Is the Alienware 17 worth it vs other brands?

Hello all,

First I must say that I am an owner of an Alienware M17xR3 and I have loved this machine and it has served me well for 2.5 years. I recently had to replace a failed hard drive in it but with little hassle.

I am now in the market for an "additional" gaming laptop. I have looked at Clevo/Sager models and the AW 14/17. I ruled out MSI/ASUS/GIGABYTE/RAZER/LENOVO due to the following:

MSI: Runs freaking hot and I honestly dont like the looks of the machines.
ASUS: Poor upgradeability and i have noticed many complaining about heat/fried gpu cards.
Gigabyte: poor build quality
Razer: too expensive for what you get and too small for my tastes
Lenovo: the y510p and y50 look very promising and are fairly inexpensive but not sure about Lenovo products.

I have narrowed everything down to Sager NP8258-S/NP 8268-S/8298 or the AW 14/17. The AW 14 seems to not be as powerful as its competitors based on the price but the build quallity looks amazing.

Should I buy the AW 17 over any Sager models? I know the AW builds are very top notch, the upgradeability is 2nd to none and the cooling/sound is superb along with its performance. Is it worth the extra $600-800 to fork out on the AW 17 as opposed to the Sager models?

I talked to an AW rep last night and was able to reach a deal for around $2100 for a 4700q processor, 780 GTX, 1080p display, 8GB RAM, basic HD,with no additional warranty. Is this a decent deal? I can get a Sager with same or better specs for only $1500. I am weary of trying another brand that is NOT alienware because I have been so pleased with my r3 but I dont know if it makes sense to buy a 2nd 17inch alienware for a much higher price than the competition.

Please help me guys

Edit: The only NEGATIVE thing I have seen or heard about the AW 17 is the price. Many people say its overpriced and that you are just paying for brand. Does this claim hold water? Heck if thats the only negative thing about the AW 17 then I think the people who say that are actually helping the case of AW being superior since many of the other brands have: heating/cooling issues, poor sound quality, poor build quality, poor upgradeability or loud fan noise. Some even have 2 of those listed while many just have one or the other. Pick your poison I guess.

 

I was sort of in your shoes ~3 years ago, I needed a gaming DTR laptop. I had ~1500 cash to buy one, so I set out looking at new laptops. I could have gotten an ASUS G73JH, or an MSI Gaming series laptop, but instead I went with a used Alienware M17x R2 that was pretty top spec (920XM, 5870M CF, 1200p screen, Bluray). I decided on Alienware because of the support (and Dell standing behind Alienware), as well as superior cooling, metal chassis design (with the R2), and the fact it could be upgraded with nearly anything. I can't say 100% for the Alienware 17, but it should follow the same pattern.

 

I most cases you do get what you pay for, where the same goes for the laptops. However in the case of new AW 17 you should check the threads here about the peeling rubbers from LCD back cabinet.

The deal offered to you is not bad considering the specs, but if I were you I would go for 4700QM, GTX 880m, 8GB RAM, 1080p screen for $2,349.00. You can get it from the deals (first one in US website), just swap the basic screen and slower GPU for these. Then maybe you can find some kind of the discount making it even more affordable.

 

Yes I have seen some people saying the rubber coating peels off the edge of the lids. I wonder how widespread the issue is and whether or not it's a design flaw with the new revamped exterior finish/build.

Edit: can you link me that deals page? It is not showing for me (yea I am in US)

 

Here you go:
Alienware Deals
Alienware 17 Gaming Laptop | Dell

Also, top of the website says the following 'Double your rewards. Dell Advantage members earn 10% back in rewards on Dell Preferred Account purchases.Shop Now'. I am not sure how that works though, I am in UK.

 

The Alienware 17 is a great system. I've owned a few and haven't had any issues with them.

 

My only concern about the AW 17 is the display. I wish they would've stuck with the same IPS displays that are in the 14 and 18 instead of those TN ones.

 

Remember IPS only has the advantage on color reproduction and viewing angles, the refresh time is always worse. So if you sit in front of your laptop most of the time...IPS isn't a real dealbreaker. If you edit Photoshop alot, well you are going to hurt, especially with less than 100% sRGB panel.

 

The laptop is always in front of my face. I hardly ever use any photoshop stuff or photo/video editing software. I only surf web and play games.

 

I would go with a 120Hz 3D screen then.

 

I agree. If you're not going to get the 3D 120Hz bundle, you might as well get an Alienware 18. It will provide you with more performance, and it has a better 60Hz 1080p display. The only drawback is about an hour less of battery life and a larger PSU, which can be somewhat annoying to lug around. The actual size of the laptops are similar. The AW 18 weighs about 3lbs more, if I remember correctly.

You've got some things to consider. I'm a student and I think the AW 17 is a perfect balance for work and gaming. If you're just a light gamer looking for something to kill time, but also want to focus deeply on work, the Alienware 17 is what I would recommend. For Photoshop (and other related work), the 120Hz screen will be extremely helpful.

 

Don't forget the np9377 with sli 880m and 120hz panel for the same price as the single 880m alienware 17

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I am not a fan of the sli graphics cards. Twice the power but also twice the heat (and fan noise because of it) and the driver support is not as good. Some games may not even work well with it.

About the 120ghtz 3D screen...I looked at that as an option but I can only find that offered in the 765m graphics card. If I wanted a 765 I would go with the 14 since it has a beautiful screen.

 

Not twice the heat because each card has its own fan and heat sink. So each card gets the same heat. Nvidia is always on point for the most part with drivers for sli

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