AW/DELL Ordering Advice - How to save $$$

I'd drop the screen (a 560M won't be able to do much with it), but keep everything else. Maybe see if you can change the hard drive to a single 750GB and buy an SSD as a boot drive yourself?

 

1470$ Candian (including tax) for this?? *please quick reply* ordering through online chat

PROCESSOR Intel® Core™ i7 2670QM processor (2.2GHz,3.1GHz,w/Turbo Boost, 6MB Cache) edit
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English edit
WIRELESS CARDS Killer™ Wireless-N 1103 a/g/n 2x2 MIMO for Gaming & Video edit
MEMORY 6GB DDR3 at 1600MHz edit
VIDEO CARD 1.5GB DDR3 NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 555M using NVIDIA Optimus™ technology edit
HARD DRIVE 750GB 7200RPM SATA 3Gb/s edit
LCD PANEL 14.0" High Def+ (900p/1600x900) with WLED backlight edit
WIRELESS HD None edit
SOUND OPTIONS Internal High-Definition 5.1 Surround Sound Audio edit
Options
SUPPORT 2 Year Basic Service Plan edit
INTERNET ACCESS 3 Months Sympatico Performance Internet Included (ON&QC) edit
PRE-INSTALLED SOFTWARE Steam and Portal™ Factory Installed edit
SYSTEM COLOR Alienware M14X - Soft Touch Stealth Black edit
ALIENFX COLOR Quasar Blue edit
MCAFEE SECURITYCENTER McAfee SecurityCenter, 15-Months edit
Essentials
ALSO INCLUDED WITH YOUR SYSTEM
Optical Drive 8x SuperMulti DVD±R/RW Slot Load Optical Drive
MOUSE POINTERS Alienware M14X 150W A/C Adapter
AVATAR Hinge Up WLAN -BLACK
Adobe Reader Acrobat SW Adobe Acrobat X Reader
Nameplate Standard Nameplate

EDIT: plus a m14x neoprene sleeve

 

I did just this and this is what i ended up with ,

Operating System Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit
Processor Intel® Core™ i7 2760QM (2.4GHz,3.5GHz,w/Turbo Boost, 6MB Cache)
Memory 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz (2DIMMS)
Video Card 2GB GDDR5 AMD Radeon HD 6990M
Hard Drive 750GB 7,200RPM HDD
Slot Load Bluray-DVD-RW
Display Panel 17.3-inch WideFHD 1920 x 1080 60Hz WLED
Wireless Intel Centrino Wireless-N 1000
System Color Alienware M17x, Soft Touch Stealth Black
AlienFX Quasar Blue
Pre-Installed Software Steam and Portal™ Factory Installed
Adobe Reader Acrobat SW Adobe Acrobat Reader
Service 1 Year Basic Plan
Security Software No Anti-Virus Software Selected
2
$1591 vs 1589

3 dollars differce , question is should i drop the CPU and add back 3d
and buttery smooth 120HZ display.

FYI, i will go with Nvidia GTX580M for same price but as we all know it is on backorder or shortened supply / transition to the 675M or something. Same chip with different .inf file?? is that so!

Anyways I do prefer Nvidia over AMD for numerous reasons.

 

Hi All,
Here is my story I hope it will help other people

I wanted to buy Alienware M17X laptop with

i7 2670, 4GB 1600mhz, 1.5 Nvidia GTX 560M, 17.3 LCD (1920x1080 FHD). Killer Wireless and slot load DVD

The price after applying $50 (Everyday coupon, they know that customer will apply it so they keep the price $50 above) was coming to USD 1920 includin tax

believe me, I would have tried saving this item in the cart for almost 60 times and than talk to Dell chat but was not able to get decent discount

One day (I spent almost 20-30 days) I got hold of a person and he was ready to give me discount and took my phone number and a lady called me @ 4:00 AM to make the final deal

After a lot of discussion with the lady I got a final price of USD 1473 with tax(And also $100 Alienware GC) but lady did one mistake and gave me 1600x900 resolution screen

I returned this laptop and called DELL US sales (866 two five seven 4711) to buy a replacement. I gave the reference to my previous order and I got a deal again for USD 1527 with tax

I called the DELL after receiving this laptop for additional discount and they gave me back USD107

So, I got my M17x with above confi for USD1420

Summary: Try dealing with the sales personal untill you don't get a better price, you have the money and they want it...

 

I saw an article online about a program where you can trade used electronics & laptops toward a new Alienware, called the AlienExchange program... Is this real? I can't find anything on Dell's Website for it.

Here is the link for the article... its kind of old though.

 

No longer exists. If you follow the white rabbit (the links) all the way to alienware's site, it's a dead end.

 

Can anyone tell me where in china alienware laptops are manufactured and are assembled ?

 

I... Don't think they are...

I know the individual components probably come from factories in China/Taiwan but AFAIK Dell US assembles them in the US and is shipped from the US.

I wouldn't know where the international ones are made though, i know Dell Australia uses call-centers in Malaysia so possibly somewhere in Asia?

 

nah they are made somewhere in china and then sent to a dell depot to get sent to your house. not sure where they are manufactured in china though, prob some dell factory.

 

Dell outsources its manufacturing and design. I think Compal is currently building the M17x-R3 and M18x. So if you look for a Compal factory, you'll find the assembly line for Dell and other brands.

 

I've had one assembled & shipped from them within 48 hours and i received it the next business day... Surely a package from China would take longer than that just to get here?

 

They have at least one factory in China and Malaysia. Mine was built in China and shipped out on the 6th of March. It didn't get to the US until the 9th. I finally got it on the 13th. I think it all depends on how many systems they have ready to ship and where it needs to get shipped to.

 

It's in Xiamen, China (Thanks Wikipedia ) Ref: Dell - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (Under Product > manufacturing section)

 

Dell/AW has pre-assembled/boxed laptops in the US (Texas?) with certain configurations.

They use these for when customers select the "ship in 48 hours" option on their website, which generally cost a little more money to get it faster.

Perhaps they were clearing out their stock in the US to make room for newer technology, so they used this stock towards customer-made configuration orders.

 

I've never seen a "ship in 48 hours" option for an Alienware laptop. Alienware laptops are built by Compal and ship directly to the consumer from China. Dell never touches them unless they go to the depot for repairs after being received by the consumer. The shipping label has a Dell return address, but they do not pass through the hands of Dell USA employees before the customer receives them. (This was confirmed by Dell/Alienware during our last conference call.)

This is one way that purchasing an Alienware system from an authorized Dell/Alienware reseller should offer value. Going through a reseller, hopefully, everything would be thoroughly inspected and tested prior to shipping to the consumer.

 

Hi guys,

I have just place an order on my new m17x at AFFES , quite a decent deal.

Give up on haggling with DELL EPP which they could not price match the price AAFES offered to me.

Price at $1881 out of the door.

Here Are the specs:

System Color;Alienware M17x, Soft Touch Stealth Black

Processor: Intel® Core™ i7 2760QM (2.4GHz,3.5GHz,w/Turbo Boost, 6MB Cache)

Memory: 8GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz (4DIMMS)

A/C Adapter: Alienware M17x 240W A/C Adapter

Display Panel: 17.3-inch WideFHD 1920 x 1080 60Hz WLED

Video Card: 2GB GDDR5 AMD Radeon HD 6990M

Hard Drive: 750GB 7,200RPM HDD

Nameplate: Personalized Plate (Da Niu and Zhen Zhen)

AlienFX: Quasar Blue

Operating System: Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit

Adobe Reader Acrobat SW: Adobe Acrobat Reader

Optical Drives: Slot-Loading Dual Layer Blu-ray Reader (BR-ROM, DVD+-RW, CD-RW)

Sound: Internal High-Definition 5.1 Surround Sound Audio

Wireless: Killer™ Wireless-N 1103 a/g/n 3x3 MIMO for Gaming and Video

Security Software: No Anti-Virus Software Selected

Service: 1 Year Basic Plan

Alien Wallpaper: Alien Cyborg

Standard Nameplate Trigger: Thank you for Purchasing Alienware



Do you guys think the price is ok?
And i do think there is some error on the site while i choose to upgrade for I7 2670 to 2760 is just an additional $9 more , what the hell i go ahead to upgrade it lol.

 

Great thread!

 

I think i need to go to china to get one for me btw compal and others(You can get the detailed list of laptop manufacturer in china Under Obm and odm in china in wiki ) dont randomly give away their buyers(Apple, Hp, dell etc) just randomly because i have tried contacting them alot and try to talk them into stuff but failed epically. So now I am planing to pack my bags and leave for china and if i get my hands on them will buy as many as they let me lol

 

I just bought two Alienware systems along with a 24" monitor from them. If I call them after I receive everything and tell them that I'm not happy with my purchase and would like to return everything...that I could get money back?

From what I've read it's in the neighborhood $100 per system.

 

That's very true MR. Fox!

 

" Alienware is a brand company only, they don't have factory but through Taiwan's ODM manufacturer and produce in China factory. That mean they outsourced in China from the beginning , not just from current model
"

The above is a part of conversation that i had with the sales manager of a ODM alienware outsoursed

 

"XXX is a brand company only" can be said for the vast majority of laptops regardless of brand. That's been a standard MO for quite a while. The OEM provides the specs, while the ODM does the manufacturing.

 

Can someone PM me a good salesman at Alienware that can about match Aafes prices please, I have $2400 dell giftcard that I cannot spend at Aafes...


This is the best I could do through the phone with the first sales rep at Dell EPP

$2292 (Tax Included) ($2,437.36 Total before haggling the sales rep)
Alienware M17x, Soft Touch Stealth Black, Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit

Unit Price $2,703.00

Save 15% when you spend $2699 on this M17x
Limited Time Offer! View Details
- $405.45

Members get the Best Price* on consumer PCs from Dell!
Limited Time Offer! View Details
- $45.95

Alienware M17x, Soft Touch Stealth Black
Operating System Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit
Processor Intel® Core™ i7 2860QM
Memory 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz (2DIMMS)
Display Panel 17.3-inch WideFHD 1920 x 1080 60Hz WLED
Video Card 2GB GDDR5 AMD Radeon HD 6990M
Hard Drive 750GB 7,200RPM HDD
Optical Drives Slot-Loading Dual Layer Blu-ray Reader (BR-ROM, DVD+-RW, CD-RW)
Sound Internal High-Definition 5.1 Surround Sound Audio
Wireless Killer™ Wireless-N 1103 a/g/n 3x3 MIMO for Gaming & Video
Service 2 Year Basic Plan

I feel like they can give me a better deal than this.

 

So looking at a m11x i5. 4 gig ram and killer n wireless the price is like 1130 with a instant discount for a price of like 1030 how much more do you guys think i should go for? I also have a -100 coupon but figures id see what they could do then bring.the coupon up

Sorry for double post, the sales person applied my coupon and gave me 30$ off so im getting the above specs for 899 is that a good deal or should i try for something else??

 

Here is my experience....

Heard that AAFES has an EPP. Went through link from AAFES to alienware. There was an amazing deal on the M14x. I wanted to upgrade my screen from the order.

I called the EPP and becuase it was such a good deal the system wouldn't let him upgrade it. He tried everything.

As part of the AAFES deal it came with a mandatory backpack buy for $117. He tried everything including managers and they couldn't do it. I walked away because it was ridiculous that I had to buy a back pack that I didn't want.

Eventually I closed the deal with them by billing the laptop and backpack as two orders and once it was placed they then cancelled the backpack before my card was charged.

I save 24% off the alienware website simply due to AAFES. It was an amazing deal.

They wouldn't let me increase my warranty...

Here's the purchase...

225-07901Alienware M14X - Stealth Black with Soft Touch Finish
Intel® Wireless-N WiFi Link 1000 a/g/n 1x2
317-84401Intel Core i7 2670QM 2.2GHz (3.1GHz w/Turbo Boost, 6MB Cache)
317-666718GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz
331-20691Alienware M14X 150W A/C Adapter
320-2229114.0 High Def (720p/1366x768) with WLED backlight
318-064313.0GB DDR3 NVIDIA GeForce GT 555M using NVIDIA Optimus technology
342-25491750GB 7200RPM SATA 3Gb/s
330-61061Personalized Nameplate Trigger
331-20701Custom Nameplate
313-87921AlienFX Color, Quasar Blue
421-48161Alienware Command Center Software, M14X
420-96911DataSafe Local BackUp
420-99561PC Restore
421-57891Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit Service Pack 1, English, w/Media
318-06411Hinge Up WLAN - BLACK
410-05481Adobe Acrobat Reader
421-13051Roxio Creator Starter
318-11661Slot-Load Dual Layer DVD Burner, DVD+-RW, CD-RW
421-48181Internal High-Definition 5.1 Surround Sound Audio
430-40981Intel Wireless-N WiFi Link 1000 a/g/n 1x2
421-64971Alienware M14X WIDI Software
461-83891NO VIRUS PROTECTION REQUESTED
951-96801Dell Hardware Warranty Plus On-Site Service, Initial Year
951-97001Third Party At Home Service, 24x7 Technical Support, Initial Year
950-333711 Year Limited Warranty
950-97971No Warranty, Year 2 and 3
421-17211Soft Contracts Service Hardware Agreement for Alienware
994-37301Warranty Support, Initial Year
330-50901Thank You for Purchasing AlienWare
469-05001No Wireless HD Selected

Subtotal:$1,154.16
Shipping and Handling:$9.00

Sales Tax:$110.51
Total:$1,273.67

Should have paid:

Base: $1499
Tax: $140
Total: $1640

 

Just Ordered!

Alienware M17x
Monitor: 17.3-inch WideFHD 1920 x 1080 60Hz WLED
Color: Soft Touch Stealth Black
Processor: Intel® Core™ i7 2860QM
Memory: 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz (2DIMMS)*
Hard Drive: 1 TB RAID 0 (2x 500GB) 7200RPM SATA 3Gb/s
Video Card: 2GB GDDR5 AMD Radeon HD 6990M
Optical Drive: Slot-Loading Dual Layer Blu-ray Reader
Warranty: 1 Year Advanced Plan

Alienware TactX Keyboard

Total: $3019.98 (Tax & Shipping)

I paid: $2389.03
- EPP 15% Discount - $409.20
- EPP Standard Discount - $46.38
- EPP Sales Rep Discount - $157.45
- Free Next Business Day Shipping



* Gonna self install Kingston HyperX 16GB DDR3 1866 Ram

 

I'm waiting until the M18X R2 to come out to make my purchase. I was wondering, what is the discount for AAA members?

 

just ordered this tonight, can anyone confirm if this is a good deal?

Alienware M18x
Intel Core i7 2670QM
4GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz 2DIMMS
1.5GB GDDR5 NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M
750GB 7,200RPM SATA 3Gb/s
Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 a/b/g/n 3x3 MIMO Technology
Subtotal: $1,566.02

 

Depends on how much gaming you plan to do. The video cards are the heart and soul of the M18x.

 

Not much gaming really, more for CS5.5, camtasia studio 7, and the usual (MS office, etc.).

Planning on using the current memory sticks in my M11X, and installing a Samsung 830 256gb SSD.

Really wanted a single 580m on this but the option is not available. Also, I know the R2 is on the way, should I just cancel this order and wait?

 

I use my m18x for the same thing and I have Dual 560m's and the 2760 processor and I'm already going to upgrade both parts. With the specs you have now, the machine will be a lot quicker than your current one.

The price looks killer, so I would go for it.

With the new processor coming out, no way you'll be able to get the same deal, they are trying to clear inventory at the moment. Only main difference of the upcoming would be extra battery life, which would still be nothing in the beast.

 

Anyone knows any contact of FueledByFate?

 

Thanks for the info, repped +1.

 

I finally cracked and ordered an M14x...I wanted to wait for the refresh but I got so hyped up about an announcement at PAX East that when it didn't happen it was just a dissapointment. I remember joining here a few years ago when I bought my Dell Inspiron 1520 with Nvidia 8600, I thought I was so cool. Finally graduated college last year and this is my 1st big purchase for myself, I am pretty excited!


Alienware M14X - Stealth Black with Soft Touch Finish $996.52


Intel Core i7 2670QM 2.2GHz (3.1GHz w/Turbo Boost, 6MB Cache)
4GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz
Alienware M14X 150W A/C Adapter
14.0 HD (900p/1600x900) WLED backlight display and 2.0 MP webcam with digital microphone array
1.5GB DDR3 NVIDIA GeForce GT 555M using NVIDIA Optimus technology
750GB 7200RPM SATA 3Gb/s
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit Service Pack 1, English, w/Media
Slot-Load Dual Layer DVD Burner, DVD+-RW, CD-RW
Soundblaster X-Fi Hi Def Audio - Software Enabled
Killer Wireless-N 1103 a/g/n 3x3 MIMO for Gaming and Video
Dell Hardware Warranty Plus On-Site Service, Initial Year
Third Party At Home Service, 24x7 Technical Support, Initial Year
1 Year Limited Warranty
Warranty Support, Initial Year

Thank You for Purchasing AlienWare

Special Pricing Applied

Item Sub Total $996.52
Item Ship Charge $0.00
Item Tax $82.21

Item Total $1078.73


Talked/Chat to a lot of sales rep mainly because I keep debating about waiting and getting it now...so I'm pretty excited about it until Alienware announces the new system next week and regret what I just did lol.

 

Seems like a good deal. Did you use any coupons or was it straight EPP discounts?

 

Wow that's pretty cheap. Is this new or refurbished? Please share the deal

 

EPP + Dell Preferred card, the sales rep pretty much told me that he could give me more discounts if I sign up for the card, and without it I would only get ~$50 off...went from like $1376 to this price, although he wouldn't give me the Orion bag or expedited shipping

New! I honestly called for a quote, hung up, chatted for a quote, then called again until I got what I wanted. And yeah they noticed all the quotes that saved from my profile, but I just tell them that they forgot something that i wanted to add. This "buy now itch" started yesterday and I bought the laptop today, and in a span of like ~24 hours I had a total of 4 quotes lol...

 

Nice! Congrats on your new system. I'm still mulling over my deal. Still on the fence about whether or not to keep the purchase...decisions decisions.

 

Oh nice. I don't want another line of credit so no deal for me

 

I'm so ready to get rid of my Dell 1520. I think I replaced the charger 3x, replaced the lid and the battery...still plays SC2 but when my brother got the M11x I got so jealous, can't believe I'm getting an Alienware now, always wanted one "as a kid"

 

Is this a good price? The rep gave me some discounts on the card and alienware was having a sale.

1 AW M17xR3 - Black $1,862.19
1 AlienFX Color, Quasar Blue $0.00
1 Intel Core i7-2670QM 2.2GHz $0.00
1 8GB DualCh DDR3 1600MHz 4DIM $0.00
1 Slot-Load DL DVD Burner (DVD+-RW, CD-RW) $0.00
1 Internal HD 5.1 Surround Sound Audio $0.00
1 17.3-inch WideFHD1920 x 1080 60Hz WLED $0.00
1 2GB GDDR5 AMD HD 6990M M17x3R $0.00
1 Alienware M17x 240W A/C Adapter, US $0.00
1 256GB Solid State Drive $0.00
1 MCAFEE 11, 15 MONTH, CNB $0.00
1 Adobe Acrobat Reader 9.0 MLANG CNB $0.00
1 PC-RESTORE, DIM/INSP $0.00
1 DATASAFE LOCAL BACKUP $0.00
1 DELL-DOWNLOAD-FLAG $0.00
1 Roxio Creator Starter,No Media,CNB $0.00
1 AW Command Center M17XR3 $0.00
1 Win 7 Home Prem 64 SP1,Eng,w/Media,AWNB $0.00
1 Wireless 802.11 g/n $0.00
1 HW WRTY+SVC,ANW M17XR3,UNY,INIT,REL $0.00
1 NBD OS,ANW M17XR3,UNY,INIT YR,REL $0.00
1 WARRANTY SPRT,ANW NB,INIT YR $0.00
1 SHIPPING FEE $0.00
1 Standard Nameplate $0.00
1 NO WARRANTY,YRS 2/3(DIM,INSP,NBD) $0.00
1 ALBERTA $1.20 EHF,NOTEBOOK PCS $0.00

Sub-Total $1,862.19
Shipping $0.00
Environment Fee $1.20
Tax $0.00
Total Price $1,955.30
All discounts applied to this order are reflected in the subtotal, shipping, and total amounts.

 

Wow, no tax? Did you go through AAFES?

 

Is this brand new?

I figured I post this here too:

M17xR3 Refurbished:
-- Intel Core i7-2720QM Processor (2.20 GHz with Turbo Boost 2.0 up to 3.30 GHz)
-- 750 GB SATA Hard Drive (7200RPM)
-- 16 GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz (4X4GB)
-- 8X DVD +/- RW Drive
-- 2GB GDDR5 NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580M
-- 17.3 inch Wide FHD (1920 x 1080 60Hz) WLED Display
-- Killer Wireless-N 1103 a/g/n 3x3 MIMO
-- Dell Wireless 375 Bluetooth Module
-- 210W/240W switchable Slim 3P A/C Adapter 125V Power Cord
-- Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit Operating System DVD
-- Alien M17x R3: 1 Yr Ltd Warranty, In-Home Service after Remote Diagnosis (Included In Price)

Its posted as $1,809+tax but I got it down for $1477.16 including tax and shipping. The sales person put in a discount coupon himself.

 

Don't know about refurbs but on the surface it looks like a good deal. You got a 580m and 16gb memory for roughly $100 less than what I paid and I only got a 560M and 4 gb memory (granted different build w M18x).

We need a savvier person to comment.

 

I guess since you are getting a M18x. You can always have SLI if you upgrade. Or maybe it also depends on the discount the sales rep is giving. Not really sure.

 

From what I'm reading in this forum, upgrading the GPU may not be cost effective, and may not be entirely compatible. The 560m is not that bad is it?

 

I didn't mean upgrading to 580M but instead having 2 560M (SLI). I thought I read that M18x is capable of having SLI GPU. Then 2 560s is always better than just a single 580s.

 

Yeah, I understood what you meant and yes the M18x is capable of two GPUs, however having 2 560m SLI has compatibility issues with the PSU and adapter. Also there are threads where people are having problems with SLI and Crossfire setups. Thats why I mentioned wanting a 580m instead of a 560m.

 

Hey NBR,

I'm sort of new here, but I wanted to share a little info on my soon to be placed order for a new m17x r3.

I finagled my way into contacting a dell US rep that has been extremely helpful (and by helpful, I mean willing to heavily discount!) with my order. Right off the bat he knocked off $250 and scored me NBD shipping, and then told me he could knock off another $200 when I place my order.

And I didn't even have to haggle! All I did was mention similar systems from this thread and he was hooked immediately. I have a feeling I'll be able to knock the price down a bit more once I place the order.

Also, I know it was mentioned in the OP, but take the time to write a nearly amorous email regarding the service your dell rep has given you to your rep's manager BEFORE you place the order. My rep emailed me back ten minutes after I emailed his manager thanking me. He said it helps big time when promotions come around.

Once I place my order (in the next 7 days) I will likely share my rep's contact via PM (and yes, I know I must post a few more quality posts before then).

However, after reading some of the horror stories of some rather rude and immature hagglers roaming this thread, I plan on being very cautious as to whom I hook up with my rep.

I'll post my quote once it's finalized.

Thanks, and I hope to be joining the m17x owners lounge very soon!

 

Excellent, I will definitely be keeping an eye out for your posts as I was not entirely satisfied with my rep.