Jump to content

is alienware m14x worth buying or not?


spr193

Recommended Posts

Intel's pre-release Haswell Core i7 (fourth generation Core architecture) desktop CPUs perform comparably to the current Ivy Bridge Core i7 mobile CPUs in R2. The IGP will be better than the current HD4000 but you probably don't care about that for gaming which is why you buy Alienware. There's just no point to putting Haswell in a gaming rig if you already have Ivy Bridge.

Meanwhile, nVidia's Maxwell-based GPUs won't be shipping until early 2014.

A Haswell + Kepler (GT 650M) R3 shipping late this year will be functionally identical to what you can get right now. Same computing power, same graphics power, same power consumption across the board. The earliest that a Haswell + Maxwell R3 is even possible is over a year out, probably mid to late 2014. It will happen just to keep Dell's CPU lineup current with Intel's manufacturing. Regardless, I wouldn't wait. It will be a minor upgrade to the current lineup.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have a M14x I WOULD NOT reccomend it!

I mean it plays things fine but there are just way too many bugs and problems.

If you get the voltage mod its kinda slightly better for gaming

the heat and fan noise is pretty bad tho

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Moderator

I don't know what the price on Alienwares are where you live but it would not be worth it for me because I'd have to pay 1400 euro for the basic version.

It's twice as much as in the states :P

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I mean it plays things fine but there are just way too many bugs and problems.

Correct me if I'm off base here, but "plays fine" and "way too many bugs and problems" are opposed descriptives.

the heat and fan noise is pretty bad tho

It's a high performance gaming rig. If you want quiet then buy an Atom netbook.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have an m14x R2, and I'm very happy with it. I got it with i7 3630QM and GT650m, just be a little smarter than I was and leave out the options that you can easily install yourself. Dell charges quite a bit for upgrades that are pretty damn simple to do, so as long as you think through the process, you'll save some money that way, and they also have some pretty crazy sales sometimes, I saved 650 off the package but I would have saved that regardless of the options I picked. There are a few bugs to work out at first but when you do, you'll have a hell of a machine and it doesn't hurt that it looks pretty damn nice too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd say the Alienware m14x is a good laptop. I have the R1 and never had overheating issues as long as you turn off the intel turbo boost in the bios. I noticed with turbo boost on my cpu temps went up to 99c! other then that it's great. Plus the newer version is updated with newer parts. I can still run the newest games..maybe not on the highest graphics but I can still run it ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Correct me if I'm off base here, but "plays fine" and "way too many bugs and problems" are opposed descriptives.

It's a high performance gaming rig. If you want quiet then buy an Atom netbook.

Well you see, it still gets 30FPS on most modern games....but switching gfx and using different OS's can be very unstable

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

I don't own an Alienware but recently purchased two laptops (Acer v3-571g with GT 640m and Lenovo Y500 with dual GT 650 sli). I would recommend searching what features/price point you want. I personally found Alienware to be a tad overpriced but still a solid machine. Both these new latops run all the latest games at high FPS and my temps with thiese quad core I7s are low. My cpus don't hit over 78*F and GPUs never over 72*F.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If you buy one from the dell outlet store, you may be able to find a really nice discount.

They also have coupons once in a while, who you could get a refurbished laptop with 30% off coupon, which can be a really good deal.

But that's when they have promotional offers. You'll have to wait for some holiday or something to happen to get a deal like that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Most alienware laptops are very overpriced (from a hardware point of view) you can get similar power for much less.

No, you can't. At the high end you will find all dual-GPU notebooks within the same general price range. You might get a slightly better deal from Sager or MSI this week. Or you might get a better price from Dell. But by and large at the high end of gaming notebooks you won't find "similar power" for "much less".

It's sometimes easier to find a better deal in the mid-range (where the M14x line resides). Which really means you're more likely to find a deal on a closeout or refurbished unit. But otherwise, no. As a matter of fact, when I specced out my M14x last year I couldn't find a single 14" Dell notebook with an nVidia GPU and quad Core i7 for less than the Alienware. That's right. Alienware cost me less than Dell's regular brand. Sure, I could have gotten a 14" Dell for much less but it wouldn't be anywhere near "similar power".

At the low end... but that's pointless since Alienware doesn't have anything at the low end.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Most alienware laptops are very overpriced (from a hardware point of view) you can get similar power for much less.

For a hardware point of view, yes. For a laptop point of view with a over average performance, I would say no. Mainly because most laptops with anything close to this would cost much more. Most laptops are overpriced, so it doesn't make this look too expensive.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I got my R1 slightly before the R2 came out and it's been great since then. It gets quite hot, as other people have pointed out. I'm upgrading to an SSD to improve boot times, but once it gets going it plays any game I throw at it without any performance hiccups affecting gameplay. I'd say if you're buying now that the newer M14x models are better value though. Especially if you plan to use an SSD (which you need custom firmware to get SATA3 speeds on the R1) or if you want to do Intel RST using an mSATA SSD since the R1 doesn't support mSATA SSDs, as far as I can see.

Generally though, it's a very good machine. The cool factor in the lights and effects is no small thing either. And I'm impressed my light theme settings persist when I reboot into Linux despite not having any software for it installed on my Linux partition.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

I have an r1, and aside from the fan noise and temperature when running graphic intensive applications, its a pretty good laptop. Be sure to get the voltage mod like others suggested and definately recommend upgrading to an ssd, just be sure to update the bios as well, since the r1 runs on SATA II speeds instead of III. Also, it can play most games, just dont expect to max out graphic settings.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As an R1 owner, I would not buy an R1 right now. It's getting a bit long in the tooth. If I did not have the R1, I would be looking at getting an R2/R3 depending if I could wait for the impending release or not. As I currently have an R1, I cannot justify upgrading to an R2 right now, although, I would love having an msata slot... ><

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.