*OFFICIAL* Alienware 17 Ranger (2013) Owner's Lounge Thread

Note: For general questions regarding specs, ordering information and general discussion about all of the new Alienware laptops, including the new Alienware 17, please visit this thread and the Alienware Social Media Team will be glad to help you. *Official* Alienware Launch Discussion Thread

---

With the total redesign of the exciting new machine, we will need a new Owner's Lounge. This thread will be the place to discuss your new Alienware 17, share information with fellow owners and answer questions for prospective new owners. As you begin to receive your machines, please feel free to add your own personal product review, photos, etc.

---

Be sure to check out Charles P. Jefferies' Alienware 17 Review.

<iframe width='853' height='480' src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/G2SrsbZBoeE?rel=0" frameborder='0' allowfullscreen=""></iframe>

Tech Specs

Processor Help Me Choose

• 4th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-4700MQ (6MB Cache, up to 3.4GHz w/ Turbo Boost) (Standard)
• 4th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-4800MQ (6MB Cache, up to 3.7GHz w/ Turbo Boost)
• Overclocked 4th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-4900MQ (8MB Cache, up to 4.0GHz w/ Turbo Boost)
• 4th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-4930MX (8MB Cache, up to 3.9 GHz w/ Turbo Boost)

Operating SystemHelp Me Choose

• Windows® 7 Home Premium 64-bit, English
• Windows® 7 Ultimate 64-bit, English
• Windows 8, 64-bit, English
• Windows 8 Pro, 64-bit, English

Memory Help Me Choose

• 8GB Dual Channel DDR3L at 1600MHz
• 16GB Dual Channel DDR3L at 1600MHz
• 32GB Dual Channel DDR3L at 1600MHz

Chipset

• Intel HM87 Express Chipset

Video Card Help Me Choose

• NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 765M with 2GB GDDR5
• NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 770M with 3GB GDDR5
• NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 780M with 4GB GDDR5

Display Help Me Choose

• 17.3" WLED HD+ (1600 x 900) Anti-Glare Display
• 17.3" WLED FHD (1920 x 1080) Anti-Glare Display
• 17.3" 120Hz WLED FHD (1920 x 1080) TrueLife Display w/3D Bundle

Audio and Speakers

• Internal High-Definition 5.1 Performance Audio with Dolby Home Theater v4 Software (Standard)
  2.0 Speaker configuration
  Audio Powered by Klipsch®
  7.1 Digtial Audio out using HDMI out connection or S/PDIF Optical port

Hard Drive Help Me Choose

• Up to 1500GB2 SATA hard drive (7200RPM)
• Up to 1000GB2 SATA hard drive

Optical Drive

• Slot-Loading 8x SuperMulti Drive (DVD±R/RW) (Standard)
  Slot-Loading Dual Layer Blu-ray Reader (BD-ROM, DVD±RW, CD-RW)

Power

• 8-cell Lithium Ion (86 wHr)
  180W A/C Adapter
  240W A/C Adapter

Camera

• FullHD 2MP Camera with dual digital microphones

Wireless

• Killer Networks Gigabit Ethernet NIC (Standard)
  5G WiFi Broadcom 4352 802.11n/ac and Bluetooth 4.0 (Standard)

Ports, Slots & Chassis

• AlienFX Lighting Zones
  10 unique programmable zones with up to 20 distinct colors providing over 10 trillion lighting combinations
  
  Customized Features
  Laser-Engraved Nameplate
  
  Dimensions & Starting weight
  Height: Front: 46.24 mm. (1.820) Rear: 48.46 mm. (1.908)
  Depth: 299.00 mm. (11.772)
  Width: 413.56 mm. (16.282)
  Starting at weight with optional SSD: 4.1501 Kg. (9.1494 Lbs.)
  
  External Chassis Connections
  (1x) Power/DC-in Jack
  (1x) RJ-45 Gigabit Ethernet IPv6 (3x) SuperSpeed USB 3.0 Ports
  (1x) SuperSpeed USB 3.0 Port with PowerShare Technology
  (1x) Mini-Display Port
  (1x) HDMI 1.4 Output / 1.3 Input
  (1x) 9-in-1 Media Card Reader
  (2x) Audio Out 1/8" Ports (One compatible with inline mic headset)
  (1x) Line In Microphone 1/8" Port (retaskable for 5.1 analog audio output)
  (1x) Kensington Security Lock port (cable and lock sold separately)
  
  Exterior Chassis Materials
  Anodized Aluminum
  Magnesium Alloy
  
  Keyboard
  4-Zone, multi-color RGB, keyboard with AlienFX lighting controls and numeric keypad
  4 user-programmable keys providing up to 4 distinct functions per application or game
  
  Memory Slots
  4x 204-Pin DDR3L SO-DIMM SDRAM Slots
  
  Software
  Alienware Command Center
  AlienFX™
  AlienTouch™
  AlienFusion
  AlienAdrenaline w/ Accelerator
  Alienware TactX™
  
  Touchpad
  Backlit button image sensor trackpad with all-points addressable (APA)

 

Here are some teardown photos of the Alienware 17...

<iframe class='imgur-album' width='100%' height="550" frameborder='0' src="http://imgur.com/a/dhQBH/embed"></iframe>

 

Thanks to our good friend, DELLChrisM from Dell Community Forums, here is a parts list for the new Alienware 17.

---

Bottom Plastic Assembly
GXRRC Bottom Case for ODD
4XWJJ Bottom Case for non ODD
6Y5CP Front door with nameplate
Y07HW Bottom Base cover with blank COA label

DVD-ROMs, ODD = Optical Disk Drive
6M7XC DVDRW/BD-ROM,HLDS
F03P6 DVD+/-RW,HLDS
7VKM6 DVD+/-RW,PLDS
YXKK2 ODD bracket
9TC6M ODD cable


Graphic Card (GPU)
FKDN8 GPU Fan
MHR0Y GPU Thermal Pad
2K0KW Nvidia GeForce GTX780m N14E-GTX 4GB GDDR5 with bracket, thermal pad
YP26V GTX780m GPU Thermal Module Right 100w
1RMFM Nvidia GeForce GTX770m N14E-GS 3GB GDDR5 with bracket, thermal pad
D6V4R Nvidia GeForce GTX765m N14E-GE 2GB GDDR5 with bracket, thermal pad
G2YP2 GTX765m/GTX770m GPU Thermal Module

Hard Drives, Cables, Brackets
HNV9V HDD Bracket
FN03H 2ND HDD Bracket
6CTX5 2ND HDD Bracket for ODD bay
R64M2 2ND HDD FPC for ODD bay (SATA cable)
8F9T8 Sata Interposer
5K1VD HDD 1TB,S3,512E,KAHV-SSH
1KT1K HDD 1TB,S3,5.4K,2.5,512E,AQU-B
K8Y8C HDD 1TB,S3,5.4,2.5,512E
W6F0N HDD 750GB,S2,7.2,2.5,512E,MX375
WJH3D HDD 750GB,S2,7.2,2.5,512E,JET-C
2XFM1 SSD 512GB,S3,7MM,Liteon,M6S
HHCWG SSD 512GB,S3,7MM,Liteon,M3S-M
WKJR2 SSD 256GB,S3,7mm,Liteon,M3S-M
XFJWX SSD 256GB,S3,7mm,Liteon,M6S
64T7G SSD 256GB,S3,MCARD,Liteon,M3M-M
XXM30 SSD 256GB,S3,MCARD,Liteon,M6M
M5PCC SSD 256GB,S3,MCARD,Hynix,SH920
FFKNK SSD 256GB,S3,7mm,Samsung,PM841
6FWH7 SSD 128GB,S3,2.5",7MM,Samsung PM841
XVN2P SSD 80GB,S3,MCARD,3.8MM,Intel 530
0PM10 SSD 64GB,S3,FULL,MCARD,PM830
8DWMT SSD 64GB,S3,MCARD,Liteon,L3M-M
5FCRV SSD 64GB,S3,MCARD,Hynix,SH920
H9R7V SSD 32GB,S3,MCARD,Liteon,L6M
92K2X SSD 32GB,S3,MCARD,Hynix,SH920
7C4P7 SSD 32GB,S3,FULL,MCARD,PM830

Keyboards and Mice
M8MH8 Keyboard
935WM Support Bracket
JC1MH Touchpad button with bracket

LCD
0RHX6 17.3 HDF WLED AG with LVDS cable (FNH0H,GYWN1,NRFX3)
0Y24F 17.3 FHD WLED AG with LVDS cable (FNH0H,HDKPV,K6PJ1)
3FVH7 17.3 FHD WLED TLF 3D with eDP cable (GN36T,N392W)
2CH5J LCD Bezel
4RVFF LCD Bracket right
J6XHP LCD Bracket left
7FTX2 LCD Hinge right
C8JMN LCD Hinge left
FNH0H LVDS cable
JXG56 DCIN Bracket
MT7KN LCD Cover WLAN
W58PR Camera, 2.1M

Memory
N2M64 8GB,1600,2RX8,4G,DDR3L,S
NWMX1 4GB,1600,2RX8,4G,DDR3L,S

Motherboards/Boards
8G3DJ Motherboard, Windows 8 Pro, with CPU and VGA Thermal pad (5RW0M,MHR0Y,F1RJC)
YC17T Motherboard, Windows 8 Home, with CPU and VGA Thermal pad (5RW0M,MHR0Y,F1RJC)
K9Y85 Motherboard, Windows 7, with CPU and VGA Thermal pad (5RW0M,MHR0Y,F1RJC)
GGPK7 Motherboard, Windows 7, with CPU and VGA Thermal pad (GR0H2,MHR0Y,F1RJC,WH486)
KDMGT Tron light board with holder right
0HJJ5 Tron light board with holder Left
CT46X Tron light board with holder front
5J39C Led board right
TD3CP Led board left
8P54Y Indicator board with FPC
DGH5D Card reader board with FPC
MNJW7 Non-VPT board with FPC
N1DX7 IO board
WH486 IO Board, LAN
VH030 Logo board
YXVW4 Power board
R0D69 AlienHead board

Palmrests
29G90 Palmrest assembly

Plastics
GXG5F Nameplate
M9DVD SD Dummy card


Power Source
K2490 Power cord
R085W DC-IN cable
FHMD4 AC Adapter, Flextronics, 240w, 3-Pin (Uses C13 Straight Power Cord)
FWCRC AC Adapter, Delta, 240w, 3-Pin (Uses C13 Straight Power Cord)
DW5G3 AC Adapter, Flextronics, 180w, 3-Pin (Uses C5 Straight Power Cord)
WW4XY AC Adapter, Delta, 180w, 3-Pin, (Uses C5 Straight Power Cord)
G33TT Primary battery, Samsung, 89WHR, 8C
KJ2PX Primary battery, Simplo, 89WHR, 8C

Processor Modules Haswell
XVXVH CPU Fan
C61N1 CPU Thermal Module
F1RJC CPU Thermal Pad
C8HRG i7-4930MX 3.00GHz with CPU thermal pad (DNWKK,F1RJC)
HDX3D i7-4900MQ 2.80GHz with CPU thermal pad (77RHX,F1RJC)
036M4 i7-4800MQ 2.70GHz with CPU thermal pad (NXFRR,F1RJC)
86XWW i7-4700MQ 2.40GHz with CPU thermal pad (0DMPC,F1RJC)


Speaker
W6R30 Speaker

Wireless
CTJ7G Killer N1202 WLAN, WiFi + blue tooth, Half Mini Card
XW7V6 BCM4352

 

I you have already placed an order for an Alienware 17, please feel free to post and tell us about it. We can all be excited together while you are waiting for its arrival.

 

I've seen this soooo many times now I figured I'd make a separate post altogether to explain this:

For US - the lowest price you can get the 17 with the 780M GPU is $2199!!!!!! This is under the $1999 preconfig, and in the customization menu under video card, you can select the 780m for $200 more.

Happy shopping!

- Kris

 

Unfortunately one is forced to buy 16GB mem for a 780m option, one is also forced to buy 4800 cpu for a 120Hz screen option.

AW may have had a sale from me on an R5, but with such heavy handed config options, I believe I am back to waiting on 20nm gpus and what may come of next summer models. Maybe the config choices will change soon.

Hope everyone enjoys your new machines!

EDIT: It gets even crazier, just for S&G's I checked out 2012 model pricing. The $2199 4GB 780m/4700 16GB mem is a steal compared to an equivalent config R4. They want $2149 (that's with a $75 discount, lol) for 2GB 680m/3630 16GB mem and you get 250GB less HDD, everything else I see as the same. I can't imagine why someone would opt for the equivalent R4 config here (at least you can save $ going less mem), should be difficult to clean out inventory at those prices.

 

Hard to choose between a Alienware 17 with the 780m and the Alienware 18 with 770m SLI as they are both priced about the same. Choices choices.....

 

Are you being sarcastic? 18" > 17"
2x85% 780m > 780m

I'd take the 18 any day of the week....except for the weekends, that when the wife has the bank card

 

I just haven't had a lot of time to do research, plus nobody has their system yet and I'm waiting for some benchmarks and some owner reviews before I finally decide on anything.

 

Ok since I'm assuming most people in this thread have had a M17x, I really wanna know am I making the right choice?

When I though about getting a new laptop, I was focused on getting something that was both powerful and portable and I thought I'd get the 14. However the main setback is the 765m: I don't know if it'll last me throughout college. So I started looking at the 17 and I compared it to my Dell Inspiron 1525 and the thing TOWERS over it completely. I want to be able to use my computer on buses, planes, and other places and even now my laptop feels too cramped, imagine how a 17 would be.

However no smaller laptop comes with the performance that the 17 has. No 780m, or an HDMI In, which will save me from carrying around a 21.5" monitor when I leave college for holidays. The GPU in the 17 is comparable to top Desktop GPU's and will more than likely last me years, unlike the 765m, which will be more than enough now, but how about 2 years? 3 years?

When I imagined getting a new computer I imagined being as portable and compact as mine, but now all I can think about is getting a computer that won't be almost worthless by the end of college. Would I make the right choice with the 17 or should I satisfy my craving for portability/power with the 14?

 

even i had the same dilemma when my turn came to choose what to take for college
at that time ivy bridge and 6XXM(Nvidia) and 79XXM(Amd) were new releases

you can see the configuration in my sign

680m is still a beast today, will last for 2 years minimum

It finally boils down to these question
Are you willing to compromise on graphics settings on future games?(considering the new consoles on x86, they will be catching up on graphics very quickly, therefore developers will definitely 'step-it-up' on the pc)
how much are you going to spend?

765M will run most games fine
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 765M - NotebookCheck.net Tech

if you like all eye candy turned up
go for 780m without a thought

if you would like to keep it that way for coming time,heck, you have option for 780m sli in the 18"(but i am assuming you wont be going that much)

the hdmi in is a absolute bonus, i dont think any other laptop has that, correct me if i am wrong

and about portability
17 is definitely portable, given a suitable bag(a different thread available)
heck yes, if you are playing games on it, few lifts and weights a day wouldnt be bad!

and the very best of luck for your college, just dont spend too much time on it

 

My last gaming laptop was an ASUS G53JW. When I ordered it 3 years ago, I debated between it and the M15X. I couldn't justify to my wife the extra money spent on AW at the time so we compromised and I ended up with the Asus. Worst. Decision. Ever. The G53 turned out to be the lemon of the Asus models, with me having to send it in for RMA 5 times. When my G53 broke for the 6th time this last weekend, now out of warranty, my wife insisted I just go buy an Alienware

So after the new models were announced, I purchased a brand new AW17 on Tuesday night, check out the specs:

Monitor: 17.3" WLED FHD (1920 x 1080) Anti-Glare Display
Processor: Overclocked 4th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-4900MQ (8MB Cache, up to 4.0GHz w/ Turbo Boost)
Memory: 16GB Dual Channel DDR3L at 1600MHz
Hard Drive: 750GB SATA 3Gb/s (7,200 RPM) + 64GB mSATA SSD Caching
Video Card: NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 780M with 4GB GDDR5
Optical Drive: Slot-Loading Dual Layer Blu-ray Reader (BD-ROM, DVDRW, CD-RW)

Compared to my old i7 740 and 460m, this machine should be in the ballbark of 3 - 4x as fast!

Unfortunately my delivery date, like others who went for the 780gtx, is delayed until the 19th of July. So now we get to play the waiting game. I'm assuming mine will be one the first 17" out the door with the 780s, so when it arrives I'll be happy to post impressions / hands on pics of the system.

 

I agree with rjtnag.

It all comes down to what you want and what you need and most important of all, what do you expect from it.

14 is a good gaming laptop as far as gaming meets notebook standards...you can still move it around pretty easily.

17 is a fine desktop replacement and leaves little to be desired because it makes little compromise to powerful hardware and plenty of room to store it in.

18 is the ultimate desktop replacement and leaves nothing to desire.
It will do everything a powerful desktop can do, this is why the 18 is also the biggest and the heaviest, it was not designed to be portable but just to cram all the powerfull hardware in a laptop. The fact you can move in a bag is a big plus

So in short;
you want mobility? take the 14

You want some mobility but want to play high end games on high end settings?, take the 17.

You want a nuclear fusion center that alienates (see what i did there) you from the outside world and is a gamers/hardware geek wet dream? take the 18.

end of line.

 

I order my Alienware 17 yesterday and they said they will deliver it on July 22..
How about you guys? How long they will deliver yours also? Thank...

4th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-4700MQ (6MB Cache, up to 3.4GHz w/ Turbo Boost)
17.3" WLED FHD (1920 x 1080) Anti-Glare Display
16GB Dual Channel DDR3L at 1600MHz
750GB SATA 3Gb/s (7,200 RPM) + 64GB mSATA SSD Caching
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 780M with 4GB GDDR5..

You're right Bro we have to play the waiting games of ordering the new Alienware 17.. Lucky for you they said they will deliver it on July 19 mine is July 22.. I can't wait to have it on my hands and play it.. Bro can you do a video of unboxing? If ever you have you're Alienware 17.. Thanks

 

bloody hell, why they are STILL not giving us an option to upgrade the screen to IPS, good laptops, with screens that suck....

upgrading my R2 to 780m then,

dell screwed this again, how could they after so much feedback given about the screens options?

 

A top-end TN screen would have decent values avoid some of the strange issues with IPS screens. All that's left to see is whether the screen is top-end, but I assume that Alienware would not add IPS screens for the 14 and 18 and a mediocre TN for its best seller...

 

Heard the PLS screen on the 18 is pretty nice at least.

 

I think if they never did away with the M15x, I'd choose that. I think I'm too caught up on wanting a compact notebook to get the 17 unfortunately, just couldn't adjust to the size, and if the 14 didn't have that 1080p screen, I'd have to look at other manufacturers. But I guess 14 it is then.

 

how did you get the 780m for the new 17? i talked to 2 rep and they are unhelpful. Its more shocking you got it for that price, how please explain.

 

This is the $1999 model in the US if that's what you mean.

 

Im in U.S and everytime when i go customize its like this

edit
i see the problem now, 780m is not an option if you customize the base 1499 model, you have to select any other config model in order to have that option. Its a little error they made.

 

no they did it on purpose so you have to buy additional stuff to get the 780m.

 

if i was going to go with 780m do i need to upgrade to a better cpu than 4th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-4700MQ processor (6MB Cache, up to 3.4GHz)? What about SSD? BTW should i wait for gloss screen? Is it true with gloss if you look at the screen side ways the color wont change unlike the matte?

 

NO, If it's a TN Panel it doesn't matter glossy or matte. IPS is what get's you those viewing angles

 

is 780m with the 4gen intel core i7-4700mq a good combo or need a faster cpu?

 

Just ordered my 17.

i7 4800mq
780m
16gb DDR3L
went with the 120hz option for the monitor because I play CS:GO competitively
BluRay drive
1 yr Accidental warranty
Vindicator Briefcase

Super excited about this machine!!!

 

The 4700mq is more than powerful enough for the GTX 780M. A faster CPU will only give you slightly more FPS in some few games

 

I really on edge of ordering one............wish they had the true life gloss screen for the 17. Btw is the default wireless card for the 17 better than the killer wireless card AW use to offer?

 

I'm not sure but I think so. I know the new card supports 802.11ac.

 

arggggggggggggggg I already posted it the m18x section and still wondering if I should go for the 18 or 17

What would be the pros and cons of going with the m17x with the 1080p, and the 780m option VS the m18x naked with the 770sli ?

The m18x has a better screen than m17x ?

I run a 30'' dell 2560x1600 display if that changes anything ?

(It's my first ''big card'' laptop and I was going for the 7970m until the r5//r3 versions came out )

thx already

 

Well, 3 days ago I ordered this system :

Alienware 17.3" 120Hz WLED FHD (1920 x 1080) TrueLife Display w/3D Bundle
Overclocked 4th Gen i7-4900MQ (up to 4.0GHz w/ Turbo Boost)
NVIDIA 780M with 4GB GDDR5
750GB (7,200 RPM) + 64GB mSATA SSD
16GB RAM
Blu-ray Drive
Windows 8 Pro

I thought about switching it over to the 18 but I decided against it.
1) The size difference. (Extra Weight, Dimensions, etc). The pictures make it look quite a bit larger than the 17" which is too big for my liking.
2) I prefer the 120Hz screen. (I'll experiment with a 3D Game to determine if I'll use it)
3) The deal. The system above configured (I don't see the Overclocked option anymore) totaled $3,200 + Tax. I got my system at $2,550 + tax, Free TactX Mouse, Free Next Day Delivery (Called after order). In total that is over $600+ savings. If I had gotten an 18" with the Processor, Blu-ray Drive, etc it would have been quite a bit more (even if I got a similar discount).

It shows a Delivery Date of July 19th. Hopefully they start shipping out before.

 

The 120hz display on the 3D model is truelife

The killer is (IMO) more a case of marketing over function. It's nice to be able to prioritise multiple internet access programs and they claim that it works better when on-line gaming on a LAN with many others doing the same (but what if they all have killer cards?) but honestly it does not perform any better than the dell card I had before for me

 

I was in the same boat. since the price margin was pretty close to at least have the 18 with 770ms. But after coming from a desktop with a 120hz monitor I feel like it is a MUST for me. so I know the 780m will be strong enough for my needs.once you've used a 120hz monitor its hard to go back. plus I prefer my machine to be a little more portable. even though I've had both the m17x and m18x and the difference isn't all that bad.

 

Bought my 17 Tuesday midday... I called the rep and haggled a bit. Ended up dropping $2457... (Next day shipping, about 5% off and they discounted the price to cover the tax). Delivery date is 7/18… seriously more than a month! What’s the deal?

17.3" WLED FHD (1920 x 1080) Anti-Glare Display
i7-4800MQ (6MB Cache, up to 3.7GHz w/ Turbo Boost)
16GB Dual Channel DDR3L at 1600MHz
750GB SATA 3Gb/s (7,200 RPM) + 64GB mSATA SSD Caching
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 780M with 4GB GDDR5
Blu-Ray optical drive

I already have a Samsung Pro 256GB SSD to throw in for the OS drive. I’ll use the mSATA cached 750GB HDD for data storage.

 

yea it pretty much seems like marketing, but I do have increased range with the killer card. Heck, I can see a neighbor's router and it's almost 1000ft away.

 

Never really thought about range, that's a good enough reason. I do see 8 neighbour's networks and I live in a wide street with detached houses so it is getting some pretty distant signals.

 

So I never had a reference to the width of the 17 to see how I'd deal with the size, but I found my laptop tray that fits 17 inch laptops, and I am gonna LOVE the extra space!

 

Is there any good reason to buy the 17 over the 18 now? Unless you want 120hz or hate any amount of screen glare.

Edit: The differences in weight, size, and price between similar configurations of both is small, and it's unclear how much they differ in battery life. The 18 seems to have a much better screen.

 

Price, portability, weight, battery life.

 

Hi everyone. Need some help with a bluetooth issue. I bought this product: Bluetooth Headset, Jabra EXTREME2. It states it's Bluetooth 3.0 compliant. I have a m17xR3 with Bluetooth and it's supposed to be 3.0. Should I not be able to connect this to my laptop? I have windows search for it and it never sees it. Shout this headset not work with my computer?

In my Device manager I show 2 items under Bluetooth Radios. 1: Dell Wireless 375 Bluetooth Module. 2: Microsoft Bluetooth Enumerator. The BT375 is updated to driver version 6.5.1.1201.

I've tried everything to get it working. Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks,
Israel

 

truthfully if the 17 didn't offer the 120hz screen I may have gone with the 18. the 18 is definitely a noticeably bigger machine. if you're planning on using a machine primarily as a desktop replacement and only plan on little traveling then the 18 would be fine as long as you get a decent bag or backpack for it. the 17 is definitely more "conveniently" portable and in my opinion a 120hz screen is much better depending on the games that you play. I would love to have the power of 2 780ms but 1 is enough and for competitive fps games like counter-strike, a 120hz display serves a better purpose than a PLS display. it really all comes down to how much GPU power do you want. does 120hz matter at all to you. and does the little extra portability benefit you.

 

Would it be in bad taste to buy a Razer keyboard and mouse with this

 

Guys.
Does it make any sense to buy an R4 now? ( 680 , 16gb some ssd's 1080?

 

Yeah if you can FIND a 1080p display

 

m18x used to be the better built machine, now though it seems like all three systems are pretty similar so we shall have to wait and see the differences. Personally I like the m18 though since I can get it with 770m SLI and it would be more powerful/cheaper than a 780m m17. We shall see though, both ain't exactly cheap.

 

what does 120hz exactly does ? And for a casual gamer who use mainly his laptop for work, would the ''better'' m18x screen be a better option over the m17x 120hz screen?

and again, 770m sli or 780m ?

 

a 120hz screen means the screen can display 120 frames per second. given that your GPU can achieve 120 frames. one MAJOR advantage to a 120hz screen is that since the monitor is refreshing itself twice as fast as a regular 60hz monitor, screen tearing becomes almost non existent. if you play first person shooters and can achieve 120 frames per second, the experience is unmatchable because the fluidity of motion is amazing. once you see a game at 120 frames per second, there's no going back. BUT, extremely demanding games that can't stay above 60fps won't make much difference on a 120hz. but the fact that screen tearing becomes almost non exsistent is a major reason for me to get the 17. if all you use your computer for is work and casual gaming. a regular 60hz monitor will be more than enough for your needs. 120hz monitors are for hardcore gamers/fps gamers and people who want 3d gaming to be an option. I don't like 3d but since I play first person shooters competitvely, the fluidity of motion is what I'm all about. hope this answers your question

 

Just to add to this about the 120hz model. The intel GPU is disabled due to boot conflict issues, so battery life is around 40%-50% less. 2.5+h on mine, 5+h on optimus machines. Just in case this is also important to you

And I love the 3D - it's come a long way since I first tried it a few years ago, but as the earlier poster, it's not for on-line gamers.

 

Is there other gaming laptop out there with hdmi input? Btw why do I see a lot of people complaining about their AW hdmi input not working correctly? Is this a common issue? Lol sorry for all the question but one more is sli on the 18 upgradable and are sli on notebooks stable or reliable?

 

I don't recall seeing any hdmi input issues, or maybe one or two but I don't think it's used by that many people. HDMI output has had it's challenges in the past but usually driver related and fixable.

Not aware of anyone else offering this feature - kinda surprised dell did not drop it in their charge to better margins but it does require some clever circuitry so once it's on the MB why not make it a USP?

Sli on the earlier 18x models is upgradable so I would expect the new one to be as well. Usually the only issue is getting drivers to install if you are using a new card that is not already offered by dell.