Alienware M14x Gaming Laptop Review
Cinebench and 3DMark 11
 |
|
Cinebench shows that the M14x is empowered with a well-balanced CPU and GPU pairing here versus this similar class of notebooks we've tested along side it. On the GPU side, the M14x's GeForce GT 555M almost catches the higher-end GeForce GTX 460M in MSI's notebook and puts up the second best score of the group. On the CPU side of the equation, the M14x dropped in right about where we expected, surpassing the dual-core Core i7 systems here and pulling up right along side the other Core i7-2630QM based notebook in our test group.
Futuremark 3DMark 11
Synthetic DX11 Gaming Performance
|
|
The latest version of Futuremark's synthetic 3D gaming benchmark, 3DMark11, is specifically bound to Windows Vista and 7-based systems because it uses the advanced visual technologies that are only available with DirectX 11, which isn't available on previous versions of Windows. 3DMark11 isn't simply a port of 3DMark Vantage to DirectX 11, though. With this latest version of the benchmark, Futuremark has incorporated four new graphics tests, a physics tests, and a new combined test. We tested the graphics cards here with 3DMark11's Extreme preset option, which uses a resolution of 1920x1080 with 4x anti-aliasing and 16x anisotropic filtering. |
3DMark 11 gives us our first view of raw gaming performance and this DX11-based benchmark drops the M14x in right about where we expected. The M14x pulls up just behind the more powerful GPU-driven MSI GT680R, with its 192 CUDA core-based GeForce GTX 460M, versus the 144 CUDA core-based GeForce GT 555M in the M14x. Conversely, you can see how much more powerful the M14x's GeForce GT 555M is versus the GeForce GT 525M in Dell's XPS 15z thin-and-light notebook.
