Dell Alienware M17X R3 - The Mothership Has Landed

The Mothership Has Landed

Alienware products have long been the objects of desire for gamers seeking high performance, powerful graphics and flashy styling. Dell's 17.3-inch Alienware M17X continues that tradition, now in its third iteration, the R3. The R3 has been upgraded with NVIDIA 3D Vision technology, Klipsch speakers, a second-generation Sandy Bridge i7-2860QM 2.5GHz processor, and graphics options starting with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M, upgradeable to the GTX 580M. If 3D gaming isn’t something you’re interested in, Radeon HD 6870M or 6990M GPUs are also available.

Price-wise, the M17X R3 is definitely not cheap. The basic configuration starts at S$3499 with the same i7-2860QM processor, but with a non-3D LCD screen, an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M, 8GB DDR3 SDRAM, and dual 750GB 7200RPM hard drives in RAID 0 configuration.

Our review unit, which sports a 17.3-inch Truelife Full HD 3D LCD panel, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580M and 16GB DDR3 SDRAM will set you back a hefty S$4887. If you’re looking to boost your performance even further, a single 256 B SSD is available as an upgrade for S$439.77, or try dual 256GB SSDs, again in RAID 0 configuration, for a whopping S$1539.73 extra. Strangely enough, despite having two drive bays, there’s no option available for an SSD and HDD combination.

Weighing a backbreaking 5.3kg, the M17X R3 is far from portable. This is definitely one notebook that will be spending most of its time in one place. On the plus side, its weight does make it extremely solid and stable.

In terms of looks, Dell has opted for a full aluminum chassis, although, since it doesn’t favor the brushed metal look, it’s hard to tell from a distance. Instead, two color options are available: Stealth Black and Nebula Red. Both feature a soft touch, rubberized finish that’s great for hiding fingerprints, smudges and scratches. We favor the Nebula Red, a classy metallic color that wouldn’t look out of place in a luxury car.

Mirror, Mirror On My Notebook

Hinges on the M17X are smooth and solid – the lid can also be easily opened with one hand, due to the sheer weight of the unit keeping it firmly in place.

Flipping it open, you’ll notice that the entire screen area is one big, glossy, bezel-less surface, extending from edge to edge. While glossy screens seem unavoidable these days, the M17X R3’s seems particular reflective, quickly becoming mirror-like when viewing dark images. On a positive note, the screen itself is vibrant and sharp, and boasts wide viewing angles of up to almost 180 degrees from any angle. Fortunately, the only other piece of gloss found on the notebook is a relatively unobtrusive black plastic around the speaker grilles at the front.

Like many ‘gaming’ products, the M17X R3 is replete with glowing lights. The Alienware Command Centre software shows no less than nine regions of customizable lighting, including three sections of the keyboard, the trackpad, the logo and the vents.

Thanks to its generous size, the M17X R3 sports a full-sized, non-chiclet keyboard and number pad. Each key is laser etched, with a smooth, slightly concave profile. One minor annoyance though, there is a fair bit of flex under the keyboard. The trackpad is off-center, situated on the left side of the notebook, but is well-sized and smooth, with just the right amount of friction.

Media controls can be found laser-cut into a strip of machined aluminum above the keyboard. The controls look a bit like alien symbols, which is a nice touch.

On the bottom of the unit, you’ll find two cooling fans at the rear left and right corners. You’ll also find an aluminum nameplate that can be personalized in a laser-engraved Alien font when you place your order.

Port Overload

We like ports. Apparently so does Dell; they’ve jam-packed as many into the M17X R3 as possible! On the left you’ll find an RJ-45 Gigabit LAN port, VGA port, HDMI-1.4 port with audio, Mini DisplayPort, dual USB 3.0 ports, two headphone jacks, one S/PDIF/headphone jack and a microphone input jack.

On the right are two USB 2.0 ports, a SATA/USB2.0 combo port, an HDMI input port, and an 8-in-1 media card reader. The power input jack is found at the back of the notebook.

While we do appreciate the plethora of port options available, considering the amount of space available, the spacing of the ports isn’t ideal, as they’re all quite cramped, resulting in a fair bit of cable pile up. 

Audio Upgrade by Klipsch

One of the new features found only on the R3 model of the M17X are the exclusive Klipsch audio speakers. Klipsch makes great desktop speakers (the ProMedia 2.1 set is still one of our favorites) so securing them for the R3 was a bit of a coup for Dell. Unfortunately, the Klipsch notebook speakers weren't as good as their desktop counterparts. While the sound was crisp and clear, it was sorely lacking in bass. This might be because the unit is lacking a subwoofer and we hope future models will include one. After all, the Alienware notebook is thick enough to accommodate one.

3D Gaming Arrives On Alienware

The other big update for the R3 is the inclusion of NVIDIA’s 3D Vision technology. The IR emitter to sync with the active shutter glasses is embedded within the notebook, so there's no USB-based IR emitter as seen on desktop solutions. We tried out Call of Duty: Black Ops with the stereoscopic 3D depth set to 15%. Even at this level, the 3D effect was pronounced, and we felt the gaming experience was greatly enhanced. We also noted that the screen didn't seem as reflective when we had the dark 3D glasses on.

We should note that, with 3D games, the quality of the experience often comes down to the optimization of the game. When we tried The Force Unleashed II on the M17X R3 we were dismayed by the amount of ghosting displayed, but we also tried this on other machines with similar results, so we'll blame that one on LucasArts and NVIDIA for not working out good 3D game profiles.

Performance Benchmarking

Our review unit M17X R3 is a beast of a machine, equipped with the latest Sandy Bridge second-generation Core i7-2860QM 2.5GHz processor, Intel HM67 chipset, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580M (the fastest for an NVIDIA mobile GPU) and 16GB of RAM. We put it up against two comparable second-generation Core i-7, 17.3-inch 3D gaming notebooks, Toshiba’s Qosmio X770, and Samsung's Series 7 700G7A. Of course with the specs of the Alienware machine, we naturally expect it to top the charts.

PCMark Vantage

PCMark Vantage is an overall test of performance, testing all aspects of the machine. The M17X R3 proved that it doesn't just rely on its graphics card, performing well in all tests, resulting in an impressive overall score of 10907. One limiting factor for our review unit is its 1.5TB (2 x 750GB SATA) 7200RPM hard drive. Upgrading to an SSD drive would show significant performance gains. You could choose to splurge on an SSD option while spec'ing out the machine, or you could upgrade that later on your own if you don't mind voiding the warranty.

3DMark06

In our 3DMark06 test, the M17X R3 scored outstandingly, beating both of its competitors. The M17X R3's GTX 580M showed massive performance gains compared to the X770's GTX 560M, and also managed to outperform the Samsung's 700G7A's AMD Radeon HD 6970M.

Far Cry 2

While Far Cry 2 is more than three years old, it’s still more than capable of bringing even powerful DTR machines to their knees. We ran the benchmark at Very High settings, using a 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution, which represents the best visual settings you can expect in-game. The M17X R3 was more than up to the task, easily achieving the target 60FPS average, and even surpassing it with an impressive average frame rate of 74.21. Any improvements over 60 FPS are generally unnoticeable in games, so you can expect perfect, smooth gaming, even at very high settings with the M17X R3.

Battery Performance

To slightly misquote Stan Lee, “With great power, comes poor battery life”. Or so we have come to believe. Dell has upgraded the battery for the R3 with a 9-cell unit rated at 11.1V with a 90Wh capacity. In our DVD looping battery test, the new battery does seem to have improved battery life, with the M17X R3 faring better than our comparison notebooks, lasting 2 hours and 4 minutes - quite impressive for a 17.3-inch DTR notebook (more so when you consider the multitude of flashing lights on the M17X R3). Having said that, as with most gaming notebooks, we still wouldn’t recommend gaming on it without a direct connection to a power outlet..

Interestingly, the power consumption of the Dell machine is not as bad as that of the Samsung Series 7 gaming machine, which is quite perplexing when you consider that the M17X R3 has even beefier specs. Looks like Dell managed better than expected power management.

Portability Index

Battery life aside, if anything's going to stop you from using the M17X R3 as a portable gaming machine, it's the sheer size and weight of the thing. Make no mistake, the M17X R3 is a hefty machine: thicker than half a year’s worth of HWM magazines, and weighing about as much as four MacBook Air notebooks combined.

Even compared to our other 17.3-inch gaming notebooks, at 5.3 kg, the M17X R3 is packing on the pounds. Both the Samsung 700G7A and Toshiba X770 are relatively close in weight, at 3.5 kg and 3.34 kg respectively - positively svelte in comparison. In fact, no other notebook scored worse on our Portability Index, despite the machine having longer battery life than the comparison gaming machines. Even so, the results are within our expectations.

For those unaware, our Portability Index measures how portable a machine is based on a simple formula of battery uptime divided by the product of the unit's weight and volume (the lower the score, the less portable the unit is). It's most valuable when comparing products of a similar class. Our recommendation? Keep the M17X R3 at home, on your desk, where it belongs. For historical notes, we've had even worse performing notebooks in the past.

Accept No Substitutes 

Alienware products are built around a philosophy of no compromise, gamer-aligned, high-end hardware, and the M17X R3 is certainly no exception. For straight up gaming performance, there's simply no better choice.

We commend Dell for not just updating their performance hardware, but also continually improving and adding to the user experience by incorporating new technology such as NVIDIA’s 3D Vision technology and Klipsch audio speakers - although a subwoofer unit would have greatly improved the audio performance. Even so, we would like to see more customization available when placing your order (as Alienware used to have), for example, an option for an SSD/HDD combo.

While some people may be getting a bit tired of Alienware's styling, it's a signature look and it's what you expect from Alienware (we still think it looks great). Build quality continues to impress us and, other than some flexing on the keyboard, we couldn’t find a thing wrong with the M17X R3. The glossy screen will no doubt infuriate some gamers (ourselves included) but a good anti-glare screen protector should improve things. Another point of concern is the unit's sheer weight, so if you really need to have a portable machine, you should look for options other than Alienware machines which generally are on the chunky side.

No Alienware review would be complete without a return to its biggest drawback – the price. Starting at S$3499, the M17X R3 will certainly stretch the wallet. On the plus side, things are looking better than they were two years ago. When we reviewed the M15X, we mentioned that buying a unit with our review specs in Singapore would set you back a hefty S$6390.99. Things are now a little more reasonable, with our similarly high spec'ed review unit setting you back a 'mere' S$4887. Having said that, if you do have money to burn, try adding a Blu-ray optical drive and dual 256GB SSDs for a whopping, maxed-out price of S$6518.85.

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