In this review Zak takes a look at Alienware's flagship gaming laptop, the M17x. This behemoth of a laptop calls into question the idea of “mobile PC gaming,” but brings a power that commands respect. And although it's certainly not without its flaws, this monster of a game machine knows how to attract an audience, both on your desk and on the local multiplayer servers!
This power, however, comes at a financial cost that will crush the hopes of just about any gamer who wants to own one. Is it really worth it? Do we need to spend over $5,000 on a machine just to get good video game performance? Read on and then judge for yourself!
Let me get this out of the way first: reviewing the Alienware M17x is not an easy thing. Even as I try to write this, with so many things I'd like to talk about, I admit I feel a bit like Gaius Baltar in Battlestar Galactica, trying desperately to maintain composure and get some real work done while the lithe form of Tricia Helfer dressed to the nines in her quintessential Number Six red dress wraps her arms around my neck and nibbles my earlobe. This machine is pure gaming temptation made physical. So if at any point this writeup starts to feel a little disjointed or a sentence falls off into oblivion, it's only because the sheer presence of the M17x simply got the better of me for a few minutes and I had to jump and and let this baby take me to her world for a minute. My apologies in advance.
Before we begin: The specs that matter, and the (cough) price:
Plus these options:
Processor: Intel Core i7 920XM Intel® Core™ i7 920XM 2.0GHz (3.2GHz Turbo Mode, 8MB Cache) (+$1050)
OS: Genuine Windows® 7 Ultimate, 64bit, English (+$150)
GPU: Dual 1GB ATI Radeon™ Mobility HD 4870 in CrossfireX™ (+$300)
Memory: 8GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1333MHz (+$375) ← This used to be around $1,000!
Hard drive: 256GB Solid State Drive (+$570)
LCD Panel: 17-inch WideUXGA 1920 x 1200 (1200p) (+$150)
This, along with the 3-year “just in case you douse your computer with a cup of Starbucks coffee which you can't really afford anymore anyway” warranty, as well as sales tax for living in the same state as the Dell factory, brought the total price up to a staggering $5,300.
The Arrival
Seriously, receiving the M17x is almost as impressive as getting to sit down and play with it. The black shipping box arrived and turned out to be a lot bigger than expected, and while I know other reviewers have already mentioned this, the weight of the package will make you stand up, take notice, and then reach back to massage a freshly pulled back muscle.
The primary case gives way to a pizza-style box sporting the Alienware head logo. Inside this is the power supply, an Alienware baseball cap for those who really need to feel like a geek, and the leather-bound owners manual which looks and feels like something that should be in the glove compartment of an expensive Italian sports car.
Beneath this is the laptop itself, encased in foam supports and shrouded in a black microsuede sleeve. No opportunity for product placement is squandered, and the sleeve itself sports a large embossed Alienware logo. In all, the packaging alone helps you feel the significance of the moment. Granted, it's all just cardboard in the end, but to me, there's something reassuring about attention to detail, and that goes double for well-designed packaging presentation.
Powered Down
With the M17x finally out of its box, it's worth a moment to give some commentary on the style of the device itself. First off, all thoughts of convenient portability go straight out the window. Clearly, Alienware is saving the concept of actual mobility for their M11x, due to start shipping in March. The M17x, on the other hand, is just huge. The case is more than big enough to support a full number pad on the keyboard. With the lid closed, it's about 2” thick and this particular configuration weighs in at a muscle-ripping 12 lbs., and that's without the power supply and anything else you might want to keep in your laptop case. Get ready to get your workout in for the day lugging this beast from point A to point B. I don't look forward to trudging down sidewalks with this thing, but generally those kind of laptops are for an entirely different class of user.
The front of the machine is reminiscent of some luxury sports car, and the lines of the case appear to by styled after something intended to deflect radar waves. I realize in advance that this isn't everyone's thing. There are probably those of you out there looking at pictures who think that the computer is downright ugly. Opinions, however, are like unmentionable body parts and without trying to sound like (un)said body part, these people just don't get it. A gaming rig needs to look like this. It should exude intimidation and give a sense of raw unquestionable power. It needs to look like a weapon that can make it from 0-60 in less time than it takes you to realize that certain parts of your anatomy have abruptly climbed north. The M17x looks like something Bruce Wayne would keep handy in the floorboard of the Tumbler, or something you could use to pilot a Predator drone to blow up the Buy More (+5 XP for getting that reference).
And speaking of the case, one can, very much like an automobile, get the anodized aluminum shell of the M17x in a few different colors, including silver, black, and “it's not enough for me to own this laptop unless everyone around me notices it” red. I'm a bit of a traditionalist here, I think black is by far the best option, and even if I didn't, an extra hundred bucks for a red paint job is a bit much, in my opinion. Silver just doesn't do it for me at all. I suppose it would if I was harboring a secret desire to own a laptop with a half-eaten discarded fruit on the cover, but that particular brand of machine just never quite measured up in the world of gaming.
One thing I don't like about the case, though, is that it seems fairly prone to attracting fingerprints and hand oils. A laptop like this really needs to look impressive at all times, and the sheen of the black paint on the casing will acquire some unsightly smudges as you apply the inordinate number of foot pounds required lift the lid. Though, on the note of the difficult-to-open lid, there is no latch, and so a fairly strong spring makes sense as the way to go. Also, while I didn't bother testing it, I suspect that the black paint will require touching up after a few months of regular use.
Ports and Connections
On the technical side, the case has ports and slots for just about anything you'd ever want to plug into it.
Right side connections:
- 8-in-1 card reader
- ExpressCard slot
- Slot-loading DVD/CDRW drive (they used to offer Blu-Ray, but at the time of purchase I didn't see it)
- (2) USB Connectors
- Audio out for L/R speakers or headphones
- Audio out for center speaker, subwoofer, or second set of headphones (nice for movie watching with a friend)
- Audio out for rear L/R (surround) speakers
- Audio in (microphone) connector
- Security cable slot (seriously consider this one if you buy one of these laptops)
- VGA connector
- HDMI connector
- DisplayPort connector
- Network cable connector
- (2) USB Connectors (yes, that's two more)
- USB/eSATA combo connector with “PowerShare” - This is a single port that takes either USB or eSATA and can charge USB devices even with the computer's power off.
- IEEE 1394 A connector
A total of five USB connections, or four if you need your eSATA port, make this a nice hub to plug in your printer, iPod, mouse, and any other device you can think of. It's also worthy to note that the front of the case has an IR port if you need it. On the left and right sides of the front panel are two speakers, but I'll talk about those a bit more later.
Continued...
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