So which is the better deal?

I am trying to narrow my search down to two laptops. 1530 is hard to beat as far as price goes with any 15.4 laptop.

However, the new m15x with its 8800gtx card is very tempting. Anyway, what would you get between these two deals?


Area-51® m15x (updated)

Display: 15.4" WideXGA+ 1440 x 900 LCD (720p) with Clearview Technology
System Lighting: Alienware® AlienFX® System Lighting - White
Video/Graphics Card: 512MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 8800M GTX
Processor: Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7500 2.2GHz (4MB Cache 800MHz FSB)
Memory: 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SO-DIMM (i already have 4GB memory ready)
Operating System (Office software not included): Windows Vista® Home Premium
Notebook Tuners and Remotes: Without Media Center Remote Control or TV Tuner
System Drive: 120GB 5400RPM (8MB Cache)
Optical Drives : 8x Dual Layer Burner (DVD±RW, CD-RW)
Wireless: Internal Intel® Wireless 4965 a/b/g/Draft-N Mini-Card
Sound Card : Internal High-Definition Audio with surround sound
Keyboard Options: AlienFX® Illuminated Keyboard
Warranty: 1-Year AlienCare Toll-Free 24/7 Phone Support w/ Onsite Service

Total price: $2,153.15


XPS M1530

System Color Tuxedo Black
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T7700 (2.4GHz/800Mhz FSB, 4MB Cache)
Operating System Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Edition
Memory 3GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2
15.4 inch LCD(1440x900) & 2MP Camera
Video Card: 256MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 8600M GT
Hard Drive: 250GB 5400rpm
Software - Adobe Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 8.1
Combo or DVD+RW Drive Slot Load DVD+/-RW (DVD/CD read/write)
Sound Card: Integrated Sound Blaster Audigy HD Software Edition
Intel Next-Gen Wireless-N Mini-card
Primary Battery: 56 WHr 6-cell Lithium Ion Battery
Warranty & Service: Get $70 Gift Card with 4 Yr Ltd Warranty and At-Home Service

Total: $1,574 - 150 = $1,424

 

For that price difference, you can build yourself a gaming desktop with better performance than the Alienware laptop.

I guess the question is, do you mind spending $1,200 extra for an 8800M GTX?

So what I would do is..
-buy the 1530 and use it like a laptop
-use this guide and spend the difference on a gaming desktop

 

haha, I would get the xps 1530 and build myself an uber desktop with the money I save

 

lol, I would if I didn't have to be on the go so much.....that's why the 15.4 is cool for on the move.......however, the 1530 wasn't that bad....its not the perfect gaming laptop but it can play games fairly well. Since I am more of a gamer, this decision is going to be tough. However, I could settle for the 512mb 8700gt card version and try to upgrade later. The total price for that version with my discount is $1,947

 

it depends om what you want to do with your notebook. if you just want to have an allround notebook choose the Dell, if you want to game etc. choose the Alienware. believe me, it is worth the $1200!

 

I was able to cut the price to $2,153 with a few config changes.....so now, I am definetly looking at the m15x

 

i was able to get the price down to a reasonable one

8800GTX with 2.2 dou processor for a little over 2,000 is starting to look good here

 

The Alienware costs too much for my budget, it'd be the m1530 every time. I can only stretch to £700 (so thats relatively $1400 I guess).

I'd be pitching the m1530 against other lappies I was looking at like the MSI Gx-610/600. I'd easily take it over them.

 

the alienware notebook was initially out of my budget but is getting near my budget

 

Eh, I'd go with the XPS1530. More RAM, a good processor. It'll play most games for a while. And way more portable. you could drop the 2.4 ghz with the 4MB cache to the 2.2 ghz processor with 4MB cache to save a little bit of money.Do that and ti'll be worth it imo.

 

I agree. Don't spend the extra money on the alienware. You could buy so much more with the price difference.

 

I'd go with the XPS any simply because it has 4 years warranty compared to the alien ware, its cheaper, and the form factor all help too.