not sure if anyone cares but if you're stoned like me atm then you can watch pretty much all the new series on instaflixxer. I've been streaming with my girlfriend for the last weeks =)
Hey! Yeah i thought it was so weird no one else had anything on these other than promo type videos. I'm glad you watched it. I'm working on a performance/thermals video hopefully released today/tomorrow at the latest.
Just purchased one of these and am stoked for it! Great video, I loved how in depth you went. ALSO you low-key saved my ass because I already bought the 16GB model thinking I could upgrade to 32GB. Dell was great and let me change the order, but close call! Lol looking forward to future videos :D
Hey! Glad I was able to help! I'm surprised that a small time youtuber like me is the first one to review this but it is awesome i'm able to help people make an informed decision.
@@themaker2475 There's nothing wrong with it depending on your needs. I bought this to replace my existing laptop and desktop. Working with 4K/6K footage in Davinci Resolve I pretty much always use over 16GB, so the 16GB model just wouldn't have been enough for my needs. But hey, everyone's needs are different! 16GB isn't bad if you don't need more than that.
Hello! So I just purchased the Aurora R11 and im just wondering, how long did you have to wait for your package to deliver? Mine says It's being delivered on July 24th and I ordered it two days ago.
nice work! I just want to ask about the material of the palm rest. Does it really feel like metal? because the white one feels a bit soft on top. It felt like an aluminum base, with some kind of cover over it.
As someone who worked for fed ex as package handler (loading trucks) let me tell you, we're overworked for the little pay we get in the conditions we do it in. Its pretty much a sweat shop. Due to that ,its a high turnover job, and due to that, some people just don't show up for work leaving others to finish the job of x amount of people. The ones that do show up get fed UP with fed EX and just start handling packages without care (not that they deliberately mishandle packages, but they don't care to follow procedure and are only focused on getting out). Its a cycle that doesn"t end.
@@Airestotle09 yes, I heard that just recently. And I don't know how much effective that would be in a long run. I have a dell laptop and there was a coating on trackpad all of it came off within a year. Although I do love lunar white more than dark side of the moon. And considering the price I wouldn't risk it on the trust of protective coating from Alienware. An alternative would be to apply skin or Ppf.
thank you so much! Ive been looking for a laptop forever almost 5 years now! (specs down below) so when having this laptop is it good for at least 3 years of use? If not please explain why! specs- CPU: core i9 GPU: RTX 2080 SUPER max - Q display: 1080p 300hz (dark side of the moon) storage: 1T SSD 0 raid ram: 32G thats pretty much it I would love to see some feedback from what you have with yours because its really the same! If you could reply with any feedback that would be great! Total Cost - $2,850
You shld have the size comparison in terms of thickness by looking at the sides of both r3 and r4 and not just the back. Also any idea if the new razer 15 vs this, which is better in terms of build quality and money value?
Hey Vector, nice video! I've got a couple questions on m15 r 3 1. Battery life difference between i7 and gtx 1660 ti Vs i7 and rtx 2070? 2. Does the lunar side have any stains or yellow smudges? Should I go for it or the Dark side? 3. I am going for 2 year premium support with accidental damage plan. Planning to buy it in the US but use it in India. Will the warranty be valid?
Hey! 1. I have not had a 1660 model but would expect a significant battery performance gain with the 1660. 2. I didnt get the Lunar but have heard that it can yellow with age. At least on previous models. That being said the hard coat on this machine does seem good so I think the white would last fairly well. 3. You would have to contact dell about this. I am not an expert with how they handle these type of fringe cases. i do know that Dell support has always been very good with me but I always have worked within the US.
Nope unfortunately everything is soldered on other than the hard drives so you are stuck with what you buy. I'm sad to see this kind of approach but do understand it. At some point the laptops become so thin there just isnt any more space for an actual socket and a direct attach to the mobo does save some space.
I have one question, it seems this laptop have 3 SSD slot and two M.2 2280 and one M.2 2230 they both support NVME? Are those SSD slots use 4 lanes of PCIE or they share together? For example, your model has 3 drives inside which is two M.2 2280 running RAID 0, are those 2 M.2 share 4 lanes of PCIE? How about that 2230 SSD?
I honestly don't know the answer to this question. I don't recall seeing anything in the documentation about this. You'd likely have to ask dell support directly.
Yeah, a couple of generations ago Alienware Laptops you could choose between a bigger battery and a standard ssd drive. They may have gotten rid of that permanently.
What graphics card did you go for? I was debating getting one of these since I loved my 15 r4 but the soldered on ram and difficulty with repasting made it a negative. I went with the Razer blade with the super 2080.
Well i purchased the 2080 Super max q however the model they sent me only had the 2070 super in it. So I have a Dell Tech coming to my house to do a mobo swap so I have the right GPU
I dont always game with laptops. What if im working in excel, chrome and running CZcams vids in the back ground.... how long would the battery last do you reckon?
With the 300hz panel the i9 and the 2070(more power hungry than the 2080) i was able to get about 3 to 3.5 hours. I have not used the new one i got with the 2080 enough to know what its battery life would be.
I just got my Alienware R3 and I've got an option with 2TB. My OS installed on mt 2 TB drive and for data is only 512gb. Is this normal or I need to ask them to reinstall?
It all depends on the fan profile you have set. If you select the quiet mode its not really noticeable but of course your machine will run a little hotter.
Hey Vector, in your next video a recommended mention about the small SK hynix 512gb is only available when purchasing the laptop currently and cannot be purchased on its own. However, the small SK hynix 256gb and 128gb options are available but not the 512gb. This will be good for the viewers when deciding what storage option to go for. Lets get them subs to 100 🙌🏻
I'll definitely mention that. I am not familiar with this 2230 size. Its a little unfortunate dell decided to pick something that isn't mainstream but i can see how it does save some space.
Hey Bro! Plz do some performance tests Q?: 1) the overheating problems during marathon gaming (it was a one of the major issues for AW m15r1 & m15r2 system’s) 2) touchpad issues 3) other issues Thnx in advance.
Does the r3 have a responsive touchpad that actually doesn't lag out because of hardware/software and does it have a descent sized touchpad? Thanks bro, please reply as soon as you can. Love the video!
Hey! I have not had any issues with the touchpad at all yet from a lagging perspective. It is a little hard to push but it has been smooth and accurate. The size is not huge but its not small either. I'd say that I didnt really notice the size one way or another which seems like a good thing in my perspective. Hope this helps!
Hi i have this model rn and i tried to open it i just entered the region, then keyboard then it has been stuck on the (Now we have some important setup to do)
This doesn't seem right. Have you tried force shutting it down and turning it on again? If not you could try a fresh install of windows or just hit up dell support.
Honestly I don't think it would. It does look slightly longer and dell does specify this slot as a 2230 and not a 2242. I have been told it is possible to get 2230 drives but I have not been able to find a reliable source of them.
Great video! I'd like to know how much power the thunderbolt port can be plugged into, and how much it contributes to extended working hours. The information I can find shows that Dell 130-Watt Type-C 3-Prong AC Adapter can be applied to Alienware M17 R3. However, Dell's sales are confused about whether M15 can use this Adapter, which is really funny
@@thepanther1728 I'd like to know that too. I read many reviews where people talked about a short battery life. But that's probably a software issue and the fact that Alienware is running its CPU and GPU at the highest level, something you can change probably in settings
I want to buy the m15 r3 but I don’t know which cpu to pick, is getting the i9 worth it? Will there be a huge gap of performance gaming wise? Or should I just get the i7 and save a couple of bucks.
So i'm on the fence. I'm going to repaste when i swap my motherboard and see if my i9 does better but honestly from a gaming perspective an i7 will do just fine. Save your self some money and heat. I sometimes stream so i was hoping the extra cores would help out with that but the heat generation of the i9 is insane. I may send mine back and opt for an i7.
I have the m15 R2 with the 9750h in it. Due to how thin the form factor is you really aren't going to get the bang out of the buck on the top end CPU. The system has enough trouble keeping thermals in check -- mine constantly runs high 80s - mid 90s in most of the modern demanding titles. From what I've seen of the R3 design which is nearly the same, it's not going to be much if any better (early reviews of the R3 seem to confirm this). You're just not going to be able to push the i9 to it's limits before thermals start to throttle you. My 9750h has a hard enough time and this is with a VERY generous -.150 undervolt. The GPU has no issues with thermals, the CPU does. This is pretty much par for the course in these thin and light laptops and so far as long as I keep the undervolt, and in some cases turn OFF boost too (the laptop REALLY wants to boost for as long as it can so you'll have minute long cycles of CPU temps near or at 100c before it downclocks). TLDR; Save the money and get the i7 instead. The very small gains you get from the i9 aren't worth the cost in $ and in thermals, and that's only IF the machine can push the CPU long enough before throttling / downclocking kicks in.
Hey I did go with the i9 and after I do my initial testing I will be re-pasting. I like to use the graphite thermal pads. I did it on my last Alienware and didn't have any issues! I guess we'll see what happens with this one I can imagine it'll put out some serious heat when I start pushing it.
@@advancedvector6833 i see man, mine should arrive next month but i never repaste before and it does seems complicated to do due to the inverted motherboard. Maybe i ll just UV it.
Yeah it can definitely get tricky. I have had quite a bit of experience working on laptops and i'm always a bit nervous the first time I pull apart a new machine.
Thats awesome! Overall this seems like a great machine. I guess my thermal testing will tell the whole story but I'm really looking forward to using it more!
Found an issue with the Rear IO Plate on this system. It is angled to match the design aesthetic which is preventing cables/plugs from seating flush with the system. I have a number of plugs I can not use because they are not able to go in enough to create a full connection. To see an example of this take a look at the power plug. It only goes into the system so far and leaves a good 1/8" outside of the system! I am not able to use the Thunderbolt 3 port for this reason which I would consider a design flaw.
I do see what you are saying but i have not had any issues with cables not being able to seat properly. Perhaps your MB mounting is slightly skewed a bit causing the problem? Having more of the plug out in the open vs inside the PC shouldn't make a difference. I could see how you wouldnt be able to seat properly if the sockets were too deep. Either way i'd definitely reach out to dell to get some support on that.
@@advancedvector6833 Thanks I am sending the unit back I have pictures which show this but unfortunately I can not add them. I will say the R3 runs much cooler than the R2s, the new keyboard is great, love the Dark Side color, the touchpad is great, 300Mhz screen looks good, battery life is abysmal at 1 1/2 to 2 hours tops with all battery saving features on and screen at 50% brightness while streaming media only no gameplay. The sad part is I had a great discount on this unit. I will look at the XPS 9700 17" unit. Thanks again.
Thank you CZcams algorithm. This laptop was not on my radar...one of the main things am I looking for on my short list is to have at least two ssds. Such an amazing and detailed overview of this with great timing. Some youtubers move and speak at lightning speed moving really quickly over things. Nice to have 3 usb-a and also Ethernet. Only gripe is I wish it had Mic In and a full SD card reader. Though I will look more onto it. So there is also a third NVM drive? I don't do any gaming and looking more for video editing, graphics (Photoshop and illustrator), sound editing and dj'ing. Do you think could fit the bill esp with color gamut for video...graphics creators.l? Liked and subbed!!
Would this be an OK office usable laptop?? I’m just insanely going crazy for the keyboard lighting and I don’t play games but I don’t mind having a very good screen for watching movies 😁
To make it a little more future-proof, they should have made one of two USB3 ports on that one side another USB-C port so you have two and two. That would have been a better balance. On the extreme end you have the new XPS15/17 which have all USB-C ports on it which it too much and have to rely on a dongle.
Yeah I think it could go either way. Personally I appreciate having more USB3 ports. They still don’t make mice, headphones, thumb drives, etc with usbc yet and as someone on the go I find having that extra usb3 is great. I still don’t use usbc unless I’m home and docked up
Haha yeah. you know its bad when a small time youtuber like myself posts first. Or maybe everyone else just thought it wasn't worth reviewing. Either way i'm glad to be getting information out to the masses.
Hey I'm wondering if this is good for downloading and burning movies? I will have to purchase a burner for sure lol just want to get away from a full desktop computer
So by default it comes with the drives in a raid 0. All i did to swap them was reinstall a fresh copy of windows and during the process removed all partitions on the raid 0 arrays. After windows booted i pulled up partition manager and re-formated the dual NVMe drives to get my 1TB of storage back.
Advanced Vector does the laptop comes with windows installer? My unit will be arriving this 24th and it’s my first time tinkering with the os and drives
This is my biggest beef. They should have made the 512 the boot drive. I’d love to see a video of how you reversed it. I see your description but I’m afraid to try it.
Sure no reason why it couldnt still perform well. Of course it depends on the configuration. There was really nothing wrong with my 15 r4 other than I wanted something smaller and more portable.
Yeah. I just checked the documentation online and it is a 2230. I have seen smaller M keyed SSD's of this size but didnt know we had NVMe in this size. They must be hard to find. In any case 512 is plenty large for a boot drive so i doubt i'll upgrade it but it is interesting.
I got the m17 r3 for 5 days now with 144hz gsync i7 10th 1660ti and I think that’s the best combination for thermals. On idle I got 42-55c and highest I get under heavy loads/gaming is around 53-65c and that’s about it. The only problem I have now is the right hinge makes a very small click but after I noticed it, I just can’t seem to let it go and it just annoys me more and more(because this is a $2k laptop lol) everything was perfect but it just annoys me a lot and the screen panel is flimsy maybe because its screen panel is just thicker than its competitors. I would like to know if you also notice the weird slope design at the middle edge of the keyboard at the top of the honeycomb vents?? It’s the edge below the alienware name logo below the screen end edge. I want to know if it is really a design or mine just got a defect. Thank you!
Hey thats interesting about the small clicking noise. I have seen some where hinges were just slightly off center or perhaps not quite tightened down all the way. If you are able you can likely tear it down and find the hinges and figure out whats going on. That small indentation is on my M15 R3 as well I am wondering if its there for the Tobi eye tracking. My panel doesnt have Tobi but i know that the 4k ones do. Perhaps it needs a little bit of space down there as thats about where it would sit i think.
Advanced Vector yes man. I was really stressing for the last 2 days if I can live with it or not. I don’t know the return process of the laptop with dell if it’s easy or what. If so, I will be opting for msi gs66 which is cheaper lighter smaller and got better specs and screen. But idk man, the one I got is really great with performance and thermals better than what I was expecting it to be on a good day. I might try to tear it down and check the hinges if I can tighter it. But I’m guessing that it’s too tight which is the other way around. Can you give me your thoughts with your tearing down exp if hinges and screws are easily accessible? Thanks a lot
I didnt notice when i was doing my teardown video because i wasnt worried about the panel however i think you'd just have to pop off the back cover as here then flip the laptop around to look at the hinges. czcams.com/video/S6khhTPHihk/video.html
still no gsync this year ? pretty troll that they make you get the a51m if you need gsync. since im used to g sync, anytime i play on a non gync monitor, the experience just feels broken af :-( i had the m15 r2 but had to return it due to the lack of gsync. i have the a51m now. games feel WAY smoother with gysnc. anyway nice video and keep it up
I just started loading more games on it and fortnite is one of them. i'll let you know what I find. I'd imagine that by reducing a few settings i'll be able to get 300fps on 1080.
I like the design, but the problem is that it is ridiculously overpriced in the UK. It's £700 dearer than a slightly higher spec HP gaming laptop (1660ti vs 2070 maxq). I like AW, I have the 34 inch super wide monitor on my gaming desktop driven by a 2080ti and I love it. I will pay a premium but not that much, especially for a lower spec. So I'll pass on this one unfortunately.
I havn't played pubg on it but after tweaking the CPU and reducing the clock and undervolting its performing fantastically now. Check out some of my other videos for details.
@@advancedvector6833 What's 2.5" drive for? Sorry I don't excel at tech. stuff. So if I buy 1TB SSD then I can put one more SSD in future, if I get two 512GB SSDs, then I will have to remove one 512GB SSD to replace it with the larger one, right?
No this laptop does not have an SSD drive bay. You would need to buy a larger NVMe drive. For instance my laptop came with 3x 512GB NVMe drives. 2 of them are in raid 0 giving me 1TB of storage. If i wanted more storage I would have to buy 2x 1TB NVMe drives to put in raid 0
@@advancedvector6833 Okay. I saw in your video it has 3 slots. I currently want 1TB of storage, but I want rest 2 slots to be empty so that I can add new later. So I should go with 1TB single drive right? As if I'd go with RAID 0, 2×512GB, then only 1 slot would be left vacant. Am I right? Sorry if I sound stupid.
Hey No worries. You are absolutely right. If you only want one slot filled just go with a single 1 TB and you have two slots to expand too. Just keep in mind that one of those is a 2230 slot and not a 2280.
Damm for an $2K Dell and they still won't allow their customers to upgrade. I might just grab the Eluktronics THICC-17 AMD Ryzen 9 3900 RTX 2070 " 144Hz Ultra Performance Laptop
That’s the plan. I wanted to get the unboxing out there but I will do some benchmarks and testing. Planning on recording and releasing that video on Saturday.
Hi! Thanks for the comment. I would love to do that but unfortunately I am just a small channel and I have to purchase all my products. I do not get sent any test laptops and purchase it all with my own $$$. In the future I would like to try getting one of them but it just doesnt fit a need I currently have.
i dont like the keyboard on this one . the old alienware 15 hAs a better keyboard by far..and thats the only bad side on this laptop..bad its kind a big deal to me considering the price tag on this machine...i am planing to buy though but i guess i have to rethink and try to see other alternative ..
I do have an Alienware 15 R4 as well and will agree the keyboards are vastly different. I personally prefer this newer style but I think when it comes to keyboards everyone probably has their own preference. Would be interesting to see if anyone every made completely different styles of keyboards available depending on user preference instead of just having to go with a model that has the kind you like.
@@advancedvector6833i really like alienware and i owned 17" r3 and paired it with razer keyboard tkl.. it gets hot when i play games such as dota.. the issue with this brand is it gets hot when playing so i just elevate the rare bottom side just to have a better intake of air and it works just fine..and up until now i dont have issue when it comes to hardware but i admit the gpu on this is old and i cant have a good frame rate in newer and heavy games.. so hoping to buy another alienware this year and im waiting for someone to review an aw17 or 15 with an oled screen..
@@advancedvector6833 i'm joking sorry I just did that so I can get you to reply to me hehe :/ just wanted to ask how the material felt for the black version of the m15 and what it's made of
Of course you are free to skip them. Many people have found my videos to be useful but I do understand if they are not for you. Feel free to get your info from other reviewers or content creators if my style is not to your liking.
This CONFIRMS my purchase!!! Thankyou for your amazing review! Love the M15 R3 and how it looks, specs are amazing!
Enjoy!
EVEN THOUGHT YOU GOT LESS SUBS BUT MAN U R A GEM. I REALLY LOVED YOUR VIDEO AND I WANTED YOU TO KNOW THIS. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK.
Thanks! I appreciate the feedback!
currently watching on my R3. it's been a great laptop so far. looking forward to your review!
Hope you enjoy it!
Watching this on a Alienware m14xr2
@@aquiIa_chrysaetos how is your laptop? do the fans get loud when on google? please let me know
Watching on my 51m
Nice review thank you so much now im going to get one of thoose because of your great review!
I find the Dark Side of the Moon (Dark Grey) to be a much better option over the Lunar Light. Most importantly it is much easier to see the RGB keys!
Plus the white one has been known to discolor and show stains over time.
not sure if anyone cares but if you're stoned like me atm then you can watch pretty much all the new series on instaflixxer. I've been streaming with my girlfriend for the last weeks =)
@Brody Uriel Definitely, I have been watching on InstaFlixxer for years myself =)
You are the first reviewer seams like Dell didn't ship out review units, subbed
Hey! Yeah i thought it was so weird no one else had anything on these other than promo type videos. I'm glad you watched it. I'm working on a performance/thermals video hopefully released today/tomorrow at the latest.
@@advancedvector6833 Hey man could you do a review of the new G5? (NOT THE SE, JUST THE NEW G5) Not even promo videos has covered those.
Just purchased one of these and am stoked for it! Great video, I loved how in depth you went. ALSO you low-key saved my ass because I already bought the 16GB model thinking I could upgrade to 32GB. Dell was great and let me change the order, but close call! Lol looking forward to future videos :D
Hey! Glad I was able to help! I'm surprised that a small time youtuber like me is the first one to review this but it is awesome i'm able to help people make an informed decision.
What’s wrong with the 16gb model?? That’s the one i just purchased yesterday. Should I change it?
@@themaker2475 There's nothing wrong with it depending on your needs. I bought this to replace my existing laptop and desktop. Working with 4K/6K footage in Davinci Resolve I pretty much always use over 16GB, so the 16GB model just wouldn't have been enough for my needs. But hey, everyone's needs are different! 16GB isn't bad if you don't need more than that.
Advanced Vector nvm I saw your video. I think I should be fine after reading a couple of articles. I don’t really do video editing.
How are you liking the laptop? I’m really considering this one
good i was looking for a review thanks man!
Hey thanks for watching. Glad I could help. I'm actually uploading a second video that covers some thermals and benchmarks.
Hello! So I just purchased the Aurora R11 and im just wondering, how long did you have to wait for your package to deliver? Mine says It's being delivered on July 24th and I ordered it two days ago.
Mine took about 3 weeks to get to me
nice work! I just want to ask about the material of the palm rest. Does it really feel like metal? because the white one feels a bit soft on top. It felt like an aluminum base, with some kind of cover over it.
Great video! Very helpful!
Glad it was helpful!
As someone who worked for fed ex as package handler (loading trucks) let me tell you, we're overworked for the little pay we get in the conditions we do it in. Its pretty much a sweat shop. Due to that ,its a high turnover job, and due to that, some people just don't show up for work leaving others to finish the job of x amount of people. The ones that do show up get fed UP with fed EX and just start handling packages without care (not that they deliberately mishandle packages, but they don't care to follow procedure and are only focused on getting out). Its a cycle that doesn"t end.
Great unboxing, I was thinking about a lunar white r3, now i am impressed that black finish is also great, struggling now
Yeah its a tough choice. they both look very nice!
Black is always bad A$$ ordered this black one...
I've heard white model gets yellow smudges after some use.
Harsh Mehta That was the R2.
the new R3 has an endurance coat on the chassis preventing the smudges
@@Airestotle09 yes, I heard that just recently. And I don't know how much effective that would be in a long run. I have a dell laptop and there was a coating on trackpad all of it came off within a year. Although I do love lunar white more than dark side of the moon. And considering the price I wouldn't risk it on the trust of protective coating from Alienware. An alternative would be to apply skin or Ppf.
Awesome video! How did you keep the thermals down?
thank you so much! Ive been looking for a laptop forever almost 5 years now! (specs down below)
so when having this laptop is it good for at least 3 years of use? If not please explain why!
specs-
CPU: core i9
GPU: RTX 2080 SUPER max - Q
display: 1080p 300hz (dark side of the moon)
storage: 1T SSD 0 raid
ram: 32G
thats pretty much it I would love to see some feedback from what you have with yours because its really the same! If you could reply with any feedback that would be great! Total Cost - $2,850
Loved the Video💯
Glad you enjoyed
Please do the full review as soon as possible ❤️❤️❤️
Thanks! Will do I still have a day job but I’m planning on doing the follow up on Saturday.
Yes please.. I want to know also the overheating issue..
I've seen the r2 reviews and it is worst..
@@advancedvector6833 yes me too I already ordered this one but I'm afraid of heating issues please share reviews on heating.
You shld have the size comparison in terms of thickness by looking at the sides of both r3 and r4 and not just the back. Also any idea if the new razer 15 vs this, which is better in terms of build quality and money value?
I'll be sure to include that into my more in depth review on it! Thanks for the feedback!
Hey Vector, nice video! I've got a couple questions on m15 r 3
1. Battery life difference between i7 and gtx 1660 ti Vs i7 and rtx 2070?
2. Does the lunar side have any stains or yellow smudges? Should I go for it or the Dark side?
3. I am going for 2 year premium support with accidental damage plan. Planning to buy it in the US but use it in India. Will the warranty be valid?
Hey!
1. I have not had a 1660 model but would expect a significant battery performance gain with the 1660.
2. I didnt get the Lunar but have heard that it can yellow with age. At least on previous models. That being said the hard coat on this machine does seem good so I think the white would last fairly well.
3. You would have to contact dell about this. I am not an expert with how they handle these type of fringe cases. i do know that Dell support has always been very good with me but I always have worked within the US.
Hey thanks for the video, but is there anything that can be upgraded on this laptop besides storage?
Nope unfortunately everything is soldered on other than the hard drives so you are stuck with what you buy. I'm sad to see this kind of approach but do understand it. At some point the laptops become so thin there just isnt any more space for an actual socket and a direct attach to the mobo does save some space.
Advanced Vector can we switch the ssd?
Hello, do you know what will be the next alienware laptop for end of year? Do you know if they will do a 13 inche laptop ?
I have one question, it seems this laptop have 3 SSD slot and two M.2 2280 and one M.2 2230 they both support NVME?
Are those SSD slots use 4 lanes of PCIE or they share together?
For example, your model has 3 drives inside which is two M.2 2280 running RAID 0, are those 2 M.2 share 4 lanes of PCIE? How about that 2230 SSD?
I honestly don't know the answer to this question. I don't recall seeing anything in the documentation about this. You'd likely have to ask dell support directly.
how many hdd's are there and can you do a tutorial on how to install one whether an ssd or hdd
There are no HDD slots on this machine. Only NVMe slots which are the new format for super fast SSD's. You can have a total of 3 of them.
Hows the battery
Yeah, a couple of generations ago Alienware Laptops you could choose between a bigger battery and a standard ssd drive. They may have gotten rid of that permanently.
Yeah it seems things are going towards NVMe now as the new standard
What graphics card did you go for? I was debating getting one of these since I loved my 15 r4 but the soldered on ram and difficulty with repasting made it a negative. I went with the Razer blade with the super 2080.
Well i purchased the 2080 Super max q however the model they sent me only had the 2070 super in it. So I have a Dell Tech coming to my house to do a mobo swap so I have the right GPU
@@advancedvector6833 nice! Can you run unigine superposition on extreme and tell me what score you're getting with your config?
But dude, you have to agree-lunar white looks sick!
It does! My desktop and Alienware monitor are that lunar white color
I dont always game with laptops. What if im working in excel, chrome and running CZcams vids in the back ground.... how long would the battery last do you reckon?
With the 300hz panel the i9 and the 2070(more power hungry than the 2080) i was able to get about 3 to 3.5 hours. I have not used the new one i got with the 2080 enough to know what its battery life would be.
I just got my Alienware R3 and I've got an option with 2TB. My OS installed on mt 2 TB drive and for data is only 512gb. Is this normal or I need to ask them to reinstall?
This is standard. I had to wipe the drives and reinstall windows on the smaller single drive
@@advancedvector6833 thank you! That's what I'm going to do. So dumb. I feel like it should be like that from the factory
Anyone can suggest a good dock station for this? just bought one.
Yes a rolex
does it get loud doing tasks like google? or does it stay pretty quiet? or is it medium?
It all depends on the fan profile you have set. If you select the quiet mode its not really noticeable but of course your machine will run a little hotter.
Is the ram soldered in this model?or not soldered?
it is soldered on
Thank you!
if you use it for browsing/videos and word documents, how long does the battery last?
According to the internet, the 300hz version only lasts around 2 hours or less. The 144hz version last around 5 or more hours.
How’s the color desplay
Hey Vector, in your next video a recommended mention about the small SK hynix 512gb is only available when purchasing the laptop currently and cannot be purchased on its own. However, the small SK hynix 256gb and 128gb options are available but not the 512gb. This will be good for the viewers when deciding what storage option to go for. Lets get them subs to 100 🙌🏻
I'll definitely mention that. I am not familiar with this 2230 size. Its a little unfortunate dell decided to pick something that isn't mainstream but i can see how it does save some space.
which intel core does it support and what gen
Do you have tobii eye tracking on it? Or do have to buy it separately?
The screen that I got did not have Tobii but there are options that do include it.
Hey Bro!
Plz do some performance tests
Q?:
1) the overheating problems during marathon gaming (it was a one of the major issues for AW m15r1 & m15r2 system’s)
2) touchpad issues
3) other issues
Thnx in advance.
I'll be sure to let you guys know in my follow up. Will probably have time to do the testing and post the video this weekend!
Great video! Do you know what's the difference between alienware m r2 vs m r3?
Hey! I don't know all of them but the biggest difference seems to be the new one uses the 10th gen intel CPU's.
Thanks for the review, Ram is Expandable in this laptop?
Hey! Ram is NOT expandable. It is soldered on so you need to buy what you want up front.
Advanced Vector thank you!
Is this the mini NVMe drive that is in the laptop?
Dell 512GB SSD M.2 PCIe NVMe P32 30S3 BC501
That could be it but I don't know for sure.
Does the r3 have a responsive touchpad that actually doesn't lag out because of hardware/software and does it have a descent sized touchpad? Thanks bro, please reply as soon as you can. Love the video!
Hey! I have not had any issues with the touchpad at all yet from a lagging perspective. It is a little hard to push but it has been smooth and accurate. The size is not huge but its not small either. I'd say that I didnt really notice the size one way or another which seems like a good thing in my perspective. Hope this helps!
@@advancedvector6833 Thank You!
Hi i have this model rn and i tried to open it i just entered the region, then keyboard then it has been stuck on the (Now we have some important setup to do)
This doesn't seem right. Have you tried force shutting it down and turning it on again? If not you could try a fresh install of windows or just hit up dell support.
@@advancedvector6833 how do i force shutdown
Which screen option did you get? G-sync or 300Hz?
I got the 300hz
Sabrent 1TB Rocket NVMe PCIe M.2 2242. Check this product on amazon. Does it look like it will fit in that smaller ssd slot?
Honestly I don't think it would. It does look slightly longer and dell does specify this slot as a 2230 and not a 2242. I have been told it is possible to get 2230 drives but I have not been able to find a reliable source of them.
@@advancedvector6833 Seems Linus has one. czcams.com/video/IbYG7q9OO18/video.html
Great video! I'd like to know how much power the thunderbolt port can be plugged into, and how much it contributes to extended working hours. The information I can find shows that Dell 130-Watt Type-C 3-Prong AC Adapter can be applied to Alienware M17 R3. However, Dell's sales are confused about whether M15 can use this Adapter, which is really funny
can you upgrade the SSD to larger storage hard drive ?
Yes the M.2 NVMe drives can be upgraded
There is no review of this product in Korea, so I see it well!!
What version did you purchase? The website has 6 options
Hey I have tested the i9 with the 2070 super and the i9/2080 Super. The configuration with the 2080 super has far better thermals.
Nice video, I was wondering, what the battery life was like with light productivity work, web surfing, email etc.? Thanks
did you end up buying one? if so how is the battery
@@thepanther1728 I'd like to know that too. I read many reviews where people talked about a short battery life. But that's probably a software issue and the fact that Alienware is running its CPU and GPU at the highest level, something you can change probably in settings
Great unboxing! The material is not aluminum though; a magnesium alloy composite, for lesser heat induction.
I want to buy the m15 r3 but I don’t know which cpu to pick, is getting the i9 worth it? Will there be a huge gap of performance gaming wise? Or should I just get the i7 and save a couple of bucks.
So i'm on the fence. I'm going to repaste when i swap my motherboard and see if my i9 does better but honestly from a gaming perspective an i7 will do just fine. Save your self some money and heat. I sometimes stream so i was hoping the extra cores would help out with that but the heat generation of the i9 is insane. I may send mine back and opt for an i7.
I have the m15 R2 with the 9750h in it. Due to how thin the form factor is you really aren't going to get the bang out of the buck on the top end CPU. The system has enough trouble keeping thermals in check -- mine constantly runs high 80s - mid 90s in most of the modern demanding titles. From what I've seen of the R3 design which is nearly the same, it's not going to be much if any better (early reviews of the R3 seem to confirm this). You're just not going to be able to push the i9 to it's limits before thermals start to throttle you. My 9750h has a hard enough time and this is with a VERY generous -.150 undervolt. The GPU has no issues with thermals, the CPU does. This is pretty much par for the course in these thin and light laptops and so far as long as I keep the undervolt, and in some cases turn OFF boost too (the laptop REALLY wants to boost for as long as it can so you'll have minute long cycles of CPU temps near or at 100c before it downclocks). TLDR; Save the money and get the i7 instead. The very small gains you get from the i9 aren't worth the cost in $ and in thermals, and that's only IF the machine can push the CPU long enough before throttling / downclocking kicks in.
I don't think it'll make much difference, gpu is way more relevant
You have a very good camera
Nice vid ! Not sure if i missed the info but did you get the i9?
Also, are you planning to repaste? Heard on reddit that the cpu gets to 100 C.
Hey I did go with the i9 and after I do my initial testing I will be re-pasting. I like to use the graphite thermal pads. I did it on my last Alienware and didn't have any issues! I guess we'll see what happens with this one I can imagine it'll put out some serious heat when I start pushing it.
@@advancedvector6833 i see man, mine should arrive next month but i never repaste before and it does seems complicated to do due to the inverted motherboard. Maybe i ll just UV it.
Yeah it can definitely get tricky. I have had quite a bit of experience working on laptops and i'm always a bit nervous the first time I pull apart a new machine.
@@advancedvector6833 especially i spend 3000+ dollars on it too so if i fucked it up right away ..... ohh also is the rtx 2080 super an 90w variant?
You know I looked at the spec sheet and wasn't able to find that. I'll see if I can dig a little more and find out!
very nice ...bro
Mines coming July 4th
Thats awesome! Overall this seems like a great machine. I guess my thermal testing will tell the whole story but I'm really looking forward to using it more!
Does a repaste void the warranty?
Unless they have changed something it does not.
Found an issue with the Rear IO Plate on this system. It is angled to match the design aesthetic which is preventing cables/plugs from seating flush with the system. I have a number of plugs I can not use because they are not able to go in enough to create a full connection. To see an example of this take a look at the power plug. It only goes into the system so far and leaves a good 1/8" outside of the system! I am not able to use the Thunderbolt 3 port for this reason which I would consider a design flaw.
I do see what you are saying but i have not had any issues with cables not being able to seat properly. Perhaps your MB mounting is slightly skewed a bit causing the problem? Having more of the plug out in the open vs inside the PC shouldn't make a difference. I could see how you wouldnt be able to seat properly if the sockets were too deep. Either way i'd definitely reach out to dell to get some support on that.
@@advancedvector6833 Thanks I am sending the unit back I have pictures which show this but unfortunately I can not add them. I will say the R3 runs much cooler than the R2s, the new keyboard is great, love the Dark Side color, the touchpad is great, 300Mhz screen looks good, battery life is abysmal at 1 1/2 to 2 hours tops with all battery saving features on and screen at 50% brightness while streaming media only no gameplay. The sad part is I had a great discount on this unit. I will look at the XPS 9700 17" unit. Thanks again.
Thank you CZcams algorithm. This laptop was not on my radar...one of the main things am I looking for on my short list is to have at least two ssds.
Such an amazing and detailed overview of this with great timing. Some youtubers move and speak at lightning speed moving really quickly over things.
Nice to have 3 usb-a and also Ethernet. Only gripe is I wish it had Mic In and a full SD card reader.
Though I will look more onto it.
So there is also a third NVM drive?
I don't do any gaming and looking more for video editing, graphics (Photoshop and illustrator), sound editing and dj'ing.
Do you think could fit the bill esp with color gamut for video...graphics creators.l?
Liked and subbed!!
I use this as my one stop shop for gaming and editing photos and videos. It has performed very very well with anything I have thrown at it so far.
@@advancedvector6833 Excellence! Thanks again for the great content overview and your reply. Wellness to the day! 🌠🙏
I wonder if someone has seen reviews about the OLED display one, I have not seen any about that screen.
Nice neils
Thanks!
Would this be an OK office usable laptop?? I’m just insanely going crazy for the keyboard lighting and I don’t play games but I don’t mind having a very good screen for watching movies 😁
I would say absolutely especially if you get one with only a 1660 GPU and an i5 or an i7 i don't think you'd have any problems whatsoever!
Get the 4k 60hz model if you wanna watch movies NOT the 144hz or 300hz 1080p models
I’m here watching on the Alienware 15 r3
Thanks for the support!
Hey, how's the battery life while just browsing. And while gaming?
Battery life isn't great with the i9. You really only get a couple of hours at most.
@@advancedvector6833 wht abt the i7?
Your finger nail was dope man....
Thanks!
To make it a little more future-proof, they should have made one of two USB3 ports on that one side another USB-C port so you have two and two. That would have been a better balance. On the extreme end you have the new XPS15/17 which have all USB-C ports on it which it too much and have to rely on a dongle.
Yeah I think it could go either way. Personally I appreciate having more USB3 ports. They still don’t make mice, headphones, thumb drives, etc with usbc yet and as someone on the go I find having that extra usb3 is great. I still don’t use usbc unless I’m home and docked up
Finally
Haha yeah. you know its bad when a small time youtuber like myself posts first. Or maybe everyone else just thought it wasn't worth reviewing. Either way i'm glad to be getting information out to the masses.
Hey I'm wondering if this is good for downloading and burning movies? I will have to purchase a burner for sure lol just want to get away from a full desktop computer
Honestly this would be a little overkill for that but yes it would do great in that capacity assuming you bought an external burner as you mentioned.
Can you do a vid for making the 512gb nvme as boot drive and remove raid config to the 2 drive.
So by default it comes with the drives in a raid 0. All i did to swap them was reinstall a fresh copy of windows and during the process removed all partitions on the raid 0 arrays. After windows booted i pulled up partition manager and re-formated the dual NVMe drives to get my 1TB of storage back.
Advanced Vector does the laptop comes with windows installer? My unit will be arriving this 24th and it’s my first time tinkering with the os and drives
This is my biggest beef. They should have made the 512 the boot drive. I’d love to see a video of how you reversed it. I see your description but I’m afraid to try it.
Is Alienware 15 r3 good in 2020?
Sure no reason why it couldnt still perform well. Of course it depends on the configuration. There was really nothing wrong with my 15 r4 other than I wanted something smaller and more portable.
FYI, the metal is not aluminum, it's magnesium alloy
Yeah that makes a lot of sense. The same stuff used for macbooks.
Link?
Was that an M.2 2230 slot?
Yeah. I just checked the documentation online and it is a 2230. I have seen smaller M keyed SSD's of this size but didnt know we had NVMe in this size. They must be hard to find. In any case 512 is plenty large for a boot drive so i doubt i'll upgrade it but it is interesting.
I got the m17 r3 for 5 days now with 144hz gsync i7 10th 1660ti and I think that’s the best combination for thermals. On idle I got 42-55c and highest I get under heavy loads/gaming is around 53-65c and that’s about it. The only problem I have now is the right hinge makes a very small click but after I noticed it, I just can’t seem to let it go and it just annoys me more and more(because this is a $2k laptop lol) everything was perfect but it just annoys me a lot and the screen panel is flimsy maybe because its screen panel is just thicker than its competitors. I would like to know if you also notice the weird slope design at the middle edge of the keyboard at the top of the honeycomb vents?? It’s the edge below the alienware name logo below the screen end edge. I want to know if it is really a design or mine just got a defect. Thank you!
Hey thats interesting about the small clicking noise. I have seen some where hinges were just slightly off center or perhaps not quite tightened down all the way. If you are able you can likely tear it down and find the hinges and figure out whats going on. That small indentation is on my M15 R3 as well I am wondering if its there for the Tobi eye tracking. My panel doesnt have Tobi but i know that the 4k ones do. Perhaps it needs a little bit of space down there as thats about where it would sit i think.
Advanced Vector yes man. I was really stressing for the last 2 days if I can live with it or not. I don’t know the return process of the laptop with dell if it’s easy or what. If so, I will be opting for msi gs66 which is cheaper lighter smaller and got better specs and screen. But idk man, the one I got is really great with performance and thermals better than what I was expecting it to be on a good day. I might try to tear it down and check the hinges if I can tighter it. But I’m guessing that it’s too tight which is the other way around. Can you give me your thoughts with your tearing down exp if hinges and screws are easily accessible? Thanks a lot
I didnt notice when i was doing my teardown video because i wasnt worried about the panel however i think you'd just have to pop off the back cover as here then flip the laptop around to look at the hinges. czcams.com/video/S6khhTPHihk/video.html
Advanced Vector thanks a lot man. Will update you with the results. Hope yours is working just fine.
Does it have a touchscreen?
It does not have a touchscreen.
Advanced Vector ok thanks for info
Caught a deal on one upgraded to 32gb as well
still no gsync this year ? pretty troll that they make you get the a51m if you need gsync. since im used to g sync, anytime i play on a non gync monitor, the experience just feels broken af :-( i had the m15 r2 but had to return it due to the lack of gsync. i have the a51m now. games feel WAY smoother with gysnc. anyway nice video and keep it up
thanks!
i might customize it to make it more pittsburgh steelers themed #herewegosteelers. and the rgb lighting more steelers themed.
Previous generation had thermal issues I hope now they have solved everything
I think with the i7 it would be ok but the i9 is still very very hot
800 views 50 likes and 50 comments vector great job
Thanks!
can it run Fortnite at 300 fps I'm interested on how it looks on a 300hz display.
I just started loading more games on it and fortnite is one of them. i'll let you know what I find. I'd imagine that by reducing a few settings i'll be able to get 300fps on 1080.
I like the design, but the problem is that it is ridiculously overpriced in the UK. It's £700 dearer than a slightly higher spec HP gaming laptop (1660ti vs 2070 maxq). I like AW, I have the 34 inch super wide monitor on my gaming desktop driven by a 2080ti and I love it. I will pay a premium but not that much, especially for a lower spec. So I'll pass on this one unfortunately.
I think its ok to do so! If something doesn't seem worth it from a value perspective then absolutely you should pass it up!
Is it really hot when you play pubg on it?
I havn't played pubg on it but after tweaking the CPU and reducing the clock and undervolting its performing fantastically now. Check out some of my other videos for details.
Can the SSD be increased?
You could buy larger NVMe drives to put into this yes. However it does not have a 2.5" drive bay anymore.
@@advancedvector6833 What's 2.5" drive for? Sorry I don't excel at tech. stuff. So if I buy 1TB SSD then I can put one more SSD in future, if I get two 512GB SSDs, then I will have to remove one 512GB SSD to replace it with the larger one, right?
No this laptop does not have an SSD drive bay. You would need to buy a larger NVMe drive. For instance my laptop came with 3x 512GB NVMe drives. 2 of them are in raid 0 giving me 1TB of storage. If i wanted more storage I would have to buy 2x 1TB NVMe drives to put in raid 0
@@advancedvector6833 Okay. I saw in your video it has 3 slots.
I currently want 1TB of storage, but I want rest 2 slots to be empty so that I can add new later. So I should go with 1TB single drive right?
As if I'd go with RAID 0, 2×512GB, then only 1 slot would be left vacant.
Am I right?
Sorry if I sound stupid.
Hey No worries. You are absolutely right. If you only want one slot filled just go with a single 1 TB and you have two slots to expand too. Just keep in mind that one of those is a 2230 slot and not a 2280.
Damm for an $2K Dell and they still won't allow their customers to upgrade. I might just grab the Eluktronics THICC-17 AMD Ryzen 9 3900 RTX 2070 " 144Hz Ultra Performance Laptop
They make area51m for 2K which is upgradable. GPU as well as CPU!
Could you also do a video of you repasting?
I will definitely do a tear down video when I repaste it!
Advanced Vector yes!
Post gaming thermals ffs
That’s the plan. I wanted to get the unboxing out there but I will do some benchmarks and testing. Planning on recording and releasing that video on Saturday.
You need work on mic level. Nice video though.
Thanks for the tip
Please unbox Alienware Area 51m r2 2020 most expensive model thank you!
Hi! Thanks for the comment. I would love to do that but unfortunately I am just a small channel and I have to purchase all my products. I do not get sent any test laptops and purchase it all with my own $$$. In the future I would like to try getting one of them but it just doesnt fit a need I currently have.
i dont like the keyboard on this one . the old alienware 15 hAs a better keyboard by far..and thats the only bad side on this laptop..bad its kind a big deal to me considering the price tag on this machine...i am planing to buy though but i guess i have to rethink and try to see other alternative ..
I do have an Alienware 15 R4 as well and will agree the keyboards are vastly different. I personally prefer this newer style but I think when it comes to keyboards everyone probably has their own preference. Would be interesting to see if anyone every made completely different styles of keyboards available depending on user preference instead of just having to go with a model that has the kind you like.
@@advancedvector6833i really like alienware and i owned 17" r3 and paired it with razer keyboard tkl.. it gets hot when i play games such as dota.. the issue with this brand is it gets hot when playing so i just elevate the rare bottom side just to have a better intake of air and it works just fine..and up until now i dont have issue when it comes to hardware but i admit the gpu on this is old and i cant have a good frame rate in newer and heavy games.. so hoping to buy another alienware this year and im waiting for someone to review an aw17 or 15 with an oled screen..
bro you the type of person to touch the keyboard and mouse after eating up a dorito
Edit: i don't really mean it
Thanks...? I'm actually pretty clean when it comes to my human interface devices. Always wash my hands after eating so i avoid such a disaster.
@@advancedvector6833 i'm joking sorry I just did that so I can get you to reply to me hehe :/ just wanted to ask how the material felt for the black version of the m15 and what it's made of
Why have u nail polish ur nail??
Just thought it would be fun! :)
Advanced Vector looks cool if you ask me
nice nails bro
Thanks! It is a fun little thing to do.
ولك استحي وشيل المناكير ههههه خزيتنا
Weird nails were very distracting
Feel free to skip my content and look elsewhere if its too much to handle.
less audio sound bro n your video isnt that much great
Dude? Wtf with that girly nails????
Unnecessarily long video
Of course you are free to skip them. Many people have found my videos to be useful but I do understand if they are not for you. Feel free to get your info from other reviewers or content creators if my style is not to your liking.
Such an unfriendly comment