Alienware Introduces M15x Core i7 Powered 15-inch Gaming Laptop

Pretty much yea

High end and the casual user


You don't have to be spoiled just smart and get lots of scholarships like a cow I know

 

Either way, you can get the same kind of performance as the 240m in something more 'casually' oriented. A Studio XPS 16 would weigh 3 pounds less, get better battery life, is thinner, and has an RGB screen option. What does the M15x have to offer over that machine to justify the price premium and lack of performance gain?

If you tell me the colors, then I think thats what was meant by the 'college kid' reference...

 

Why yes it was ....

looks and name for college kids

 

like Apples?? (i better run before i am flamed)
^^I am joking BTW.

Yeah, I agree with Texas, the M15x is supposed to be the most powerful 15" gaming rig, and offering a good, but not great, GT240M as base was not the best idea (although, for getting money out of that niche The_Moo was talking about it works...lol)

 

Now with MSI's new GT640 announced, the colors/design is the only leg the M15x has left to stand on when its configured with the GT240m.

The new MSI offers the GTS 250m and core i7 in a package under 6lbs. Im guessing the price will be $1400-1500, making it very attractive compared to the clunky 'all (less) powerful M15x)'. That card is also the most efficient high-end GPU from nVidia in terms of power consumption (25 TDP vs 75 for the GTX 260m, and it uses 1/2 power when idling). That means the MSI will also probably smoke the M15x in battery life.

 

Dont know if "smoke" but have a high edge for sure.
WOW, Alienware had the throne for 1 day.
King for a Day
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That GT640 max ram is 4 GB... I will require six. Its a shame, everything up to that point was shining bright, and I thought I might change plans! I do also require a keyboard backlight...though the AW's version of keyboard backlight is just a little overkill.

Also, the 640's resolution is 1680x1050

Other than that, with a $1399 starting price it is quite impressive. Very nice. Doesnt look half bad, either, even if its not spectacular.

 

^^4gb max for MSI? Thats weird, i would have thought at minimum it would have been 8 especially being a gaming laptop.

 

How come it maxes out there, the MoBo should support more, and if i7, you should be able to reach 16GB like the Envy 15, or at least 8!

How come the resolution is WSXGA+ since it is a 16:9 screen, and that resolution should be 1600x900...or am I missing something>?

 

I don't know why 4GB will be the max. 1 RAM slot seems really lame, and I don't know why they wouldn't find a way to fit two... Its nice they've kept it thin and under 6LBs, but its going to add a monster to the price for everyone who wants 4GB RAM (buying a 4GB stick will = a $200 premium at least).

 

I would say 300 for the 4GB stick.
Really there is only one slot?? That should be corrected, or a mistake...I hope

 

$300 for the 4GB stick, but it will presumably come with 2GB to start with, so about $250 is the difference I think.

 

Why are you guys saying the GT640 has 1 ram slot and a 16:9 ratio?

From MSI's product page :

System Memory - DDR3 1066/1333MHz, 2 slots, Max:4 GB

LCD Display - 15.4" TFT-LCD Display


But it also states ddr3 for the GTS 250M.. I hope that's a typo..

 

Whats so strange about Gddr3 for a GT 200 series card? nVidia has plans for their first Gddr5 cards but they're the 300 series and aren't out yet.

2 slots or not, that still doesnt change that for some reason the max ram is 4 Gb and that sucks.

 

Yeah but 2x2gb sticks are way cheaper than 1x4gb stick. Still weird that it maxes at 4gb..
Oh and the Gt 200 are supposed to be both gddr3 and gddr5. Since they have a 128-bit bus, a gddr3 is going to perform like a mid range card.

 

Ive never seen a Gt 200 with gddr5. Id like to, though, if there is one.

...This topic is supposed to be about the M15x...

BTW the link for this site's M15x description ^^^ is outdated. (at time of posting)

Anyone else think that the only reason M15x is sold without an option for a GTX 280 is because of the marketing damage it could cause for their M17x?

 

Well, the hardware reason is that the MXM 3.0b slot they put in the M15x only supports cards up to 65 watts... the GTX280M is 75 watts. As to why they didn't put in a slot that supplies more power? That could be it, or maybe they're being conservative with the power draw of the i7. It's hard to say.

 

But isnt the GTX 260 also 75 watts?
And even then, Isnt the new ATi card supposedly 65 watts?

So we end up with the same question: why some cards it could use and not others?

 

The GTX 260M is 65 watts. Because the slot in the M15x can support any MXM 3.0b compatible card of 65 watts or less, it can support the GTX 260M but not the 75 watt GTX 280M. It should also be noted that the ATI card is not currently available for the M15x either, but I don't know if that's because of wattage limits or something else.

 

Does anyone know if the new Alienware M15x supports Dolby Digital output via SPDIF? I've spoken w/ 4 reps from Dell & all have wrote (via chat) something different. I'd really like to get the Blu-ray which, via HDMI, can support Dobly True-HD & DTS-HD. I just cannot get a straight answer from Dell about the exact audio codecs that are supported. I was sent to the card manufacturer's website at one point & emailed them buy they, IDC, told me that I should contact the OEM since OEMs can & typically do disable features in order to maintain the "stability" of their system. Any help on the audio issue is greatly appreciated.

 

"Alienware laptops come standard with 5.1 surround sound so you can always hear them coming."

Yeah, really informative...

For the exact audio codecs.... eh, you might have to wait for a product manual for that kind of info.

 

The service Manual was leaked out day before

 

I'd love the manual. Do you know where to get/download it?

 

Aw section m15x owner thread 1 post

 

If anything, MSi has done this before (making typos with the VRAM of the GPU); They said the ATi 4850s were going to come with DDR2, but actually came with GDDR3.

That said, I'm sure we'll see a GTS 250M option for the M15x soon.

 

Fair or not, this is correct. I looked at the Sager, mentally processed that it would outperform the Alienware M15x, and still bought the M15x (ordered it earlier today). Why? The Sager is ugly, ugly, ugly. And more ugly. And even worse, it's ordinary. As an extension of personality, it ranks somewhere between beige and taupe colored paints.

If you can plunk down over $2k for a computer and not feel the need for it to express anything unique about who you are and what you are interested in, go for the Sager. If you find it impossible to pay that much money for one of the ugliest laptops on the market, though, get the Alienware. It's all about personal preference. I say in all honesty that having a laptop as God ugly as the Sager--no matter how powerful--would eat at me until I couldn't stand it anymore. Some other people, though, can't live with anything but the fastest system, and they are usually the kind of people who possess very ugly things as a badge of honor--a sign that they get it, and nobody else does. Maybe they do. But for me, the Alienware styling is easily worth $600. In fact, if the only other option was the Sager, I'd be willing to pay $1k more for the M15x.

 

I second that!!! ^^^

Also, The power/performance gap between a SAGER and an AW in the same price class isnt that great.

One thing I must also add. While having 20 color options is def. overkill, I must say that a backlit keyboard is a major feature, that SAGER lacks completely. I couldnt be without it, working in dark 90% of the time. Say "gooseneck" and I will laugh at you. Heard it, tried it, experienced how much goosenecks suck, had it break in a week, and never fell for that garbage again. (Not to mention I often have all 5 USB ports filled. Goosenecks DO NOT equal backlit keyboard.

BTW for those who were naysaying me about trying to sell my silver AW, it went for $2,550. The lesson? AW is premium. Dont lowball yourself if you have to get rid of one.

 

Whats unique about gaudy lights and neon colors plastered all over your possessions? The only thing unique that I can tell is that there are only so many people willing to spend as much as a used car on a computer for its looks- you belong to a very unique group. Is my alter ego some extraterrestrial sci-fi addict? Do I think people will understand me better when they see how I pair Nebula Red with my Nova Yellow keyboard? Do I think anyone really gives that much of a damn about my computer?

I see a Sager and I see a machine that doesn't try to be loud for the sake of some tired notion that people who play video games want to be noticed and get their jollies off on using a toy that lights up like a pinball game. Seriously, I never even liked aliens as a kid. Maybe a gamer just likes games, and he is a perfectly normal person who doesn't feel like he lacks attention.

The Sager arguably leaves much more room for customizing your look/style if you feel so compelled. I can put a big burnt orange cow skin on the back for my University of Texas alma mater, but at least I don't have to look at a disco ball all day.

 

This argument has been discussed to death and there is no reason in fighting about it everytime Sager and AW are in the same thread. Why do I still want a ferrari even though my honda would take me farther? because I like cool and expensive stuff that I don't perceive as gaudy, but in the end and the point is who gives a damn as long as it is my money and I get my jollies from it

 

Fixed...

Anyways, on to other news...

 

Please, no more AW vs Sager threads. Stay on topic.

My opinion, this is overpriced and is way to heavy. A no-go for a 15 incher.

 

I agree. The M15x is a bit heavy and large to fulfill the traditional role of a 15" laptop. But then again its not a traditional 15" laptop, is it?

Has anyone had the opportunity to actually experience a M15x in action yet? Id honestly love to hear from some firsthand experience rather that any more BS speculation.

Is the M15x mxm 3.0 slot really a 65W slot? that would be a little bit of a bummer... (no GTX280 or anything above.)

But then again, the new mobile ATI card is supposed to be 65 watts...what about that card?

 

I have since heard that someone put a GTX-280M in a M15x and it worked, but that may just mean that the 280M will work at less than the rated power level.

 

Yup Sleey did it and it worked, he is also selling the gtx280m

 

That is a very condescending viewpoint and borders on being a personal insult. Don't be so insolent.

As evidenced by the gentlemen who posted above you, there are people who see this machine in a different light (pun intended). If you truly believe what you wrote above then you're no better than the pompous college freshmen who thinks he knows everything about politics after taking an intro political science class. Your opinion is not an objective stance everyone should agree with as your post implies.

If you have something constructive to add to this thread then please do so, otherwise cease and desist. Thank you.

 

HA! I knew it! The power requirement of both are supposedly equal, and I could never figure why it would be unable to use a 280.In the same respect, can it use an ATi card? (I prefer nVidia myself, but im still curious) If it doesnt, its most likely an inability of a BIOS that isnt ATi-ready, rather than a hardware inability to use the card.

Why is he selling the 280? (Or is he still selling the same 280?)

Thats funny. Thats EXACTLY the color scheme I want! (seriously!)

 

I know very little about the wattage limitations of the M15x (and pretty much every other technical limitation), but I thought that the issue with the GT280m wasn't the power it consumed, but the heat that it put off. To the person that put the 280m in the M15x--have you noticed any heat issues?

If not, I would be inclined to put a 280m in the M15x I just ordered somewhere down the road.

 

The 280 runs maybe 3-5c hotter maximum .....

 

The M15X is actually NOT that overpriced as people claim. Plus, the lights are a nice touch and the build quality is solid.

 

IMHO I lights are a big touch! Just wish the notebook itself was not so big