Alienware M17x Gaming Laptop Review

Specification Summary:

• CPU: 2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9800
  
• Chipset: Intel PM45
  
• Memory: 4GB 1,333MHz DDR3
  
• Graphics card: 1GB Nvidia GeForce GTX 260M
  
• HDD: 2 x 7,200rpm Seagate Momentus 7200.4 (in RAID 0)
  
• Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit
  
• Disc Drive: Sony Optiarc AD-76405 DVD±DL RW
  
• Network Connections: Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth V2.1
  
• Screen: 17in 1,900 x 1,200 TFT
  
• Weight: 5.5kg
  
• Warranty: One-year collect and return
  
• Extras: Slipcase, baseball cap

The screen itself has a native resolution of 1,900 x 1,200 and is actually the same panel used in Dell’s Precision M6400 workstation. As well as covering 72 per cent of Adobe’s colour gamut – far higher than most laptop screens – the panel, which is lit by a pair of CCFL backlights, offers a 1,000:1 contrast ratio and 8ms response time. While we’re slightly sceptical that any mobile GPU can handle the high 1,920 x 1,200 resolution, at least you have a huge amount of desktop space that makes multi-tasking as easy as watching HD films.


Nevertheless, Crysis and World in Conflict looked fantastic on the panel, with accurate colours and sharp detail. However, we weren’t as keen on the glossy, reflective screen coating, which proved especially annoying under bright lights and made hunting down the perfect viewing angle pretty difficult.