M11x vs ??? HELP! BUYING IN 2 DAYS!

So I've narrowed down my results to:

M11x
i7 640UM
4GB DDR3
1GB GeForce
320GB HDD 7200RPM

or

HP DV7TQE
i7 2630QM
8GB DDR3
1GB RADEON HD 6570
640GB HDD 7200RPM
and of course a bigger screen

Which is better? I like the look of the Alienware M11x too damn much, even if it is an 11"!! But it seems I can get a better laptop for the same price! T_T

Mainly, what's the difference is processors?? i7 640UM v i7 2630QM?

Thank you!!

PS I can always upgrade the Alienware's memory and hdd. Processor / GPU is my concern.

 

HP DV7TQE is more powerful.
While I'm not completely sure about the GPU(though I bet it's more powerful) the HP has a quad core 2.0 ghz processor, versus the dual core 1.2 ghz processor of the m11x.

Though this begs the question:
What are you expecting from your new laptop?
Do you want just performance? Do you want portability/battery life? etc.

While the HP is more powerful, the M11x is way more portable and has good battery life. (Which is important for me as I am in college)

 

the HP has: a better processor, marginally better GPU, 8GB of RAM instead of 4GB, a larger hard drive, and probably a better screen (just guessing on that one)...however, HP laptops do not have the best reliability, for whatever reason...

 

Well, I would like to play games on the M11x, such as Crysis, Black Ops... but other than that I'd be using it for poker and photoshop, flash, etc.

Let me just put it this way, what would you go for? M11x or HP?

The M11x is too damn sexy!

 

The 2630 has been recalled by Intel. So... unless they have them in store you probably wont be getting one of those in the next week or so.

It's really up to you. Portable mid game or heavier full gamer. The 6570 is not a high end gamer card. Then again neither is the 335m GT. Have you looked at any of the Dell xps14 series?

Good Luck,

StevenX

 

thanks bro.
actually, i just tried to add it to the online cart and it said its no longer available. i guess thats must be why!

 

The new SB series are nice especially for battery life compared to the I series. Again it's up to you. I have purchased two m11s for myself and wife when they first came out. Really a neat machine. It's one of those times where I think they may refresh the m11 soon (march or april) but the older ones are a great price right now. So... Price vs Patience tough call. Good luck sir. Again the Dell xps 14 is different. One of the heavy benchmarkers that hangs out in the m15x forums has one. Name is Dane. You may want to PM and ask him about his and performance.

Best Wishes, StevenX

 

OK, one more to compare.

DELL XPS15
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English
Microsoft® Office Starter: reduced-functionality Word & Excel w/ ads. No PowerPoint or Outlook
1 Year Basic Service Plan
6GB Shared Dual Channel DDR3 Memory
Silver Anodized Aluminum 15.6" HD (720p) WLED Display with 2.0 MP webcam
Personalize
DataSafe 2.0 Online Backup 2GB for 1 year
My Accessories
Also Includes
XPS 15
Intel® Core™ i7-740QM (1.73GHz, 8 threads, turbo boost up to 2.93GHz, 6M cache)
NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 435M 2GB graphics
640GB 7200 RPM SATA Hard Drive
McAfee SecurityCenter , 24-Months
Integrated 10/100/1000 Network Card
Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 9.0
8X Tray Load CD/DVD Burner (Dual Layer DVD+/-R Drive)
Intel® Centrino® Wireless-N 1000
92 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
Standard Keyboard - English
No Mobile Broadband Selected
JBL 2.1 Speakers with Waves Maxx Audio 3

vs

Alienware M11x, Soft Touch Stealth Black P2STBHN [224-8847]
Operating System Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium (64-bit) AW7HP6E [420-6436][420-9691][421-0092][421-1400]
Processor Intel® Core™ i7 640UM (4M Cache, 1.2 GHZ with 2.266 GHz Max Turbo Frequency) - Overclockable I7640UM [313-9774]
Memory 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 800MHz 4GB [317-4706]
Power Adapters Alienware M11x 90W A/C Adapter 90W [330-9945]
LCD 11.6-inch WideHD 1366x768 (720p) WLED NWANBLK [320-1467]
Video Card 1GB NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 335M 1GBNIV [320-9857]
Hard Drive 320GB SATAII 7,200RPM 320GB72 [342-1324]
Nameplate Personalized Nameplate (praguepokerr) NPLATE [330-6106][330-9552]
AlienFX Mars Red RED [313-8791][421-3095]
Integrated NIC Integrated 10/100 Network Interface Card NIC [313-9856]
Adobe Reader Adobe Acrobat Reader ADOBER [410-1883]
Sound Internal High-Definition Surround Sound Audio (5.1) IS [313-9958]
Wireless Alienware M11x a/b/g/n 2x2 MIMO Wireless MIMO [430-3796]
Automatic Updates Automatic Updates: On AUTOON [330-6348]
Webcam 1.3MP Web Cam CAM [330-8995]
Security Software McAfee SecurityCenter, 30-Day Trial MCPT30D [410-9452]
Hardware Services 1 Year Basic Service Plan, DMLP S1OS [421-1724][922-2597][929-5570][950-3337][950-9797][994-3730]
Pre-Installed Games Steam and Portal™ Factory Installed STEAM [421-1360]
OS Customization AlienGUIse Theme Manager with Breed Theme AWGUISE [421-2611]
OS Customization Alienhead Chrome Red WAL6 [421-1586][421-1596]
WWAN No Internal WWAN Antenna Installed NOWAN [430-3773]
Bluetooth Bluetooth Module, 2.1+ Enhanced Data Rate

 

That depends on what you want, the cpu in the XPS is more powerful, but the m11x is more portable. Video cards are about even.

 

The video cards are even? I'm noob sorry for the question, but the XPS15 is 2GB GeForce and the M11x is 1GB.

 

That has little effect. Once you hit 1GB video memory it doesn't matter beyond unless you are playing at 2560x1600 resolution. The 1GB i actually think is faster.

 

Video mem is for textures normally. 1 gb is plenty but 2 is fine as well. The xps is going to be much more powerful. It will also weigh more and be larger. To me the m11x is a great machine. It was just too hard on my eyes so I had to get something bigger. I get headaches a lot and it was causing me even more.

It's up to you but either way your getting a good machine. The m15x is available at a good price as well.. The i7 with a 5850 flies. I promise!

StevenX

 

I always believed the "1.5GB" and "2GB" video cards to be a marketing ploy. I've seen countless victims on various boards get a laptop with 1.5GB video card over a BETTER laptop with a 1GB video card just because we are taught that bigger is better.

Alot of people believe that a 1.5GB video card is a 50% increase over a 1GB video card.

It is definitely not the case for video cards 1GB can handle it all.

 

I don't get the point of this thread.
I can clearly see that you are WAY more interested in M11x than the other option.
Just follow your own needs and desires because you may regret if you follow others' perspectives that goes against your own.

 

i just went and bought it this morning and i got a 10% discount too HA!

 

You FINALLY purchased it.

 

I mean to say, is that a real big difference in performace?

 

The video memory no. The only difference would be seen in like starcraft 2 and bad company 2. CPU dependant games.

 

yep....and no buyer's remorse which is unusual for me when buying expensive items LOL

 

It's true that I would love to get the M11x because of it's style, portability and battery life. So, since the 1gb gpu is pretty much = 2gb gpu, if I upgrade the ram to 8gigs, will I see much of a difference in gaming when it comes to Black Ops Multiplayer and Crysis? What would I notice in the i7 740QM vs the i7 640 UM? I guess knowing that will ultimately make up my mind...

 

you can always check out people's videos oh games running on the m11x on youtube!

 

cool, just checked. saw a few that looked GREAT with the same or slightly diff specs then the ones ive selected.

how about u guys? how is black ops multiplayer on it? or games like gta4?

 

Ram:
4GB = Video Games
6GB = Music Production
8GB = Maya/3D Software/Heavy Adobe User

4GB and 8GB will have the same effect in games.

Between the i5 and i7 there isn't a real warranted difference in the gaming department unless you're using heavy media applications such as photoshop and render movies.

As for the i7's sub-categories, the difference in performance is so minimal I doubt you would notice it.

If you're upgrading the ram, buy some from newegg. Adding an additional 2GB is about 25-30$. Also, you can grab a 500GB hybrid drive for 100$ and install it yourself.

The R1's are only 549$ just FYI. The R2's are almost double that. R1 is a better value if you're budgeting

Edit: I guess they removed the 499$ student price today. It was 499$ just a few hours ago when I checked QQ

 

The answer to your question is rather simple. If you won't be moving the computer beyond the next room, get the XPS. If you have to leave the house with it, get the m11x.

 

Just buy the M11x. It is truly the best of both worlds.

 

It's a matter of portability/battery versus performance.
If performance is more important, get the Dell XPS
If portability/battery is more important, get the M11x.

I personally was looking for balance of portability, power, and battery when I was buying my new laptop. I'm glad I found the M11x.

 

I'm currently on my Sager that is 17". At the time, 2.5 years ago, I didn't think I would care about the size and just wanted the best performance for the money that I had. Well I'm looking at the M11x for one main reason. My Sager is to freakin huge. It is a serious burden to take it to class. When I'm at the airport the laptop bag I have hurts my shoulder because of it's immense weight. The battery is literally an hour doing almost nothing but internet browsing and maybe music through earbuds and brightness turned all the way down.

I'm in college and the M11x just makes more sense. I have decided to get the R1 and build a cheap rig that can play most games on high. Don't need this Sager anymore...it has run games well though.

 

There's a metric ton of conjecture and opinion dressed as fact in this thread. I would strongly urge the op to do a bit of independent research (anand is a geat place), if hardware performance is a major concern.

My own opinion is the m11x is a fine machine when small form factor, medium gaming, medium to long battery life and better then average durability are your primary concerns. Beyond these attributes the majority of "entertainment" oriented laptops are a better value dollar for dollar.

For a similar form factor with higher performance and a similar price tag see the acer 3820tg. I haven't seen one in person, but it seems tohave its fans on the acer boards.

For my buck, the m11x makes for an attractive proposition.