I think I need the m17x - Can I get your opinions?

Hello all, I'm wanting the M17x strictly for gaming. The orginal reason I started looking at it is for the HDMI input so I can connect my Xbox to the laptop and play Black Ops. I travel 100% for work, and sometimes the rooms do not have flat screen TV's. I need a new laptop anyway, because my HP is literally falling apart. Thought about getting a 17-18" monitor and attempting to carry that with me when I travel. Not huge into PC gaming, but could see myself getting into it if I had the toy to do it with. Am I way over shooting with the M17x for what I need?

Intel® Core™ i7 2630QM 2.0GHz (2.8GHz Turbo Mode, 6MB Cache)
8GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1333MHz (4DIMMS)
2GB GDDR5 AMD Radeon™ HD 6970M
640GB Raid 0 (2x 320GB 7,200RPM)
17.3-inch WideFHD 1920 x 1080 60Hz WLED
Intel® Ultimate N WiFi Link 6300 a/g/n 3x3 MIMO Technology

Is their a cheaper alternative for what I'm wanting? Will the processor be up to the task of running what I want? Other then Black Ops, just normal internet use and FTPing for my website etc.

Total came out to 2169 USD. More then I wanted to spend, Ideally would like <1700 USD

Opinions are very much appreciated, I have been reading on this site and watching reviews.

 

If you're looking for an HDMI input, Alienware is your only option.

If you want to save a quick $100 then dont buy your ram upgrade through Dell, you can get ram cheaper if you buy and install it yourself. What you buy will be better/higher end as well, considering HyperX 1600MHz memory can be less than $100 if you find a deal on Newegg (recently had 8 gig of Kingston HyperX 1600MHz laptop memory for $84 after MIR). To save money you can get the same 8 gig of 1333MHz that the $120 would get you for $49 on sale.

Same goes for the hard drive, if you're not queasy about installing it yourself (not terribly difficult), do the hard drives yourself. (2x 320 gig 7200 rpm hard drives for RAID 0 (the same 640 gig you'd be buying yourself) is $100 ($49ea), for $10 more ($59ea) you can get dual 500gig 7200rpm drives))

Finally, upgrade the wireless card yourself as well (a little more annoying than some other stuff), but you'll have to do a bit of research on these forums to make sure something you pick up elsewhere will work properly, some wireless cards are specifically designed for certain laptop models and wont work in others despite the model number.
$35 for the same wireless card rather than the $70 Dell wants:
http://www.buy.com/prod/intel-ultim...-fi-adapter-mini-pci/q/loc/101/215089005.html

I checked it against Dell and without those 2 upgrades your cost would be $1899 before tax/shipping

You didnt mention anything about the optical drive so I assume DVD is fine, and the rest is good enough. The 2630qm should be plenty of processor for what you're looking for.

Just start with the base model rather than the step up that you see if you go straight to alienware.com.

http://www.dell.com/us/p/alienware-M17x-r3/pd.aspx?~ck=mn

 

Thanks for the reply.

I guess I would like Blue ray, Gonna check into that. I don't really feel comfortable taking apart my 2000+ dollar laptop and messing with it.

SSD interests me, but the prices are insane to buy from Dell etc.

 

Newegg.com - ASUS G Series G73SW-XN2 Notebook Intel Core i7 2630QM(2.00GHz) 17.3" 8GB Memory DDR3 1333 500GB HDD 7200rpm DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460M

You can get a G73SW for 1250, though the GPU is underpowered to the one offered in the Alienware, though ASUS gives you a standard 2 year global warranty + 1 year accidental damage. Offers HDMI too.

 

He asked for HDMI Input. The laptop you linked only has an HDMI output.

The Alienware laptops are the only laptops with HDMI Inputs available right now unless you buy a capture card. But most capture cards and capture software wont allow you to use your laptop as a separate screen.

 

Look at the Dell outlet store. They have great deals on refurb m17x-r3. The system you want with options may not be there at first but keep watching and it will eventually show up.

Cheers,

 

Thanks for the replies.

Never noticed the Outlet store. Whats everyone's general opinions on refurbished m17x-r3's? Here's one I found, seems to be very close to what I originally spec'd out.

http://outlet.us.dell.com/ARBOnline...Search.aspx?rn=3540&SC=&c=us&cs=22&l=en&s=dfh

Opinions? Thanks a bunch, I've never dealt with Alienware laptops

Edit: Just noticed the 5400 RPM hard drive. I'm not liking that too much.

 

I just bought an outlet R3 rig and it's great (like-new, no issues, etc.).

Just wait for the config you want to show up and remember that things like RAM and hard drive can be changed out really easily so get the CPU, screen, graphics card and optical drive you want, and give a little if the RAM and hard drive isn't exactly what you want.

 

Oh, just one other observation: outlet rigs go quick. If you see the config you want then grab it b/c it won't be there for long most likely.

 

My outlet setup has issues but ingeneral outlet is great. Overall system was 500 less than new. As mentioned above they do go quick so keep a look out often.

Hard drives are cheap (minues ssd)

 

Yep, that setup I posted is already gone. So, that setup having the 5400 RPM hard drive wasn't necessarily a deal breaker, as it can be changed out easily.

Intel® Core™ i7 2630QM 2.0GHz (2.8GHz Turbo Mode, 6MB Cache)
or 2720+
2GB GDDR5 AMD Radeon™ HD 6970M
17.3-inch WideFHD 1920 x 1080 60Hz WLED

Those are the main things I should be concerned with then. I'm going to keep a close eye over the next few days.

If anyone else has a experience with the Outlet, good or bad... I would be interested in hearing them Thanks

 

Man! Dell website changes fast and without notice! They don't even have the 2GB GDDR5 AMD Radeon™ HD 6970M option up anymore. 580M is an expensive upgrade, and just from reading on this forum, doesn't really seem to be a good bang for your buck upgrade.

 

Nah the 580m is new so you'll pay a huge premium for it. The 6970m is a far better price.

Just keep an eye out, and add a rig to your cart while you're deciding, Dell lets you hold it for 15 minutes before expiring your cart and putting the machine back up for sale.

 

My r3 is a refurb and it works great. I pulled the 320 5400rpm drive and added a used SSD. Wei 7.6 across the board with the SSD getting 7.9. The only annoyance is sometimes they are missing stuff like the interposer for the second drive. $14 shipped from Dell.

All and all some great deals.

Cheers,

 

Well, I took the plunge! Tell me how you think I did from the Outlet store.

Processor: Intel Core i7 2820QM 2.3GHz (3.4GHz w/Turbo Boost, 8MB Cache)
16 GB DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz (4 DIMMs)
2 GB GDDR5 AMD Radeon HD 6970M
17.3 inch Wide FHD (1920 x 1080 60Hz) WLED Display
Intel 6300 Wireless-N (2x2) Half Mini-Card
320 GB SATA Hard Drive (5400 RPM)

$ 1,759

Bought the 2 year warranty also.

Obviously the 320G 5400 RPM hard drive is not gonna cut it, plan on swapping soon to a SSD. Can anyone recommend a good quality small SSD? Can install a HDD as well correct? Would like to have a 500+ HDD as well.

How did I do? Good deal? Think the 2 year warranty was enough? Thanks!

 

The 2820 and 16GB are nice perks alongside the 6970. $1759 is a great deal for that. As to the drives, they are very easy to replace. (take out the battery, remove 2 screws, slide the bottom cover back a bit, lift it off and the entire bottom of the laptop is exposed) Hopefully yours will come with the necessary parts to add the second disk. Mine was missing the interposer for the second disk cage.

Enjoy!
Cheers,

 

Congrats on the new system. You got a nice deal, that would have cost around $3000 normally.

 

Awesome, I'm super excited to receive it, should be here Wednesday. I searched almost every hour I was awake for this system Seems everyone around here is running the Crucial SSD, I'll start searching for them soon and looking for good deals.

Thanks everyone for their help, much appreciated.

 

Great deal! From my searching it appears the Crucial M4 and Intel 510 series SSD are excellent.

 

Looking at SSD, Will this Crucial M4 be compatible with my R3? Sorry if its a newbie question, just wanna make sure before I order it.

Also, bought Crysis 2 and Black ops today for the PC. Can't wait! Thanks guys

Crucial Technology 128GB m4 SSD 2.5" Solid CT128M4SSD2 B&H