M17x or M15x

Hi there,
Just looking for some feedback from you guys im trying to decide between the two following configurations.
M17x with 840qm, 8gb ram, xfire 5870's
and an m15x with the 840qm, gtx 460m and 8gb of ram.
my question is will the m17x yeild a significant performance gain over the m15x worth the extra 400 or so dollars. Also how reliable are these alienware units because i see a lot of threads about problems straight out of the box

 

usually people who got problems with alienware is because they bought refurbs.. and it depends what games you want to play and if you want mobility.

If you dont mind the price you should really go for the m17x its really awesome

 

oh ok so its the refurb units that are buggy, thanks for clearing that one up.
Yeah i dont mind paying if the M17x performance is better, and yeah its for higher end gaming

 

the problems with refurbs are usually stupid shipping errors like power cables and what not. Some may say they were problems that were sent back, rectified and then sent out. I mean spend 2k for a loaded 920xm and cf 5870 with RGB or spend 3800....hmmm that is a pretty good risk to take. If you get a bum unit..send it back for a refund.

Anyways, with the R2 getting potential GPU upgrades VIA bios upgrades being done and worked on...I would get the 5870s in the R2. better system, more futureproof.

 

Ah ok thanks you have definately put my mind at ease a bit and im confident with ordering my 17x tonight

 

No regrets buying my R2 only that I didn't wait a few months and buy it at the outlet instead. With outlet prices on R2's it's actually hard for me to say get an R3 as compared to a second R2. ( I pass on alot of my PC hardware to my younger brother, so he's up to date)

The R2, has a far superior cooling system compared to the m15x, thus why the m17x has the 5870 option and the m15x does not. This does not mean that the m15x can't handle a 5870 stable (For those who are going to jump on me for making that statement). It just means Dells as well as many users on here would agree, that the m17x cools Gpu's better, which is a common problem among laptops. It's in my opinion that you hear more problems both software and hardware related with the m15x over the m17x-r2. With it's RGB LED, it's undoubtedly Alienware's Primer and best produced laptop to date. And I don't believe many will disagree or argue that statement, the only complaint is that it's either too expensive or too much power in a laptop. But I feel it's hands down the ultimate desktop replacement.

PS. you should have bought 2 days ago, there was a coupon that was posted on these forums in the bargin section about 16 or so percent off all outlet PC's which I used on my second R2, as I got it for a considerable low price.

 

definitely the m17x, as long as you don't mind the weight. From what I've read and seen in benchmarks, the m17x will have a huge lead over the m15x

 

thanks for all the feedback guys ordered my M17x just now and psyched for its arrival

 

soryy for the stupid question, but what is refurb and what does it mean..?

 

m15x with that config would get you 11-12k 3dmark06 score where as m17x gets you 15.5-16.5k (these are just after a full reinstallation and when few processes are running and without any gpu OC)... i Have had both and i can tell u that that 400$ will be well worth for actual gaming purposes...

 

If you buy alienware, buy refurb ones, they are a LOT cheaper (940xm, 1200p RGB LED screen, 5870 xfire 8gb ram and mine was only 2150 usd) and usually there is nothing wrong with them, the most common mistake I see dell making on these machines is sending out the wrong power brick. The refurbs also have the same warranty as a new one so you actually don't risk anything except maybe a few more days wait as dell send you the right power brick. There was one time they sent me the wrong machine altogether but it ended up being a better machine then the one I originally ordered so can't complain.

If you are debating the m15x vs m17x then ask yourself this, are you traveling alot? if yes, m15x since it easier to carry if no, m17x as a single 5870 beats the gtx 460 not to mention 2 of them.