Alienware New Model Speculation Thread

I'm in the same boat.

I'm thinking if they're both at 1366x768, probably a bit, yeah. But if you got the 14 at 16x9, versus the 11 at 13x7, they'd be pretty damn close I think. The 11 would win on battery in that case though.

Having said all that, I think (for me, having really bad eyesight) the 11 is just a little on the small size. I might not necessarily have wanted a 14 - If I'm honest, I think a 13.3 would have suited me perfectly - but I'll take what I can get.

 

The only different that I'm aware of is 540 vs 555 and the screen resolution (upgrade M14 to 1600x900 +$).

NVIDIA GeForce GT 540M - Notebookcheck.net Tech

NVIDIA GeForce GT 555M - Notebookcheck.net Tech

As much as I want the M14X, the M11X-R3 is also in the back of my mind

 

And processors. The 11 uses ULV Sandy Bridge. The 14 gets the full fledged variants.

 

Same issue here. Which to get when released. I would think the m14x will slightly outperform the m11x. Battery life is all I care about so curious to see how the m14x will do.

 

m11x r3 vs m14x r1??? Are you kidding, right??

 

mmm, troll for supper...

 

mmm, troll for brothel...

 

Here is a link to dell china on the M18x (use Google Chrome to translate)

china.dell.com/cn/p/alienware-m18x/pd


I was going to attach snapshot for those who cant translate but file was to large.

 

Google Traductor

 

It doesn't say anything about the graphics options, may be they have a last minute substitute

 

Weight will be acceptable It will pretty much be the same size as the M17x R2 just an inch wider, Battery got a boost as well

(From R2 Manual)
Height
(Front to Back)
51.31 mm to 53.59 mm (2.02 inches to 2.11 inches)
Width
405.89 mm (15.98 inches)
Depth
321.31 mm (12.65 inches)
Weight with 9-cell battery
(starting at)
5.3 kg (11.8 lb)

(From China Site)
Highly positive: 53.00 mm (2.09 inches)

​

Rear: 54.20 mm (2.13 inches)
Thickness: 322.00 mm (12.68 inches)

​

Width: 436.00 mm (17.17 inches)

​

Start Weight: 5.41 kg (11.93 lb)

 

Even people in China are getting ripped off by AW prices.

10,000 Chinese Dollars for the M11X-R2 = 1,526$ USD and they're all manufactured in that area!

Nice find. The pictures of the M18X look gorgeous. Best looking laptop I've ever seen.

 

From the pictures I've seen, the M18x has a dumbed down exterior design compared to the M17x R1 and R2 models. It's missing those fancy grills on the sides and the back of it looks a little more cheap than the original design IMO. I do like the new design of the bottom though, it makes it look like pretty powerful. I really want to see some actual pictures of it with different lighting to see all the details of it.

 

In my country (Peru) the m11x r2 (i7 640UM/4GB/500GB) costs 4,173 soles (1,485 USD)...

That is why I bought my m11x in USA and saved a lot of money

 

Built in dedi soundcard.
Subwoofer too! (2.1 Klipsch Speakers)

 

Any chance of an Intel Thunderbolt (aka: 'light' peak) port in the new 'beast'?

 

Yeah nice to have a subwoofer which the m17x r3 lack
2.1 speakers with subwoofer audio driver side configuration is Kipsch ®
Using the HDMI output interface or S / PDIF optical output port 7.1 digital audio signals.

 

Hmm , eSATA 3 Gb / s + USB 2.0 combo ports (with PowerShare technology)

not eSaTa 6 GB?

 

I'm sure the internal drives will be SATA 6gb supported just like the M17X R3 but only the external eSATA will be limited by 3gb, but to be honest who gonna require more than 3gb for an external hard drive? which is the main point of ESATA

 

Chipset only has 2X 6Gbps ports, why waste one on external?

 

Yes, I think I'm going to be torn between battery life, weight and performance...

 

Well, the Thunderbolt port allow for 10gb transfer: it allow to make a full system backup in very few minutes. Very convenient!
According to Intel ( http://www.intel.com/technology/io/thunderbolt/index.htm):

•Dual-channel 10 Gbps per port
•Bi-directional
•Dual-protocol (PCI Express* and DisplayPort*)
•Compatible with existing DisplayPort devices
•Daisy-chained devices
•Electrical or optical cables
•Low latency with highly accurate time synchronization
•Uses native protocol software drivers
•Power over cable for bus-powered devices​

Why to leave always to Apple the first use of new techs...? Then we need to wait for 2 or 3 new versions until we can enjoy it in a PC architecture...

 

I'm having serious buyer's remorse right now on my R3 that hasn't even shipped yet T.T

This is exactly what I wanted in my R3, that Dell only offered in the XPS17 when I ordered:

- Built-in audio technology used WavesMAXX High-Definition 5.1 Performance Audio sound card (standard)
- SoundBlaster MB Software High-Definition 5.1 Performance Audio (optional)
- Kipsch ® 2.1 speakers (with subwoofer)

Now that they offer these for the M18x, I'm really considering canceling my R3 order which has an EDD of 5/9... not soon by any means.

 

Apple still lack decent SSD support/Bluray/etc Thunderbolt is near useless the entire industry is going toward USB3

Last generation USB2 was the most popular even though E-sata/Firewire/express cards were available.

Intel is trying to force Thunderbolt and ignore usb3,

 

Are you kidding? I'm old enough to remember the same kind of though when FireWire was introduced... today there is no serious notebook / laptop without a FW port... then it was the story of USB3... eSata3... etc. Now is the time for the Thunderbolt port... Those who use it in video, audio, media (and even games) editing can appreciate the value of this tech...
Just this summer you will see it in a new generation of Hard Disks, and other uses... just wait an see 4yourself
In the meantime, BTW, read: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/02/24/intel_thunderbolt/ (and remember the FW...)

 

You are missing the point, thunderbolt is amazing tech and i wish if it was a standard, my audio editing devices are actually firewire not USB2, what i said is the industry going toward USB3 now not thunderbolt, Intel should have released thunderbolt earlier

Hard drives+back up wont make a use of thunderbolt over usb3 due the hard drives speed, USB3 is more than enough for fastest hard drives available today

Even latest video capture devices use USB3 to capture uncompressed DATA

Mouse/keyboard/etc even usb 2 is enough for it, the only realistic use of thunderbolt is when actually companies start supporting it (intel still does not have USB3 Native support, it's up to others to support it)

APPLE was never about latest hardware (they didn't have Quad cores until now.... SSD support near none-exist and zero bluray option as i said before)

People buy apple for the OS not the hardware, Apple still refuse to add HDMI when it's a standard for ages this alone speaks volume of apple "think different" behavior, they added thunderbolt because it's mainly there now supported by intel, it will flood the market sooner or later

 

BTW, I'm not a fan of Apple by all means, just respect it but regarding the options of Thunderbolt... I expect that it will flood the market sooner than later...

BTW: (maybe out of topict, but 'related' in some way) this month we all techs lovers must honor that first "almost alien probe" that landed from the hands of Adam Osborne back in April 1981... The so called laptop, the Osborne 1...

( Even that with more than 10 kilo heavyweight was a very heavy landing in our lap. But, back then, some of us were young and very entusiastic for the futuristic options of the new techs...)

 

Hmmm;

That sounds interesting, a 300 Megapixel webcam is a first.

 

Now the question is, will the M18x have switchable graphics to save on battery life when not gaming

If so, I think Dell has a true winner.

 

Just bringing this up to the front of the thread again.

 

Just bumping to the front of the thread.

 

Thickness (Bottom to Top) X Width (left to right) X Length(Front to Back)

14 Inchers
1.49 X 13.27 X 10.27 @ 6.35lbs -- M14X
1.13 X 13.45 X 9.64 @ 4.65 lbs -- Acer 4820TG
1.16 X 14.01 X 9.33 @ 5.57 lbs -- HP Envy 14
1.07 X 13.60 X 9.39 @ 5.20 lbs -- Sony EA series
1.20 X 13.90 X 9.70 @ 5.35 lbs -- Dell XPS 14
1.10 X 13.43 X 9.26 @ 5.20 lbs -- Sony C series (note: as thick as 1.43 in the back with the high capacity battery)

Other electronics
1.20 X 14.60 X 9.80 @ 6.00lbs -- Vaio NW (my "slim" 15.4 inch laptop of '09)
0.34 X 9.50 X 7.31 @ 1.34lbs -- iPad 2 (WiFi) held in landscape mode
0.95 X 12.78 X 8.94 @ 4.50lbs -- MacBook Pro 13
0.95 x 13.04 X 8.84 @ 3.80lbs -- Vaio SA (13 incher)
1.10 X 9.25 X 12.70 @ 3.97lbs -- Acer 3820TG
1.0* x 12.40 X 8.30 @ 3.42lbs -- Vaio Z (*as thick as 1.3 in some areas)

Other objects that may be in a backpack/office
1.50 X 10.90 X 8.40 @ 5.20lbs -- Textbook (Glencoe Health Care Science Technology)
0.70 X 9.80 X 11.00 @ 1.50lbs -- 3 Subject Notebook by 5 Star (8.5 x 11 pages)
0.01? X 8.50 X 11.00 @ 0.01lbs? -- Piece of Paper (lol)


The M14X really isn't that big for a 14 inch laptop. It's a about half an inch thicker than a slim factor, an inch longer than the competition, and at least a pound heavier. But, on the positive side, it is actually small width-wise for a 14 inch. It is a good half inch to inch less wide than competitors. Usually Alienwares are bulky and the size resembles that of a laptop an inch (or two) larger. However, this time, the M14X seems to be just about what one would expect from a 14 inch. I don't think people need to consider this the size of a 15 inch as it fits in nicely in the 14 inch category. I pulled together a quick list to show this. If you want me to expand the list, just reply with the name of the things you want added.

Edit:
I just did a quick calculation: (assuming a 16:9 aspect ratio and 14 inch screen)
(16^2 + 9^2) ^ 1/2 / 16 = 14 / X
(16^2 + 9^2) ^ 1/2 / 9 = 14 / Y
X = 12.202, Y = 6.863

The dimensions of a 14 inch diagonal screen are 12.202 X 6.863. So, hypothetically, if there was no bezel at all, this is the minimum Width X Length would be for a 14 inch laptop. If you look at the M14X's length of 13.27, you can see that the bezel on the left and right is actually quite small. But, the depth of 10.17 indicates that the there probably will be a big bezel on the top and bottom of the screen.

 

Looks like it may not fit the Slappa backpack... sad

 

I am glad I have my Orion backpack , and its not that much bigger than the r1-r2 which is great, looks like im replacing my R1 with this one.

 

Thunderbolt is too new. You won't see it in the M18x I don't think. You could well add it via a card however, since there is a card slot, unlike the R3.

I like TB, but the facts are that TB is going to play 2nd maybe even 3rd fiddle to USB3 just on volume and backwards compatibility bases. However, TB will likely get used for display purposes first, with the possibility of driving multi display arrays from it (more depending on there being enough "oomph" in the GPU driving that configuration however). I think TB may find good use in docking stations as well.

Anyway, you won't likely see TB in any PC laptops for a year or so, thus this is a moot point until that happens.

 

I see that they advertise the wireless HDTV capability for the M18x. Is there any place in world where it's available for M17xR3? In Japan I haven't see it yet...
That is a strong selling point for me .

 

Honestly, notebookcheck benchmarks aren't very accurate. I don't really trust them. Among many problems they have, one major one is that they use different systems for testing (most importantly, different processors). For everybody out there reading this, I would recommend to look to another source that keeps variables like processor, motherboard, etc constant in their testing.


I also am in the M11X R3 vs M14X boat.

M11X = Portability
+ most likely will have a better battery
+ more portable
+ probably cheaper
- weaker GPU
- ULV processor (significantly slower)

M14X = Power
+ Faster Processor
+ Better GPU
- larger and heavier
- probably lower battery life
- presumably more expensive

The M14X is a bit too big for me and the M11X is a bit too small. I think for me the ideal laptop size is 13.3 inches (or 13.1 like the Vaio Z). If Alienware made an M13X, I would've bought that one without even thinking. Now, I'm going to end up wasting so much time trying to decide which one I would prefer.

Ugh... decisions, decisions.

 

It runs on the high performance mobile processors. So it really depends on what you call 'underpowered'. If you mean 'not extreme', then yes, but it'll take a 2820QM.

Ugh...so damn tempting...no, must resist! Need something more portable!

In all seriousness, that's pushing it just a bit too far in weight and size for me. It wouldn't fit in my backpack anyway.

My main issue is that soon enough I'll have to carry the laptop around everywhere...I'd be interested in the M17x as well but I feel that's still too heavy.

No reason why it wouldn't. The M17x does (provided you don't have a 120Hz screen) with the same GPUs available in the M18x.

 

I did a search for m18x dell in Google.

m18x - Dell - Search - All Dell.com

It is a alienware Orion backpack specific to the m18x. Interesting

 

Man the red m14x rendering looks pretty sweet. The first leaked photo looked like a washed out orange. Red or Black? decisions.... >_<

 

Well, it makes sense, the 'standard' Orion is only designed to fit up to 17" notebooks. They'd need a new one for the M18x.

Personally, I'd take Black over Red anyday. I think red looks just too flashy personally, and I really like black. (I think black gives it a more 'quality' look) That's just me however.

More interesting is on the bottom picture where it says 'up to' 2GB DDR3 graphics memory...what could that 'up to' mean?

 

different vid cards...

 

Not likely. Haven't the spec sheets shown that the only GPU is the 555M?

 

Maybe it has to do with the whole optimus thing. With the intel integrated graphics having 1.5gb and the 555m providing 2gb.

EDIT: Nvm the manual says only 512mb shared memory for the integrated graphics.

 

Hey guys, Any bags that may fit the m18x out there?

 

<<Deleted>>

 

I just saw it a few moments ago that there will be an Alienware Orion backpack for the m18x, already posted on Dells site with the 'not in stock' status.
(Also one for the m14x)

Here you go:
http://webcache.googleusercontent.c...px?s=gen&c=ca&l=en&cs=&k=m18x&cat=all&x=0&y=0

 

This issue gets brought up a lot, people seem to like jumping on this bandwagon around here. But how often do we see LAPTOPs with the same configuration? This is not like desktops where they can just have a same base system and try different graphics cards. the very nature of laptops preclude this.

Show me a website that has benchmarks which all use the same CPU but different GPUS.

I think most of us can more or less get what we need out of notebookcheck reviews. Just have to be smart about it. Obviously we need to look at benchamrks that are not so much CPU limited etc etc. they are the only benchmark table that i know of. the other websites cannot be bothered with it.

 

That there is an m11x if I'm not mistaken, nt an m14x (compare to previous images leaked, it has the clam sort of lid whereas the m11x has the straight edge onto the chassis, plus these pics don't show a disc drive) but man does the red look sweet!! Port arrangement is quite different from my r1, but I did hear they removed things such as the VGA to fit in the extra cooling.

Also, just checked the Australia Dell site, the m15x has been taken down, so I can only assume something is going up soon to replace it!!

 

M14x product page with description and pics up


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