When are the new Alienwares with Maxwell coming?

I thought I read somewhere that the 980m wont do 3d vision on our laptops.... I have been looking for that info for awhile this morning but cant find it.

I was thinking about upping to a 980m, but if it means I will loose 3d, I will just leave my 780 in there.

 

Just do a compare of the 880m and 980m feature set at nvidia to see all the features they dropped, including 3D Vision.

A NV rep did claim that it does do 3D vision but he may have been confused with the desktop cards?

 

GTX 980M support 120Hz. There are Clevo machines with 120Hz running 980M

 

Supporting 120hz is fine, but 3d vision support may not be a supported thing... but I dont know, it doesnt list the 980m on thier "supported gpu" list.

 

Isnt 120Hz the same as 3D Vision?

 

Alienware 17 R2 will get the following displays btw:

- 1920x1080 Anti Glare 300nits (Standard) - TN Display
- 1920x1080 TrueLife 300nits with touch technology (lol seriously Dell)

http://www.notebookcheck.com/fileadmin/Notebooks/News/_nc2/Dell_Alienware_17_Maxwell_Graphics_Amplifier_1.jpg

 

Yes and no, 120hz is needed for 3d vision. But 3d vision is a software deal that flashes the lcd screen like a strobe light and syncs with the glasses to give you the 3d effect.

 

Sounds like I might try to build a frankenMachine, if the MB has an LVD port, but on all existing models only the iGPU can get the machines past POST with the 9xx cards

Wonder how those Clevo's cope with the iGPU and a 120hz panel? Unless it's a multi-sync panel in which case the problems never arise?

 

What I find humorous here is people basing everything off of some pre-staged web pages... for all you know those items are merely place holders until Dellienware finalizes. It's entirely possible those are the only screens they have on hand right now so they are the only ones confirmed. I can almost guarantee you that 1080p screens won't be the only resolution options for their 17" lineup, they would be laughed out of business with the press coverage alone.

People are so upset currently with the i5 in the AW 13 (with some merit, but not entirely), a system most of the people with an 18 aren't going to buy anyway as it is aimed at a different segment, and the ability to use the G/A which frankly offers far superior options on the desktop for a price and ability to upgrade than you will ever see with laptop parts. I am not even convinced the 18 is going away still personally, and I predicted the move to a thinner 17 with the G/A sooner rather than later.

I would say wait to see what is said at PAX and CES before getting all depressed... I remember when people had a serious concern about going private that Dell was going to spin off or even kill AW (made me jump on an M14x-R2, making me miss the new AW 14), then guess what, the AW 18 arrived... and worst case lets say they stumble a time because some marketing-bean counters are in the mix thinking that the name brand will still have appeal and it doesn't... it may not, and they may turn around and get much more aggressive and return to non-BGA parts as long as they are available. It's like the stock market it seems, when things are down people think it will never get better, and when it's up good times will last forever... best to relax a bit and wait for the official word before getting too worked up imho.

 

Its hard to offer any 17" displays when no display manufacture make any with higher than 1080p.
What they should have offered was
17" LG IPS display
17" 120Hz display
Who use a touch display?

The problem I see is that
A) The 15W CPU will undoubtly bottleneck pretty much any GPU you put in that GA box. So you get a loud box with a separete cooling system but unable to harvest all the power from it.
B) The GA box is huge. Its like a medium sized desktop, so now you have both a notebook and a desktop instead of a notebook with proper hardware. With cables going from the GA box to the notebook, plus it needs a separete power supply (well its onboard but its yet another cable).

If you visit the 980M thread in the Alienware subforum at Techinferno I think there are several guys there that have used 980M with 120Hz.

 

Tons of people, including gamers. It makes Windows 8 easier to access, and I'll argue the same for 7.
Keep in mind they are offering a 1440p touchscreen as well. If you don't like touch, disable it. It's just an extra feature.If you have a problem with an extra feature, then I don't know what to say.

Well the 13 won't take full advantage of the GA. That's a given. The 15 and 17 R2, though, will most likely take full use of the GA.
As for the size? That thing is smaller than an X51, so it I can't buy into your hyperbole abut the size.

 

"Tons of people"? lol. I`m betting that there is a extremely small userbase that prefer touch screens on a gamer notebook. From my experience using a tablet, both with Windows and iOS, I know its a freaking disaster many times. From dealing with small fonts and trying to hit it with your finger and not that other link. Or just the darn frustration watching all those fingerprints and fat stains on the display. Ughhhh

AW17 R2 with a i7 would do much better with GA. No doubt about that. But I still see only hassle and frustration dealing with another desktop. I went with notebook for a lot of reasons. Portability was just one small part of it.

The box is huge man. lol
http://cdn2.mos.techradar.futurecdn.net//art/laptops/Alienware/Alienware%2013/Alienware%2013_3-580-90.jpg
http://cnet3.cbsistatic.com/hub/i/r/2014/10/27/b4f5645d-7345-44f1-a248-7551c9677339/thumbnail/770x433/52f46916b97e3bb017d844ad2d0cf77f/alienware-13-with-graphics-amplifier-product-photos15.jpg

Oh well all subjective I guess. But in my eyes I rather deal with a dedicated desktop beast than that box

 

1. You didn't really counter my point about "tons of people" liking touch. You just said not many gamers prefer it, and that is actually proving my point rather than hurting it. Just because you don't like doesn't mean others won't or think it is a bad addition.
2. You keep sending that image. I don't think you understand what you are actually doing. Comparing it to the 13 is all you are doing. You haven't justified your claim that it is huge (in comparison to the 13 sure, but what about other objects/computers).

 

"Counter my point"
lol, someone is up on his high horse today

AW13 isnt a small machine either. Its small compared to other AW machines yes, but as a thing I dont see it as small. A ring is small if you want to start discussing perception of sizes.

I`m not gonna bother searching for sale number information for notebooks with touch screens if you think that. I`ve read enough articles that OEMs are dissappointed about horrible sales with these displays. Its an option to upgrade to that display yes, but Dell would be way better off with focusing to get an IPS display as option than a freaking touch screen

 

I personally don't think touch works with laptops, it's not really an efficient/easy/or enjoyable way to use it - mouse & keyboard is better in most situations. The GA box is pretty big, I'm not sure where I stand on that one, but if they're gimping laptops with the excuse of having the GA then I don't agree with that philosophy, but wouldn't mind them selling it as an addition to an already strong laptop.

 

If the AW17 R2 really comes with soldered GPU, then there is your answer about trying to pave way for a GA purchase from the customer down the line :/

I mean, there are many many people still using the old M18x R1 or M17x notebooks today and didnt buy the new AW17/AW18 models, but just upgraded the GPUs instead.

 

Well, at least two of us are of the opinion that touch input on a laptop sucks. I know from experience using a number of them that I hate touch input. It's bad enough with tablets and smartphones, but it's horrible on a laptop... awkward, plus having a filthy, slime covered screen is also pretty disgusting. But here's the deal... I love glossy edge-to-edge display with no hideous bezel. Touch can be disabled in Windows configuration. There's no reason to feel compelled to use it. The underlying problem is the dumbing down of the hardware on new laptops. This is not an Alienware problem... the cancer is everywhere. I'm sure this filth is coming to Clevo soon enough as well. It's a great day to be an owner of an older Alienware, or an older Clevo... especially the M18xR2 and P570WM3. People need to start snagging these machines on eBay while they still can, or they will be stuck with this new BGA trash as the only option until the idiotic BGA fad blows over. Otherwise, save your money and build a desktop instead.

 

Yeah, I have been following one ( Going to test clevo 980m in alienware m17x R4, m18x R2, AW17 - Page 40), so far not a single 120hz confirmed. Also it appears that win 8 and full UEFI boot is required (not compatibility mode).

Think I'll just wait out the new models and try the 1440p panel, easy enough to just return it if it's not up to scratch

 

I should have clarified - I was speaking about the Graphics Accelerator for the AW 17 but moreover as a general concept. We are all well aware of limitations with it in the AW 13

 

I am on the fence on touch screen laptops. It works for some, but fails on others. I often wish my m11x was a touch screen, but never would I want my 17 to have it.
To go from keyboard to screen on a 11 inch is a much smoother motion, to go from keyboard to top of screen on a 17 is a pretty long reach.

I think the 13 can pull it off, the 17 cant.

 

In an odd circumstance I have an AW 13 1080p (albeit with a dead pixel or two or a screen flaw) and now one with a 1440p coming on Monday and after a day or two of evaluating I will decide on whether to 1) return both units and chance a 3rd with 1080p or 2) keep the 1440p or 3) seek a discount on a threat to return on the first 1080p; it is all dependent on what my opinions are on the 1440p; it is a game system first and a work system second, so I am not as concerned about touch or text size (and yes, if the fps hit is not more than 20% or different resolutions still look good enough I will live with the 1440p until Silverlake).

I am in the camp that currently has no interest in touch, but I do agree with an earlier poster that on an 11" or 13" the quickness of reach might actually make it work. For gaming obviously not, but in some cases with general work it might be handy. The touch concept makes the most sense in all-in-one systems imnsho....

 

Touch has no place on a traditional hinged laptop. Neither does ridiculous resolution sizes. You are not going to tell the difference between 4K and 1400P (MAYBE you can between 1080P and 1200P) on a 17" screen or smaller. 4K only makes sense on 45"+ displays that physically NEED more pixels to up the PPI to an acceptable level.

 

Why is Dell begin with touchscreen on an Alienware? Throughout the Europe Pc manufacturers dumps large laptops with touch screen, then nobody buys them. Pc manufacturers have figured out that this is a loss project and has started emptying its inventories with this garbage. It's getting perverse that Dell is doing this nowadays.

 

Who sits with an almost four kilograms laptop on your lap and writes with his fingers and a pen on a large touch screen? Idiocy ....

 

I can see use cases on smaller devices but they really should integrate a pen with it that's easy to get out.

 

I had been disgusted of looking at my or my wife's filthy laptop screen because of finger use.

 

I really have to disagree with this gross generalization that people can't generally see a difference with 20/20 vision on 17" or smaller. Textures, text, etc. most people will agree look better on a higher resolution whether or not they can actually identify a difference in pixel count. Images are generally more engaging and natural at higher resolutions wether one can distinguish pixel density or not. If you doubt this figure out the density needed to do away with anti aliasing... It's way higher at 17" 16.9 than 1080p... Or even 1440p.

 

I feel that touch panel has no place in this gaming scenario but I have strong feeling that the 17 R2 is gonna fail miserably in terms of flexibitlity/upgradability factors...
Thanks to the freaks at AWHQ they've deciced to nerf the machines, brand once and for all despite learning from Clevo or the M18x R2 in house machine....this is not an enthusiast brand anymore.

 

It's not a feeling, it's fact unfortunately, but it's not "just the freaks at AWHQ", it's the market trend so it's a bit unfair to hold it against Alienware specifically... Dellienware is taking steps to create some value-performance dynamic with the Graphics Accelerator for example and get the equation down because they see what's happening, I think more clearly than most of the other players and are getting ahead of the game (they have been doing this a looong time).

The time is shortly coming where Clevo/Sager and all the vendors will all be in this same position. In fact, thinking about it, the resources and size of Dell behind the Alienware brand might actually result in more possible performance options in a BGA world than vendors like Clevo/Sager could muster. It's the difference between a glorified builder (ie Clevo/Sager, MSI, Nvidia, etc) and a platform developer (Dell, HP, ASUS, etc).

Again, I sympathize, but at the same time... it is what it is...

 

The Alienware was a company which was better than Clevos with their "M18x R2" and still it's the best machine ever from this corp. until that P570WM with 6-core CPU's against 18" and the new P7Xx series with K series CPU's against 17" are now turning their face from the enthusiast market towards a general consumer market making the brand similar to other companies like ASUS, MSI, GB which are dead in this NB Enthusiast / Gaming league. Leaving this segment to clevos entirely as of now due to the stupid move by Dellienware....

Yet the Clevo is the only brand that withstood this bga filth flood till date...I guess they will further.

So In my opinion & I guess most older Aw machine users / Overclockers here, they deserve every bit of scorning from us Aw-NBR users as a true enthusiast group & After this one would never expect AW to be good performer anymore as they never listen/care for consumers anymore, Look at the fan profiles, configuration options, build quality and the infamous nameplate...& Porras also seems not to be active anymore

It's very unfortunate that this happened, I think all current users of the new R1 versions of 17 and 18 must take care of their systems after 1YR period as if there's any chance of replacement no one would ever downgrade to that low ultraturd thin stupid machines...

Lastly, I just hope that 980M on the newer machines should be atleast an MXM one though highly unlikely as it seems from the leaks, atleast for us to use vBIOS on our old machines.

 

Oh Clevo will follow suit with soldered CPUs.
Just wait and see the MQ inventory dry out and Intel come out with soldered HQ chips only, for Broadwell and Skylake. Then they are forced to.

But I think Clevo are aware of this. They have the SLI beast with desktop i7 CPUs, and there are 2 new models as well with single GPU from Clevo now coming with a i7 desktop CPU. So this could be their solution to Intel only producing soldered mobile CPUs.
But the thin notebooks though, they probably need mobile CPUs to keep heat down. Unless Clevo get all creative and start downclocking the desktop CPUs.

 

Or using T desktop processors. They consume 35w to 45w. But the thin thin ones? I don't even think undervolting and downlclocking will be an answer.

 

The thin Clevo laptops use soldered HQ chips too. My opinion is that Clevo is well aware of what Intel is trying to pull, which is why they're designing single GPU machines that take desktop chips (P7xxZM) to circumvent Intel. I hope the ZM is a success so Clevo will have financial incentive to continue offering machines like this for the foreseeable future.

 

The "answer" is to not pay money for garbage. Buy something else, or build something else. There is no way to fix low-TDP filth. It's broken by design and will never qualify as something awesome... ever. And, no, sorry, undervolting and downclocking is not an acceptable option. That makes about as much sense as buying a prize stud horse and having it emasculated. But again, it's really easy... don't buy trash and you won't have to try to compensate for lousy performance. Those "T" processors are lackluster performers. They don't hold TurboBoost speeds under load very well, and they are pretty stinking weak CPUs. You can't expect anything special from a 35W to 45W CPU with locked TDP... that just ain't gonna happen.

They are counting on the "if you build it they will come" principle. You either can resist it and do your small part to bring financial harm to them for making stupid business decisions, or you can become part of the problem by giving them your money for something pathetic and disappointing. And, by "they" I don't mean only Alienware... I'm talking about all the OEMs peddling BGA and low TDP trash as "gaming notebooks" to people that don't know any better. The only beef I have with Alienware is them wimping out and going with the flow instead of taking a stand on principle. I thought they were better than that, but they are actually a major contributor to the problem now. The "if you build it they will come" principle works the other way, too. Build something better, and people that want better will buy it. Now they are competing against other crap-book makers to capture business in a market with more competition and smaller profit margins.

 

That was a good idea. Just looked now and the 4770T can run up to 3.9GHz. TDP is like 45W.
A good replacement for CPUs up to 4980HQ. You get socketed CPU and with a 9 series chipset you will also get DDR4 support

 

Even if you get DDR4 support in new laptops, this helps nothing if you can not be offered a proper (extreme) processor and only being offered a garbage processor with a TDP of 45W or less ...That can not be overclocked. Maybe with 15-22 w TDP later.

 

Low TDP desktop chips make no sense to me. Why? Because a K chip can do everything a T or S chip can do and much more. Having unlocked multipliers and power control means you can undervolt and underclock if you really have to, in addition to the usual overclocking. T and S chips have locked multipliers, and I wouldn't be surprised if they were TDP locked as well.

 

Begins Dellienware to deliver laptops with processors (T or S chip), you can be sure that in addition also bios be completely locked .. They already have a useless bios for their Alienware laptops with extreme processors.

 

Well, we cannot single out Alienware. I expected them to be a cut above the rest in terms of specs, but they are not. They are just going with the flow and laughing at people dumb enough to buy it. All of the OEMs are pushing trash out their doors now, not just Alienware. Unless you are going to buy an older Ivy XM system used, a new system with Haswell MQ/MX or a Clevo P570MW with Haswell-E, and MXM GPUs it would be better to buy nothing at all. Either upgrade what you have, buy an upgradeable used machine, or build a desktop.

 

They deliver in the least gtx980m with their laptops ...

 

It seems pretty obvious they held back on introducing the 900-series GPU's to accommodate the changes to the lineup to incorporate the Graphics Accelerator. Like it or not, it wouldn't make much sense to introduce a short lived revision with 980m's then turn around with a new lineup using the G/A and the 900-series GPUs. It's a fair enough trade off for a cycle to be later than usual IMHO.

 

if dell nickes the 18 i swear to god ill start a class action lawsuit on this crap im currently typing on..

 

The only reason I can think of that they would not have have refreshed the existing Alienware 17 and 18 with 970M and 980M MXM modules is because not nearly as many people would be interested in buying the new BGA crap just to get a 980M-powered setup. Given a choice between the two, I think a lot of folks would opt out of the BGA jokebooks. That's dirty pool as far as I am concerned, but it might backfire on them when the same people that would not be interested in buying the new BGA crap will still be not interested in it and will upgrade what they already have, or buy something used and upgrade it, or buy an unaffected Clevo model to avoid being trapped on a one-way train to low-TDP/poor performance hell. Again, this is a cancer that plagues the industry and it's not limited to Alienware and Clevo. Unfortunately, the mainstream bottom-feeders in the industry are leading the way with this anemic computer trash and it should be the other way around.

It's a great day to own an a prior generation Alienware machine that is upgradeable. Anyone that buys the new stuff will be on a dead-end street with a disposable machine. GTX 980M seems really awesome today, but it wasn't long ago that 680M was the GPU to die for, then 780M after that. They can spin lame excuses like "average Alienware owner's are intimidated by upgrades" and other ridiculous assumptions as a rationale for going BGA, but this forum is swarming with enthusiasts (gamers and overclockers) that have upgraded CPU and GPU multiple times, and with every brand that is capable of being upgraded. There's always a first time for everything and being able to spend a fraction of the cost of a new laptop to upgrade an otherwise amazing high-performance upgrade-friendly Alienware machine <del>is</del> was attractive, compelling and very rewarding. Those that found something like a CPU or GPU upgrade too intimidating to learn how were either not really an enthusiast after all, or they found someone to help them do it, or paid to have it done.

Well, that's gone now and there's no longer a compelling reason to want a shiny new Alienware for a lot of people that admire d the brand. A fancy eGPU will not transform an Ultrabook with a weak TDP-throttled CPU into an amazing powerhouse like the 17" and 18" laptops which they have been famous for over the past several generations. That's a shame, because that eGPU accessory could have been a pretty cool marketing gimmick to make desirable machines even more desirable to folks that like to place their laptops on a desk for gaming. OEMs like Alienware and Sager/Clevo that had a true performance enthusiast following are going to lose business over this BGA trash. I think it is possible that there could be fewer BGA Kool-Aid drinkers out there than they are expecting to find. This will leave nothing but noobs and casual gamers, those lacking financial discretion and rich people with unlimited entertainment cash to blow on a new laptop just to have the latest and greatest GPU every year or two.

 

The important part is the gpu remains mxm, if the cpu is soldered it's not such a big deal since you could never move forward a generation anyway.

 

When Dellienware now comes With a new model of Alienware 17, Dell should have upgraded the new Alienware17 with another motherboard with a hefty Ultra-low-voltage processor in the new Alienware 17 with a maximum TDP of 15w. Then comes the new Alienware laptop 17 to provide an awful good at everything you should use it for. This is also in style with only 2 ram slots and 180w power supply .. Very good performed by Dell .. They are destroying the entire brand Alienware.

 

True, but there are plenty of folks that have upgraded to Extreme CPUs. Not only is it not possible with BGA, there are no BGA CPUs that are able to compete with an Extreme CPU in terms of performance. The ability to go from a QM to an XM has breathed new life into many older machines and has even allowed them to far surpass the performance of newer machines with ordinary i7 CPUs in a good many cases.

No matter how you slice it, there is no positive spin on BGA-mounted CPU or GPU if you value performance and flexibility. The concept is largely geared toward low power usage and compromises, which is the antithesis of high performance.

From the looks of things, even the 980M is a 4GB version that is, in all likelihood, BGA so there is no silver lining in the dark cloud to be thankful for.

 

Was just about to say this. At least with an MXM module the casual gamer who's not into CPU benching could prolong the service life of his machine. But now even that option has been taken away, what a real shame.

 

If MXM cards existed I think we would have seen leaks a long time ago.
Its not so hard to find a Dell 980M card and borrow it for a day or two to plug in your notebook, but to test them now they will need a full Alienware R2 notebook since the GPU is soldered to the motherboard. And those notebooks are most likely in a very safe location

 

The 970M and 980M are the "black sheep of the herd" - suddenly & unexpectedly released at a late time for NVIDIA to meet promises & requirements for new cards during the fiscal year of 2014. I'm honestly not surprised to see how many issues Alienware is having with them. I'm almost 100% certain they will release new cards as soon as Intel launches Broadwell. And on top of that, they technically have to in order to remain competitive with AMD, as they plan to launch 20nm during H1 2015.

 

Its the same theme - we are talking about the chassis thickness, the AW 17 is picking up the thinned out quality of the AW 13 or so we believe based on dimensions from data in placeholder pages.

How does not releasing BGA with a 900-series card differ from doing it in the revision on the plate with the AW 17 with a difference of a few months? I think you really are overestimating the enthusiast draw on the Alienware lineup, 95% of their buyers never upgrade anything but ram and disk, probably less than 5% ever do the GPU, I seriously doubt most people care about the move to BGA (whether they should or not). It's one thing to say you don't like it, but it's just not true that the move is going to drive off massive amounts of buyers, that's just an attitude here on a dedicated enthusiast forum but not the general market. Clearly it's integration with the G/A and coordinating with that which has been the hold up along with the change in chassis design.