Question on m15x LCD

Hi all,

I've been watching Alienware for a long time waiting to buy my very own laptop and like a lot of users been waiting for the m17x to come (OMG), but I won't go into that because I'm still debating over the m15x lately as I'm currently travelling the world.

Your forum has been very helpful with a lot of questions - and I always find myself coming back here - so thanks to the moderators and helpful people for being such champs, but just wanted to
ask why many of you have ordered the m15x with the 1440 x 900 clearview display instead of the 1920 x 1200.

So with my "very limited" understanding the 1440x900 doesn't support blueray and if you get 1920 x 1200 can't you just reduce resolution if you wanted to play on 1440x900 isn't it better to have the higher screen?
(Although I understand why if you made this decision for budget reasons only)
But I wasn't quiet sure if that was the only reason that people are picking them.

I guess my 2nd question question is the 1440x900 has clearview tech - is that good? and what's the difference between clearview, glossy, matte, glass etc.

Thank you so much guys in advance - I have seen another post regarding some of my questions regarding the LCD's but didn't go into the detail I was after.

Oh one last point - if you opt to buy the additional battery can you use that in the smart bay instead of the 2nd hdd or am I just trippen - (yeah sorry - I know I should prolly be asking alienware but their customer support is,,,,um,,,,yeah as you all know)

 

if you use the smartbay battery you have to take out either your dvd/blu ray drive or the hdd.

The screen should support blu ray. i dont see what a screen has to do with blu ray not being able to play.

I think clearview just makes the screen brighter.

 

Welcome to the forum Zilu
Okay so I'm no techie either but from what I've gathered on the NBR forum, here's how it is:

1) 1440x900 does support Blu-Ray but only at 720p resolution whereas with the 1920x1200 you can get 1080p (or the AW-purported 1200p)

2) According to other users on the forum, having a higher-res screen for gaming would require more from your CPU and GPU which could lead to lower FPS or the like. Setting the screen to a lower resolution from it's natural (or "native") resolution would cause blurriness (according to some NBR talk)

3) I think Glossy refers to the finish on the screen that's used to make the colours of your LCD seem brighter, increase your contrast and make everything popout (that could also be the Clearview tech) It also reflects light alot so is usually not recommended to be used outside. Matte on the other hand is well a non-gloss finish for the screen which allows for much less reflection or glare on the screen.

4) Many users make the decision between the two LCDs also based on what they do - If they're mainly into games they usually go for the 1440x900 whereas those Photoshopp, Illustrator, CAD, Maya and Rendering guys out there need a lot more screen space or "real estate" to run many windows side by side and often opt for the 1900x1200

5) The additional SMART BAY battery can be inserted into the Smart Bay, not the additional 6-cell battery which just replaces the one you'll have on the back of the m15x

I hope this helps and has not been boring.. I usually use a lot more emoticons so bear with me

 

Wraithers you rock !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! thank you so much yeah yeah more emotes hay pick up your act...

 

I'm a gamer yeah, but now I'm even more confused I must admit.

I always thought - I'll get the 1900x1200 because I gathered it was the best, but as you mentioned frame rates and blurriness can become a problem.

I guess I just wanted to play the games in the best possible resolution and didn't consider the above (never owned a laptop before cause they use to be bad for gaming.)

But surely some games I'll be playing in 1900x1200 with good frame rates, no blurriness etc, but others like Crysis or whateva I can't and may experience problems.

So hmm should I get the 1900x1200 and may experience problems and how bad those are I have no idea,, or get the 1440x900 and should experience no to very little problems but sacrafice some resolution in movie viewing - cause if you fork out the big bucks for blue ray I guess I wanted the best resolution too.

In the end I care more for gaming over blue ray so definately recon getting the lower res 1440x900 hu...?

 

Zilu... This is one of that questions that will never have only one answer.
My opinion is... 1440x900 is the best solution for gaming. I had a 1600x1200 (or whatever), and I did think it was too much for me (on a 15'' laptop). I was always playing at lesser resolutions (to increase fps and make games smoother). If you buy a 1900x1200, not even the 8800GTX will be able to run games like crysis, for example, at high details.
So... I'm going for the 1440x900 myself and if, in the future I'll need a bigger screen, I'll just get a big monitor (for the price of the screen upgrade).
My... 2 cents.

 

Oh, and more... If you have a HD-TV, just plug your laptop to the TV and play it in High-definition.
Go for the 1440x900... it's the best compromise (in my humble opinion).

 

I recommend the 1440x900 for gaming, typing, and web-surfing.

I used to have the 1900x1200 on my m5550 and it's really only useful if you do A LOT of photo editing and other things which require the extra space.

Like, milcs said, you can plug the lappy into a HD-TV later on...

 

The thing is, if you are going to watch Blu-Ray on a 15 inch, i swear you will not be able to tell the difference between 720P and 1080P or 1200p. Only when you are watching Bluray on 30inch and over will you finally start benefittiing from the 1080p. For 15 inch, 720p is MORE than enough.

As for gaming, go for 1440 as it will future proof you to an extent as well as games become ever more demanding.

If you are going 15inch, go for 1440. If you are waiting for 17inch, then i would go for the 1920 since you have more actual screen space and everything wont be so tiny and most likely it will come with SLI to help out with the higher resolutions. But even on a 17inch I would have preferred like 1680 as a best in the middle compromise, 1920 is just over kill for most people unless ofcourse u are doing photoshop or whatever...

 

As you say, these higher resolution screens, such as a WUXGA (1920x1200) are really more for photoshop pros.

I believe the screen size is dictated by the new Blu-ray standard. Full HD is 1920x1080, so the image would need to be scaled to fit on the 1680x1050 with all the consequent blurring etc. If your getting the Blu-ray drive, I think the full size screen is a must. It's a lot of money for a portable Blu-ray player.

I have chosen the m15x with a DVD and a 1440 x 900 screen. Gaming is the priority for my laptop, so to keep the frame rates up etc, it's the way to go. If I want I can still watch high-def in 720p (1200x720) the extra lines will be black, and I can still use the HDMI out for full HD in the future. (If someone sorts out the external monitor issues reported on this board.) Some high-def content is only available at 720p at present.
I don't think my eyes are good enough to know the difference between 720p and 1080p on a 15.4" screen anyway.

The important thing to remember is you will get the best image at the screens native resolution.

 

The 1920x1200 resolution is more suitable for a 17" or larger screen. However, I have never noticed any "blurring" of images by lowering the resolution on my m9750 from native to1440x900 or lower. What will be noticed with games at lower resolutions are the jagged line effects. Anti-aliasing filtering can correct this but that places increased rendering demand on the GPU. Chances are that these effects will not be that noticeable on a 15" screen anyway so it will probably be ok to go with 1440x900 and save some money.

The ClearView or glossy screen gives a brighter color rendition by reducing the amount of light reflected at various wavelengths as it travels from the LCD panel outward to the viewer (not to be confused with the light reflected off the screen externally).

 

A Big thank you to all !! you've all been really great help and I will definately now be ordering the 1440x900 - cheers fella's

 

We're glad to be of help
You guys (milcs, dhoang417, Kaiserphoenix, Captain Rawley and Loggie) beat me to clearing up one or two things
Oh and if you still want Zilu I could add some emoticons to my post
How about the rest of your config.. Mind posting it up ?

 

As Wraithers says... it's really a pleasure to help. We are all ignorant in one way or another, and it's good to have around a handfull of knowledgeable people.
Just another little advise... if you are in the UK, I would order the AW with only 1GB and the smallest HD, and upgrade later (for example, from Overclockers UK) to 4GB and 200GB 7200rpm (I read reviews that say that, unlike its predecessors, the Travelstar 7.2k 200GB is quite good). You will save over 100 pounds just like that. (this is also valid for outside the UK, I just don't know where to buy from).

 

If in the US I would recommend checking out www.newegg.com

@milcs - I was actually waiting for Zilu to post his/her config before giving advice.. You jumped ahead of me
I agree with his advice by the by..

Would also suggest you pick up the 1GB Intel Turbo Memory if you are looking for longer battery life; it has been reported to give about 20min more to your battery life.
So an m15x with BinaryGFX, Stealth mode, Extra Smart Bay battery, 1GB Turbo Mem, brightness on lowest & no wireless, bluetooth or USB connected devices, should give you about 7+ hrs

Edit: Three Hundred & Thirty Three posts

 

Now as for the extra Smart Bay HDD/Battery (and Optical Drive?), will they be available for separate purchase AFTER you receive your m15x?

So far, on the Alienware and Newegg, I haven't been able to find them available for purchase, unless I'm blind and just missed them...

Because, financially, I don't think I'll be able to afford everything at once, and would like to order the additional items once the pockets aren't hurting so much after the initial checkout. o_o

 

Yea.. You can order them after the purchase of your m15x
You can't find them on Alienware cause it'll only show after you order your m15x and/or you'll have to call them & order it.
Users have reported that you also get some % off on the accessories when you order afterward.. Don't know if it still applies though

 

Basically Zilu, we are all or have been in the same boat. We only learn by asking questions and it would be wrong if someone asked a question and none answered.
We are all here to help each other, we all have some knowledge, it's when we come together that almost anything can be sorted (unless Alienware needs to act lol).

Just my 2p

OB

BTW, don't be afraid to ask "stupid" questions. It's better to ask and be told you're wrong or there's a better way, than assume and break your new baby

OB

 

From what I've heard, the glossy screen doesn't reflect as much as on other laptops or at least I hope it doesn't as I will be using it quite a bit outside.

 

1st, the 1920 x 1200 is great for full HD (1080) movies but can make icons smaller. Personally i'd go for this, i had it on my Inspiron 15.4" and it was great, games at full resolution are awsome.
2nd, The screens AW are using seems much better than the ones Dell put in the 1730, glossy is good for picture quality but i'm not sure about glare!
3rd, You can get a smart-bay battery which will obviously boost your battery life...

OB

 

me personally, i don't think you'll see the difference between 720p and 1080p on a 15.4" screen.

 

Ok the below is my spec - but it might change if parts get cheaper - basically I won't be ordering it m17x comes out - I need to make a finale decision then.

M15x
1440x900 LCD
Vista home/ultimate (haven't decided - I like the animated wallpaper option on ultimate - turn it off for gaming though)
8800m GTx
2.5 C2Duo (want the 2.8 extreme this choice was budget reasons subject to change if parts are cheaper)
1gb (yeah thanks previous threads have been helpful in this decision to upgrade later - I am a little concerned about doing it myself might slip a laptop require dude a 10pounds to do it with grounding braclet etc...)
Intel Turbo memory 1gb
200gb hdd
Smart bay ( none for budget reasons if I can buy the 320gb later or just use and external hdd via usb)
Dual layer writer with lighscribe (decided against blue ray for budget reason and why not find a good excuse to buy a PS3 instead for a little bit more cash - but this is subject to change if parts get cheaper.)
External creative x-fi xtreme audio card ( I gather this is better then the intel version - yeah ? )
Alienware Illuminated AlienFx Keypad
Additional Battery
Alienrespawn v2.0 recovery dvd
McAfee 36-month subscrip (eh I donno about mcafee used them before too many pop up boxes while gaming)
#
Port adapters
FireWire 9-pin
HDMI to DVI-D adapter

I'm also thinking getting a G15 keyboard and that sexy gaming mouse with weights in it - but we'll see how the budget holds out

Yeah I'm in UK for work - cheers - weather sux what's new (but I'm aussie)

 

G'day (",)

OK, the specs good and well planned, if it's ok i have a few suggestions...

The RAM, upgrading it is easy, basically open up the case and pop out the existing RAM, and swap it for the new 4Gb, don't worry you can't really go wrong, it only goes in one way (",)
The smart-bay, my advice is buy the smallest Smart-Bay HDD, then you can swap it for a 500Gb HDD (Sansung) when they are cheap, put the 80Gb or whatever you swap it for in an enclosure and you're sorted for life lol.
Or get the smart-bay battery for more battery life but, you need to chose and get either to get the caddy for the HDD or battery added really.
I agree with the sound card, more monay means better, right?

You don't need to buy a virus checker, i'll forward the link but basically you can use, a whole range of free versions that are much better, take up less resources and work.

The best free anti-virus and anti-spyware

Another good link is this The best free software for Vista & XP it's full of very useful and free programs that are probably better than the payable versions as they generally work better and without using resources.

Basically good luck when you decide. Personally i'm waiting the M17X to be released, i want a full blown game playing beast lol but i'm also following the above links for free software.... why pay when it's free and works?

OB

 

yeah it's better, but you might want to note that it sticks out of the side of the xpress card slot.

http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/22878.jpg

 

if you want to save money i would buy the hdmi converter somewhere else since alienware overcharges for it. i got a dvi female to hdmi male converter. you should also just get rid of intel turbo memory since there is no point having that.

with the smart bay hard drive, it hasnt been proven that the 80 gig hard drive can be swapped out for a 500 gig external hard drive's, hard drive. so far its a only theory that it might work.

with the ram upgrade you can easily do it yourself. i did it myself. all you need to do is take out the battery and then open the service cover. after that take out the stock ram and stick in the new ram. you dont need a grounding bracelet or pay a person to do it for you.

if you are planning to get a g9 i actually recommend the death adder over it. i have both mouses and actually perfer the deathadder over the g9.

 

I actually prefer the G9 as it has 2 different grips, and you can customize the weights, plus it has inbuilt memory and profile switching so u can take ur mouse to another computer and have the same settings etc.

 

Actually that's not accurate - A few users on NBF (Notebook Forum) were trying to get the most battery life out of the m15x with ultra conservative settings and found that Intel Turbo Memory adds around 20+min to your battery life..
Here's the link - http://www.notebookforums.com/thread215222.html

@ Zilu - IF you're looking for battery life/working on the go then stick with it, otherwise that $50 can be spent on other things on the config pages

 

@wraithers
well that information that the turbomemory saves so much energy is new to me. I read the linked article but I didn't find a real test/conclusion. The only hint is that the m15x of one person with turbomemory ran longer. From my point of view that's not enough to verify this theory.

 

Upgrading the RAM is very simple and you know if you need help most of us are happy to help. Also just like someone suggested do not buy antivirus from them.

 

why not?


(ignore these words)

 

You may have to wait for future windows/Alienware updates for the Penryn procesors for the Torbo memory to be utilised.

I'm going to go for it, apparently it takes a while for the system to sort the data that you access frequently, to then load this first and thus save time etc. So you may not get an instant benefit of speed as the system has to learn your "movements" etc.

Just my 2p

OB

 

There are way better options and free ones.

 

free? tell me more please...

additionally, how do i change my order?

 

because it's more expensive than buying it elsewhere (like with the RAM, the HDD and the other accessory). In addition there are several scanners which are free and good.
*This* page is very helpful as it has unbiased tests...

Free scanners: Avast, AntiVir ...

 

okay thanks. so how do i tell AW to forget the antivirus prog?

 

phone the customer service and chancel it - this shouldn't delay your order

 

You will have to call CS on Monday and tell them you want to remove that from your order.

 

Wait so is Turbomemory thing worth it?? is everyone leaving it out or getting it???

 

I left mine out. I figure it does really make any kind of improvement then I'll buy later so far I see none. Someone please correct me if i'm wrong.

 

ppl are saying to buy the least amount of ram and the smallest hard disk capacity from alienware... For the Us, newegg site is good. But what about for Canada, anyone know good sites to buy parts from?

 

there's definitely a benefit with battery life for turbo memory... it can power-down the harddrive with little to no noticable difference... caching writes into the turbo memory, and caching 'read ahead' data too. thus the harddrive can stay spun-down for longer. the system does need to 'learn' how you use the computer before doing so... i left it out of my config because i'm not too concerned over the modest power savings and slight performance increase right now.

what i will do though, is buy it later. maybe when they offer 2GB? who knows.

it's just a Mini-PCIe card that you slot-in and screw in... easy stuff. the Turbo-memory is supposed to go right next to the hdd, between it and the video card. (near the battery)... so you can buy a unit whenever, if you can find one... you can also use USB flash drives as turbo memory, but then you have a memory stick sticking out of your computer all the time...

 

I use NCIX.com and Tigerdirect.ca. I've ordered from both. both are very good. NCIX usually has better prices, but for me, being in ontario, Tigerdirect is closer and has lower costs for shipping. so i shop there mostly... also gets me my parts faster.

good luck!

 

Can you use a Sony memory stick for this feature?
(I've got plenty of these in all sorts of sizes)

P.S. Sorry for going off thread.

 

no, I don't think so.

 

Yes if the memory card is Ready Boost certified or if it has fast enough reading and writing time. If yes than you could leave de memory card in the memory card reader and I dont think it would stick out much.

Thank you,
I did some research and found also www.canadacomputers.com and www.pcvonline.com. Tigerdirect dont have the Hitachi Travelstar 7k that I want...

 

I'd be concerntrating on not dying to take cool videos lol

I've never done online gaming as i've never had a machine that would play the games lol

I'm hoping that the camera on the M17X is good, although i'm guessing it will be the same one as fitted to the M15X... I'm hoping that it can be used for Skype?

OB

 

I have a question about LCD and monitor too....

due to my budget, i think i can only go for 1440X900 screen
i was wondering if later on i plug my AW with 1440X900 on a 1900X1200 LCD monitor, will i be about to resize it to 1900X1200? or it iwll only stay at 1440X900?

 

EBE-1 yes the output of the computer to an external monitor has nothing to do with the resolution of your computer. It is the graphics card so yes, you can output to whatever resolution the card supports and it supports 1900 although not sure about 2560