Yup it's confirmed Alienware doesn't made any systems In states it's all overseas (china and stuff) them comes to states for software and tags and then shipped

 

it's been like that for years...though not all units are made in China. if you live in the EU it's built in their Ireland plant IIRC while US, Canada, and even Australia are all serviced by Dell's China plant since they're all geographically closer.

 

I did do a search but couldn't really find an answer. i went cheap (to upgrade) with the 880 as my choice of course. tired of building desktops and constantly upgrading. and i like to travel to my friends in other cities to play. plus. my xps1710's 7950 gave up the ghost.

My question is. i got the 1tb 5.4k drive with the 80gb msata caching drive. Can you use the 80gb as an actual ssd boot drive? i understand caching (considering we are about to install 2 EMC VNX2 storage arrays with fast cache) and feel like it would benefit for say media and system files that are used frequently. but really. who cares.

What i am thinking is this: either
A. Add regular SSD drive to the 2nd drive bay and change boot order and reinstall, etc.. to take advantage of the caching on the 1tb "media" drive.
B. Use the 80gb as a small boot drive (really probably not going to be a good option for the amount of games i want to load from an ssd)
C. Chuck the 80gb cache drive into the storage bin. buy a nice sized msata SSD for boot. and then also use my less than a year old 7.2k 500gb drive from the xps.

Final question. If i wanted a mirrored drive for files, i'm assuming you can run boot on msata and raid 1 the 2 sata bays? if you remove the dvd, can you do a raid 5 with all 3 sata bays? and use msata for boot?

Thanks,

Jason

 

All ports are SATA III, including the ODD bay. And yes, you can use the 80GB mSATA as a boot SSD, but it's very small in size, and you won't be able to install but maybe one game on it after Windows is installed. I don't think it's a good idea. Your best option is to invest $150~ in a 250GB Samsung 840 EVO and use that as the primary storage drive and keep the 80GB as a cache drive for the HDD - those 1TB 5400RPM HDD's are terribly slow without the SSD to boost them...horribly slow.

 

Repeat alien is shipped

 

apparently mine was shipped from mt Juliet tn , which is like hr or hr and half drive from me lol if they just let me pick it up ....

 

Yeah, that's their main distribution center for the Midwest. They don't allow you to pick it up their facility, but they will deliver it to your local FedEx office for pickup.

 

Hi all,
Well took the "gamble" and ordered 17"
Hope that the build quality would be at least as MSI GT as I was torn between them. They charge a lot for upgrades ! so took only screen to HD and 880m and got not a bad deal for £1350 (sale chat makes wonders ) , SSD already waiting in my workstation and RAM - another 8 I could definitely find cheaper then 200 quid !...c'mon delivery 10-14 days aaggrrhhh


Aside form that, which cooling mar do you recommend for it?
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Zalman-ZM-N...qid=1396431807&sr=8-2&keywords=laptop+cooling
should be sufficient enough?

 

Well, it has been six years since I ordered my Alienware Area 51, but I have taken the plunge and ordered my new machine.

The Area 51 was reasonably reliable, SLI Cards were reballed twice (once under warranty from the first attempt), and then I had new Video Chips installed, but apart from that, she has been a beautiful gaming beast. :thumbsup:

Having read some of this thread I decided to call Dell and try and discuss a deal, rather than ordering through the website; what a great idea this has turned out to be!

So, my new m17x R5 is in the queue:

1 Alienware 17 Base
1 4th Generation Intel Core i7-4700MQ processor (6MB Cache, up to 3.4GHz w/ Turbo Boost)
1 17.3 inch (439.42 mm) WLED FHD (1920 x 1080) Anti-Glare Display
1 8GB DDR3L 1600MHz (4GBx2)
1 500GB (8GB Hybrid, 5400 RPM, 64MB Cache) SATA 6Gb/s w/NCQ NVIDIA
1 Slot-Loading Dual Layer DVD Burner (9.5mm)
1 240W AC Adapter
1 8-cell Lithium Ion (86 wHr) Battery
1 UK 250V Power Cord
1 NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) GTX 880M graphics with 8GB total GDDR5
1 Broadcom 4352 802.11 ac 2x2 and Bluetooth 4.0
1 5G WiFi Broadcom 4352 802.11n/ac and Bluetooth 4.0 driver
1 Internal UK/Irish (QWERTY) Keyboard
1 Resource DVD windows 8.1
1 Alienware 17 Silver Anodized Aluminum (Non 3D)

Plus four years extended warranty, and a TactX Mouse. :hi2:

I dealt with a great Sales Agent, who was friendly, knowledgable, and offered genuinely impartial advice. He also agreed a very nice deal, and I am over the moon.

Nice one, Alienware (Dell)!

Clean.

 

Welcome to the club. If you have any questions, we're here to help.

 

What cooler do you recommend for the laptop?

 

Um, well, there are many out there. I use a modified U3 cooler. I combined two, taking a better controller from one to make the fans spin faster. The speed of the U3 isn't all that great in comparison, but will suffice. That's the one I recommend.

 

I am checking 1 fan options but not sure if they would be sufficient.

Also, is it complicated like I read from other posts to add SSD and clone the system or should be pretty straightforward?

 

The AW 17 has two fans, so you'll want at least two to push air into both.

When you receive your system, the first thing you should do is make a backup (system image) using AlienRespawn. It is a VERY simple process. You need an 8GB USB 3.0 or 2x DVD-R 4GB discs. This will allow you to restore your computer back to factory state later on.

And for cloning, it's basically just creating the backup (like I mentioned above) and then restoring your PC with the new SSD installed. It's very simple.

 

Good. When I read about it it was simple but amount of posts that people have problems make me think :>
The cooler possibly this:
Akasa AK-NBC-02B Notebook cooler Black: Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories

 

This one is better. You can move the fans around and position them exactly where they need to be: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Coolermaste...UTF8&qid=1396472276&sr=1-2&keywords=u2+cooler

 

I am surprised that it only needs 8GB...

 

Just a quick add regarding needing 8GB for the backup...I tried using an 8GB flash drive but found out you really need a bit more space than 8GB so I purchased a bigger flash drive...

Question on this nice looking cooler...Does it have an option to turn it on/off via windows?

 

Sometimes it requires more space. I did my backup with only 2 DVD's.

 

well got 16GB but before I read you post was looking for 32GB even :> ....
Never tried to control anything outside the laptop with windows ...if a fan controlling application will recognize it then maybe?

 

BTW did any1 got his 17 with 880M already ?

 

Not yet, I believe in about a week we should start seeing them.

 

I hope so as my delivery date week and a bit from now

 

Checked view YT videos and it looks like the m17x just fits on to U3 .....so not sure if U2 would be suitable (as seen here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcgCLmRULKs )

 

The U3 is good. I use that.

 

Is there any formal info when 17.3"120Hz WLED FHD TrueLife w/3D Bundle will be available again with top nvidia GPUs (e.g. 880m) ??

This screen was removed by Dell and nothing was heard back when they are planning to restore this option again. Was it removed permanently and with top level GPUs we have been left with matt option only?

 

It's not a permanent removal. That's the one thing that sets the AW 17 apart from everything else. They will add it again.

Have you tried calling and speaking with someone?

 

Already called Sales and those guys have no single clue, trying to push me to order what they have (matt screen). I just have enough of their 'sweet farting' over phone about how wonderful is their matt screen and what I will loose of not getting it. Just sad.
As minimum Dell should tell us when it will be configurable with 880m.

Who you suggest to call instead? Technical support are dealing with technical issues, sales don't know cause they rely of what they can see available in the system ... etc ..

 

Have you tried calling the Alienware Upgrades and Parts department?

 

There are compatibility issues with the 880 and 120hz screen they are working out. Expect the combo to be available in a few weeks if not sooner

 

While Dell is fixing the compatibility issue they should fix their lack of information, lack of test procedures resulted all orders being canceled and that the consequences of getting products out to customer with so huge delay will be broadly discussed at Dell.


Is it now confirmed that Optimus will only work with matt screens while with 120Hz/3D screen no integrated GPU is present?

 

The 120Hz bundle runs solely on dedicated graphics (i.e. 880M).

 

yay
Order Shipped ....only thing is it will take a week apparently to get it from China...damn

 

UPS tracking is showing me that my laptop is just 100km away from me. But the delivery is scheduled for tomorrow. WHY?? I'm just too impatient

 

Actually correct me if I am wrong but this has been known since the M17xR3's. I found this out the hard way myself with an R3 that the intel graphics does not handle 120Hz, correct me if I am wrong.

 

Exactly this. I made the same mistake on my R3 thinking I could 'fix' it

Bit of a soapbox item for me. I keep on complaining that the AW advertising on the 120hz model is misleading by omission. So many new users of their super-duper 120hz display find they only get half the battery life and no optimus for power saving. Guess the advertising bods prefer to handle a few returns rather than loose sales on their top-of-the-range product /soapbox_off

 

Yeah, no Optimus with 120Hz but I think most people that are buying that config aren't exactly planning on 'playing on the go' ya know? I think their idea of mobility is moving from the kitchen to the living room, or office to bedroom, etc.

 

Hi all just joined from Ireland, i just ordered a AW 17 is this spec fairly ok?

i7 4900MQ 8MB Cache overlooked up to 4.0GHz Turbo boost

Windows 8.1

16GB of Ram

256GB mSATA SSD Boot+1TB 5400rpm SATA 6gb/s-NV

Blu ray reader

120HZ Truelife 3D

GTX 765

 

That is a horrible spec for gaming and amazing spec for crunching numbers. Why get such a high end processor and the lowest end video card. I think you should be looking at the 780m video card and 4800mq processor. That should be a good compromise and last a long time for most peoples needs. If you are paying extra for the Msata then I would just buy it aftermarket for cheaper.

 

Wow is the 765M really that bad???? This was the standard config on the website, couldn't change the specs for video card etc. Is the video card the main problem with this configuration??? Already ordered online so i'm stuck with it now , i'm guessing they must have 10 year olds making these configs up online

Worse case scenario, is it easy enough to upgrade the video card to the 780M? All help and advice appreciated.

Are Dell very slow in taking orders? I only got an aknowledgment of my order but not confirmed after 35 hours ago.

 

The 765M is not a bad GPU, lol.

 

I just checked on the Ireland website and looks like the are only offering the 765m with 3d build. I did hear someone mention dell was working the kinks out on the newer GPU and 3d bundles. I would really keep an eye on the website and see when they start offering the newer card with 3d bundle. This makes a difference in how long your computer will be up to date, resale value and the overall cost. If you try to upgrade after market you will get very little for your 765m and end up paying $500+ for a 780m. Also keep in mind you will need to hold on to the old video card incase you have to replace your unit under warranty. If I were in your shoes and spending 2000 EUROS. I would research all video card options and see if you will be able to downgrade CPU and upgrade GPU.

765m is not a bad video card compared to Intel IGP but other than that. I would be sticking with 770m at the bare minimum for future proofing your purchase.


780m or 880m is ideal and compared to 765m is a huge difference. This will probably mean you can game for longer. Does 3d not stress the video card even harder than 2d.

GeForce GTX 780M vs 765M

Edit: When I meant game for longer. I don't mean longer sessions but overall years of use out of each video card while keeping up with minimum requirements.

 

Thanks for the reply , gaming on this unit probably won't be it's main use anyway. The config options on the irish website are seem a bit mixed up at the moment. If in the future i came across maybe a used 780M are they plug and play, can it be upgraded without problems?

 

As long as you pick up the Dell 780m it should be pretty straight forward and plug in play. When you buy aftermarket card that are not officially supported by Dell. You would have to modify the INF to accept the video card during driver install. This trick works in US if you are not happy with your config or want to change it up. If you do so while the unit is in production Customer Service will offer you $50-$100 or more just to keep the unit as is. Might be worth checking if you threaten to cancel or return if they will give you a discount which you can apply to a future card purchase. Please research the 3d compatible video cards and what all it takes to make sure 3d operates when you upgrade. I stick to 2d my self and choose the best video card possible.

 

So what are the average times for order confirmation? Mine now is 2 days and no confirmation of order only just an acknowledgement of order received.

 

it might not be the primary reason but at least the grunt is there if you do. i have a 780m but i use my alienware 17 to do things other than gaming.

 

Return and buy a new one with 780gtx

 

I might stick with this laptop as it's fairly good spec and just maybe upgrade the gpu later,. It is coming with a 240 w power supply, is that enough to run a 780 if i upgrade it? Does the heat sink need changing or is the 765 the same?

 

The 765m uses a 2 pipe heat sink while the 780m uses a 3 pipe heat sink.

So you better return it for the 780m.

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