Dell has launched new members of its Alienware gaming laptop range at the International CES in Las Vegas. Slotting nicely between the Alienware 18 and recently launched Alienware 13 the American systems making giant revealed the Alienware 15 and Alienware 17 gaming laptops (last two links go to official reviewer's guide PDFs). Obviously the numerical suffix denotes the screen sizes sported by these laptops. Like the Alienware 13, the two new gaming laptops are compatible with the external Alienware Graphics Amplifier hardware.
Alienware 15
This machine is the lightest and thinnest ever 15-incher to come from Alienware. It is designed and constructed using carbon fibre and aluminium which are light and strong materials. While we are talking about its looks it also sports 10 programmable LED lighting zones. It is 34mm thick and weighs about 3.2Kg.
Alienware allow customers quite a bit of scope in configuring these systems. The highest spec is listed below:
- LCD: 15.6 inch UHD (3840 x 2160) IPS-Panel TrueLife 350-nits Display with Touch Technology
- CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-4710HQ (Quad-Core, 6MB Cache, up to 3.5GHz w/ Turbo Boost)
- Graphics: AMD Radeon™ HD R9 M295X with 4GB GDDR5 or NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 980M with 4GB GDDR5
- Memory: Up to 16GB Dual-Channel DDR3L 1 1600MHz RAM
- Hard Drive: 512GB M.2 SSD (Boot) + 1TB 5400RPM (Storage)
However lower spec parts such as a 1080p screen, i5 rather than i7 processor, lower memory and storage capacities and lower end graphics options are also available. Key standard features include 4 x USB 3.0 ports, a 92Whr 8-cell lithium battery, Creative Labs Sound Core3D-EX hardware audio DSP, Mini-DisplayPort, HDMI 1.4 output, Killer Networks Gigabit Ethernet, Killer Networks 1525 802.11ac 2x2 Wireless and Bluetooth 4.1 plus a choice of Windows 7 or 8.1.
Alienware 17
Dell says that this gaming laptop "prioritizes screen size and gaming performance above all else". However it is still capable of up to 6.8 hours of battery life as confirmed by its Mobile Mark 2012 rating. This laptop is constructed with carbon fibre and whilst it is the lightest ever 17-incher ever to be produced by Alienware it is said to be rigid and flex free. Again you get 10 programmable LED lighting zones to customise the look of your machine. It is 34.4mm thick and weighs about 3.8Kg.
The highest spec Alienware 17 you can buy is kitted out with the following components:
- LCD: 17.3 inch FHD (1920 x 1080) TrueLife 300-nits Display with Touch Technology
- CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-4980HQ (Quad-Core, 6MB Cache, up to 4.0GHz w/ Turbo Boost)
- Graphics: NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 980M with 4GB GDDR5
- Memory: Up to 16GB Dual-Channel DDR3L 1 1600MHz RAM
- Hard Drive: 512GB M.2 SSD (Boot) + 1TB 5400RPM (Storage)
It's quite surprising to see that this larger machine has a lower maximum screen resolution. It is available with or without touch sensitivity. There are fewer choices in the processor and graphics department compared to the Alienware 15 with just a choice between the Intel Core i7-4710HQ and i7-4980HQ available and graphics choices limited to either the 3GB Nvidia GeForce GTX 970M or the 4GB GTX 980M. The battery is the same 92Whr 8-cell lithium one as provided with the Alienware 15. All the other key standard specs listed above for the Alienware 15 apply to the Alienware 17.
The new Alienware 15 and Alienware 17 are listed on US and UK official sites starting from $1200 (£1200 inc VAT) and $1500 (£1400 inc VAT) respectively.
