Benchmark Results: 3D Graphics
Always controversial, 3DMark doesn’t necessarily represent actual gaming performance, but continues to be used as a benchmark standard. Let’s get those results out of the way before considering the actual gaming capabilities of the mid-sized Alienware m15x.
Using the same processor, the SLI advantage gives the big Dell a huge lead of around 58%, which is slightly more than its difference in traveling weight.
Turning up quality levels puts even more emphasis on SLI performance, with the big but barely luggable Dell leading the far more portable m15x by up to 69%.
Both notebooks use the same processor, but we still wanted to make sure the performance difference was due only to the use of SLI in the larger Dell system. 3DMark also provides a CPU Performance score to help in this regard.
The scant difference between CPU performance proves that when it comes to 3DMark, SLI is the only technology impacting our test scores.
With the oft-irrelevant yet surprisingly popular 3DMark tests out of the way, we can now focus on what really matters: performance in actual game tests. We begin with a relatively easy benchmark in Prey.
Even with 4x antialiasing and 8x anisotropic filtering, the Alienware m15x is completely playable at its panel’s full 1920x1200 pixel resolution. Yes, the big SLI-equipped Dell is faster, but on-the-go gamers should be willing to give up the excess performance in order to achieve greater portability.
