The Prophet of Doom's M17x R3 Review

I have been using the M17x R3 for about a month now and thought I would post my experience and options about the R3. I am an average PC user, so this review will be as such. I will not do any benchmarking as it has already been done by other members.

I ordered my laptop on April 11th, 2011 and I recieved it on April 26th, 2011. My original ETA was supposed to be May 13th, 2011. I purchased the laptop when Dell was having their signature event and with haggling and discounts was able to save about $700. I definitely believe ordering by telephone is the only way to go. My experience with my rep was a good one and if any Canadian's would like my rep's contact info here it is: PM ME
Here is the list of my M17x R3's configuration:

Alienware M17x R3

Soft-Touch Stealth Black
AlienFX Colour: Mars Red
Intel Core i7 2720QM
8GB Dual Channel DDR3 1333MHz 4DIM RAM
Blu-ray Reader,DVD+-RW,CD-RW
Internal HD 5.1 Surround Sound Audio
17.3-inch WideFHD 1920 x 1080 60Hz WLED
2GB GDDR5 AMD Radeon HD 6970M
750GB 7,200RPM HDD
Windows 7 Home Premium 64
Advanced 3 Year Warranty With Accidental Damage
Mobile Edge Alienware Orion Backpack

Subtotal: $2,727.96
Shipping and Handling: $0.00
Environmental Disposal Fee: $2.75
GST/HST: $354.64
Total: $3,082.60


Soft Touch Stealth Black- I am happy with my choice to go with the stealth black. It looks really good and it can go well with any of the AlienFX colours. I usually stick with everything red except blue alienhead power button and white media controls. I am slightly concerned about the finish rubbing off but I am extremely careful and if Zagg ever comes out with an InvisibleShield for the R3 I will purchase it. I do not think the soft-touch finish should discourage a person from buying the R3 and it has a nice feel to it.

Build Quality- I am very happy with the build quality of the M17x R3. I do not have any scratches and nothing appears to be misaligned. I do not have any dead pixels and there is no LED backlight bleeding like I have seen in some R2s. Regular typing I do not notice any flexing of the keyboard. There is only slight keyboard flex if I used excessive force while typing. There is noticeable flex in the media control buttons but it does not really bother me. I don't have any buttons that squeak or creak. It is a heavy laptop but not to the point where I would hate to transport it. I am also glad I went with the backpack over the messenger bag because of the weight making it easier to carry.

Processor- I am pleased I went with the Intel Core i7 2720QM. I mostly use this laptop for gaming and I have not experience any slow downs. I think the upgrade of the processor was worth the extra money for the extra boost in performance.

RAM- I did go with 8GB Dual Channel DDR3 1333MHz 4DIM RAM but only because it was part of the signature deal. With the deal the upgrade to 8GB was escentually free. If I would have had to pay extra I would have gone with the stock 4GB and upgraded to 8GB Kingston HyperX RAM.

Sound- The sound of my M17x R3 is excellent. I have read some people having issues with vibration and other issues and I do not have any of those problems. They are the best speakers in a laptop I have experienced. They obviously can not compete with highend desktop/home theatre speakers but for general use they are very good.

Screen- I went with the 60hz 1080p screen and I could not be happier. I have not seen the RGB screen of the R2 so I can not compare the two however the picture quality is excellent. I have played a few Blu-ray movies and they look great. I know some people complained about the glossy screen but I usually do not have any issues and if it becomes hard to see I just reposition to laptop away from whatever light it is reflecting. I think the glossy screen makes the colours look more vivid. I also hook up my laptop to my LCD HDTV using HDMI in my bedroom and use it as a second screen which I really enjoy. I play tv shows or movies on the TV while using the laptop screen for other tasks. I would eventually like to get the wireless HD card and reciever but for now wired works fine.

Blu-ray Drive- I am pleased with the Blu-ray drive especially because it is a slot loaded drive. When I first started looking to purchase a laptop I really did not want a tray loaded drive because I am sure I would break it eventually. Blu-ray movies look great on the 1080p screen.

Video Card- With The advice from another member on this board I was able to get the 6970M which is still unavailable on the Canadian website. It is a fantastic video card and it can handle any game I can through at it and run it on high-max setting without any frame rate issues. I always run my games at 1080p and they look great. There are two reasons why I went with the 6970M over the 460M + 3D 120Hz screen. The main reason is that I can not see 3D. The second reason I wanted the extra performance. Even if I could see 3D I think I would still have chosen the 6970M over the 460M + 3D.

Games played on the R3:

Crysis + Crysis Warhead
Crysis 2
Portal
Portal 2
Battlefield: Bad Company 2
Mass Effect
Mass Effect 2
Total War Shogun 2
Splinter Cell: Conviction
Back to the Future

I have not had any issues with running any of these games. I have not experenced any crashes or blue screening either. I am planning on buying Battlefield 3 and Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.

Harddrive- The 750GB HDD was part of the signature event but I would have upgraded to it anyways. I will eventually purchase an SSD for the laptop once the prices start to go done. Once I get the SSD I will have the operating system, games and other programs on the SSD and have all my media on the 750GB HDD. For now the regular HDD works fine.

I would recommend this laptop to any of my friends that are looking for a gaming laptop. One thing people have to consider reading any forums is that most people post on a forum to complain about an issue or try and find solution to an issue most people who are happy with their product do not bother taking the time to posting. As of right now my laptop has not had any issues regarding hardware or software. Hope this review helps for anyone that is on the fence about buy the M17x R3. If anyone has any questions or suggestions let me know.

Please note I will not run any benchmarks test.

Edit:

I was going to add a complaint about the m17x R3 about the volume control causing games to crash to the desktop but there is a fix by downloading the OSD application at support.dell.com

 

Thanks for sharing your review! Just a heads-up, removed your rep's contact info. Please no posting of names, email addresses and phone#s. Thanks.

 

Good review!! Can't complain about mine either..other than it is a replacement..haha.

btw...I can't wait for Battlefield 3 and Skyrim either...they are gonna be sick!!

 

This is hilarious LOLZZZZZ

 

Thanks a lot for your review, i just buy a m17xr3 fully loaded with the 6970 and im dying waiting for it to be shipped!

with all the horror stories ive heard i am in fear that my system of 3500$ will not be perfect but... you post made my day loll

it's true that the person who encounter 0 problem don't post

sorry for my english

 

Ya no problem. I am very happy with my purchase. I was never planning on writing a review but I thought it might help seeing as a lot of post are negative because of on issue or another. Just remember Dell sells a ton of these laptops and some of them are going to have problems but most won't.

 

Dang, since most of you are spending wayyy more than what I did, I guess I shouldn't complain (as much )

 

Yea that's how much I spent, maxed out everything for my m17x R3 and 4 year advance warranty and when I got mine it was nonfunctional out of the box. Got my replacement last week and it has the wrong processed. Dells tech support finally works so they placed my order exchange tonite for the right processor to be put in. I'll be glad when its all over and complete.
dell needs to do some restructuring though...big time!

 

Yeah i have no complaints about anything either and have been loving my system .

I got a good deal which always helps with how much i enjoy something for some odd reason .

My system has exhibited none of the issues i have seen others plagued with but after having owned so many different machines there always a few bad apples (no pun)..

6970m is a beast

Nice review btw .

 

Thanks just thought I would throw in my two cents