wbabt007

Hi guys long time no see, I have a quick question, does anyone with the Alienware m18x R1 had the problem where the intel graphics are not reporting on the BIOS? if so is I would love to hear some feedback.. Greetings to all my forumites!

Well Brian your post is very thought out and concise but that not why Alienware is the best, those are adjectives and buzzwords people tend to use. The reality is simple, They the best because most of the time their gaming laptops do what they suppose to do and they do have a lot of room to grow, but they not without sin, I am not a blind cheerleader. 1. Next day business service? Yes it pretty good as long as you get someone in the network that knows what their doing(I have found AW and Dell techs they never seen an M18x-R1 in their service life) 2. Quality is good, but not great, they tend to overlook common sense details, is like sometimes bright designers have tunnel vision. Example the M18x-R1 has design issues.(bottom latch anyone, I upgrade my Ram memory to 16 gigs and I ended up with a busted bottom cover, and that is after I follow the post how to open the latch.!!!?) 3.Top of the line cooling? yes and no. In the m17x R-1 video cards fans tend to run hard and usually one of them is 20 degrees hotter. (when I called support they told me this was normal, which i completely disagree) M18x-R1? so so, is good but not optimal. M14x_r2? is yet to be seem i get mine on august 27 if I am lucky. 4. Design Appeal? I give you that Alienware laptops a pure eye candy and they have the best aesthetic appeal, but let me ask you something, would you take your m18x-R1 everyday to school? what about your m17x? the AW profile is heavy and thick and remind me of the old school Toshiba laptops of the 90's,and they seem they not interested in making their laptops portable anytime soon, unless you willing to take a M11x with 2 gigs of Ram max(good luck playing BF3 Armored Kill maps in one of those, never mind the 1200+price tag for entry level unit) 5. And we come to the extra department, A department that is controversial at best. Yes they do have a lot of extras but the premium price for them is not justifiable. Example memory for my m18x-R1, a 8 gig upgrade was price at 400 us dollars when I wanted to add more memory, same upgrade at crucial was 90 US. Now i know what you thinking this is a flame post and I probably have an agenda, but it ain't, I own 3 alienware laptops and their are my choice in the future (I just forked 1400 US for a 14 inch laptop) All I am saying is they good because they do what they supposed to do and they are a modder wet dream, something that souless companies(like HP and Gateway) Cannot understand or replicate.

Well I am back(I am always here, I just lurk to much in the background) and it seems 3 times a charm. As some of you know recently my dell xps m1530 decided it wanted to be a desktop and the lcd stopped working. After some research it seemed that the inverted or CFL lamp need it replacement. After a botched repair( Bad instructions for replacement) It was time to pull the plug and get a new secondary laptop that actually is portable (need it for college) My first choice was to get of those cool ultra books that they been hyping for months with the promise of windows metro.. err windows 8 but it seems that those machines are really a entry level laptops with over-hyped "aluminum bodies" "long battery times" and integrated graphics(intel HD 3000 seems to be the choice) So it was a no brainier and ordered a m14 x-R2 since to order a ultra book with some decent video power you need to drop 1500 and up for a basic configuration. So this is my config, let me know what you guys think, in a way I pretty happy with it, since this would be my 3rd Alienware (M17x-r1, M18x R1) oh and it comes with a free xbox 360!! (This offer is valid if you in college or going to) 1 Alienware M14X R2 319-0072 1 3rd Generation Intel Core i7-3610QM (6MB Cache, up to 3.3GHz w/ Turbo Boost 2.0) 319-0076 1 6GB DDR3 at 1600MHz 331-7324 1 English Keyboard, M14X R2 320-3613 1 14.0" High Def (720p/1366x768) with WLED backlight 320-3620 1 1 GB DDR5 NVIDIA GeForceGT 650M using NVIDIA Optimus technology 342-4490 1 500GB 7200RPM SATA 3Gb/s 330-6106 1 Personalized Nameplate Trigger 331-2070 1 Custom Nameplate 313-8792 1 AlienFX Color, Quasar Blue 421-7652 1 Alienware Command Center Software, M14X 421-5789 1 Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit Service Pack 1, English, w/Media 318-2320 1 Stealth Black with Soft Touch Finish 410-0548 1 Adobe Acrobat Reader 319-0080 1 Slot-Loading Dual Layer DVD Burner, DVD+-RW 421-4818 1 Creative Sound Blaster Recon3Di with THX TruStudio Pro Software 430-4724 1 Intel 2230 Wireless-N 421-7651 1 Wireless Display Application and Driver 331-7218 1 Alienware M14X 150W A/C Adapter 331-7219 1 Placement, M14X R2 331-6865 1 Alienware Documentation 342-4500 1 Shipping Material, M14X R2 410-0572 1 McAfee Security Center, 30 Day, CNB 331-7223 1 Resource DVD, M14X R2 331-8045 1 Windows 7 OS Label, Alienware Notebooks 420-9691 1 DataSafe Local BackUp 420-9956 1 PC Restore 421-0092 1 DELL-DOWNLOAD-FLAG 421-3874 1 Camera Software 2.X, Factory Install 421-4289 1 Dell Support Center Software 3.0 421-7648 1 Quickset, M14X R2 312-1341 1 63WHr 8-Cell Primary Battery 995-5423 1 Dell Hardware Warranty Plus On-Site Service, Initial Year 995-5443 1 In-Home Service after Remote Diagnosis, Parts and Labor On-Site Response, Initial Year 951-6400 1 Accidental Damage Service, 1 Year 950-9797 1 No Warranty, Year 2 and 3 421-1719 1 Soft Contracts Consumer Accidental Damage Agreement for Alienware 421-1723 1 Soft Contracts Dell In-Home Hardware Agreement for Alienware 994-3730 1 Warranty Support, Initial Year A6112868 1 Promotional Xbox 360 - $199.99 discount applied to your PC + Xbox bundle 469-0500 Because of budget issues I was unable to add Windows 7 pro, but If everything goes the way its going it will be replace with windows metro..err windows 8 as soon as they have an stable release(probably a year after it's officially released). Hope to hear from you guys, Back to lurking in the dark.

Wait, you have 680M in your m18x? I thought you order it with dual 6970 in xfire, do my eyes deceive me? Did you change your card? whats going on?

Hello my fellow forumnites is me again, I was just wanted to share with you my impression on this obscure and often not used(unless in battery mode) Feature in our M18x R1, the famous (actually I should say infamous) Intel HD graphics 3000. For the past days I been looking to replace my dell xps m1530 because the screen finally went dark( I replace the inverter and the CCF Lamp but change run ito unforeseen issues and even though i got an image is towards the yellow and not as bright as before). There are many candidate laptops to replace mine, but one of the trends I been facing is that most laptops in the low end range (500-750 US) tend to come with the Intel hd graphics ranging from the 300 series to the 4500. That prompted to read more about it and all I can take from it was a mix bag. Some people claim is the best thing since slice bread and other claimed is the worst of worst. This cause me some concerns because the last thing I want is to purchase a laptop for school that will actually be a step down form the xps m1530. Then in remembered that our M18x R1 come with the Intel Graphics, so i decided to test it, seconds later i press the function key plus f7 and after a reboot(that lasted between 3 and 5 minutes) I had plunged in the world of Intel integrated graphics, and I have to tell you is one of the worst things i ever seen. The screen response is sluggish at best in the desktop and browsing the web is just plain painfully slow. colors still look good but is not the same, and then I decided to open a game to see the average performance. On normal operation (dual 6970 AMD cards ) I usually get around 60 to 90 fps in Atlantica Online (Free to play MMORPG that been out for 4 years) with the integrated Intel HD graphics I get an Average of 10 to 7 fps, wow seriously? I know that the HD graphics are not really geared towards high demanding 3D games(running battlefield 3 would probably melt them, so i am not asking for miracles) but if I remember correctly the Alienware m17x R1 came with the nVidia Geforce 9400 as the integrated solution which is 100 times more capable to run a game that the Intel incarnation. Best bet is do not buy a laptop for any price if its main card is the Intel HD graphics, you will probably regretted in the long run. (unless off course you are planing to surf the web and check your web-mail) for anything else you will be soon smashing the machine on your desk. Well that about it, hope to see you soon on the forums or on Battlefield 3 (Caspian Border or Operation Firestorm) Cheers.

usas 12 got modified on last patch, it became useless as all the SMC like the 240B, most people in my clan having a thought time with the new weapon load out, it seems we gotta re learn the game all over again.

Quick let me get the linching mob!!! I know Michael is in Brazil, a white guy like him will be easy to spot right there and I know Brian lives in modesto, which is in throwing distance of my Scooter. Can someone Bring the torches please? I got the pitchforks covered!!!!

Na, i went to the Castle Air base taking Santa Fe and I felt like a kite, and that is only like 9 miles, I cant imagine traveling 35 miles to Modesto in such wind.

ty mw86, btw brian you are right, the wind around here is crazy, i would make it farther if it wasn't for the gale force winds around here

Actually Brian I am going to go to Modesto pretty soon in my bike because I need service, and the place closest to service man is in Modesto, which is around 35 miles. Since the nearest Kymco Dealership is in Fresno(which is out of the question in the bike). So far I have rode it to the Castle Air Museum and it wasn't that bad, as long as you have a motorcycle bike(I got a fulmer one) gloves and a decent helmet(not full face, they really uncomfortable)

hi Brian great to see you, Yes I seen the photo thread about opening the m18x and I know is a little tricky, I think you mention that last year when you upgraded your M18x. Do you know of a good place online where to buy the ram?

Well since I been gone for some time let me show you one of the reasons for it. This little baby is perfect for in town transportation and it will get me to 60~65 miles per hour. MPG is around 75 but since I am in the break in process is currently pulling close to 64 MPG. This critters are fun to drive and I think I could reach Brian's place with a full tank!. Also they won't break your bank, they surprisingly affordable!

Hi guys I back again(sorry you haven't seen me but between college, New Wheels and battlefield 3 is hard to find time noways). I would ask for some help getting my Ram upgraded in my M18x, as some of you recall I got mine with 6 gigs and i have 2 slots free(the ones under the keyboard). Honestly I dont feel like paying $400 Us for the 8 gigs of ram from the dell website. My target is to get at least 2 4 gig SOdimms in the secondary memory bay to bring total memory to 14 gigs. This would allow me to play battlefield 3 without the long map time loads that I am experiencing. Can anyone recommend an online place to buy form? Also I believe that i have the DDR3 pc-10600(667Mhz) (as per HWinfo 64). Thanks for all the help!!

Welcome to TI !!!Great Laptop, but if I was you I would listen to Brian And Svl7. With the M18x-R2 around the corner I would personally wait for it to be released (Trust me I know is hard, I cancel a pretty awesome m17x-R3 3D to wait for the m18x) and to be honest it has yet to disappoint me(besides some occasional hiccups in battlefield 3 due to the low memory i order with). At the end is your call, but if you looking to have the best of the best I would wait. Hope it helps.

it was fun to see you all at the TI server, i might be there soon. BTW my gaming id is not wbabt007, but you will figure it out soon. PS next time dont ask me if i am jamie joker5150, lol brian rofl.