Alienware M17 Build Quality

Hi Guys!

I'm new to the forum so please be gentle with me!

I'm considering purchasing the M17, and was wondering if any existing owner could comment on build quality. It is a little bit of a concern of mine following reports of problems with the m15x.

Kind Regards

 

Well mine had to be shipped back... due to performance issues.. so far not pleased

 

Welcome to NBR, Hardlight.

To answer your question, I don't recommend getting Alienware. Why? One of the reasons Sharpe62 said,,,, Performance. For the big bucks you paying you can get something much much better.

Consider getting Clevo/Sager or MSI. They are terrific for gaming. Some of the MSI laptops can be overclocked with a touch of the turbo button! Also, the built quality is brilliant.

For multimedia purchase, HP HDX series will do you justice.

Need more help, let me know
D3158

 

My initial one was sent back due to terrible video performance (5kish 3dMarks) in late December after taking a month+ to arrive...and I received a new one from AW just a week ago (they decided it was better to replace it than to fix the one I sent back, which worked for me). The one I just received is exhibiting some problems with audio at this point (audio through headphones but not through speakers - yes, they are turned on & turned up, but no audio coming through) which I've got to call AW tech support about this weekend. Plus it's got an intermittent shudder/line in the video when playing games in full screen mode (not when playing in windowed mode). Hopefully it's nothing that I will have to send the laptop back in for - if so, it's staying with AW & I'll be getting a refund.

My SO's M17 is working great so far, though. No complaints. So, for us it was a 50/50 split as to if we got a good machine or not.

 

AW has had more public complaints about the M17, than the other resellers of the same system. I purchased from XoticPC and appreciated their speed to deliver, and customer oriented service through the sale and after the sale. Here's a link to all resellers:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=311358

Also, if you see my sig.. I'm selling - So let me know if you'd be interested. MUCH less expensive that ANYWHERE you'll find the same system. Oh, and 0 days build time, same day ship time, and 100% tested and BLOWS away the competition

 

gotta love AW-haters for being able to blatantly ignore the question just so they can bash AW...

 

Thanks for the comments guys!

I've always gone with Dell in the past and had only a few minor issues which Dell have always promptly rectified.

If I do go ahead with the purchase I will be monitoring the system closely any sign of trouble and it will be sent back for a full refund. (Which I can do within 7 days of delivery under UK law).

 

You know, build quality really depends on the vendor/system builder you are getting it from. Not to bash Alienware or anything, but Alienware is a large company, almost corporation like. Because of this unfortunately, they're not going to pay as much attention to one order as some of the smaller system builders would, and as a result, quality diminishes. As E-wrecked pointed out, there are more complaints regarding the M17 in comparison to the Whitebook from other vendors, even though they're the same chassis.

 

Intresting point ichime. But I don't think it necessarily follows that large companies have lower standards. Just look at Apple or Sony and Dell even.
However, the comments are causing me some concern. I am thinking twice!

 

if u r worrying bout the build qualiyty of the m17...dont. its not bad at all imo. u might be a bit dissapointed by the intensity of the keyboard lightning but thats all i can comment negatively on... so if u feel like getting the m17 dont hesitate, go for it

 

I take it the lighting is a little on the 'Dull' side? Is the lighting noticeable at all in daylight?

 

True, even Lenovo is an exception with the thinkpads. But, you also have to consider the build process; Alienware hand-assembles most of the components of their notebooks. Can't say the same for the other companies, though it's possible that they hand-assemble some parts, but not to the intimacy of adding a GPU, thermal paste, mini-PCI cards, etc.

 

in daylight, the lightning is very very very faint, almost unnoticable....howeven in darkness its a different story all together

 

Have not had any issues or problems with the M17. Build quality is good, cooling is adequate. Like several others mentioned the keyboard lighting is not that bright. The lighting i had on my M17X was brighter but otherwise the M17 has performed quite well after installing the 8.12 drivers.

 

Thanks again for your input guys and for the warm and friendly welcome to the forums, think I found the right place! I will be making my decision in the next couple of days. I'll let you all know what I decide.

 

LOL man I don't hate AW. So one cant place opinions haha.

 

Yeah Hardlight np. Do let us know!

D3158

 

Mine's perfect. I agree that illumination could be better, but it's not a deal breaker for me.

M17 is not overpriced. For performance comparable with 9800gts sli/8800gtx sli, Ur paying considerably less.

 

I hear the Build on the m17 is decent, and the price is definitely excellent, but I am more concerned with performance.
Anyone play Devil may cry 4 on it? I have the m5790 with x1900 and T7600G @ 2.66GHz, and even at low resolution the game is eating my system alive (C benchmark). I have Crysis too (medium), and I am just wondering how the extreme x9100 core2duo, and the dual 3870 stacks up against these games.

 

well.. seeing as I have that CPU and those benches, lemme show ya. Even tho mine's the Whitebook.. so my scores will be higher. One sec..I'll post pics.

 

go e wreck put them in his face lol

 

here's dmc 4 running @ 3.06 GHz



Crysis is on the way..

 

1/21/2009 6:54:35 PM - Vista 64
Beginning Run #1 on Map-island, Demo-benchmark_gpu
DX10 1920x1200, AA=No AA, Vsync=Disabled, 32 bit test, FullScreen
Demo Loops=3, Time Of Day= 9
Global Game Quality: Very High
==============================================================
TimeDemo Play Started , (Total Frames: 2000, Recorded Time: 111.86s)
!TimeDemo Run 0 Finished.
Play Time: 120.03s, Average FPS: 16.66
Min FPS: 0.00 at frame 184, Max FPS: 29.52 at frame 988
Average Tri/Sec: -11929481, Tri/Frame: -715966
Recorded/Played Tris ratio: -1.28
!TimeDemo Run 1 Finished.
Play Time: 88.23s, Average FPS: 22.67
Min FPS: 0.00 at frame 184, Max FPS: 33.97 at frame 70
Average Tri/Sec: -16210453, Tri/Frame: -715162
Recorded/Played Tris ratio: -1.28
!TimeDemo Run 2 Finished.
Play Time: 87.90s, Average FPS: 22.75
Min FPS: 0.00 at frame 184, Max FPS: 33.97 at frame 70
Average Tri/Sec: -16272197, Tri/Frame: -715183
Recorded/Played Tris ratio: -1.28
TimeDemo Play Ended, (3 Runs Performed)
==============================================================

Completed All Tests

<><><><><><><><><><><><><>>--SUMMARY--<<><><><><><><><><><><><><>

1/21/2009 6:54:35 PM - Vista 64

Run #1- DX10 1920x1200 AA=No AA, 32 bit test, Quality: Very High ~~ Overall Average FPS: 22.71

The first run was messed up.. Only cause I was trying to make it fullscreen instead of windowed. Saw no reason to restart. Anyhow, this is it.

Enjoy

 

I like the Devil resolution. And 22 FPS at the same res isnt too bad for Crysis.
I wanted to get the m17, and I think I will now. At a lower res, crysis should hit aound 50+ FPS easy I think.
Thanks.

I am running Devil @ 1280x800 with a C, and crysis @1280x1024 @ Medium. with DX9c

 

buy mine dang it it made those benchies

 

lol
I prefer new systems.

 

So do other AW owners who found tape on their GPU heatsinks.. but, to each their own

 

push that whitebook lol i would love to but i cant...i wanna build my own baby ... any one seen a painted white book ..maybe a nice yello or lime green

 

Okay, stupid question time from the computer illiterate. I'm in the same boat as the original poster (interested in a M17 but concerned with build quality). I have also been eying the Force Extreme 840 at xoticpc. These are the same systems? And if that's true, can I order a M17 with just a CD drive and then buy and install a Blueray Burner separately? (Blueray burner is not offered by AW but is offered by xotic) Xotic offers up to 8 GB of ram, but AW only 4 GB. Can I upgrade the AW later? Is it really that alien head that jacks the price up by a grand or am I paying for quality and service? Most of the post I've read (here and elsewhere) make me question the quality of AW's service.

 

Not gonna jump on this one. But, yes you can have 8GB of RAM elsewhere cause of the BIOS. And, yes..the alien head costs money. And yes, my system from Xotic is for sale Anyhow.. done throwing in free advertising. The M17 is legit. It looks nice, it runs nicely, and it doesn't overclock. The same systems from elsewhere allow for overclocking, and still honor the warranty. Your call. *looks at sig*

 

Wow. That was quick. Thanks. Leaning heavily towards the 840, but not yours. No offense, I've been burned by used electronics too many times. Never buy used electronics, never say no to free whiskey, never loan anything you want back, and never date a girl with an adam's apple. Thems my rules.

 

Good rules.

 

definitely can agree there adams apple is a no no

 

Good rules? Great rules! I'll agree with them all, especially women with neck fruit.

 

but its so ripe for the pickin lmao well there sayin my system should be shipped tommorw or monday ...im going to amazingly get out of phase 6 (after 2 1/2 weeks ) and skip phase 7 lol straight to shipping ...i can install everything my self better

 

Yea man.. you may not want that system if it has so many issues they gotta work on it for 2 extra weeks.

 

Yesterday in the evening they started buildung my new m17 and sent it to me even today^^ (they waited over one week for the Keyboard)

But E you are true^^
If they spent 2 weeks on his m17 ... it's suppose to stay alive for at least 2 more weeks

Hopefully

Greetings
Julian

 

yea lol lets hope its stays alive a long time only hesitation i have about builing my own is if the mobo goes out ....but i have seen 3 people order and get there shipped and recieved ... roswell said it should ship out tommorw or monday .... i was thinking yea i heard that before

 

how much unessary software is on the M17?

 

Nothing came on mine. I've only had Dell prior to this, and they came totally bogged-down with bloatware. So bad an immediate reformat was usually needed.

 

i dont recomend you getting the M17 because i just had it and expirienced many issues that alienware wanted me to resolve myself by taking apart the computer so i returned it and got the dell xps m1730 which has given me much better performance with the 8800 gtx. also customer support is great my tv tuner didnt work so they said ok and sent me a new one and got it in a day.

 

I like the build quality of the M17. I dont think it's as nice as my Dell M1710 though. It's close.. but not quite. IMHO.

The front of the M17 is not rounded like the Dell M1710 and i noticed it right away. Had to get use to my wrist laying on a sharper edge.

There's no bumps on the F and J keys to quickly find the home keys. You get use to it.

The USB ports on the right side are upside down? ?

Barely Fits into the notebook sleeve inside my TIMBUK2 bag. Have to jam it in.

I do like the price/performance ratio. I think it's a good deal. I was on the fence about returning it for a Dell, but i'm gonna keep it. It's a nice notebook.

 

i believe thats because the whole MOBO is fliped so that you can acess every thing on the bottom