If you were me, would you cancel the M17x order and get M18x?

How much better off would I be if I canceled my M17x with

GPU - 2GB GDDR5 AMD® Radeon™ HD 7970M
Processor - Intel® Core™ i7-3720QM (6MB Cache, up to 3.6GHz w/ Turbo Boost
Ram - 8192MB (2x4GB) 1600MHz DDR3 Dual Channel
Hard Drive - 750GB 7,200rpm SATA 6Gb/s HDD
Operating System - English Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium (64 BIT)
Optic - al Devices - BluRay Combo (Blu-ray read only, DVD, CD read & write)
Sound - Creative Sound Blaster Recon3Di with THX TruStudio Pro Software
Wireless -Intel® Centrino® Wireless-N 2230 with Bluetooth 4.0
LCD -17.3" WideFHD (1920 x 1080) WLED LCD


Instead I ordered M18x

GPU - 2 x 2GB GDDR5 AMD® Radeon™ HD 7970M
Processor - Intel® Core™ i7-3720QM (6MB Cache, up to 3.6GHz w/ Turbo Boost
Ram - 8192MB (2x4GB) 1600MHz DDR3 Dual Channel
Hard Drive - 750GB 7,200rpm SATA 6Gb/s HDD
Operating System - English Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium (64 BIT)
Optic - al Devices - BluRay Combo (Blu-ray read only, DVD, CD read & write)
Sound - Creative Sound Blaster Recon3Di with THX TruStudio Pro Software
Wireless -Intel® Centrino® Wireless-N 2230 with Bluetooth 4.0
LCD -17.3" WideFHD (1920 x 1080) WLED LCD

Would this be at all worth doing? Or is it too much over kill?

 

I would say depends on what you do and if you care about spending all that amount of money as M18x has Crossfire 7970M's while that M17xR4 only has 1 x 7970M. CF 7970M's should last you at least 1-2 years playing everything on high, and getting to the 3-4 years, you might have to start turning quality down. M18x also has a metallic chassis while R4 has a plastic chassis..

You will have to live with a 330 watt PSU with the M18x, while the R4 you could run on battery, though probably not a good idea.

 

Thanks for the reply. Is it worth the extra money if I want a more future proof system? I would never play games off the bettery. Maybe I would be better off getting the M17x and upgrading a couple of years down the line. I dont know what to do....

 

Man, I've just got an M17X R4 and it's pretty big, I loved it and I think if you will be going at least carrying it around on weekends, like me, don't get an M18X, unless you're gonna replace it as a desktop.
If you want a bigger screen, just buy an extra monitor, although I thought I would need an extra monitor and I'm actually won't! And about they video card, you're already getting a 2GB video card! The most famous gamers at YouTube have video cards with 1.5GB, you won't be using 4GB, that's for sure. You'll be just spending more money. Like I thought I would need 16GB of RAM, I bought 8GB and I'm really satisfied because I don't even use the 8GB I got. If you want to REALLY replace it as a desktop you may go with the M18X, otherwise I would go for the M17X

And about the battery, I haven't used it yet but I think it can handles a lot. I use my M17X withou the battery, I think it's just better.

 

Thanks man. It would be instead of a desktop as I'm moving overseas and we are taking minimal kit with us. Would the M17x be ok for a couple of years?

 

I have both. The M18x is a better built machine due to metal chassis. It is definitely heavier and the screen is only a bit larger. Since the price difference is about the price of the extra video card, I recommend it unless the weight is too much for you.

Other than that I highly recommend you get the killer wireless card instead. I seen to get much better throughput with it when paired to my e4200 linksys which is capable of 3x3.

 

There are a few differences overall and its a matter of which works better for you:

1. Price: if price is not an issue, then the M18x is certainly one to get. One of the reasons I got the M17x is because I cannot afford the $600-700 extra I would need to shell out for the M18x.

2. Portability: The M18x is almost impossible to carry around, the M17x is still inconvenient but somewhat manageable. If you intend to carry it around occasionally, M17x is better.

3. Cooling/Performance: M18x, way better in this department. Aluminum chassis, stays cooler, performs wicked wicked fast.

4. Future-proof: The M18x is obviously very very future proof. The M17x is definitely future proof as well, don't worry about it. Its just that the M18x on the other hand will see you through any games for years to come. You probably won't have to upgrade for a long while.

So think about what you need, prioritize. They're both awesome machines

 

Well, the M17X will handle very well a couple of years. If you really gonna use it as desktop and the price doesn't bother you, you may get the M18X. Although the screen isn't any different like our friend said above. But only get an M18X if you really won't be carrying it around, because I can't thing of carrying any bigger laptop now!

 

The M18X isn't much bigger than the M17X. M17X Dimensions: (W)16.14" (D)11.96" (H)1.77" Weight 9.39 lbs, M18X Dimensions: (W)17.17" (D)12.68" (H)2.09" Weight starting at 11.93 lbs. The weight will vary depending on build, but it'll be about a 2.5 lb difference. To some that might be a lot, to others it's not. To me, the size difference isn't a factor.

It really all depends on what your needs are and what you can afford. It appears you can afford either one, so price doesn't seem to be a factor. Now the 7970M is a pretty slick single GPU and will run just about everything right now at max to near max settings. A dual set up of 7970Ms will help to further your gaming longer, if you don't run into the CrossFire issues that plague some people. A dual set up will also future proof your system for 2-3 years, probably even longer. So if gaming everything on max settings is a huge deal for you, then the M18X will suit you better.

Both are great choices, and both will be suitable desktop replacements. The M17X should be fine for the next 2+ years. You may not be able to max out games next year or the year after, but you should still be able to game on really high settings. The M18X will be fine for the next 2+ years. You shouldn't have any problems running games on max settings for quite a while. If you can wait it out a couple more weeks, you may be interested in checking out the Nvidia 680M. There aren't any definite benches out right now, but it looks as if it may have a slight edge on the 7970M. But again, we won't know until it gets released and we see some real world stats. Either way, you should be very pleased with either GPU. Chances are it'll be similar to the 6990M vs 580M comparison we had last year.

My advice would be to go for the M18X. If I would have been able to get a great deal like I did with my M17X, I would have went for the M18X instead of the M17X. I did like the fact that the M18X has an aluminum case, although I didn't like how the color turned out (never seen one in person, just in pics and vids, so I may not have an issue with it in person). I was a little worried about the rubberized plastic case of the M17X, but once I received it, it felt really nice and strong. I love my M17X, and it works just perfect for what I need. But when I'm ready to upgrade in 2 years or so, I will definintely opt for the M18X (or whatever the dual GPU setup they have at the time).

 

thanks guys. You have helped me make my mind up. I think I will stay with the M17x because it is still a beast of a machine.
When I move overseas I will look into building a beastly desktop. The only time I will need to carry it about is when I move. Untill then I will still be able to max the games out with the M17x

 

Check out this thread where I posted pictures of them side by side...

http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m18x/667453-m18xr2-vs-m17xr3.html#post8568138

 

Also, you can upgrade the GPU of the M17x for a bit less than the difference between the two. If you do that two years down the line, you can have this laptop last you about 4 years.