Major differences?

Ok so between the Alienware m11x r2, the Alienware m15x r2, and the Alienware m17x r3 what are the core differences (based on base price versions only) What does one have to offer over the other, not just size and power. Thanks for all your answers, I'm trying to familarate myself with Alienware, and what better way than straight from the users themselves.

 

M17X-R3 = Can handle all games on ultra has newer tech, has great battery life, is used as a desktop replacement with limited travel.

M15X = Can handle all games on high, but has older tech, is heavy.

M11X-R2 = Portable/lightweight, can handle all games on med-high, ideal for a student/office travel/always on the go, has 7+ hrs of battery.

#1 and #3 are great laptops, however M15X has fallen behind too much to warrant buying it at the price asked by Alienware, since there's countless alternatives for a 15" gaming laptop for the same price with much better specs (like the one in my sig).

 

So which one woul be better for the price, m11x r2 or an m17x r3?

 

They're both competitively priced. It's up to you:

11.6" 4.5LBS vs 17.3" 9.3LBS.

Price difference is about 800$ between both.

 

First off, saying M17x R3 can handle ALL games on ULTRA is inaccurate and misleading to newbies. It's one of the most powerful notebooks at this moment but far from that powerful. Even X7200 or R2 full loaded are not capable of maxing out all games.

Secondly, there are major differences in built quality and chassis material and display quality between them. Both M15x and M17x R3 share the same WLED display (still people claiming R3 has better display than M15x and it's possibly true). Their chassises are both made out of magnesium but R3 has rubberized coating which makes it visually and feelingly (Ok, I made up that word) different from M15x.

M11x, on the other hand, has plastic chassis and worse display quality.

There are also other minor differences such as 1 or 2 HDDs, trackpad quality, LED, connections and other features. You should dig out a little bit more.

 

Would the word be tactile? Otherwise that sums it up excellently I can't find much of anything to add.

 

The M11x chassis is not all plastic. According to notebookreview here it is made out of magnesium alloy. Some parts are plastic though, such as the palmrest, parts of the display assembly. Its build quality is not that bad actually especially now that they finally fixed the hinges. I agree with the rest of the comments.

 

It can.

The 6870 can handle games on high.

The 6970 (upgrade option) CAN handle it all on ultra.

The only two games that will not handle everything on ultra is Metro 2033 and Crysis, but that's expected since both games were programmed very poorly.

There are 3 video card card options when building the M17X-R3.

Source for 6970:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-Radeon-HD-6970M.43077.0.html

 

M11x-R2 feels cheaper from a build quality standpoint compared to the M15x.

M11x=6+ hours battery life and doesnt throttle when on battery.
M15x=3 hours if lucky with 9 cell battery and throttles down when on battery.

The throttling makes a big difference if using in a fast pace setting while on battery.

Larger keyboard is easier to type on for me on the M15x than M11x.

M11x has a much better trackpad than M15x.

No experience with M17x.

These are all my opinions but have had both and use them often in classroom settings.

 

If you believe everything on Notebookcheck, i can understand you saying it can handle all games on ultra

 

It gives users an idea of what to expect. It's better than having nothing...

Each time I compared the website to laptop video cards, they were always near the claimed FPS, give or take a few after I got the laptop in hand.

Sure they might be occasionally wrong, but we're all human.

 

Bottom base of M11x is made of some sort of alloy (either magnesium, or more likely aluminum). The removable bottom panel is also an alloy. The M15x has an aluminum bottom chassis and screen lid, not magnesium. Not sure about the M17x-R3.

 

One thing worth noting is that while the R3 is a powerful system, it will never be a dual gpu laptop. If you want big screen gaming with a dual gpu system you may have to wait until the M18x is released. I dont want to rumour monger, it gets us nowhere....but, rumour has it that there will be an M18x at some point fairly soon that is the replacement of the current R2. It more than likely will have dual gpu capability and will be the flagship of the Alienware gaming laptop range.

I only mention it as you sound like you are contemplating buying soon and I know I would be waiting to see....obviously this depends on your own requirements from a system....mine was for a desktop replacement so a 17"+ laptop is fine for me...I dont lug it about all day, its stays put.

If you are of the same ilk (OP) it *may* be worth holding off a tad longer on a purchase.....sorry to throw another spanner in your process!