Thinking about buying an M17X R3, help!

Hey everyone,

It is about that time that I need a new laptop. I'm not in a huge rush to buy one, but I will definitely need to buy one no later than the month of August. I am pretty sure the M17X is the laptop I am going to purchase. I configured it at around $2200. I have a few questions....

1. Will there be any new CPUs or GPUs coming out by August? If not then it doesn't matter if I wait or not.

2. How can I get the best deal here? I read the deal thread. I will call via phone. On a $2200 laptop, how much can I expect getting discounted? If I can get a few hundred off I will definitely get it.

I've heard of the military discounts. My grandfather was in the war, and is still alive today. Could he be able to get the discount or is it only available to those currently enrolled in the armed forces?

Otherwise please give me some advice here.

Thanks everybody.

 

I would recommend (if you have not done so already) that you start off by only taking the standard RAM and hard drive. Dell charges too much for the upgrade on those items. You can upgrade those yourself. Mine cost about what you have quoted, but I have the 3 year advanced warranty included. Unfortunately, I did not haggle, but I got a great price through the employee purchase program.

 

read this it will help...get you a good price!
http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware/456885-aw-dell-ordering-advice-how-save.html

 

1, Probably no new cpu, but maybe a new gpu may come (ati 7000 series) http://www.techpowerup.com/137413/AMD-Mobility-Radeon-HD-7000-Series-Reality-by-Q4-2011.html

2, You could save more $$ with cupons. » Dell Coupons & Dell Computer Coupon Code Numbers & Discount Laptop Promo «

 

Currently, the $50 coupon is the largest discount available.

Yes, thanks. I read that and realized that I will need to haggle by phone.

Yes, I am keeping 4GB of RAM, then I will sell those on eBay and spend $85 on some 8GB kit. But, I will get a 750GB 7200rpm from Alienware though.

And how did you get a good price through the employee purchase program?

Thanks again everybody.

 

To get an employee discount the company you work for has to have a deal with Dell. It's usually 7% off the price.

 

I may be wrong about this, but I think it's usually advised to keep the stock ram that you received in case you need to send it back for warranty purposes.

 

Could be, I haven't heard of this though.

I see. I heard people getting employee discounts without being an employee of a company that has ties with dell?

Also any word on the military discount?

Thanks

 

Not exactly sure what you're specifically asking for here, but I'll take a guess. Currently you can purchase the m17x through AAFES for 22% off, no taxes, and free shipping. My roommate's father is currently active in the air force, and he was eligible to purchase through AAFES exchange.

 

Is this only for those currently in the forces?

 

According to the AAFES website, retirees and their dependents are eligible.The last 4 digits of your SSN are required to check military status when creating an account. Might give it a shot and see if it works.

 

Definately keep the stock ram incase it needs to be returned. You wont get much for it anyway.

Why upgrade the HDD from Dell? You can do better on your own! Truth be told, I would have upgraded my RAM and HDD from Dell if they were only a tiny bit more, just to avoid the hassle. But....they are freakin crazy with their upgrade prices. Only the processor upgrade made sense to me.

No disrespect intended....just sayin.

 

If you call and haggle, you'll get a better price.

I got $250 off my M15x 2 months ago, after first being told "$50 is all I can do" and then "$100 is all I can do".

 

Then how am I going to reinstall all the progs and Windows on the new hard drive? They include a reinstall CD? (Toshiba didn't)

Hmm that is pretty good. $2269 can become $2000 maybe?

Yeah I will check and let you guys know.

 

When I ordered I told the sales rep I had about $1800 saved up, but I had been watching this machine (i ordered the 1 day they had it on sale back 4/7?) and wanted to see if she could help me, was around $2250? w/o warranty on the web.
Then outlined the machine I was looking for (check my sig).
She came in around $1850 for about the same config. (base ram (+2 free) and base hdd),
should have pressed it to get her lower... but i was happy at that point.
Then I haggled the Warranty on, and got $75 off a $400 warranty.

It feels awkward haggling... but be kind and mention you were thinking about going with a competitor (there are a few) and they will get you a decent quote.

I was pretty happy.... Now I am waiting to see what they will do if the m18x is order-able before mine ships...

 

Hmm I see. So it was arround $2250 and you got it for $1850?

My config is around $2250. I am also a college student and can probably get the employee discount as well.

 

I checked about a month ago for student EPP, and it was at 2%.

 

I am pretty sure you can get it through AAFES. You'll probably need to make an account in your grandfather's name, since I doubt he's ever used the site

 

@Dude55

I bought my m15x through AAFES and saved like $1000 not even playing bro.

AAFES is probably the best place to buy an alienware because its the cheapest i've seen firsthand.

From my understand for AAFES eligibility you have to serve or prior serve. If you parents were in the military then your eligible because your their dependent. So I dont think your grandfather would count. I could be wrong though, Im sure someone here has a better answer. Just my lil bit of help

Or you can use someone's else account, if you tell me what specs you want I can customize one for you through AAFES and I'll see how much it'll cost see how much you'll save.

Yeah what Tapakidney said, you can try to use his

 

Yeah it is 2%.

I will try, I'll ask for his SSN and see what happens. Thanks

I sent you my config. Thanks

 

@Dude55

With the configs you sent me bro, grand total through AAFES is $1,769.82 from your approx $2200. So that's about a $430 discount, not bad bro

The price it is in AAFES, it's final you cannot call AAFES and try to make a deal with them unfortunately I tried

Calling Dell/Alienware wont help either because it's too much of a discount better to buy through AAFES.

I hope this helps bro, I'm just giving you a general idea on what you can potentially save, going through AAFES

 

Thanks a lot that price is looking pretty good. Plus tax right?

I will have to see if my grandfather is eligible and if not look for alternatives.

 

Update:

1 Alienware M17x Soft Touch Nebula Red $2,148.35 $2,148.35
1 Intel Core i7 2720QM 2.2GHz (3.3GHz Turbo Mode, 6MB Cache)
1 MOD,DIMM,4GB,1333MHZ,DDR3,2X2G
1 Alienware M17x 240W A/C Adapter
1 17.3-inch WideFHD1920 x 1080 60Hz WLED
1 2GB GDDR5 AMD Radeon HD 6970M
1 320GB 7,200RPM SATA-II HDD
1 Custom Nameplate
1 Personalized Nameplate Trigger
1 AlienFX Color, Quasar Blue
1 Alienware Command Center Software, M17X
1 Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English
1 DataSafe Local BackUp
1 Vista PC Restore
1 DELL-DOWNLOAD-FLAG
1 Adobe Acrobat Reader 9.0 Multi-Language
1 Slot-Loading Dual Layer Blu-ray Reader (BR-ROM, DVD+-RW, CD-RW)
1 Roxio Creator Starter,No Media
1 Power DVD 9.6, 3D
1 Internal High-Definition 5.1 Surround Sound Audio
1 MOD,CRD,NTWK,6300,ANW
1 Automatic Updates: On
1 Dell Hardware Limited Warranty, Initial Year
1 Dell Limited Hardware Warranty Plus In-Home Service After Remote Diagnosis, Initial Year
1 Accidental Damage Service, 1 Year
1 No Warranty, Year 2 and 3
1 Soft Contracts Service Hardware Agreement for Alienware
1 Soft Contracts Consumer Accidental Damage Agreement for Alienware
1 Warranty Support, Initial Year
421-1360 1 Steam and Portal Factory Installed
330-5090 1 Thank You for Purchasing AlienWare
462-3235 1 Thank you for choosing Dell
* -DISCOUNT $42.88
* -DISCOUNT/COUPON APPL

That is their quote. Tax makes it $2,278.31.

Not good enough of a deal for me..I want to get this config for at the most, $2000.

They said they held a signature event 2-3 weeks ago which is why everyone got some good discounts and that they happen like every 3 months?

Is this true? I haggled my best :/

 

Probably shouldn't mention getting someone else to buy it for you as it's illegal.

 

Edited

 

@Dude55

No bro tax free, what I loved about being in the military everything on base and online shopping through AAFES is TAX free

Yeah go check to see if your grandfather is eligible first

About someone doing it for you man, that's a very very weary road to travel bro. *PM me on that regard*

 

That is a fairly decent price, but it could be lower. And yes, the Signature Event probably could help in getting the price even lower than that.

When I purchased mine (during the Signature Event), my rep gave me basically the same configuration as yours + 2 year accidental + 8gb RAM for $2205 after tax/NBD shipping. So I'm pretty sure if you wait until the next sale on the M17x, you can knock another 5-10% off the price that you were quoted.

 

Hmm yeah that would be good. $2300 would go down to like $2100 I guess.

What about haggling them after the order and wanting to cancel? Any more discounts from there?

Also, any ideas when the next one might be? I need to get a laptop within 4 months, so no huge rush. But I would prefer to get it soon.

Thanks a lot everybody

 

@Dude55

You said your a college student right?

So your going to be lugging around a m17x campus?

if you have no problem doing that then more power to you bro, but my m15x I dont lug around I use it as my desktop replacement, while I use my m11x on campus if I need to bring my comp to school.

 

I wouldn't count on getting a sizable discount after finalizing the order, because many reps won't hesitate to cancel your order on the spot, without offering you anything. However, you might get lucky and get offered a $100 discount at most for you to keep the laptop.

Though, I would say most of your haggling power comes into play when you're actually making the purchase. The rep that's helping you make the initial purchase of the laptop is the one who is earning commission on the sale, so it's in their best interest to offer you a good price.

If you can't get a good price at first, I would keep trying different reps, and sooner or later you'll find one who is easy to work with. I had to get around 3 quotes before stumbling on my final config/price.

 

Yeah that is a good idea. I know it is going to be 10lbs but my college campus is not huge. In addition the M17X offers up to 5 hours of battery life so that was the deciding point. If it was only 2 or even 3 I don't think I would be considering it.

In addition though, I could get a cheap netbook for $200 if weight becomes a problem but my x305 weighs like 9lbs and I don't have a huge issue with it so it should cool.

 

I see. The reps don't see you having received other quotes?

I will wait for the signature event if I can't get the military discount. I hope it will be here soon and include the M17x.

 

@Dude55

Yeah then your good bro, whatever floats your boat.

But yeah the m17x is a beat mode of a system, gratz either way.

Its true though when you buy an Alienware you pay for it's name

They are good systems, with the right tweaking.

When your in school people are going to be looking at ya asking "Is that an Alienware?" It's a nice feeling, feeling more superior MUAHAHAHAHAHAH JK

 

Yeah that is one of the benefits of having a system like that

Gonna have to keep my hands extra sticky too, many people want nice stuff

 

When reps give you quotes, they either link it to your email account or phone number, so there's a possibility of them seeing other quotes that you've gotten. But even if they do, it's good because you can ask if they can beat the last quote you've got.

Just remember to mention that you're "planning on buying a laptop today" and that you'll buy it from them if they give you a "good price within your budget of X amount". This way, it makes each rep think that you're legitimately going to buy it from them, and you're not going to go off and call 100 other reps in the next week.

It's all about bargaining power

 

That is definitely true. If I can't get the military discount though, should I wait for the next signature event?

 

It all depends on your budget and luck really.

You might call in tomorrow and have a rep offer you a spectacular discount that you completely weren't expecting. And in another case, you could call in when they're offering Signature discounts, and not get as good of a discount than if you were to call in tomorrow. It's all down to the rep you get basically. You can try asking if they could pricematch the discounts that were available during the Signature Events 2 weeks ago, and go from there.

But, I would say you'll generally have a better chance of getting a bigger discount during a sales event. Though, no guarantees, as haggling is based on luck anyways.

 

Btw, I gave you rep along with 3 other posters in this thread. I appreciate the help.

I will try calling tomorrow and see what happens. I will use a different phone number tomorrow along with email. I will see if they can match the sig event and will tell them if so I will buy it on the spot.

Any other advice you can offer?

I called EPP sales, told them my budget of $2000, just gave them my config, got a 2% discount plus an extra 2%, $48 off or something, then another $50 off coupon and free shipping. Came down to like $2275 and she wouldn't go any lower. So I'll try to get to $2150-$2200, then call and cancel in a few days and see if I can shave off $100.

 

Thanks, and no prob =)

Definitely read through this link that was provided earlier:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware/456885-aw-dell-ordering-advice-how-save.html

I used all of those tricks and it seemed to help a ton. Basically just throw everything you've got at the reps, and sooner or later, one will cave into your bargaining skillz

One thing that worked for me, personally, was finding a nice rep that is already offering you a decent discount, and work with him/her all the way up to the point of purchase, then say that you'll call them back because you have to think about it. They will more than likely call you back within 2-3 hours asking if you're ready to purchase, and that's when you tell them that "It's a good offer and all, but it's still over my budget by X amount... So I think I'm going to go with an Asus (for example) instead since I'm buying a laptop today. However, if the M17x were lower by X amount, I will definitely make the purchase with you right now."

More than likely, the rep will tell you to give him/her a few minutes to see if there are any better deals, and hopefully they will come back with a final offer that's cheaper.

 

Dude,
Thanks for the Rep. Back at you!
As for reinstalling the OS as you had asked, there are quite a few threads in this forum on re-installing. Check them out, as they are very detailed and step by step. Much better than anything I can type here

 

Yeah that sounds good. I can try again tomorrow and then ask for the quote, say I will call back in 2-3 hours. Call back in 4 or so hours if they haven't already called and say that someone from "This place" has price matched and offered me something better so I am afraid I cannot take it unless it goes down a few hundred dollars.

Then a few days later call and ask for the return label as I got a better deal and can't go with this one unless its lower....

I think that sounds good.

Thanks again, I will keep this thread updated so be on the lookout people.

 

I would say hold out for a M18x. I think it was rumored that they would be offering them sometime soon or in the next few weeks? I love my M17x R2 and wouldn't go near a M17x R3 with the change from aluminum to plastic and that soft touch stuff that tends to peel. Besides, Dual 5870s > Single 6970

 

No!!! It's plastic and not aluminum?

What is the battery life on that M17x R2 on average? (Not lowest everything..)

Also the M18X is too big, too costly, and the battery life is probably horrible.

 

...The R2 has a battery life? I swear I think mine would go in about 10 minutes if I unplugged it. Says 40 minutes or maybe an hour when you unplug it, but honestly I give it 10 minutes.

And yeah, the R3 is made out of plastic and soft touch stuff that apparently peels like crazy.

 

Damn this is really a turn off that could prevent me from buying it.

Anybody can confirm what the material is and how it feels/responds? Alienware claims it is magnesium coated in rubber. I need something that can hold up. The R2 just won't cut it with battery life. I need 3 hours at least.




























:cry:

 

Magnesium coated in rubber would probably have the same problem, wouldn't it? Metal or smooth plastic covered in stuff would probably peel in the same annoying destructive way.

 

It may be but I'd think it would be a more durable build with less creaking and possibilities of cracks or chipping.

I am assuming this rubber is similar to an iPad flip case. However in terms of peeling I don't think anybody would suffer from that yet so I couldn't get a proper answer. Hopefully more owners can add to this thread.

 

People have already posted about it elsewhere, that's why I brought it up. Anyway yeah, I hear its plastic with the soft touch on the outside. Wouldn't go near one. Rather have an R2, at least you can properly bludgeon someone to death with an R2 without breaking it to pieces...Well maybe it would still break, BUT LESS!

 

It goes against Alienware's claims of magnesium. But I'll look around for some posts on it.

Yeah I wish the R3 would have the R2s build quality, it would be perfect. I don't know what Alienware was thinking..

 

The M17x R3 is made of a strong magnesium shell with a soft touch coating to prevent fingerprints, a few people have had issues with the coating coming off but not many and if in the even it did your covered under warranty, but from other reviews between the R2 and R3 the R3 is just as strong as the R2 while being lighter and having a nice soft touch finish(which is more opinion on if you like anodized or soft touch more)


keep in mind that the m17x r3 is more of a predesseor to the m15x though, it is a single card solution machine and is un-capable of having a second GPU installed, if you are a fan of SLI/Xfire then I would recommend waiting for the M18x to arrive in a couple weeks.