XPS 17" vs AlienWare

Hi guys,

Lately I was thinking of buying a new laptop, since my old one is becoming a piece of junk. So, my search has narrowed to 2 computers: Dell XPS 17" and AlienWare. I can't really get the difference, since XPS looks like it has a better specs, but AlienWare is strongly reccommended for gaming. Anyways, I have built those two computers on dell's store:

MAIN SPECIFICATIONS ON BOTH OF THEM:

DELL XPS 17"
i7-840QM
8GB Shared Dual Channel DDR3 Memory
750GB 7200 RPM SATA Hard Drive
NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 445M 3GB graphics

AlienWare 17"
i7 740QM
8GB Dual Channel Memory (2x 4GB DDR3)
640GB 7,200RPM SATA-II HDD
1GB GDDR5 ATI Radeon™ Mobility HD 5870

I think other specifications are not so important.

The thing is, that from my point of view, just on the paper, XPS looks better (processor is better, video card is better). On alienware the only good thing is the hard drive. But the thing is, that I don't care about the hard drive > to add the same hard drive to XPS costs 500 bucks more ( I don't really need it).

But AlienWarare is 400 dollars more expensive than XPS. Where is the trick? What should I do? What should I buy?

Also, I heard a lot of rumours about XPS horrible screen > are those true?

P.S. I am an economics student, so I would use the computer not only for gaming, but for various multi tasking etc.

What would you guys do in my position?

Thank you in advane! :smile:

 

Well,there are somethings that the M17x has while XPS 17 doesn't have.

First,having 3GB of video memory doesn't mean it is a better card.The Mobility 5870 can easily beat GT445M no matter what.Check out notebookcheck.net for more information regarding benchmarks of these cards.

Second,the M17x should have better cooling,as this machine is designed for dual graphics cards(which makes me wonder why would you pick M17x but only pick one 5870).Do you know how thick that machine is?I can't exactly tell ,but the thickness does come from all those cooling materials.

But yeah you are correct on the CPU.840qm is definitely better 740qm.

 

If u were me, would you buy this alienware for 2.2K or the xps for 1.8K?

 

If I were you I would wait a few weeks and get the XPS 17 refresh with the sandy bridge i7 and GT555M

 

faideela- Just wanted to know how the lighted keyboard is on the XPS. I am also looking at the AW m17x R3 or the new XPS 17.

 

personnally i'd get the M17x
Cause i have one and they are awesome

 

Alienware M17x has better build quality, graphics, screen, cooling, design, rating when compared to xps 17. No competition

 

The optional upgrade B+RG display in the XPS15 is great, but besides that, yeah, they're kinda meh. The XPS 17 has only a 900p display, which doesn't really cut it on a 17" screen.

Those are both very expensive for what you get. If I were you, and was looking for a straight gaming laptop, I'd get something from the ASUS G-series instead.

Something like this for example: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220957

Specs:

Sandy Bridge i7 2630QM CPU
Nvidia 460M graphics 1.5GB GDDR5
8GB 1333MHz RAM
1080p display
Blu-Ray Combo drive
1TB 7200RPM HDD
2-year warranty + 1-year accidental damage warranty
$1850

 

When you are looking for an Alienware,budget is probably not your main concern because Alienware is never meant for budget gaming anyway

If you are low on budget,get the Sager NP8170.i7 2630qm,GTX 470m,8GB RAM,Blu-ray drive,dual HDD.Definitely better than what you have listed in the first post.But don't expect it to have comparable build quality like the Alienware!

And I forgot to mention that the price is only USD1754.73

 

Get the XPS - nobody will take you seriously at any business meeting with an Alienware lappy

 

Are you sure you know what are you talking about??? video is better on xps?? The only good thing on the alienware is the hard drive?? a 750GB 7200 RPM SATA Hard Drive costs $500??