Alienware is finally unleashing the highly anticipated m17 r5. At CES 2022, the Dell gaming arm announced that it’s “the world’s most powerful 17-inch AMD Advantage laptop.” We can’t help but say, “We’ll be the judge of that!” We’re excited to see how well the m17 r5 performs on our rigorous tests.
The Alienware m15 r7, another AMD-powered gaming laptop, is also hitting store shelves this week. Like the m17 r5, it’s a record setter. It has the most powerful graphics of any 15-inch Alienware laptop. We wouldn’t be surprised if the m15 r7 (or the m17 r5) ends up landing on our best gaming laptops page.
Alienware m17 r5
The Alienware m17 r5 is a 17-inch, AMD-packed monster designed to handle your favorite graphics-intensive games with high frame rates and maxed-out graphics settings.
As mentioned, it’s the world’s most powerful 17-inch AMD Advantage laptop. It comes with the latest AMD Ryzen processors alongside Nvidia GeForce RTX 30-series graphics (up to a 3080 Ti GPU) to deliver top-of-line, maximal performance. There are also configurations based on AMD Radeon graphics, too (up to an RX 6850M XT GPU).
These options come with AMD Smart Technologies such as SmartShift Max (dynamically shifts power between AMD CPU and GPU for performance boosts), SmartAccess Memory (harnesses full potential of GPU memory), and for the first time on any mobile PC, AMD SmartAccess Graphics. AMD SmartAccess Graphics, as HotHardware explains, gives the discrete GPU a “direct line” to display via an intelligent switch; this reduces latency issues.
Speaking of the display, users have three display options spanning from a 17.3-inch, 1920 x 1080-pixel, 165Hz refresh-rate panel with a response time of 3ms to a 17.3-inch, 3840 x 2160-pixel, 120Hz refresh-rate screen that also has a 3ms response time.
There are three keyboard options: a 1-zone AlienFX backlit keyboard, a per-key AlienFX backlit keyboard, and a CherryMX ultra low-profile mechanical laptop keyboard with per-key AlienFX lighting.
The m17 r5 weighs a maximum of nearly 7 pounds; its dimensions are 15.6 x 11.8 x 1.05 inches.
The gaming rig should be pretty cool, literally. Alienware boasts that its thermal module includes a vapor chamber that’s 3.5x the size of the m17 r4‘s vapor chamber. There’s also a 6% increase in airflow.
The Alienware m17 r5 is available on April 21 with a starting price of $1,599. AMD Advantage Edition configurations will launch later this spring.
Alienware m15 r7
The m15 r7, like the aforementioned 17-inch beast, is designed to tackle your favorite games with zippy, impressively high frame rates — even when your graphics settings are maxed out. This 15-inch gaming laptop comes with up to an eight-core AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX CPU and up to an Nvidia GeForce 3080 Ti GPU with 16GB of VRAM. Unlike the m17 r5, this laptop doesn’t come with AMD GPU configurations.
Alienware boasts that the m15 r7 features its updated Cryo-tech architecture, which comes with thinner and wider fan blades compared to the m15 r5 or r6. The 15-inch laptop also delivers 1.3x more airflow, which means the system’s most critical components maintain their cool with less effort.
Similar to the m17 r5, the m15 r7 comes with three keyboard options: a 1-zone AlienFX backlit keyboard, a per-key AlienFX backlit keyboard, and a CherryMX ultra low-profile mechanical laptop keyboard with per-key AlienFX lighting. The Alienware bears a maximum weight of 6.8 pounds and has dimensions of 14 x 10.7 x 0.9 inches.
You can choose from three different display options: a 1920 x 1080-pixel, 165Hz display with a 3ms response time, a FHD, 360Hz display with a 1ms response time, and finally, a 2560 x 1440-pixel panel with a 240Hz refresh rate and a 2ms response time.
The Alienware m15 r7 is also available on April 21 and has a starting price of $1,499.
