Alienware Unveils Exciting New Gaming Laptops Including The Beastly Alienware x16 And m18
Alienware Lands With New x and m Series Laptops
We'll start with Alienware, which last year wowed us with a relatively thin and light x14 and in years past with the likes of the m15 R5 Ryzen Edition. All across its 2023 notebook lineup, the company is making big changes that we think will please the notebook buying populace. The updated models include the return of the x14, and introduce new entries to the family: the x16, m16, and m18. These numbers are all one bigger than the m15, x15, and x17 of yesteryear because the displays are bigger. As the names imply, the x16 and m16 have 16-inch displays while the m18 has a big 18-inch panel.
The big difference between the m and x families is found in the footprint and weight of the notebooks, where the x16 is thinner and lighter than the m16, and the x14 and m18 flank those machines on either side. Due to the extra size and weight, this affords the m16 and m18 the opportunity to sport a pair of DDR5 SO-DIMM slots, whereas the x14 and x16 will use soldered LPDDR5. Both families can hold a pair of NVMe M.2 SSDs. All of these machines come endowed with 1080p webcams rather than the pedestrian 720p models of the past.
All the models feature updated Legend 3.0 design language that adds more focus on the thermal systems—these notebooks should run cooler and quieter for a given thermal envelope, or handle more power with Dynamic Boost-enabled GPUs. The x16 features Alienware's Element 31 thermal interface material comprised of a gallium-silicone matrix which is used for both the CPU and GPU. Alienware x16 RTX 4080 and RTX 4090 models also add in vapor chamber cooling technology to boot.
To keep the footprint of these new notebooks from getting any larger, Alienware is expanding its displays vertically. All of the notebooks introduced today have 16:10 aspect ratios, which we've praised in recent reviews, like the Dell XPS 13 family, for making them better productivity machines. While most games these days are designed with 16:9 displays in mind, more often than not, the taller aspect ratio will give gamers a taller field of view. The resolution on all four notebooks includes G-SYNC at 1920x1200 and a whopping 480Hz refresh rate or 2560x1600 at up to 240Hz. All of the options sport Dolby Vision HDR certification and ComfortView Plus blue right reduction.
Being premium machines with big upgrades, the price tag will be a little steep. The x14 will start at $1,799 USD for its base configuration and go up from there. Meanwhile, the x16, m16, and m18 will start out their tenure as high-end configurations only with starting prices between $2,599 USD for the m16, $2,899 USD for the m18, and $3,099 USD for the x16. Additional configurations will land later, cutting the price of each notebook by around $700 to $800.
Dell Gaming G15 and G16 Updates
Alienware's design language is distinct and premium but not everybody wants to lay out the cash that's often required for the high-end brand. Dell doesn't want those gamers to miss out, so it's updated its G15 and G16 mainstream gaming notebooks. Like the Alienware laptops above, Dell Gaming notebooks get the same 13th Gen Core processor upgrade as Alienware's machines, too.
Of the two machines, it seems the G16 is the real star. Like all of the Alienware notebooks, this machine gets a 16:10 display without increasing the size of the footprint over the previous G15. It does seem the panel takes a step back from the high water mark of Alienware notebooks by limiting the refresh rate to 165Hz, or a still-speedy 240Hz at a lower 1920x1200 resolution. There's no mention of G-SYNC or HDR for this notebook, either. Still, the display appears to be pretty fast and still gets 100% sRGB coverage. The internals are, of course, refreshed with up to a Core i9-13900HX for the processor and unspecified GeForce RTX graphics starting at a more affordable $1,149 USD. Even if these laptops launch initially with GeForce RTX 3000 GPUs, they'll still likely be quite potent for the price.
Meanwhile the entry-level G15 is an update over last year's model, meaning it still has a 16:9 display but updated internals with 13th Gen Core and unnamed GeForce RTX GPUs. The display panel is limited to FHD 1920x1080, but there are 120Hz and 165Hz options on tap. It's been a while, but we've liked these Dell Gaming G15 notebooks when we've had them in for review in the past and we expect these will be no different. For its starting price of $849 USD, the G15 looks pretty attractive.
All of the Alienware and Dell Gaming notebooks announced today will ship sometime later in 2023, with the Alienware models landing later this winter and the Dell Gaming notebooks launching in the spring timeframe. Be sure to stay tuned to HotHardware, as we hope to get some nice examples of these and more notebooks into our offices for a thorough round of testing and review.
