M17x to pull the trigger or not

Okay so I'm in Australia and with limited options I can't choose from much. Tried haggling and existing system with Dell on the phone but they wouldn't budge

Here are my specs:
Operating System Genuine Windows® 7 Professional 64bit (English)
Processor Intel® Core™ i7-720QM Processor (1.6GHz,4 Cores/8 Threads,turbo up to 2.8GHz, 6MB Cache)
Memory 8GB (2 x 4GB) Dual-channel 1333MHz DDR3 SDRAM
Video Card Dual - 1GB ATI Radeon Mobility HD 4870
Hard Drive 1TB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive (500GBx2)(Raid 0)
Optical Drive Slot Load Fixed Blu-ray BD-ROM / DVD + /-RW Combo Drive

I have a few extra options and most of these can't be lowered(i7 is the minimum spec in AU).

Should I drop to 4GB or not... it's a saving of ~$400AU.. Only concern is I do a reasonable amount of VMWare work so it would sort of be a deal breaker... I could save ~$250 by dropping to 6GB but how substantial would the loss of dual chan be?

I would happily upgrade myself in the future however I am not 100% sure the warranty would be as permissible in Australia as in the US can any verify this... As far as I can see on Dell AU the Dell warranty applies.

 

Drop the Ram and HD and upgrade yourself.

 

In Dell USA Memory is considered a customer serviceable part, so if you upgraded from 4gb to 8gb you wouldn't void it. I highly doubt they have a different policy in Australia. If I were you I would get the 4gb 1033 (the cheapest memory) and upgrade accordingly if you see fit.

 

yeah drop the ram. only usefull if you go vitual with vmware apps and stuff.
4GB more then enough for us gamers.

 

Bang tigger pulled cheers guys:
Base Nebula Red Base
Processor Intel® Core™ i7-720QM Processor (1.6GHz,4 Cores/8 Threads,turbo up to 2.8GHz, 6MB Cache)
Memory 4GB (2 X 2GB) Dual-channel 1333MHz DDR3 SDRAM
Keyboard AlienFX® Illuminated Keyboard (English)
Video Card Dual - 1GB ATI Radeon Mobility HD 4870
Hard Drive 1TB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive (500GBx2)(Raid 0)
Operating System Genuine Windows® 7 Professional 64bit (English)
Optical Drive Slot Load Fixed Blu-ray BD-ROM / DVD + /-RW Combo Drive
Sound Integrated Stereo Sound
Bundle T510110AU-Alienware M17X
Dell Services: Hardware Maintenance 3-Year Premier Service
Wallpaper Alienhead 3D
Wireless Network Card Dell Wireless 1520
Bluetooth Dell™ Wireless 370 Bluetooth Internal mini-card
Dell Services: Remarks Laptop Batteries Carry 1 Year Warranty Only From Invoice Date
Dell's Terms and Conditions apply
Primary Battery 9-cell Primary Battery
Carrying Cases No Case
Item included in the System Directship Info Mod
System Driver
System Resource Media Kit
Mod Specs Info (Australia)
Tech Sheet (ANZ)
Alienware Nameplate
Alienware Command Center Software
WinRE software
CyberLink YouCAM Camera Software
Internal 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet
ExpressCard Slot, (DOES NOT SUPPORT PC CARDS)
Security Software McAfee® Security Center™ 30-day trail OEM
Avatar Alien Red Glyphs
System Documentation Document and Accessories for Alienware M17x (English)
AlienFx Colour AlienFX RED
Time Zone Time-Zone Updates (GMT+10:00) Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney
Label Options Intel® Core™ i7 Label
HD display 17.0" WUXGA 1920 x 1200 - Beyond HD (1200p) - RGB LED
Delivery Requirements Standard Delivery: Delivery 9am-5pm - Monday to Friday (excl. public holidays)
Freights NB-OL-CTO Handling and Insurance charges(Australia)
Automatic Update Automatic Updates On
Power Options 240W Primary AC Adapter
Dell Services: Theft Protection Solution Free 30 days FailSafe Theft Protection–track and protect lost or stolen laptops

 

Nice, Congrats!