m15x user review by shima

dont worry just turn down some settings to medium and it work flawlessly.

 

What settings do you turn down? Does it look good. I played the demo on my current xps 1710 lappy with 1.83ghz 2 gig and 7900GTX and it looked and played poorly on all medium at 1280 by 1024. I am hoping that my experience is much better on the m15x!

 

i have not recived yet but i read somewhere( beilive it was the top of the line sager review on this website.) if you turn down shaders and shadows to medium and turn off aa , v sync . then your good. if you really want good performance you probally have to turn down a few more effects down , and lower the res. which is kinda ashame for a 3,000 doller laptop i bought. but crysis is the only game like this. im sure almost every other game can be maxed with out breaking a sweat.

 

Excellent, comprehensive review. Extremely useful. Great pictures. Appreciate you doing the tests on battery life. If run time turns out much longer or shorter on BinaryGFX than predicted please let us know.

 

to Shima: Hi, Some video on youtube from CES2008 shows Area-51 m15x. On this video is easily seenable how the display is really shaking. Does your display shakes also so much, or could you make a video where you would opening and closing display and moving with notebook?

Thanks

 

Korbos, there is some screen wobble, but it's not too bad. I was using the m15x on my lap while playing Crysis/WoW with no wobble problems to note of.

 

Ok, that's important information for me cause on that video it was really horrible. Thanks

 

yeah, there is actually very significant screen flex (twist the screen at each corner and it has a lot of give) but with normal operation (opening/closing the screen in the middle, etc) the screen is just fine

 

phew! that was a huge concern for me as well.... i'd have to keep this on my lap and type quickly (but not violently ) on it during lectures.. so it shouldn't be a problem right guys?

 

You are forgetting that Crysis isn't supposed to be playable on todays computers... Even a C2QX and triple SLi desktop 8800 Ultras struggle with it. The 8800M GTX can run any other game except for FSX probably at max without even turning up the fans...

 

+1

great review

 

do you think it could have this problem (wobble) on travel? on a train or a car... I quoted you, but I'm asking to everyone

 

Hmm, if used in a train or in a car, I can see wobble becoming an issue then.

 

hi shima, can you post pics of the smart bay area? smartbay it self, when you extract a drive, a photo with the SB battery in or the cd/dvd drive in.
many thanks

 

After posting the Everest overclock reading issue on the Everest forums, I got a response and verified with a new version of Everest that it was in fact reading the GPU incorrectly:

http://www.lavalys.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=2998&st=0&gopid=16638&#entry16638

This is the new, correct reading (including fillrates):



WLF46WLF, I'll try and take pictures of the Smartbay area soon.

 

ok, thank you very much

if I can ask... can you run even a 3dmark06 @ stealth mode (8800 GPU downclocked) so we can see how much it scores with power saver profile

 

are there no tables in the lecture room?

 

in most there are, but this is more like a lecture hall... enormous old building, no tables built into seats or in front of them.

 

Just an update: my new Penryn CPU T9300 arrived today; an AW technician is supposed to call and schedule an appointment to come by sometime soon (hopefully early next week) to install this on my laptop. I have AS5 sitting here waiting for it as well.
I'll do another round of testing after the install.

 

Question. You reached 85+C with or without the cooler?

 

+ rep for your awesome effort.!!
Thank you very much it's very appreciated.

 

Okay, I've updated the first post with a 3DM06 score w/the new CPU, as well as an Everest snapshot of the T9300.

 

Good review and update.

How is the heat with the new CPU. did it drop ..?

 

Its idling at 47 deg C right now, but I probably won't know what the heat will be like until the AS5 settles, after the 200 hour mark or whatever they recommend.

 

are all games performing well? Do you notice any heat issues causing a decrease in performance? I know a guy RickyS was getting like ... 18 fps at 1440x900 in UT3... How's your performance?

 

I'm afraid I don't have UT3. I plan on picking up COD4 though, so I'll test that game.

Aside from Crysis (driver related issue), all games that I've played have performed well. I haven't noticed the overheat - downclock issue and I've also been looking for it. I'll keep tabs on my GPU clocks going forward to see if this happens, and hoping and praying that it doesn't.

 

hey shima do you mind running the CPU queen in everest to see what u score?

 

Sure thing taco:

CPU Queen:

2x Core 2 Duo T9300 2478 MHz Alienware m15x GM965 Ext. Dual DDR2-661 5-5-5-15 Score: 10497

 

so shima you have no problems with the notebook? That's good to hear

 

Aside from the minor ones I mentioned in the first post such as the touch controls after sleep and whatnot, its working fine. I haven't had any major ones such as downclocking when overheating yet...

 

that's good. what games have you tried thus far?

 

Well, it's been over a month since I've had this laptop. To update a few things:

My downclocking has been resolved with the x29b and x30 bios updates.

I'd have to downgrade the m15x build quality to average at best. It creaks alot, and it just doesn't feel sturdy or rigid, especially around the LCD area.

I haven't had the chassis cracking issue as a couple of users have said, but I can kinda-sorta see the beginning of it (see pic):

This is with me taking extreme care of this thing, pressing down on the questionable area with my finger everytime I open it (so it doesn't get pulled up like what I saw in the infamous pictures).

The keyboard, while it does flex, seems to be very durable in terms of the top layer of plastic or rubber. My E1705 keyboard glossed over by finger oil and rubbing the keys very fast, but the m15x still looks new:



I also bought a roll of InvisibleShield and cut and applied some over the palmrest areas; I highly recommend this!



Overall, I'm still very happy with this laptop. It's still the best performing 15.4 incher out there, with the battery options to compete with ultraportables. My only lament is that I wish I didn't have to be so damned careful with this thing.

 

@shima
Thanks for the nice pictures, very good idea to protect it with Invisible Shield.
I think AW should give a statement if a broken chassis will be replaced by warranty or not. It can be a problem in few month, depends on how often the notebook is opened / closed.

 

nice update shima. i also agree about the build quality its much more flimsy then i expected. its a shame.

 

Sure, it's holding up okay after a month of use. What about after a year? I might buy a m15x at the end of this year, but if I do, I'd keep it for three years, and I wouldn't want the chasis to look like crap after a few months. I'm really interested to see how these hold up and if Alienware improves the build quality (you even said yours is starting to crack after a month). Other than that, the notebook still looks amazing.

 

Here's a link explaining the crack on the m15x:
http://blog.laptopmag.com/alienware-m15x-crack-explained

 

Yeah, I've seen this article. They had 2 good pictures showing the small gap between the chassis and the top layer, but their "explanation" was off, I think.

"On the left side of the unit, just above the Ethernet port, I can see a small opening where people are experiencing cracks. Perhaps excessive force on the lid or directly on this area could cause a crack. One example could be a fist pound around the keyboard, after getting fragged, for example."

It's clear to me that it's not excessive force that causes it, but the simple action of opening and closing the lid. If you open the lid real slowly, you can visibly see that thin plastic layer flex up, which I think is causing the eventual crack.

This is why I'm being very careful when opening the lid. I shouldn't have to be this @nal about it.

 

do you guys think since i use this on my home desk 90% of the time i should ever even bother to close the lid? whats best?

 

If you don't close the lid dust and other **** will build up inside your keyboard and get all over your screen. It's better to close it.

 

I have that gap since the first day. I sent alienware an e-mail about it and they called me the next day telling me that any crack on the case will be covered. Especially that my smartbay is half stuck (no it doesn't go out, good thing I didn't order one on the other side I have no other problem it is only that case!!!)

Why don't they make the case metallic, 3 extra pounds is not a problem to get a shiny & powerful metal case.

 

Compared to other 15.4" notebooks, the m15x is heavy enough as it is.

 

That's good to know, thanks. I guess I was right in getting a 2 year warranty on this!

 

yeah but my point is if you can carry 7 pounds, 10 won't be a problem. IMO a strong metallic case is worth the extra weight.

 

Agreed. For what they cost the cases should be a bit more solid. I got to play with an m15x this past weekend and it was nice, but not nearly as sturdy as the m9750. It was a lot faster though.

 

nice pics and excellent reviews, love it

 

Sogarth was right; I updated my video drivers to 167.59 and my GPU shows the correct default clock speeds. I'm at work so I can't really test this newer (by about a month) driver.

EDIT: 3DM06 score went down from 10,056 to 9782 at the same 1280 x 800 res.

 

Well, I'm gonna try to give as honest a "review" as I can regarding the m15x. It's been nearly two months, and I've somewhat gotten past my initial "WOW" stage and can give a better impression. I'm gonna exclude all AW support related stuff other than standard driver support from this...these are my scores for the laptop itself.

Case Design: 9/10 - Subjective, but I love the look of it, though I'd prefer the black. If it was black, 10/10. The chassis lights mean little to me, so I didn't take them into consideration here.

Case Size/Weight/Portability: 8/10 - smaller & lighter than most if not all 17" laptops, but larger and heavier than some 15.4" laptops. A fair compromise if you ask me for all that you get. You can't expect to get a GTX in a M1530-sized laptop anytime soon. This is portable enough for most people. If it's not, get the aforementioned M1530. People's expectations vs realistic feasibility vs performance, you've got to make a compromise somewhere.

Case Durability: 4-5/10 - At best a 5. This thing doesn't feel nearly as durable as my E1705 or 1505. Case creaks when you hold it, and what I feel may be an impending crack on the top left corner (where others have been experiencing the cracks). LCD bezel wobbles, and you can twist it (scary). My E1705 with a bigger screen feels MUCH sturdier and rigid. If you're taking this around, get a sleeve and case/backpack. I currently use the AW-provided sleeve, but I'm looking to get a proper sleeve soon.

Performance: 9/10 - T9300 & 8800M GTX, nuff said. 10,056 3DM06 is quite powerful. If it had the X9000 and better graphics drivers, it'd probably be 10/10 but that's neither here or now.

Driver Support: 7/10 - Can't really fault Alienware for Nvidia's driver issues with the 8800M GTX. Clevos are also having the downclock issues related to drivers; the only GTX that isn't having this issue I think is the M1730. I can confirm 167.59 from LTV2G runs the GPU at the default clock speeds. Other than that, the rest of the drivers are easy to get to, and seem to be updated. Knowledge base provides clear driver install order directions as well.

Heat: 5/10 - Even with the BIOS, the GTX still gets pretty hot (mid-80's before the fans bring it down to high 70's, but it will immediately go back up to the mid-80's while gaming). Still could use a better heatsink design, or allow software fan control to better regulate this - I'd like to have the fans run on high at around 82 C instead of 86 or 87.

LCD: 10/10 - I still love the LG 1440x900 screen. Bright colors, sharp picture. 1440 resolution is just right for my uses.

Battery Life: 10/10 - 5+ hours with dual batteries and BinaryGFX enabled. This should be the secondary selling point of the m15x IMO to its GPU/CPU.

Keyboard: 8/10 - I've gotten used to the keys now, and it's a pleasure to type on. The AlienFX-lit keyboard is a joy, and the keys resist finger oil glossiness that plagued my Dells. If it didn't have the bottom right hand flex, 10/10.

Alienware "Gimmicks": 7/10 - this includes the touch controls, Command Center (with lights) and other software. Aside from the volume control, no real issue with the other touch controls. Only problem is, the volume control is pretty damn huge. No problem bloatware pre-installed is a plus.

Am I happy with this laptop? Yeah, still am.

Could it have been SO much better? Yeah, a bit frustrating as it could have been PERFECT with better case & LCD bezel rigidity, more responsive touch controls, and a better cooling solution for the GPU.

 

thanks, for the keyboard there was someone who put some plastic foil under the keyboard. maybee this solves your problem.

Klick me

 

thanks shima for the updated review

 

Bad news: Well, the new bios didn't help my downclocking, so I may have to send this in for repair.

Good news: Briefly tested some Crysis with the 1.21 patch, 167.59 drivers from LV2G and got some interesting results.

Settings: No custom settings, all settings on default High. Resolution at 1440x900, no AA, VSync on.





2008-04-10 23:59:19 - Crysis
Avg: 25.147 - Min: 20 - Max: 38

I wasn't touching this fps at 1440 rez with 167.55 and the previous patch. Not sure if this improvement in Crysis was from the patch or the driver, or both. Maybe others can give this 59 driver a shot?