Alienware’s thin-and-light gaming notebooks are getting a makeover. At Computex in Taipei, parent company Dell showed off that the m15 and m17 with the “Legend” design that debuted on the Alienware Area 51-m at CES earlier this year. Both will go on sale on June 11 starting at $1,499.99 and start shipping to customers on July 1.
| Row 0 - Cell 0 | Alienware m15 | Alienware m17 | Dell G3 15 |
| CPU | Up to Intel Core i9-9980HK | Up to Intel Core i9-9980HK | Up to Intel Core i7-9750HQ |
| GPU | Up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Max-Q, 8GB GDDR6 | Up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Max-Q, 8GB GDDR6 | Up to NVIDIA® GeForce GTX 1660Ti, 6GB GDDR6 |
| RAM | Up to 16GB DDR4 2666MHz | Up to 16GB DDR4 2666MHz | Up to 16GB DDR4 2666MHz |
| SSD | Up to 4TB RAID0 (2x 2TB PCIe M.2 SSDs) | Up to 4TB RAID0 (2x 2TB PCIe M.2 SSDs) | Up to 1TB PCIe M.2 SSD (Class 40) + 32GB Optane |
| Display | 15.6 inch FHD, up to 240Hz or 4K OLED 60 Hz with Tobii eye tracking | 17.3-inch FHD 60Hz or 144Hz with Eyesafe and Tobii eye tracking | 15.6 inch FHD, up to 144Hz |
| Battery | 76 WHr | 76 WHr | 51 WHr |
| Size | 14.2 x 10.9 x 0.8 inches / 360.5 x 276 x 20.1 mm | 15.7 x11.6 x 0.8 / 399.8 x 295.5 x 20. | 14.4 x 10 x 0.9 inches / 365.5 x 254mm x 21.6 inches |
| Weight | 4.8 pounds / 2.2 kg | 5.8 pounds / 2.6 kg | Not disclosed |
| Starting Price | $1,499.99 | $1,499.99 | $799.99 |
The two m-series laptops have the same CPU options, starting from an Intel Core i5-9300H and going up to an Intel Core i9-9980HK, as well as identical graphics options ranging from an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 to an Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Max-Q. Both also up to dual 2TB drives in RAID0 and up to 16GB of DDR4 RAM.
The m15s and m17s with RTX 2070 Max-Q and RTX 2080 Max-Q GPUs will have 8-phase graphics voltage regulation and 6-phase processor voltage regulation, so the top-end models should be able to sustain the highest levels of performance for longer periods of time.
The 15.6-inch option will come in FHD with refresh rates up to 240Hz or a 4K OLED panel, with, for the first time on an m15, Tobii eye tracking. On the 17.3-inch laptops, there are only FHD options. The base is a 60Hz display, and the 144Hz screen will also have Tobii as well as Dell’s Eyesafe technology to protect eyes from blue light.
Alienware is promising 1.7 millimeters of key travel on the new keyboards, which also feature n-key rollover and per-key RGB backlighting (previous models only allowed lighting by zone).
The new designs are refreshing after years of the old spaceship facade. They come in dark side of the moon (black) or lunar light (white), and each is minimalist with clean lines, but also a ton of RGB lighting. A honeycomb motif is found throughout venting on the deck and on the back of the display.
Dell G3 15
Besides its Alienware lineup, Dell is also giving its base model gaming laptop a refresh. The G3 15 is getting a new design and updated specs. It’s available today and starts at $799.99.
The G3 starts with a 9th Gen Intel Core i5-9300HQ and can bump up to a Core i7-9750HQ. GPU options range from an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 up to a GTX 1660 Ti.
Dell’s redesign is sleek for a budget gaming machine, coming in either white or black with blue accents. It stands out, but doesn’t shout from the rooftops that it’s a gaming PC. It looks a bit like a race car and even takes its accents to the bottom of the laptop, where you may rarely look.
Just like its bigger Alienware siblings, the G3 15 will control RGB and other functions with the Alienware Command Center app.
