M17x R3 Question

Hi I have been wanting a m17x for a while, and I'm pretty sure it had a dual GPU. I was checking out the m17x R3 and it didnt seem like it had dual GPU. Does it have a slot to put one into after market or someting? I would really like to buy one but this might be holding me back. Any help is apreciated, Thanks

 

R3 got a single GPU only but it's smaller than R3 and slimmer


R2
+RGB Screen
+Dual GPU

R3
+Sandy bridge CPU/board (300$ SB beat previous 940 1000$ extreme CPU and generate less heat/power)
+Slimmer and better case
+USB3/HDMI In/SATA 3
+Nvidia Optimus+Sandy bridge low idle = insane battery
+3D Display/120mhz
+Better upgrade path for the future (CPU/GPU upgrades/bios/etc)

R3 seems cheaper too

 

R3 doesn't have a better case, the R2 does (aluminum). It's upgrade path beyond 6970M isn't guaranteed either which would still put it behind the R2 in performance. The only thing R3 has going for it vs R2 is the price and optimus support (when used with a much slower 460M). 920xm from eBay in conjunction with TS > 2820qm (fastest CPU supported by R3).

Lastly, there will be no throttlestop support for sandy bridge.

 

R3 is one GPU only! check the R3 thread

 

Thanks so much it helped a lot.

 

Every review online 2820qm ate 920xm alive and with video encoding it's better by far, the 2820qm beat DESKTOP I7 930 in pretty much every benchmark. i would like to see a proof where 920xm beat 2820qm, no one ever claimed that 920xm was faster than desktop i7 930 before but now sandy bridge is out many insecure people keep saying 920x is better to feel good about their investment, technology move fast people need to get used to it.

To me R3 case is better specially resting your hands on the laptop itself but i guess that's subjective.

 

That's why Joker mentioned the use of ThrottleStop on the 920XM. The R3's CPU will be as fast as it's going to be right out of the box, because it's been stated that TS will not work on the SB CPUs. You can bet there will be a real-world showdown between the R2 and R3 right here on NBR within an hour or so of the first person getting theirs in the mail. We're all well aware that technology is always on the move, not sure why you mentioned that. The fact of the matter is this: Alienware chose a single GPU configuration with a non-extreme CPU. I don't think they were looking to make an R2 killer. Hopefully that's what this elusive 'M18' is for. I think that after the first benchmarks hit the streets, the R2 will remain the performance flagship. The R3 will satisfy the non-enthusiasts with the gimmicky 3D crap, and just enough CPU and GPU to 'get by'.

If you'd rather have a cheap plastic case than an anodized aluminum one...well...I don't know even what to say to that.

 

HSN21:

Fastest WPrime32 score for 2820qm: 8.2 with avg of 8.6 secs
Fastest WPrime32 score for 920xm: 6.5 secs.

That's 21-24% difference in the 920xm's favor.

Sources:

http://hwbot.org/hardware/processor...CPU_2118&hardwareType=CPU&tabid=cpubenchmarks

Intel Core i7 2820QM Notebook Processor - Notebookcheck.net Tech


We still haven't seen how SB behaves in the M17x-R3 under sustained load with all 4 cores. I'd guess that TB 2.0 will scale it back once the chip heats up and the performance delta would get even bigger vs a 920/940xm that has the benefit of TS.

The R3 is a good system, I've advocated it (and gotten infractions as a result) but I still believe the R2 is the superior system for pure performance, build quality and display quality. If Dell didn't artificially limit the R2 with the system bios for future GPU upgrades (though we still don't know if 6970M will work or not) then very few people would want an R3 or even M18x.


If you would like to continue this discussion we can over PM since we are going OT. To the OP: R3 is a single GPU system.

 

Back it up then with a proof because reviews are saying 2820 IS faster than DESKTOP I7 930 base, are you saying overclocked 920xm is faster than desktop i7 930 overclocked to 3.5GHZ?

The 2820 is equal to DESKTOP i7 overclocked to 3.5GHZ people need to stop the lies of 920xm being FASTER than 2820qm without any proof whatsoever, even if you try as hard as you can you wont reach that speed stable with 920xm while 2820 is not being overclocked and super stable.

Again the case is not only the "outside" i'm talking about the inside too, the R3 touch surface and touch pad completely redesigned and feels much better, i wont touch the surface from the outside but i will touch the inside and R3 wins here aka better case imo

Your links proof nothing really ...... good luck running 920x stable @3.800GHZ lol but i wont go off-topic and will leave it at that, reviews of sandy bridge are everywhere and the difference is huge between 2820 and 920xm, and i agree plus already mentioned R2 got better display and better raw gaming performance (Dual GPU)

closest competitor in our charts is the desktop i7-920, and 2820QM maintains a healthy 23% lead—in fact, looking at our desktop reviews, the stock (but with Turbo) 2820QM is roughly equal to an i7-930 overclocked to 3.5GHz. It also leads the i7-920XM by 84%, http://www.anandtech.com/show/4084/intels-sandy-bridge-upheaval-in-the-mobile-landscape/3

Since you say 920xm is faster it means you need to gain about 100% overclocking power (double performance) to achieve that and no one claim to gain 100% bonus cpu power with overclocking

All that without intel QuickSync technology where if used it beats 920xm by 600% (similar to nvidia cuda feature for video editing)

 

I dont know about you guys, but normally, the idea is that new technology supercedes its predecessor in performance. That is the way I have seen it for the longest time. I would only assume, judging from many review sites that the 2820QM will beat the 920/940XM cpus...

But the best way to find out just how much better the SB CPU's are is to wait until someone here gets theirs delivered and posts up some benchmarks to compare.

 

What is the max stable turbo people got with the 920XM? I heard 3.5ghz on all 4 cores with like 85W TDP. I guess that might be sustainable on a decent laptop cooler.

Im still hoping the dell bios allow some TDP and turbo multiplier adjustments.

 

Saying the R2 case is better than the R3 case is subjective. The lid and bottom is anodized aluminum which can easily be scratched off. I also adds weight to the system. I've never seen any Dell docs saying it's aluminum, anodized with aluminum. Magnesium is supposedly stronger (I'm not an expert in the area). What I do know is if you buy a consumer grade DSLR (for example) it has an aluminum chassis. The pro grade models are made of magnesium and are considered more rugged.

 

Also why would it matter? it's not like people gonna throw their 3000$ alienware around because it's made of aluminum, I'll take the better (imo) r3 build and lighter any day.

 

I personally like both because they are both different. I definitely would not say one is better than the other.

 

If you read the M17x r.3 owners manual, it shows adjustments for TDF and turbo multiplier if memory serves.

 

Have you rested your hands on an R3 already??? Also, if you set the TDP high enough, the magnesium would look cooler burning up then the aluminum. Just sayin...You know, for when it comes down to the overclocking benchmarking showdown...

 

You shouldn't quote sources that have the 920/940xm at stock. Stock is nowhere near it's potential. I'm not going to say that it's better or whatnot, because of insufficient data. What I am going to say is that it's not by a huge margin either way.

 

stainless steel skullcap FTW

 

Yep, as others have mentioned its a single only. Check the Owners Lounge for the documentation links.

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To the others, you need to cease the bickering between which system (R2 / R3) is the better choice - everyone is entitled to their own preference. There is more in this world than which system has the best overclock ability.