Agreed. I used to be against 4K laptops thinking they were "pointless." I bought the X17 R2 4K version and it's the best screen I've ever seen. Everything looks unbelievably crisp and the panel is gorgeous.
Yeah, the Dell on site repairs are super convenient. My m15 r4 had a dead red pixel on the screen 8 months into ownership. I called Alienware and the next morning a tech came out to my house and replaced the screen. I do really like that they can provide such a fast solution. However, the MSI is sweet. If I was in the market again, I’d be hard pressed on this one.
The repair on my machine was good but when they wanted to replace the machine the service is shit. They tried giving me a laptop with lower specs and all kind of crap for almost 3 months.
Let me add other than the warranty issues with my x17r1 it’s been a great machine. But I don’t think I can ever buy another Alienware I feel like they tried to pull a fast one on me and trust is hard to repair. Seems they have finally figured out 4K laptops for work and play also
My purchase of the x17R2 was to replace an Alienware 17R4 and comparing the two laptops and how much laptop design has improved is incredible. The R4 was cool back in the day but the x17 is just so awesome. I can't believe how much lighter and with a smaller footprint it is than my previous 17" Dell laptop. It's hard to believe they are both 17" computers. The MSI is clearly also a great machine but the x17 really has a unique look and putting all that power in a slim profile machine really appealed to me.
I found the GE76 keyboard to be quite a pleasure to type on for being membrane-based. It has a pseudo-mechanical feel to it IMO. Of course it can't match an actual mechanical KB like on the X17 R2 or the older Aorus 17X models.
As someone who's on his 2nd Alienware and has owned 3 MSI laptops in the past. I would choose Alienware every time. I love my Alienware M17, my brother just got an X17 R2 and he's loving it. Definitely the better purchase. MSI has let me down too many times, not the case with Alienware.
@@thanos5220 The first one I had, the keyboard stopped working completely on the laptop, the 2nd one, an update completely destroyed the machine to where I wasn't even able to get into the bios or re-install Windows even from a USB, and the 3rd and final one, was effectively DOA with a dead GPU. Took both the 1st and 2nd to be looked at by GeekSquad and both times they simply gave me a replacement cuz they couldn't fix it, and with the 3rd one i got a full refund and bought an Alienware. never looked back.
I just bought the X17 r2 and maxed everything out BUT the SSD (i9 hk, windows11 pro, 3080ti, 64g ddr5, uhd 4k screen, cherryMX keys) I wanted to upgrade the SSD with my own choice drive, instead of the x17 included micron SSD. So I got 2 Kingston Renegade Fury 4TBs! THENN I opened the x17 up… very disappointed that they decided to save a millimeter of space and downgrade the SSD slot to only allowing single-sided drives! That means that not only will the Kingston‘s not work, but I won’t even be able to use any 4 TB SSD‘s as they are all two-sided. I am really hoping the next generation of SSDs accommodates for something like this but as of now I am going to go with western digital‘s S and 850 single-sided SSD which capsule at 2 TB each.. other than that, I am convinced I have the best laptop on the market and look forward to many years are of top-tier gaming enjoyment lol. Very happy with my purchase…… even though it did cost me almost 6k 🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
Alienware is the best design of the year but I hope to get bigger palm rest and secondary functions backlit. What were they thinking? People don't use secondary keys at night?
Great review! For me tho having owned the Alienware x17 1080p 360hz variant switching to the MSI GE76 was a massive difference in clarity as the the resolution was 1440p, but I can imagine my opinion may differ had I owned X17 4K model, great review cheers 👍
Thanks mate, yeah I must admit if I hadn’t tested the 4K I would be more than happy with the qhd on the ge76. Last year I didn’t test the 4K as I figured it wouldn’t look great scaled but clearly I was wrong
Great comparison video! I got the Alienware x15 r1 with the qhd screen with a 3070 gpu a few months back and absolutely love it except I want a bigger screen/ mechanical keyboard and better port selection on the back now so I’m giving that one to my wife and next year sometime I’ll upgrade and get the Alienware x17 r2 3070ti with the 4K panel and the mechanical keyboard on sale and hopefully they will have a mux switch by then.
They’re both about good, it doesn’t matter if you paid £2,500 for a x17 R2 because it won’t be better nor worse than a GE76. It sounds like a draw, if you like slightly better performance & battery life then a GE76 would be the one to buy but if you want much better portability then a x17 R2 would be the one to buy.
Great video! But I am very struggle between x15r2 3070 2k and x17r2 3070 4k. Which one would you choose regardless of price? I heard x17r2 has thermal issue and speaker issue, are they solved now? Thanks!
The x17 doesn’t have thermal issues. It’s thermals are much better than the x15. The speakers have improved with drivers and a bit of software tweaking but they are still only average
Cracking video! Just got my replacement for my R1 from Dell, service has been excellent. There were some issues with my R1, had the motherboard replaced and still didn't operate properly. Couldn't believe my luck when Dell sent me the spec of my replacement, got the R2 with basically every upgrade imaginable. Very happy with the service and support from Dell!
Same as last year, cpu on X17 and gpu on GE76 but aesthetically Alienware is still the best with modern design that multiple steps ahead others and never get old, window hello and gsync provides better user experience. Currently still rocking with my Area51m 💪
@@MashITTech I know right, the cooling on the Area 51m is on another level compared to these days thin laptops. Sadly the technology of its time is shit compared to now :(
@@MashITTech I recently repasted mine with Gelid GC Extreme and get a 6-7 degrees lower from before on the gpu and about 10 degrees on the cpu. This beast can easily handle a 130w cpu + 200w gpu, total of 330w which none of these day laptops can :(
Yeah, the cooling is just amazing. I am so tempted to switch my 10700 for a 10900k and some liquid metal but in all honesty even my 10709 eats through everything I throw at it
I would choose the ge76 just because of the present and easily available number pad. I think 17in laptops without number pads look silly. Until they utilize the extra space I prefer my laptops extra space to utilized by a number pad. But honestly I would only take one of these if it were given to me. My current m17 r4 only cost 1400$, and with the specs given is only 10% weaker overall than either. When a laptop can double the performance with only costing half or similar than my current would I consider upgrading. And I don’t see a laptop doubling its performance any time soon. Even some pcs can’t give me 2500 single core scores. Shoot some of them can give me quad multi scores but they’re also going to be quads higher. So bang for buck I’ll be right here till my games can’t play or they double performance without tripling price.
@@ultimategohan1551 I used the dell outlet store. I got it through the refurbished section as a scratch and dent. Originally 1530 something but after they applied discounts I got it for 1400$ after tax. It also came in 2 days early, and I think it was just marked scratch and dent so they could sell it cheap because there was no physical dents or visible scratches or scuffs. I looked at it under the sunlight the moment I got out of the FEDEx store and searched for anything noticeable and there was nothing to be seen. I also didn’t have to pay any out of pocket money because I used their dell preferred account. So just 30$ a month till it’s paid off, but I’ll set it to 100$ a month to pay it faster. The performance was crazy too. Like it’s just midrange model I believe. Which is a i7-10870H with a 3070, 16gb ram, 1 TB (2 512 ssds with raid 0) 1080p 360hz panel. But I was getting 1200ish single 7000ish multicore scores, on balanced mode and no overclock. Which is like low end i9-3080s 10th gen. So that’s why I think they put new parts or it was one of the last new builds before they took it off main website. Idk but like the MSI GT77 fully speced is like 6,000$ plus easy and it’s only 17% better on the nano laptop review website. Also sold my 2012 m17x laptop for 400$ towards the purchase. so technically got a year old 3600$ laptop for 1000$, that when compared to the best laptop in the world is only 17% worse and is 6x less. And I’m sure you can find several websites doing the same just got to keep your eyes open. Good luck!
@@xalvarez07 wow you got a good deal. I just got the same laptop 10870h 3070 16gb, though 2 separate ssds(1tb and 500gb) and 144hz dark side of the moon but used from someone locally for 1165. Its been used a year and no warranty left but everythings great and it runs/benchmarks well. Undervolted it to heck and now the cpu only draws 25-35w while at max clocks during gaming leaving some more power for the gpu leading to nice performance in even in balanced mode. Overall really liking it and dont think i need to upgrade for while. Yeah youre comparison puts things in perspective this is still a very powerful machine, amd for the price we paid cant complain (anything even slightly better would be a lot more expensive)
@@ultimategohan1551 That's a really good deal too tbh. I would like a 144hz refresh rate screen because I know I'd be getting a better-quality picture, but I appreciate the 360hz one a little more just because I like esports and I feel the performance difference a little bit more. I also would have liked the dark side of the moon over the lunar white so nice grab there. Then I have warranty till next year. so that could come in hand in the coming months. I need to undervolt and overclock it still, but I really hadn't had many thermal issues yet, so I'll eventually do it. Yeah man I just won't settle for less. Like I will wait however long it takes. A lot of people like getting a new one every 3 years but I like to go 10 if I can but reasonably at least 5-7 years. So, we'll see how long it takes for a laptop to meet my expectations lol
@@xalvarez07 Pretty sucky that the darkside of the moon only was available with the 144hz panels. A 360hz with dark side wouldve been sweet. Im still pleased with it, the repsonse time is a lot better than my omen 16 with a qhd 165hz screen i just sold, so even at a lower refreshrate it still feels smoother. Bonus too was that the original owner ordered it with the "base" 144hz screen(there was 2 144hz screens, base one and a g sync one for $30 more) yet it has gysnc and it works well. In regards to undervolting, i could not recommend it more, the 10870h has a lot of room for it usually. A very safe start would be -75mv to both core and cache(i recommend throttlestop), maybe go lower if you want, core will go alot lower than cache(-100mv is a good maximum for it, core usually well below -100mv) Been watching a lot of videos on the m17 r4 and at stock the 10870h, will use 40-70w gaming. THATS ALOT imo, with undervolting shaving off 15-35w that just gives the gpu that much more power to play with while decreasing temps too, all while cpu is hitting higher clocks too. Havent tried overclocking(most of the time i even have 100mhz downclock going on each core to keep the cpu in mid to low 80s even during heavy gaming)
Mate you said that Alienware did not have mux swtich, but in Australia they sell these with Advanced Optimus. Not sure bout specs in UK, though I checked that Gaming laptops with Advanced Optimus - Takes MUX a step further by not requiring a restart when switching Optimus on and off. Good video though keep it up. Was thinking about the m17 but have crossed backed into the x17r2 - though not easy decision with the new MSIz and Asus, like changing minds every week on which one as the specs I am after are all similarly priced, and $100 or 2 wont make much of a difference.
It does have advanced Optimus which is great but still not a dedicated mux which some people still prefer. But since this video dell released a BIOS that added the mux option in bios for those that want it 👍
Very helpful video What do you reckon the sweet spot is for configuring a 4k screen Alienware? Is an i7 with 3070Ti plenty, or is it best to get it with the i9 and 3080Ti?
I7 with 3070ti is the sweet spot. I9 is pointless as the watts the i9 needs to stretch its legs is more than the x17 can manage and even the i7 needs over 100w! The 3070ti is only a little behind the 3080ti and with features like dlss and the fact that the 4K scales really well to 1440p and 1080p it’s the best option. I am making a gaming video in this very config and hope to have it out next week
Yeah the keyboard backlighting is really annoying! In the U.K. alienware is actually one of the cheaper brands! Razer on the other hand is extortionate here
Thanks for the excellent comparison! An easy pick for me as MSI do not have their own online store in Ireland, whereas Dell do and they usually have regular sales and employee discount codes. The on-site warranty as mentioned in other comments is brilliant and many people overlook how important this is in factoring in a purchasing decision. Lenovo is the only other brand I would consider as they too deal directly in my region and have very affordable on-site warranty.
I agree the razer blade is probably a more all round package but the only reason I excluded it is the price! Razer have bumped the prices in the U.K. by an extra £1000 on average for each model making them completely unviable here! I used a budget of £2300 in the U.K. and I can’t even get the 3060 blade 17 in for that price
Great Dave! Another great review! I have a x17 R2, with i9... Well, it is a great machine for work and gaming. The mux switch is on Nvidia panel. There you can choose which GPU you want use! I had some problems with R1... Audio speaker the last issue... So I'm waiting for GE77...
There is also a MUX in the bios as well as the advanced Optimus. And you are not going to believe it, straight after I released this video dell have released a bios that adds a MUX to the 4K r2 😂 I will put an announcement out later
MSI is a clear winner for me: Motherboard flipped (a mess to only repaste), soldered ram and wifi module, MUX switch, full card reader...Alienware by the other side only has a partially better build quality. I don' t talk about design because it is subjective. But for sure both laptops are beasts
Hi Dave, any chance you can tell us screen size on future reviews please? What i mean is, (not including bezels) actual real estate screen size dimensions detailing width and height. I've been delaying purchasing HP workstations for staff for months in anticipation of their new 16:10 ratio screens, only to find they're narrower than what we have already, which is hopeless, so I'm considering Dell as an alternative. Also, keyboard layout is particularly important (for some of us). Can you mention if a device comes with a UK layout configuration please (£ on number 3 and @ near return key). I believe that Dell's Cherry keyboard comes only in the US variant. Your reviews are much appreciated, please keep up your excellent work.
Hello mate, yes of course. And you are right with regards to the keyboard, Dell only offers the mech keyboard in USA ANSI format but the standard keyboard which is still excellent has the correct UK ISO layout
Great comparison. I'd love to see a head-to-head comparison between the X17 R2 UHD vs. the MSI GT77 Titan UHD since the panel comparison would be fair there and the cooling systems are much more in parity.
Yeah, I would have loved to have done that but the gt77 is difficult to get hold of in the U.K. and stupidly expensive. being a small UA-camr that has to buy all the laptops I review I just couldn’t afford it 😥
Thank you for a fair and honest review. I do appreciate you take the time to show us the speaker quality on laptops. I only game in the Windows environment but I think not having Windows hello or a fingerprint reader is an egregious oversight in 2022. Online payments is standard now. Always look forward to your reviews!
Thank you mate. I do need to try and find a better way to record the speaker audio as I don’t think the speaker I used did it justice, the x17 speakers were blowing and I was struggling to pick that up
it's outrageous not having Windows Hello.. Note, the MSI models have been replaced with the GE67 and 77HX now, and they STILL don't have windows hello of any kind! The 77 with 12900HX, 32GB ram, 2TB SSD, 3080TI and 17" 240hz OLED panel is, wait for it, $7299 AUD!
@@kikibarrios1231 That doesn't make sense cause you can always disable an option you don't use that might be useful to someone else. Nonsensical argument.
Hi David. Great video. I had a quick question about your comment about the x17 not having a mux switch. It has advanced Optimus.. is this not considered to be a mux switch? What would be the advance of a true mux switch over advanced Optimus? I did a little googling on this, but still not understanding the advantage of one over the other.
Advanced Optimus is much better than old Optimus but it is still slightly behind a dedicated gpu option. The mux switch gives you that dedicated option
I've had 3 msi laptops since my last alienware and I'm happy that I switched back to alienware. Got a similar spec one as this one. Nothing against msi but none of the ones I had lasted more than a few years before issues. My old alienware was a tank and missed that.
So it seemed like for a while you were on the hunt for the R2's overheating/thermal throttling CPU issues. Is this not the case/was this not taken into account? I want the Alienware but at the same time I dont' want a laptop that's going to burn out in 3 years time.
I am still on the hunt for hearing issues. But it is not a general problem more a QC problem. As in some models are running hot out of the box (probably a poor paste job or maybe the heatsink doesn’t have good contact with the die). I had a model that ran hot out of the box, after hearing it happen to a few others too I wanted to find out if it was a common occurrence. My faulty unit is now in the hands of the alienware engineers and they are looking at my machine to find the cause.
@@MashITTech Hi, can you teach me how can I find out if my x17r2 has overheating problem? I mean I kind of understand that 12th Gen creates more heat but I am not sure if it's of bad quality
I know this is out of your realm David, but I would rather enjoy knowing how much business Alienware loses/year due to the AWCC being so horrendous. Great review as always but I would still work on doing more of a fixed distance speaker test. A tripod and mic isn't a wallet breaker! ; )
Thanks Anton, and I know you are right regarding the speaker test. We are starting to make a little money now so I am happy to buy it but audio is my weakest area! Do you have any suggestions for the mic?
@@MashITTech suggestions for mic: if you want absolute simplicity, a rode video mic go II or a blue yeti are decent for $100 range. The video mic go II is my choice because it can function both as a USB mic and as a mic for cameras/camcorders. If you’re using a DSLR/MIRRORLESS camera for your videos, you can also use a rode wireless go (they have a GO II version, which allows two wireless mics for interview style) or the DJI MIC. The DJI mic is on the pricier side, but these wireless mics have a very small profile and they’re pretty easy to work with. If you don’t mind having a microphone in frame right next to you, RODE VIDEO MIC GO II is my #1 choice for budget purposes. You could get a fancier setup with a real XLR mic using an audio interface, but that’s a rabbit hole you may not want to go if you’re looking for a budget solution.
x17 r2 do have mux, even on 4K 120hz version, advanced optimus is a prove. You can change it in nvidia control panel. and also you can use ru.efi to make it directly connected to dgpu without advanced optimus.
@@MashITTech mux is a hardware thing, every function-wise thing based on mux. what you mean mux is only a bios setting or a software setting, it's truelly not mux. And advanced optimus based on mux hardware, without mux , there will no advanced optimus.
@@MashITTech Ohh do I have to update it manually? I just ordered a x17 R2 with the 4K display, and I'm really concerned about it after reading the comments :/
One hell of a video!! Really loved it!! just one small request Can u do like the BIG 3 titan of 17 inch and add razer blade 17 to this And help people like me to decide
Hi David. Fab review as always 😎. Have a question w.r.t Advanced Optimus vs MUX. I thought the 02 were supposed to perform at a similar level, with advanced Optimus the better at not needing to restart the computer to get dedicated dGPU performance. Additionally, what I found (at least on my Alienware x17 R2), the 1080p performance in games is better on MSI , but Alienware tends to do a LOT better on 1440p and 4k. Just curious to know if you noticed this as well .
I heard the x17r2 has a hell of alot of heating issues and quality control issues. Only thing thats holding me back atm that and the price is a bit too high. I think its clear that Mash IT loves alienware but if i was a betting man i put my money on the GE76 that it lasts longer and has better quality control. The differance between CPU performance is very very marginal at best maybe 1% better hardly even measurable. For me the GE76 wins hands down.
I love the build quality of alienware laptops but I really wish they'd stop doing the flipped motherboard design. I'd buy one in a heartbeat if they did, but for now it makes cleaning or repasting too much of a pain to ever consider one.
Yeah i just sold my omen 16 11800 3070, and bought a 1yr old used m17 r4 for the same price. The omens build quality was creaky and flimsy, the center keyboard lights were super dim(not supposed to be like that), and a very annoying touchpad issue. Im happy though because i practically got a bigger better performing better built machine with an extra 500gb for the same price. The omen screen was nicer though being qhd, but the alienswares definitely feels faster(probably because of the response time) than the omens even its 144hz vs the omens 165hz. The flipped motherboard has me worried slightly (never repasted anything before), though temps are good even being one year used. I have a cooling pad that will definitely keep dust out, so hopefully maintenance will be few amd far in between.
Great video! But for performance comparison i noticed the X17R2 was running at TCC 0 which means Throttling starts at 100 degrees while the Ge76 was running with TCC 5 and this surely affects the Benchmark performance. Even tho the score of ge76 is a bit under the X17s it stays a view degrees cooler due to TCC offset
Hey Dave. Nice job on the comparison. I wanted your opinion on a laptop I'm gonna buy. Alienware area 51m r2 I9-10900k Rtx 2080 super 32gb ram 2tb ssd 1080p 300hz Is this laptop okay for current and future games? I don't like the x17 because of it being thinner which means it would be harder to cool components and the 51m r2 has a desktop grade CPU and GPU. I'll be waiting on your reply❤ Big love from Nigeria🇳🇬
The 2080s is still a solid card especially with its 200w tgp. It will power through games at 1080p for the foreseeable future. I have loved my time with the area 51m r2 and I also love the fact it has 2 m.2 and a 2.5” storage space, I have 6tb in mine now 😂
@@MashITTech Nice😂 Sorry to interrupt again but on the same area 51m r2, I saw an i7-10700k. So I what your opinion on which one I should pick, the i7-10700k or the i9-10900k. Thanks for the reply❤
@@HoneyBunsSupreme I have the ordinary 10700 (non K) and that boosts all cores to 4.6ghz and that is enough for my use! I would get the 10700k unless you know you need the extra 2 cores of the 10900k or the price is insignificant 👍
no, as far as I can tell all DDR5 memory is pretty slow at the moment so it doesn't really make a difference which brand you get. I even got some expensive Kingston Fury memory with allegedly tighter timings and it was still just as slow :(
What laptop would you recommend for gaming and graphic designing ? I was looking at the dell Alienware m15 r7, Lenovo legion 5i pro gen 7 or the MSI raider ge76 . As i need a great screen with good rgb and brightness aswell as a fast CPU / GPU performance , i'm struggling to decide which one to look at for black friday sales
@@MashITTech Ok thanks for your advice ! I would have another question : do you think the screen is good enough on the MSI ge76? And what specs should i go for that would be in my budget ? I was thinking i7 12700H , 32 GB RAM , and a RTX 3070Ti PS: i've been seeing that the Lenovo legion 5i pro gen 7 is one of the fastest laptops for the specs ive listed , and the screen is good. Is that true? Thanks for your help once again !
That’s a tough one. Can you easily afford it and do you need a gaming laptop? Obviously desktops are better value. It it’s amazing being able to game anywhere on a gaming. Laptop.
Hi, awesome video! To be fair, my x17r2 specs are 12th gen i9-12900hk, 3080ti, 64GB, 2TB, and this machine works as an awesome replacement for my old unfunctioning 15r3. It handled games perfectly (which I didn't look into details like specific fps, frequency, etc, not an expert), with just one notice of the heating problem. I am not sure if it heats normally that way, since it's a 12th gen cpu I suppose it does give a lot of heat? How do I know if my laptop overheats? Any criteria like running a specific game under specific settings should generate how much heat?
I have premium support, and I can always get back to Dell to ask for support on any kind, but I just want to make sure that the heating is actually a problem in my case
The best bet is to run cine r23 and see how it scores, if it’s over heating the cpu is throttled back giving a lower score. Anything less than 16k in performance mode is not acceptable as far as I am concerned
@@MashITTech I just ran a CPU multi core test, and the result is 16083, is this unacceptable? (I mean it just passed the 16k a little bit) But also considering my room temperature is kinda high at around 27-28 degree Celcius, is it acceptable? PS. single core gives 1845 score, whichg is very good I guess?
i've been watching reviews over reviews and i still can't decide whether to get the alienware x17 r1 (since r2 doesnt interest me) or the msi (this one) ]: i really want to do gaming but i also need to do blender and photoshop since i'm trying to get into animation again. what do you recommend?
on the Alienware I use the Fn+F1 performance mode which uses a high fan speed but I don't think its max fans. On the GE76 no, I just use the extreme performance mode, if you enable the cooler boost full fans it gets LOUD 😂
If the X17 R3 gets the 12900HX and brings back secondary lighting, I'll be a convert. Oh, and FFS, a 1440P G-Sync screen! I mean MSI now offer a 240HZ 1440P *OLED* panel on the new HX models, ok, it's not g-sync, but 240hz OLED on both 15 and 17", and Alienware can't manage ANY QHD panels on a 17" lol!
@@MashITTech I was wrong, the 17" MSI is not OLED, but I just bought the 15 so I'll let you know how I get along. I've never even seen an OLED screen before.
Alienware, it’s 2022 almost 2023 yet we still have a software to control your computers that looks and feels straight out of 2003. This is completely unacceptable considering the prices we pay for these machines to have such a clunky, buggy experience. I really expect that for next gen laptops and computers we can enjoy a new fresh from the ground up AWCC software that can work just as fast and fluent as your machines, thank you.
The 4k has advanced Optimus on the r1, is that not the case for the 4k r2? For me the best laptop of the past 12 months goes to Lenovo legion. I think Alienware have some catching up to do … although I have the x17 r1 I don’t feel it was a substantial update from my 51m r1.
@@MashITTech I thought the whole idea of Advanced Optimus is that it's not supposed to affect performance anymore like regular Optimus, is this not the case? There's still a performance hit?
Any idea how much the custom charges will be for shipping this laptop from UK to India ? If you know any information on this please share it would be greatly helpful for me Speaking about £2159 Alienware X15 R2 Laptop From UK to India
hey, been a long time viewer of your channel & i really enjoy the quality content, i wanted to ask you if you ever had any hardware issues with your gaming laptops & how was the process of rma'ing. because im currently on my 6th rma with asus for my strix g15 (3070+5900hx) and they keep sending me back the laptop with the same issues (videos on my channel of the defects & issues), i really don't know what to do at this point. hope u get a chance to read my comment.
Hey, sorry to hear about your frustrations. I have been lucky as dell provide onsite warranty so will come out and fix any issues and the only other machine I needed to rma was also an ASUS and fortunately I bought it through Amazon so went through them. Is there any way you can get in touch with your card issuer about the situation, some times they are able to step in
@@MashITTech thanks for the reply, i actually bought the laptop from amazon usa as well and had it shipped to Kuwait (where i currently live), I tried reaching out to amazon to return the laptop but they kept telling me that im past the return window and that i have to deal with asus support instead.. I actually specifically made sure that the laptop has global warranty when i bought it just in case this exact situation happened but nevertheless it didn't help.. asus is really dodgy at first they ignored my emails and didn't want to fix it saying it was bought from the usa and that i have to ship it there for repairs even though i clearly have global warranty, after plenty of emails and me contacting the usa ceo office they reached out to the middle east region team and forced them to do an rma.. anyways they took my original motherboard that only had amd ftpm stutters (which at the time i thought it was hardware issue and why i wanted to have it repaired in the first place, which also turned out to be the biggest mistake i ever made) and they replaced it twice with both defective motherboards one had gpu artifacts and the other one that's currently in my laptop also defective and the gpu crashes in every game or 3d application i use (tdr failure).. i asked them to give me back my original motherboard since they are clearly giving me faulty parts but they denied my request and said they would cancel the remaining period of my warranty if they give me back my original board which i don't even know if they still have it or not.. this whole situation is making me depressed, i saved up for years to buy this laptop. im not rich by any means im an architecture student and pretty much all my work relied entirely on this expensive laptop that is pretty much a brick now.. sorry for the long story. at this point im just trying to spread my story to raise awareness as to how shitty asus customer service is and how they blatantly replaced my good hardware with a defective refurbished board twice and currently ignoring me.
Oh man, really sorry to hear that. Thats terrible! Well I am already not a fan of asus after a couple of QC issues I have received and your story pretty much sums up my thoughts on asus! I think I will be avoiding their products from now on if this is how they treat customers
Hello david! Have you had such an issue with alienware laptop that its says " battery optimization is triggered which might take a few minutes to begin charging again" and the alienware logo starts blinking in red color
@@MashITTech not yet,I wonder if it might be happening because I set up a battery threshold to 76 % to prolong the battery life and when the pc heats up to a high temp point it pops up. Maybe i started because of the threshold
Sorry for all the annoying comments. You concluded the CPU is better in the alienware and the GPU is better in the MSI However at 10:15, the MSI had a clearly better cpu render score. Was the CPU render test shown here just a short burst test, which is why the MSI might have done better here (since the alienware seems to sustain higher wattage for longer periods of cpu usage)? Or is it some case where the alienwares cpu is better for only non-gaming tasks?
The alienware is allowed more wattage for long periods where as the psi was better in burst. This is really highlighted in the cinebench test. In all honesty though both these machines are so powerful and so close you really wouldn't notice the difference in anything but benchmarks
I have an MSI at the moment and am considering getting a new laptop. I basically use my laptop like a desktop and plug it into a monitor or my TV. The Alienware X17 with the 3080 is what I'm looking at. Does the way I use it change your recommendation? Presumably the laptop screen and keyboard etc is not really important to me. I like that I can take it with me when I travel to my next base. Thanks.
@@roastnut it has a lot of venting above the keyboard, if you close the lid and game the laptop will throttle. If you check my Alienware gaming set up video with my x17 r1 and 38” I test it there 👍
@@MashITTech I see, I'll have a look at that video. Oh no, I just found out that there is a GE77 i9 3080 Ti available, what are your thoughts on that?! lol It's actually cheaper than the Alienware of comparable specs where I am as well...
My kid is asking me to get him one of these laptops but I believe it is wider to wait for the newer models which should be coming very soon. Am I right?
It depends what you consider very soon! We still don’t have a date for the new 4000 series gpus and my guess is q2 next year. If you can afford to wait that long it should be a good bump in performance but if you need it before that you can probably pick something decent up in the Black Friday sales as these have been out long enough for companies to be reducing them
No it doesn’t. Dell are happy for you to upgrade the ram and ssd as long as you do. It damage the laptop. I am making an ssd guide for the x17 r2 at the moment
get the 3070ti, it is only marginally slower than the3080ti yet is massively cheaper! It will also run APEX and Minecraft on high settings at 1440p over 100fps :)
hello mate, sorry I haven't had chance to answer previous messages yet as we were working all yesterday trying to finish this video :) I didn't realise there was a 2022 wired mouse! will go and check it out now
I have the x17 r2. Im having trouble booting from usb to install windows 10. Do you know what to select in bios to get booting to USB to work ? I've done this on other computers easily but on the x17 r2 it doesn't show the usb on boot
It should show fine! you should be able to press f12 on boot to bring up the boot selector and then choose the USB. Have you checked the USB is working ok? Edit. I just put a windows 10 USB flash drive in mine and it booted perfectly.
@@MashITTech I think so? 😅 it was the 15.6 with a ryzen 7 3070 and 512gb ssd the keyboard has all the rgb effects which is a nice touch! It was 300 pounds of on Curry's lol
I have the ge76 3080 ti i7 with much bigger power adapter and 175 watts of power. For the ge76 i think the sweetspot is the i9 3080 ti according to Justin's review as it runs 10-15 percent faster than the i7 3070 ti. I dont use the number pad at all and wish it would have had more spread out keys as i am 6'3" with extreamly large bone frame and huge hands. I only use this for gaming and do all internet on my galaxy phone. Im trying to stay virus free and keep both of my hard drives at read instead of write most of the time.
The sweetspot is i7 3070ti 2k screen. The extra you pay for a i9 and 3080 isn't worth it,because the laptop will throttle more, lowering it's performance. That's why a 3070ti is very close to a 3080 in gaming.
I have no idea how you get 5 hours with the X17 R2 with the 4k display. I have the base display (165Hz 1080p) and with normal usage, I'm lucky if I can get 2.5-3 hours. Normal usage = web browsing and video streaming.
Yes, I bought the X17 R1 with i7, 4k screen 32gb 2TB ssd 3080 graphics. Got it all with discounts for £2400. Still feel I made the right choice in regards to build. Screen has very good brigjtness and colour. Since I upgraded to win 11 things seem even better and more stable also..
Actually Dell has removed the switch from all their x17r2's. They are all now optimus. This sucks because the 4k unit I had, the optimus was terrible. it would not switch to the RTX at all. Even when I set it manually to use the RTX, it would randomly force itself back to optimus (and then be stuck on the Iris onboard GPU). It also had major problems with constant stutter and hitching. I ended up sending it back due to many GPU problems.
That’s advanced Optimus and it’s good but still not quite as good as a dedicated MUX. But, dell have just released a BIOS adding the MUX switch on the 4K! They must have listened to me 😂😂
@@MashITTech holy crap! I did not know. I have the x17r1. I am Shocked they removed it. I apologize. you're vids are the absolute best! thank you for the reply
not a problem mate and yes, I can't believe they would remove it either. I was so disappointed when I first turned it on, thought I had a faulty unit so had to ask Justin if his was the same :(
I want this laptop and am super confused by dell because when I look up x17 R2 there’s tons of laptops of the same model that come up but there’s no 4k option on the “display” selection and there’s like 10 different ones and if I go to two different and put in the same exact specs it’s different prices 😩😩 there’s one that $1699 and when I upgrade to 32gb and 3070 for the video card it’s only $1899 but for others if I downgrade it’s still $2500?? Ugh I just want a really nice laptop that I can play the sims and other games on but I don’t know shit ab computers
Are you bothered by the sound quality of the X17 R2? I heard from somewhere the sound distortion problem was solved after drivers update and tweaking the software. Have you tried this? Also if price is not a factor personally which laptop would you pick?
Great review as always! I have always been an Alienware fan.. just been waiting for them to fix secondary key lights and number pad. And hopefully a qhd option panel. The new legion 7i 2022 looks promising! But I haven’t found a better keyboard then alienwares.. how is the look of the Alienware x17 when you drop it from 4k to 2k didn’t know you could do that… is it just as good as the standard qhd panels? Thanks!
Yes it looks incredible. If you are interested watch the 4K x17 video I linked, in that video I tested it at qhd and 1080p and I couldn’t believe how well it scaled! Don’t blame you for waiting them to fix the keyboard, it still annoys me
No info at all, dell do give me some insider info but it would be near a launch and I don’t see that happening until the 4000 series laptop gpus. And for sure I will get the legion when it’s available here
didin´t hear anything about the used coolingpaste. i used alienware before and their cooling had me to replace the gpu 2times. yes i had the on home service but msi has this liquid paste. which is very interesting. cooling is so important in laptops as this will degrade the laptop lifetime signifintly. then also 4k gaming on 17 inches....1440p is really a sweetspot
What’s the pricing like in your region? Here the rog duo is out due to lack of stock and insane pricing. I also wonder if that second screen is a gimmick or actually useful. If the prices come down here I will get one in to test.
@@MashITTech So the x17 fully specd out for me 2-2tb 3080ti 120hz 4k is 4,900 USD. The Ge76 is 4,950. And the ROG duo 16 is about 500 USD cheaper. Granted the main screen is not 4k where the smaller screen is. The duo to me idk if I will like it that's why it's at the end of the list I have a strong feeling that that second screen will draw to much of my attention at the wrong times.
Great that you mentioned on-site support. It's a deal breaker for me. That said, I think MSI provide amazing, well-built gaming laptops, and Dell's service plan isn't cheap, just well worth it.
I had no service plan with my M17 R3..and when the 2080S failed at the year mark, Dell refunded me the entire laptop. They are amazing. I didn't want someone on site due to Covid at the time.
Many people overlook the importance of warranty and on site repair. I bought m14 r4. 3080 rtx. FHD screen. I9 12th gen. 16 gb ram It had issues. They sent a repairer twice on third time they decided to give me a replacement. I went for an upgrade. QHD. Screen. 3080 ti rtx. 32 gb ram and a mouse. ALL FOR FREE. Now what does that mean? It means the next laptop I buy will be from dell too. As I am amazed by their support service. I don't care if MSI is little bit better
That 4k screen with the Dolby vision on the Alienware is honestly the best laptop screen I've ever seen
Agreed. I used to be against 4K laptops thinking they were "pointless." I bought the X17 R2 4K version and it's the best screen I've ever seen. Everything looks unbelievably crisp and the panel is gorgeous.
Even better than the recent ge67 qhd oled ??
Yeah, the Dell on site repairs are super convenient. My m15 r4 had a dead red pixel on the screen 8 months into ownership. I called Alienware and the next morning a tech came out to my house and replaced the screen. I do really like that they can provide such a fast solution. However, the MSI is sweet. If I was in the market again, I’d be hard pressed on this one.
The repair on my machine was good but when they wanted to replace the machine the service is shit. They tried giving me a laptop with lower specs and all kind of crap for almost 3 months.
Let me add other than the warranty issues with my x17r1 it’s been a great machine. But I don’t think I can ever buy another Alienware I feel like they tried to pull a fast one on me and trust is hard to repair. Seems they have finally figured out 4K laptops for work and play also
My purchase of the x17R2 was to replace an Alienware 17R4 and comparing the two laptops and how much laptop design has improved is incredible. The R4 was cool back in the day but the x17 is just so awesome. I can't believe how much lighter and with a smaller footprint it is than my previous 17" Dell laptop. It's hard to believe they are both 17" computers. The MSI is clearly also a great machine but the x17 really has a unique look and putting all that power in a slim profile machine really appealed to me.
Hey Matthew, good to see you. Gary and I are loving your artwork! I have it up on our office wall now :) Thanks again
@@MashITTech That's awesome! I'm honoured!
would 32gb make a difference gaming from 16gb?
I found the GE76 keyboard to be quite a pleasure to type on for being membrane-based. It has a pseudo-mechanical feel to it IMO. Of course it can't match an actual mechanical KB like on the X17 R2 or the older Aorus 17X models.
Yeah as I mentioned I did also like it but I just much prefer the x17 (mech or standard)
As someone who's on his 2nd Alienware and has owned 3 MSI laptops in the past. I would choose Alienware every time. I love my Alienware M17, my brother just got an X17 R2 and he's loving it. Definitely the better purchase. MSI has let me down too many times, not the case with Alienware.
May I ask how Msi let you down many times. I was going to choose msi
@@thanos5220 The first one I had, the keyboard stopped working completely on the laptop, the 2nd one, an update completely destroyed the machine to where I wasn't even able to get into the bios or re-install Windows even from a USB, and the 3rd and final one, was effectively DOA with a dead GPU. Took both the 1st and 2nd to be looked at by GeekSquad and both times they simply gave me a replacement cuz they couldn't fix it, and with the 3rd one i got a full refund and bought an Alienware. never looked back.
*Hello, I hope you're reviewing the MSI Titan GT77 next.*
I haven’t managed to get hold of one in the U.K. yet
@@MashITTech having difficulty deciding whether to get a MAXXED OUT spec X17 R2 or the GT77
@@LyssLiLi yeah, it’s always difficult making those decisions especially when there is very little info on the gt77
I just bought the X17 r2 and maxed everything out BUT the SSD (i9 hk, windows11 pro, 3080ti, 64g ddr5, uhd 4k screen, cherryMX keys) I wanted to upgrade the SSD with my own choice drive, instead of the x17 included micron SSD. So I got 2 Kingston Renegade Fury 4TBs! THENN I opened the x17 up… very disappointed that they decided to save a millimeter of space and downgrade the SSD slot to only allowing single-sided drives! That means that not only will the Kingston‘s not work, but I won’t even be able to use any 4 TB SSD‘s as they are all two-sided. I am really hoping the next generation of SSDs accommodates for something like this but as of now I am going to go with western digital‘s S and 850 single-sided SSD which capsule at 2 TB each.. other than that, I am convinced I have the best laptop on the market and look forward to many years are of top-tier gaming enjoyment lol. Very happy with my purchase…… even though it did cost me almost 6k 🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
Nailed it bro! Great comparison. 👌
Thank you mate, appreciate the support 👍
Alienware is the best design of the year but I hope to get bigger palm rest and secondary functions backlit. What were they thinking? People don't use secondary keys at night?
The sad fact is the older models all had this! Who thought it was a good idea to remove it
Great review! For me tho having owned the Alienware x17 1080p 360hz variant switching to the MSI GE76 was a massive difference in clarity as the the resolution was 1440p, but I can imagine my opinion may differ had I owned X17 4K model, great review cheers 👍
Thanks mate, yeah I must admit if I hadn’t tested the 4K I would be more than happy with the qhd on the ge76. Last year I didn’t test the 4K as I figured it wouldn’t look great scaled but clearly I was wrong
i do like x17 but i want 240hz,,
i do gaming and watching..
my question is how is the 360hz for watching videos compare to 240hz?
Love my X17 R2. Never liked the look and feel of MSI laptops. The last MSI laptop I liked was the GT80 titans.
ge76, i have buy this bad boy few days ago ;D i can't wait when i will start to testing this beast
Let me know how you get on with it 😀👍
Great comparison video! I got the Alienware x15 r1 with the qhd screen with a 3070 gpu a few months back and absolutely love it except I want a bigger screen/ mechanical keyboard and better port selection on the back now so I’m giving that one to my wife and next year sometime I’ll upgrade and get the Alienware x17 r2 3070ti with the 4K panel and the mechanical keyboard on sale and hopefully they will have a mux switch by then.
They’re both about good, it doesn’t matter if you paid £2,500 for a x17 R2 because it won’t be better nor worse than a GE76. It sounds like a draw, if you like slightly better performance & battery life then a GE76 would be the one to buy but if you want much better portability then a x17 R2 would be the one to buy.
You should do a comparison of both maxed out completely, seeing which one is the true flagship
I wish I could afford too, our budget is tiny as we don’t make a lot of money from UA-cam 😢
Great video! But I am very struggle between x15r2 3070 2k and x17r2 3070 4k. Which one would you choose regardless of price? I heard x17r2 has thermal issue and speaker issue, are they solved now? Thanks!
The x17 doesn’t have thermal issues. It’s thermals are much better than the x15. The speakers have improved with drivers and a bit of software tweaking but they are still only average
@@MashITTech sounds good! I am ordering now! Would you think the x17r2 i7 3070ti 32gb 4k 1tb with cherry keyboard are the most worthy options?
That’s pretty much exactly my spec. I think it’s the best bang for buck options 👍
@@MashITTech Thank you so much sir! Your video helps a lot!!
I went with the x17 r2 i7 3070 ti and that has to be the best purchase of my life
Glad you are enjoying it
Cracking video! Just got my replacement for my R1 from Dell, service has been excellent. There were some issues with my R1, had the motherboard replaced and still didn't operate properly. Couldn't believe my luck when Dell sent me the spec of my replacement, got the R2 with basically every upgrade imaginable. Very happy with the service and support from Dell!
That right there is a good reason to choose dell! Hope you enjoy it 👍
Same here. I went from m15 r4 to X15 r2. Better screen and better gpu
Same as last year, cpu on X17 and gpu on GE76 but aesthetically Alienware is still the best with modern design that multiple steps ahead others and never get old, window hello and gsync provides better user experience. Currently still rocking with my Area51m 💪
Haha you and me both 😂. Now if only we could cram a 200w 3080ti in there!
@@MashITTech I know right, the cooling on the Area 51m is on another level compared to these days thin laptops. Sadly the technology of its time is shit compared to now :(
@@MashITTech I recently repasted mine with Gelid GC Extreme and get a 6-7 degrees lower from before on the gpu and about 10 degrees on the cpu. This beast can easily handle a 130w cpu + 200w gpu, total of 330w which none of these day laptops can :(
Yeah, the cooling is just amazing. I am so tempted to switch my 10700 for a 10900k and some liquid metal but in all honesty even my 10709 eats through everything I throw at it
I thought it was possible to run the area51M R2 with a RTX 30 series card through the AGA as an external GPU?
I would choose the ge76 just because of the present and easily available number pad. I think 17in laptops without number pads look silly. Until they utilize the extra space I prefer my laptops extra space to utilized by a number pad. But honestly I would only take one of these if it were given to me. My current m17 r4 only cost 1400$, and with the specs given is only 10% weaker overall than either. When a laptop can double the performance with only costing half or similar than my current would I consider upgrading. And I don’t see a laptop doubling its performance any time soon. Even some pcs can’t give me 2500 single core scores. Shoot some of them can give me quad multi scores but they’re also going to be quads higher. So bang for buck I’ll be right here till my games can’t play or they double performance without tripling price.
M17 r4 for 1400? What specs and how?
@@ultimategohan1551 I used the dell outlet store. I got it through the refurbished section as a scratch and dent. Originally 1530 something but after they applied discounts I got it for 1400$ after tax. It also came in 2 days early, and I think it was just marked scratch and dent so they could sell it cheap because there was no physical dents or visible scratches or scuffs. I looked at it under the sunlight the moment I got out of the FEDEx store and searched for anything noticeable and there was nothing to be seen. I also didn’t have to pay any out of pocket money because I used their dell preferred account. So just 30$ a month till it’s paid off, but I’ll set it to 100$ a month to pay it faster. The performance was crazy too. Like it’s just midrange model I believe. Which is a i7-10870H with a 3070, 16gb ram, 1 TB (2 512 ssds with raid 0) 1080p 360hz panel. But I was getting 1200ish single 7000ish multicore scores, on balanced mode and no overclock. Which is like low end i9-3080s 10th gen. So that’s why I think they put new parts or it was one of the last new builds before they took it off main website. Idk but like the MSI GT77 fully speced is like 6,000$ plus easy and it’s only 17% better on the nano laptop review website. Also sold my 2012 m17x laptop for 400$ towards the purchase. so technically got a year old 3600$ laptop for 1000$, that when compared to the best laptop in the world is only 17% worse and is 6x less. And I’m sure you can find several websites doing the same just got to keep your eyes open. Good luck!
@@xalvarez07 wow you got a good deal. I just got the same laptop 10870h 3070 16gb, though 2 separate ssds(1tb and 500gb) and 144hz dark side of the moon but used from someone locally for 1165. Its been used a year and no warranty left but everythings great and it runs/benchmarks well. Undervolted it to heck and now the cpu only draws 25-35w while at max clocks during gaming leaving some more power for the gpu leading to nice performance in even in balanced mode. Overall really liking it and dont think i need to upgrade for while. Yeah youre comparison puts things in perspective this is still a very powerful machine, amd for the price we paid cant complain (anything even slightly better would be a lot more expensive)
@@ultimategohan1551 That's a really good deal too tbh. I would like a 144hz refresh rate screen because I know I'd be getting a better-quality picture, but I appreciate the 360hz one a little more just because I like esports and I feel the performance difference a little bit more. I also would have liked the dark side of the moon over the lunar white so nice grab there. Then I have warranty till next year. so that could come in hand in the coming months. I need to undervolt and overclock it still, but I really hadn't had many thermal issues yet, so I'll eventually do it. Yeah man I just won't settle for less. Like I will wait however long it takes. A lot of people like getting a new one every 3 years but I like to go 10 if I can but reasonably at least 5-7 years. So, we'll see how long it takes for a laptop to meet my expectations lol
@@xalvarez07 Pretty sucky that the darkside of the moon only was available with the 144hz panels. A 360hz with dark side wouldve been sweet. Im still pleased with it, the repsonse time is a lot better than my omen 16 with a qhd 165hz screen i just sold, so even at a lower refreshrate it still feels smoother. Bonus too was that the original owner ordered it with the "base" 144hz screen(there was 2 144hz screens, base one and a g sync one for $30 more) yet it has gysnc and it works well. In regards to undervolting, i could not recommend it more, the 10870h has a lot of room for it usually. A very safe start would be -75mv to both core and cache(i recommend throttlestop), maybe go lower if you want, core will go alot lower than cache(-100mv is a good maximum for it, core usually well below -100mv) Been watching a lot of videos on the m17 r4 and at stock the 10870h, will use 40-70w gaming. THATS ALOT imo, with undervolting shaving off 15-35w that just gives the gpu that much more power to play with while decreasing temps too, all while cpu is hitting higher clocks too. Havent tried overclocking(most of the time i even have 100mhz downclock going on each core to keep the cpu in mid to low 80s even during heavy gaming)
Hi David hope your well... Thank You for the round up on both machines including your time, Have a Great weekend ) Aj
I am good thank you, hope you are doing well too 👍
@@MashITTech All good.... mostly ) Thank you
Mate you said that Alienware did not have mux swtich, but in Australia they sell these with Advanced Optimus. Not sure bout specs in UK, though I checked that Gaming laptops with Advanced Optimus - Takes MUX a step further by not requiring a restart when switching Optimus on and off. Good video though keep it up. Was thinking about the m17 but have crossed backed into the x17r2 - though not easy decision with the new MSIz and Asus, like changing minds every week on which one as the specs I am after are all similarly priced, and $100 or 2 wont make much of a difference.
It does have advanced Optimus which is great but still not a dedicated mux which some people still prefer. But since this video dell released a BIOS that added the mux option in bios for those that want it 👍
Very helpful video What do you reckon the sweet spot is for configuring a 4k screen Alienware? Is an i7 with 3070Ti plenty, or is it best to get it with the i9 and 3080Ti?
I7 with 3070ti is the sweet spot. I9 is pointless as the watts the i9 needs to stretch its legs is more than the x17 can manage and even the i7 needs over 100w! The 3070ti is only a little behind the 3080ti and with features like dlss and the fact that the 4K scales really well to 1440p and 1080p it’s the best option. I am making a gaming video in this very config and hope to have it out next week
@@MashITTech Thanks so much!
I just got the X17 and am enjoying it - but the price and keyboard backlight were hurdles I had to cross first.
Yeah the keyboard backlighting is really annoying! In the U.K. alienware is actually one of the cheaper brands! Razer on the other hand is extortionate here
Thanks for the excellent comparison! An easy pick for me as MSI do not have their own online store in Ireland, whereas Dell do and they usually have regular sales and employee discount codes. The on-site warranty as mentioned in other comments is brilliant and many people overlook how important this is in factoring in a purchasing decision. Lenovo is the only other brand I would consider as they too deal directly in my region and have very affordable on-site warranty.
Yes these are expensive laptops, warranty should be a big consideration!
Msi best service London the send courier to pick it up through Dpd warranty
Razer blade 17 is more of an all round package isn't it? I hope they re design for 13th gen, especially that keyboard.
I agree the razer blade is probably a more all round package but the only reason I excluded it is the price! Razer have bumped the prices in the U.K. by an extra £1000 on average for each model making them completely unviable here! I used a budget of £2300 in the U.K. and I can’t even get the 3060 blade 17 in for that price
Great Dave! Another great review! I have a x17 R2, with i9... Well, it is a great machine for work and gaming. The mux switch is on Nvidia panel. There you can choose which GPU you want use! I had some problems with R1... Audio speaker the last issue... So I'm waiting for GE77...
There is also a MUX in the bios as well as the advanced Optimus. And you are not going to believe it, straight after I released this video dell have released a bios that adds a MUX to the 4K r2 😂 I will put an announcement out later
@@MashITTech Incredible ... 😀
P.s. thank you Dave!
MSI is a clear winner for me: Motherboard flipped (a mess to only repaste), soldered ram and wifi module, MUX switch, full card reader...Alienware by the other side only has a partially better build quality. I don' t talk about design because it is subjective. But for sure both laptops are beasts
Both laptops have socketed ram but yes I agree with your other points 😀👍
Hi Dave, any chance you can tell us screen size on future reviews please? What i mean is, (not including bezels) actual real estate screen size dimensions detailing width and height. I've been delaying purchasing HP workstations for staff for months in anticipation of their new 16:10 ratio screens, only to find they're narrower than what we have already, which is hopeless, so I'm considering Dell as an alternative.
Also, keyboard layout is particularly important (for some of us). Can you mention if a device comes with a UK layout configuration please (£ on number 3 and @ near return key). I believe that Dell's Cherry keyboard comes only in the US variant.
Your reviews are much appreciated, please keep up your excellent work.
Hello mate, yes of course. And you are right with regards to the keyboard, Dell only offers the mech keyboard in USA ANSI format but the standard keyboard which is still excellent has the correct UK ISO layout
@@MashITTech Thanks Dave, much appreciated
Great comparison. I'd love to see a head-to-head comparison between the X17 R2 UHD vs. the MSI GT77 Titan UHD since the panel comparison would be fair there and the cooling systems are much more in parity.
Yeah, I would have loved to have done that but the gt77 is difficult to get hold of in the U.K. and stupidly expensive. being a small UA-camr that has to buy all the laptops I review I just couldn’t afford it 😥
@@MashITTech Understandable! Still, thanks for your great reviews and insights!
Thank you for a fair and honest review. I do appreciate you take the time to show us the speaker quality on laptops. I only game in the Windows environment but I think not having Windows hello or a fingerprint reader is an egregious oversight in 2022. Online payments is standard now. Always look forward to your reviews!
Thank you mate. I do need to try and find a better way to record the speaker audio as I don’t think the speaker I used did it justice, the x17 speakers were blowing and I was struggling to pick that up
it's outrageous not having Windows Hello.. Note, the MSI models have been replaced with the GE67 and 77HX now, and they STILL don't have windows hello of any kind! The 77 with 12900HX, 32GB ram, 2TB SSD, 3080TI and 17" 240hz OLED panel is, wait for it, $7299 AUD!
@@teddym2808 Windows hello isn’t really something that overtly needed. The oversight of it is a big win for me.
@@kikibarrios1231 That doesn't make sense cause you can always disable an option you don't use that might be useful to someone else. Nonsensical argument.
Hi David. Great video. I had a quick question about your comment about the x17 not having a mux switch. It has advanced Optimus.. is this not considered to be a mux switch? What would be the advance of a true mux switch over advanced Optimus? I did a little googling on this, but still not understanding the advantage of one over the other.
Advanced Optimus is much better than old Optimus but it is still slightly behind a dedicated gpu option. The mux switch gives you that dedicated option
I've had 3 msi laptops since my last alienware and I'm happy that I switched back to alienware. Got a similar spec one as this one. Nothing against msi but none of the ones I had lasted more than a few years before issues. My old alienware was a tank and missed that.
Yes, I have also had a lot of luck with alienware. I still have an old Alienware 17 (2014 model) that's still going strong :)
Love your reviews! As far as the Alienware screen, have you tweaked the color/video settings or have you kept the default settings?
I have calibrated mine but to be fair it has made hardly any difference
So it seemed like for a while you were on the hunt for the R2's overheating/thermal throttling CPU issues. Is this not the case/was this not taken into account? I want the Alienware but at the same time I dont' want a laptop that's going to burn out in 3 years time.
I am still on the hunt for hearing issues. But it is not a general problem more a QC problem. As in some models are running hot out of the box (probably a poor paste job or maybe the heatsink doesn’t have good contact with the die). I had a model that ran hot out of the box, after hearing it happen to a few others too I wanted to find out if it was a common occurrence. My faulty unit is now in the hands of the alienware engineers and they are looking at my machine to find the cause.
@@MashITTech Hi, can you teach me how can I find out if my x17r2 has overheating problem? I mean I kind of understand that 12th Gen creates more heat but I am not sure if it's of bad quality
Please do a comparison between Apple MacBook Air M2 (16gb, 1TB) vs Surface Pro 8 (i7, 32gb, 1TB highest spec).
I know this is out of your realm David, but I would rather enjoy knowing how much business Alienware loses/year due to the AWCC being so horrendous. Great review as always but I would still work on doing more of a fixed distance speaker test. A tripod and mic isn't a wallet breaker! ; )
Thanks Anton, and I know you are right regarding the speaker test. We are starting to make a little money now so I am happy to buy it but audio is my weakest area! Do you have any suggestions for the mic?
@@MashITTech suggestions for mic: if you want absolute simplicity, a rode video mic go II or a blue yeti are decent for $100 range. The video mic go II is my choice because it can function both as a USB mic and as a mic for cameras/camcorders.
If you’re using a DSLR/MIRRORLESS camera for your videos, you can also use a rode wireless go (they have a GO II version, which allows two wireless mics for interview style) or the DJI MIC. The DJI mic is on the pricier side, but these wireless mics have a very small profile and they’re pretty easy to work with.
If you don’t mind having a microphone in frame right next to you, RODE VIDEO MIC GO II is my #1 choice for budget purposes.
You could get a fancier setup with a real XLR mic using an audio interface, but that’s a rabbit hole you may not want to go if you’re looking for a budget solution.
x17 r2 do have mux, even on 4K 120hz version, advanced optimus is a prove. You can change it in nvidia control panel. and also you can use ru.efi to make it directly connected to dgpu without advanced optimus.
It’s not the same as the BIOS MUX! And wouldn’t you believe it, since releasing this video dell have just released a BIOS that adds a MUX on the 4K 😂
@@MashITTech mux is a hardware thing, every function-wise thing based on mux. what you mean mux is only a bios setting or a software setting, it's truelly not mux. And advanced optimus based on mux hardware, without mux , there will no advanced optimus.
@@MashITTech Ohh do I have to update it manually? I just ordered a x17 R2 with the 4K display, and I'm really concerned about it after reading the comments :/
One hell of a video!!
Really loved it!!
just one small request
Can u do like the BIG 3 titan of 17 inch and add razer blade 17 to this
And help people like me to decide
I really want to but razer 17 is crazily over priced in the UK and I can't currently afford it being a small channel :(
Gigabyte's Aorus 17G YD 3080 is the best value for money, specially with the build quality and mechanical keyboard
Hi David. Fab review as always 😎. Have a question w.r.t Advanced Optimus vs MUX. I thought the 02 were supposed to perform at a similar level, with advanced Optimus the better at not needing to restart the computer to get dedicated dGPU performance. Additionally, what I found (at least on my Alienware x17 R2), the 1080p performance in games is better on MSI , but Alienware tends to do a LOT better on 1440p and 4k. Just curious to know if you noticed this as well .
Yes, I am seeing something similar. I am about to do gaming videos for each laptops and then I am going to try and compare as best I can
@@MashITTech Super. Good thing it's an intentional set up by Dell then 😄. Looking forward to that video 😎
I heard the x17r2 has a hell of alot of heating issues and quality control issues. Only thing thats holding me back atm that and the price is a bit too high. I think its clear that Mash IT loves alienware but if i was a betting man i put my money on the GE76 that it lasts longer and has better quality control. The differance between CPU performance is very very marginal at best maybe 1% better hardly even measurable. For me the GE76 wins hands down.
I must admit I have heard a few with heating issues but from my experience dell is good with regards to replacing any faulty units
I love the build quality of alienware laptops but I really wish they'd stop doing the flipped motherboard design. I'd buy one in a heartbeat if they did, but for now it makes cleaning or repasting too much of a pain to ever consider one.
Yeah i just sold my omen 16 11800 3070, and bought a 1yr old used m17 r4 for the same price. The omens build quality was creaky and flimsy, the center keyboard lights were super dim(not supposed to be like that), and a very annoying touchpad issue. Im happy though because i practically got a bigger better performing better built machine with an extra 500gb for the same price. The omen screen was nicer though being qhd, but the alienswares definitely feels faster(probably because of the response time) than the omens even its 144hz vs the omens 165hz. The flipped motherboard has me worried slightly (never repasted anything before), though temps are good even being one year used. I have a cooling pad that will definitely keep dust out, so hopefully maintenance will be few amd far in between.
Great video! But for performance comparison i noticed the X17R2 was running at TCC 0 which means Throttling starts at 100 degrees while the Ge76 was running with TCC 5 and this surely affects the Benchmark performance. Even tho the score of ge76 is a bit under the X17s it stays a view degrees cooler due to TCC offset
That’s a good point. I will double check that and let you know
@@MashITTech It's not gonna make a difference cause the MSI is power limited whereas Alienware just let them rip LOL
Hey Dave. Nice job on the comparison. I wanted your opinion on a laptop I'm gonna buy. Alienware area 51m r2
I9-10900k
Rtx 2080 super
32gb ram
2tb ssd
1080p 300hz
Is this laptop okay for current and future games? I don't like the x17 because of it being thinner which means it would be harder to cool components and the 51m r2 has a desktop grade CPU and GPU. I'll be waiting on your reply❤ Big love from Nigeria🇳🇬
The 2080s is still a solid card especially with its 200w tgp. It will power through games at 1080p for the foreseeable future. I have loved my time with the area 51m r2 and I also love the fact it has 2 m.2 and a 2.5” storage space, I have 6tb in mine now 😂
@@MashITTechYou actually replied me!! Thanks for the feedback❤ So I should go with the 51m r2 then. 6tb?? That's crazy 😂
Yeah it’s a lot but I have about 2tb of games an the footage I record takes up a crazy amount of space 😂
@@MashITTech Nice😂 Sorry to interrupt again but on the same area 51m r2, I saw an i7-10700k. So I what your opinion on which one I should pick, the i7-10700k or the i9-10900k. Thanks for the reply❤
@@HoneyBunsSupreme I have the ordinary 10700 (non K) and that boosts all cores to 4.6ghz and that is enough for my use! I would get the 10700k unless you know you need the extra 2 cores of the 10900k or the price is insignificant 👍
Speaking of that, my x17 R2 came.with sk hynix memory and 2tb ssd... is this bad? Since your came with samsung?
no, as far as I can tell all DDR5 memory is pretty slow at the moment so it doesn't really make a difference which brand you get. I even got some expensive Kingston Fury memory with allegedly tighter timings and it was still just as slow :(
What laptop would you recommend for gaming and graphic designing ? I was looking at the dell Alienware m15 r7, Lenovo legion 5i pro gen 7 or the MSI raider ge76 . As i need a great screen with good rgb and brightness aswell as a fast CPU / GPU performance , i'm struggling to decide which one to look at for black friday sales
Of that list I would probably pick the GE76 with QHD but I do prefer 17" laptops for that bigger screen
@@MashITTech Ok thanks for your advice ! I would have another question : do you think the screen is good enough on the MSI ge76? And what specs should i go for that would be in my budget ? I was thinking i7 12700H , 32 GB RAM , and a RTX 3070Ti
PS: i've been seeing that the Lenovo legion 5i pro gen 7 is one of the fastest laptops for the specs ive listed , and the screen is good. Is that true? Thanks for your help once again !
I’m Thinking about buying the x17 r2 it would be my first computer/laptop. Is it worth buying the best to start off with?
Sorry not quite with you, are you talking about the best specs or do you mean buying an expensive laptop to start?
@@MashITTech buying an expensive laptop
That’s a tough one. Can you easily afford it and do you need a gaming laptop? Obviously desktops are better value. It it’s amazing being able to game anywhere on a gaming. Laptop.
@@MashITTech I can easily afford it and would like to start gaming on laptop/computer. I would buy a PC but I have no room/space for a PC.
Then the x17 is a great option but get a sensible spec (don’t waste money on i9 or 3080 as it’s not worth the cost increase)
Please do performance testing of Surface Pro 8 - Highest spec with 32 gb RAM vs MacBook Air M2 (16 gb ram). Thanks
I haven’t got a i7 with 32gb ram and won’t buy one this late into the product cycle I am afraid. I could do an i5 16gb vs MacBook Air m2
Hi, awesome video!
To be fair, my x17r2 specs are 12th gen i9-12900hk, 3080ti, 64GB, 2TB, and this machine works as an awesome replacement for my old unfunctioning 15r3.
It handled games perfectly (which I didn't look into details like specific fps, frequency, etc, not an expert), with just one notice of the heating problem.
I am not sure if it heats normally that way, since it's a 12th gen cpu I suppose it does give a lot of heat?
How do I know if my laptop overheats? Any criteria like running a specific game under specific settings should generate how much heat?
I have premium support, and I can always get back to Dell to ask for support on any kind, but I just want to make sure that the heating is actually a problem in my case
The best bet is to run cine r23 and see how it scores, if it’s over heating the cpu is throttled back giving a lower score. Anything less than 16k in performance mode is not acceptable as far as I am concerned
@@MashITTech I just ran a CPU multi core test, and the result is 16083, is this unacceptable? (I mean it just passed the 16k a little bit) But also considering my room temperature is kinda high at around 27-28 degree Celcius, is it acceptable?
PS. single core gives 1845 score, whichg is very good I guess?
considering your temps that's ok. and was this in the performance mode (fn+f1)?
@@MashITTech Yes, it's running at full speed using fn f1 combination
i've been watching reviews over reviews and i still can't decide whether to get the alienware x17 r1 (since r2 doesnt interest me) or the msi (this one) ]: i really want to do gaming but i also need to do blender and photoshop since i'm trying to get into animation again. what do you recommend?
do you active full fan speed mode high performance while playing heavy games?
on the Alienware I use the Fn+F1 performance mode which uses a high fan speed but I don't think its max fans. On the GE76 no, I just use the extreme performance mode, if you enable the cooler boost full fans it gets LOUD 😂
here with a question, is a 6gb rtx 2060 better than a 4gb rtx 3050 laptop? looking to get one
a lot depends on the TGP the card is given but I would probably choose a 2060 over a 3050
@@MashITTech thank you so much
If the X17 R3 gets the 12900HX and brings back secondary lighting, I'll be a convert. Oh, and FFS, a 1440P G-Sync screen!
I mean MSI now offer a 240HZ 1440P *OLED* panel on the new HX models, ok, it's not g-sync, but 240hz OLED on both 15 and 17", and Alienware can't manage ANY QHD panels on a 17" lol!
Yep, Alienware clearly isn't listening to their customers at the moment
@@MashITTech I was wrong, the 17" MSI is not OLED, but I just bought the 15 so I'll let you know how I get along. I've never even seen an OLED screen before.
Alienware, it’s 2022 almost 2023 yet we still have a software to control your computers that looks and feels straight out of 2003. This is completely unacceptable considering the prices we pay for these machines to have such a clunky, buggy experience. I really expect that for next gen laptops and computers we can enjoy a new fresh from the ground up AWCC software that can work just as fast and fluent as your machines, thank you.
I have been hoping for this for years yet every new release gets the same crap software! Surely they have enough money to develop something decent
@@MashITTech I really hope they do cause they are falling behind badly with this crappy experience. Great video as always btw!! 💯👌🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
Which of them has G-Sync?
Both of them do 😀👍
The 4k has advanced Optimus on the r1, is that not the case for the 4k r2? For me the best laptop of the past 12 months goes to Lenovo legion. I think Alienware have some catching up to do … although I have the x17 r1 I don’t feel it was a substantial update from my 51m r1.
Yes it still has advanced Optimus and Gsync on the r2 but there is no mux switch (this was the same on the r1 release but dell added a mux later)
@@MashITTech I thought the whole idea of Advanced Optimus is that it's not supposed to affect performance anymore like regular Optimus, is this not the case? There's still a performance hit?
Any idea how much the custom charges will be for shipping this laptop from UK to India ? If you know any information on this please share it would be greatly helpful for me
Speaking about £2159 Alienware X15 R2 Laptop From UK to India
no sorry, I have no idea what your government charges in import duties! Do dell not support the Indian market directly?
@@MashITTech They do but X Series is not available here and the M series is highly overpriced
hey, been a long time viewer of your channel & i really enjoy the quality content, i wanted to ask you if you ever had any hardware issues with your gaming laptops & how was the process of rma'ing. because im currently on my 6th rma with asus for my strix g15 (3070+5900hx) and they keep sending me back the laptop with the same issues (videos on my channel of the defects & issues), i really don't know what to do at this point. hope u get a chance to read my comment.
Hey, sorry to hear about your frustrations. I have been lucky as dell provide onsite warranty so will come out and fix any issues and the only other machine I needed to rma was also an ASUS and fortunately I bought it through Amazon so went through them. Is there any way you can get in touch with your card issuer about the situation, some times they are able to step in
@@MashITTech thanks for the reply, i actually bought the laptop from amazon usa as well and had it shipped to Kuwait (where i currently live), I tried reaching out to amazon to return the laptop but they kept telling me that im past the return window and that i have to deal with asus support instead..
I actually specifically made sure that the laptop has global warranty when i bought it just in case this exact situation happened but nevertheless it didn't help.. asus is really dodgy at first they ignored my emails and didn't want to fix it saying it was bought from the usa and that i have to ship it there for repairs even though i clearly have global warranty, after plenty of emails and me contacting the usa ceo office they reached out to the middle east region team and forced them to do an rma..
anyways they took my original motherboard that only had amd ftpm stutters (which at the time i thought it was hardware issue and why i wanted to have it repaired in the first place, which also turned out to be the biggest mistake i ever made) and they replaced it twice with both defective motherboards one had gpu artifacts and the other one that's currently in my laptop also defective and the gpu crashes in every game or 3d application i use (tdr failure)..
i asked them to give me back my original motherboard since they are clearly giving me faulty parts but they denied my request and said they would cancel the remaining period of my warranty if they give me back my original board which i don't even know if they still have it or not.. this whole situation is making me depressed, i saved up for years to buy this laptop. im not rich by any means im an architecture student and pretty much all my work relied entirely on this expensive laptop that is pretty much a brick now..
sorry for the long story. at this point im just trying to spread my story to raise awareness as to how shitty asus customer service is and how they blatantly replaced my good hardware with a defective refurbished board twice and currently ignoring me.
Oh man, really sorry to hear that. Thats terrible! Well I am already not a fan of asus after a couple of QC issues I have received and your story pretty much sums up my thoughts on asus! I think I will be avoiding their products from now on if this is how they treat customers
Hello david! Have you had such an issue with alienware laptop that its says " battery optimization is triggered which might take a few minutes to begin charging again" and the alienware logo starts blinking in red color
No! I have never heard of that at all!! Have you spoken to support?
@@MashITTech not yet,I wonder if it might be happening because I set up a battery threshold to 76 % to prolong the battery life and when the pc heats up to a high temp point it pops up. Maybe i started because of the threshold
Sorry for all the annoying comments. You concluded the CPU is better in the alienware and the GPU is better in the MSI
However at 10:15, the MSI had a clearly better cpu render score. Was the CPU render test shown here just a short burst test, which is why the MSI might have done better here (since the alienware seems to sustain higher wattage for longer periods of cpu usage)? Or is it some case where the alienwares cpu is better for only non-gaming tasks?
The alienware is allowed more wattage for long periods where as the psi was better in burst. This is really highlighted in the cinebench test. In all honesty though both these machines are so powerful and so close you really wouldn't notice the difference in anything but benchmarks
@@MashITTech awesome. Thanks for the reply. Your reviews are great !!
I have an MSI at the moment and am considering getting a new laptop. I basically use my laptop like a desktop and plug it into a monitor or my TV. The Alienware X17 with the 3080 is what I'm looking at. Does the way I use it change your recommendation? Presumably the laptop screen and keyboard etc is not really important to me. I like that I can take it with me when I travel to my next base. Thanks.
I use my x17 as a desktop replacement and am usually plugged into my 38” ultra wide with no issues. Just don’t close the lid and game 👍
@@MashITTech Thanks for the swift reply. I can close the lid on my MSI and use it as a Desktop. Can't you do that with the x17?
@@roastnut it has a lot of venting above the keyboard, if you close the lid and game the laptop will throttle. If you check my Alienware gaming set up video with my x17 r1 and 38” I test it there 👍
@@MashITTech I see, I'll have a look at that video. Oh no, I just found out that there is a GE77 i9 3080 Ti available, what are your thoughts on that?! lol It's actually cheaper than the Alienware of comparable specs where I am as well...
The ge77 looks like a fantastic unit and especially if you can get it cheaper! It is bulkier though but I prefer that
Can you do X17 r2 vs Razer Blade 17?
As soon as I can get a well priced blade 17 I will, they are stupidly priced in the U.K.
@@MashITTech based on specs is the R2 comparable?
My kid is asking me to get him one of these laptops but I believe it is wider to wait for the newer models which should be coming very soon. Am I right?
It depends what you consider very soon! We still don’t have a date for the new 4000 series gpus and my guess is q2 next year. If you can afford to wait that long it should be a good bump in performance but if you need it before that you can probably pick something decent up in the Black Friday sales as these have been out long enough for companies to be reducing them
@@MashITTech I see. If I do find a good deal, I suppose I might buy one. Otherwise, he will have to wait, lol
😀👍
does it break warranty opening the back to upgrade ssd for dell?
No it doesn’t. Dell are happy for you to upgrade the ram and ssd as long as you do. It damage the laptop. I am making an ssd guide for the x17 r2 at the moment
@@MashITTech thank you so much! , will appreciate if you able to test for us as well if double-sided m2 can fit? planning to install 4 TB on slot 2
I love the X17 R2, I just hate how hot it runs all the time.
X17 best keyboard ever made on a laptop
Then you've obviously not seen the keyboard on the Area51m r2
That’s true
I am going to get the Alienware x17 r2 with a i7 but I don’t know if I should get the 3070Ti or 3080Ti
Maine games are Apex and Minecraft
get the 3070ti, it is only marginally slower than the3080ti yet is massively cheaper! It will also run APEX and Minecraft on high settings at 1440p over 100fps :)
Ok thank you
you should buy a Razer Blade 17 and compare it
I just can’t afford the U.K. pricing 😂 just managed to pick up a blade 15 for a good price yesterday though
(2nd effort)
Hello sir!
Can you review the new 2022 alienware wired mouse aw320m?
Thanks.
hello mate, sorry I haven't had chance to answer previous messages yet as we were working all yesterday trying to finish this video :)
I didn't realise there was a 2022 wired mouse! will go and check it out now
@@MashITTech Thank you so much sir, you are so responsive😊
I have the x17 r2. Im having trouble booting from usb to install windows 10. Do you know what to select in bios to get booting to USB to work ? I've done this on other computers easily but on the x17 r2 it doesn't show the usb on boot
It should show fine! you should be able to press f12 on boot to bring up the boot selector and then choose the USB. Have you checked the USB is working ok?
Edit. I just put a windows 10 USB flash drive in mine and it booted perfectly.
what laptop do you recommend me to play m15 r5 with 3060 or delta 15 with 6700m? I found both for a similar price
I haven't tested the delta but if the m15r5 has the QHD panel I would be tempted to get that
I just bought my 1st ever laptop/gaming pc ever it's also for college so couldn't go to expensive and bought the Lenovo legion with a 3070 for 1k
did you get the legion 5 pro?
@@MashITTech I think so? 😅 it was the 15.6 with a ryzen 7 3070 and 512gb ssd the keyboard has all the rgb effects which is a nice touch! It was 300 pounds of on Curry's lol
nice! they are solid machines, hope you enjoy it
GT 77 ? Scar 17 SE ?
I tried a couple of asus and the qc on my units was so bad I ended up sending them straight back
I have the ge76 3080 ti i7 with much bigger power adapter and 175 watts of power. For the ge76 i think the sweetspot is the i9 3080 ti according to Justin's review as it runs 10-15 percent faster than the i7 3070 ti. I dont use the number pad at all and wish it would have had more spread out keys as i am 6'3" with extreamly large bone frame and huge hands. I only use this for gaming and do all internet on my galaxy phone. Im trying to stay virus free and keep both of my hard drives at read instead of write most of the time.
The sweetspot is i7 3070ti 2k screen.
The extra you pay for a i9 and 3080 isn't worth it,because the laptop will throttle more, lowering it's performance.
That's why a 3070ti is very close to a 3080 in gaming.
I have no idea how you get 5 hours with the X17 R2 with the 4k display.
I have the base display (165Hz 1080p) and with normal usage, I'm lucky if I can get 2.5-3 hours. Normal usage = web browsing and video streaming.
Wow that’s really low! Are you in Optimus mode? Also make sure you don’t have command centre open as that fires up the gpu
Yes, I bought the X17 R1 with i7, 4k screen 32gb 2TB ssd 3080 graphics. Got it all with discounts for £2400. Still feel I made the right choice in regards to build. Screen has very good brigjtness and colour. Since I upgraded to win 11 things seem even better and more stable also..
im from england and i cant see a discount of £1000 anywhere,want to help and direct me to the discount ?
Still go my m17 r4 3080, fully loaded and I can run it all
yeah the M17 r4 was an amazing release!
Wait, did I see Dynaudio on the MSI? That is crazy.
Yes you did, if I was at dynaudio I would be ashamed to put my name on laptop speakers
Actually Dell has removed the switch from all their x17r2's. They are all now optimus. This sucks because the 4k unit I had, the optimus was terrible. it would not switch to the RTX at all. Even when I set it manually to use the RTX, it would randomly force itself back to optimus (and then be stuck on the Iris onboard GPU). It also had major problems with constant stutter and hitching.
I ended up sending it back due to many GPU problems.
It's should be Alienware X17 R2 vs MSI GE77 both with new design but still great video. Love it
Im confused, my x17r2 has advanced optimus where I can lock it into dedicated nvidia gpu mode
That’s advanced Optimus and it’s good but still not quite as good as a dedicated MUX. But, dell have just released a BIOS adding the MUX switch on the 4K! They must have listened to me 😂😂
@@MashITTech great to know! I'm still learning. Glad to hear they pushed an update for a mux switch. I'll have to test it out
Only down side is it kills battery life but as I use mine as a mobile UPS it makes no difference to me 😂
You forgot to include the X17 Mousepad has RGB with the 4k model
No, that was on the x17 r1. Dell being Dell removed the rgb touchpad on the r2! Must have saved at least $2 a machine on these cheap machines 😂
@@MashITTech holy crap! I did not know. I have the x17r1. I am Shocked they removed it. I apologize. you're vids are the absolute best! thank you for the reply
not a problem mate and yes, I can't believe they would remove it either. I was so disappointed when I first turned it on, thought I had a faulty unit so had to ask Justin if his was the same :(
I want this laptop and am super confused by dell because when I look up x17 R2 there’s tons of laptops of the same model that come up but there’s no 4k option on the “display” selection and there’s like 10 different ones and if I go to two different and put in the same exact specs it’s different prices 😩😩 there’s one that $1699 and when I upgrade to 32gb and 3070 for the video card it’s only $1899 but for others if I downgrade it’s still $2500?? Ugh I just want a really nice laptop that I can play the sims and other games on but I don’t know shit ab computers
Is the x17 R2 that you linked on Amazon the one with a 4k panel? And does it have the 3070 video card?
I want the exact same one you got
give me 2 secs. I am going to take a look and get back to you
hmm there seems to be a shortage in USA! they are still available here in UK but there is nothing your side of the pond :(
@@MashITTech it’s okay! I ended up getting the 2022 ASUS strix Scar have you done a review on that?
Are you bothered by the sound quality of the X17 R2? I heard from somewhere the sound distortion problem was solved after drivers update and tweaking the software. Have you tried this? Also if price is not a factor personally which laptop would you pick?
It has certainly improved and with a bit of tweaking they sound ok. Still only ok and no where near say a MacBook speaker quality
Who the best 💻
Great review as always! I have always been an Alienware fan.. just been waiting for them to fix secondary key lights and number pad. And hopefully a qhd option panel. The new legion 7i 2022 looks promising! But I haven’t found a better keyboard then alienwares.. how is the look of the Alienware x17 when you drop it from 4k to 2k didn’t know you could do that… is it just as good as the standard qhd panels? Thanks!
Yes it looks incredible. If you are interested watch the 4K x17 video I linked, in that video I tested it at qhd and 1080p and I couldn’t believe how well it scaled! Don’t blame you for waiting them to fix the keyboard, it still annoys me
Awesome thanks for the quick response!
You have any inside of when the x17r3 would come out haha or a guess and will you do review of the legion 7i thanks!
No info at all, dell do give me some insider info but it would be near a launch and I don’t see that happening until the 4000 series laptop gpus. And for sure I will get the legion when it’s available here
didin´t hear anything about the used coolingpaste. i used alienware before and their cooling had me to replace the gpu 2times. yes i had the on home service but msi has this liquid paste. which is very interesting. cooling is so important in laptops as this will degrade the laptop lifetime signifintly. then also 4k gaming on 17 inches....1440p is really a sweetspot
My current debate - X17 w/ 4k, Ge76 w/ 4 k / or a rog duo 16.
What’s the pricing like in your region? Here the rog duo is out due to lack of stock and insane pricing. I also wonder if that second screen is a gimmick or actually useful. If the prices come down here I will get one in to test.
@@MashITTech So the x17 fully specd out for me 2-2tb 3080ti 120hz 4k is 4,900 USD. The Ge76 is 4,950. And the ROG duo 16 is about 500 USD cheaper. Granted the main screen is not 4k where the smaller screen is. The duo to me idk if I will like it that's why it's at the end of the list I have a strong feeling that that second screen will draw to much of my attention at the wrong times.
i recognize that gaming clip
GE76 100% Best laptop in the world
Anybody know a good Sleeve for x17?
Your best bet is the Alienware horizon sleeve, most other sleeves won’t be deep enough because of the x17 vents
@@MashITTech thank you Sir
Great that you mentioned on-site support. It's a deal breaker for me. That said, I think MSI provide amazing, well-built gaming laptops, and Dell's service plan isn't cheap, just well worth it.
Yeah, the on-site warranty isn’t cheap but it sure does give piece of mind in a laptop worth well over 2k! I wish more companies offered it
I had no service plan with my M17 R3..and when the 2080S failed at the year mark, Dell refunded me the entire laptop. They are amazing. I didn't want someone on site due to Covid at the time.
Alienware for stylepoints :)
Premier League of keyboards 😂
Ge76 is 😍
Many people overlook the importance of warranty and on site repair.
I bought m14 r4. 3080 rtx. FHD screen. I9 12th gen. 16 gb ram
It had issues. They sent a repairer twice on third time they decided to give me a replacement.
I went for an upgrade. QHD. Screen. 3080 ti rtx. 32 gb ram and a mouse. ALL FOR FREE.
Now what does that mean? It means the next laptop I buy will be from dell too. As I am amazed by their support service. I don't care if MSI is little bit better
Best 15 inch Laptop 👀
I have a few videos I have to get completed then I will certainly look at this one