The Alienware M18 is one of the modern gaming laptop masterpieces, featuring outstanding processing power and impressive performance. Manufactured by Dell, this laptop not only promises to satisfy you but also elevates every gaming and graphics experience to new heights.
With its high-end processing power, the Alienware M18 effortlessly handles demanding tasks such as gaming and graphics work. The 18-inch widescreen not only creates a captivating visual experience but also instills confidence as you face challenges in the gaming world.
Known as the “unrivaled adversary” the Alienware M18 is truly a top choice for the gaming community and tech enthusiasts. Capable of surpassing the stringent configurations of games that demand power and precision, this laptop delivers an excellent and authentic gaming experience. Let the Alienware M18 showcase your passion in the virtual world!
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Table of Contents
Alienware M18 Specs And Features
- Model name: M18 Gaming Laptop
- Processor: Intel Core i9-13980HX
- Graphics Coprocessor: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090
- Display: 17.3 inch FHD
- Refresh Rate: 480Hz
- RAM: 32GB DDR5
- Operating System: Windows 11 Pro
- Hard Drive: 2TB SSD
- Webcam: 720p
- Ports: 1x USB 3.2 Type-C, 3 x USB-A 3.2, 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x Headset (headphone and microphone combo), 1x RJ45 Ethernet port.
- Wireless Connectivity: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi
- Battery: 97 wHr
- Dimensions: 11.79 x 15.72 x 0.58 inches
- Weight: 10.4 pounds
- Price: $4999.00
Design and Exterior
The Alienware M18 boasts an exquisite and superior design, further enhanced with the Legend 3 design style. With its softly curved screen edges, high-quality sandblasted aluminum surface, and a sophisticated dual-tone dark color scheme, the laptop not only captures attention but also delivers outstanding high performance.
The back of the machine is meticulously crafted with the Iconic Stadium design, now featuring softer edges for enhanced portability. The premium finish, crafted from aluminum with a dual-tone dark color scheme, adds a touch of sophistication to the laptop’s overall appearance.
The overall design of the Alienware M18 has shifted its focus towards user experience, improving the aesthetics of the rubberized feet and redesigning them, along with enhancing performance. This laptop is not only visually appealing but also meets all requirements and is ready to face the most challenging demands in gaming and tasks that demand power and stability.
Performance
Alienware M18 is equipped with the Intel Core i9-13980HX CPU and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 GPU. The superior power of this processor and graphics card promises gamers and professionals a stable and impressive performance, surpassing many other laptop models. The robust performance allows you to play the latest games at high graphics settings with a smooth frame rate, evident in its impressive CineBench R23 score of 26,559. This score ensures a lag-free gaming and graphics experience.
In addition, the Alienware M18 boasts 32GB of DDR5 4800MHz RAM and a 2TB PCIe Gen4 M.2 SSD. This configuration ensures fast processing speeds and substantial storage capacity, enabling users to run multiple applications and work on various tasks simultaneously.
When evaluating overall graphics performance, the Alienware M18 performs exceptionally well, comparable to the Asus ROG Strix Scar 18. This capability ensures crisp and visually stunning graphics representation.
One notable feature of the Alienware M18 is its remarkable cooling ability. Beyond its excellent display and powerful performance, the laptop stands out with its advanced cooling technology, including a vapor chamber and Element 31 cooling. This technology efficiently cools the CPU and GPU, maintaining optimal performance during prolonged usage. The cooling system, combined with dual fans, heat pipes, the laptop frame, and dedicated software, ensures stable and efficient temperature regulation. Moreover, the thoughtful design of the laptop frame facilitates effective airflow both from the top and bottom, optimizing the performance of the dual fans.
Display & Audio
The Alienware m18 R1 offers two display options: first, an 18-inch QHD IPS screen with a resolution of 2560 x 1600 and a 165 Hz refresh rate, and second, an FHD+ 480Hz IPS screen with a resolution of 1920 x 1200, which comes with an additional $50 charge. Our review unit utilized the latter option.
With its 18-inch size, the m18 R1 truly epitomizes the desktop-replacement gaming laptop category. To achieve the impressive 480 Hz refresh rate, Alienware had to compromise on a lower resolution of 1920 x 1200, but for desktop use and gaming, this choice is entirely reasonable. Additionally, the matte finish on the screen does an excellent job of minimizing reflections.
In our tests, the display showed an average brightness of 336 nits, placing it behind competitors in this segment. However, the ROG Zephyrus Duo 16 emerged as the winner with a dazzling maximum brightness of 684 nits from its mini LED panel.
The Alienware m18’s display covers 109% of the sRGB color gamut and 77.4% of the DCI-P3 gamut. While these figures are comparable to IPS-based competitors, they fall slightly short of the ROG Zephyrus Duo 16 with 121% sRGB and 85.5% DCI-P3 coverage.
The m18 R1 features a pair of 2-watt speakers positioned near the front of the keyboard deck, where your palms rest. Although these speakers produce clear sound at maximum volume, they lack depth and bass.
Considering the large chassis size, it was expected that the laptop would deliver more in terms of audio quality. It seems like a missed opportunity not to include another pair of high-quality speakers, given the ample space available. When testing with “LiLy” by Alan Walker & Emelie, her angelic vocals fell flat with the default audio settings. Opening the Dolby Access app and switching the Dolby Atmos setting from Music to Dynamic slightly enhanced the vocals but wasn’t enough to make a significant difference.
Explosions in games lacked impactful sound and landed with a lifeless “thud” in Overwatch, while gunfire in Grand Theft Auto V sounded muddled. However, most gamers are likely to use headphones for a more immersive gaming experience and to avoid the noise from the four fans inside the chassis.
Keyboard and Touchpad
The keyboard of the Alienware m18, designed to match its colossal chassis, integrates a numeric keypad and features an optional ultra-low-profile CherryMX mechanical keyboard. The per-key RGB AlienFX lighting enhances the visually appealing keypress experience. On the keyhero.com website, I achieved a typing speed of 80 words per minute with an accuracy of 94.42%.
Ports
The Alienware M18 boasts an impressive range of connectivity options:
- 1 USB 3.2 Gen 1 port with PowerShare
- 3 USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports
- 2 Thunderbolt 4 Gen 2 Type-C ports with DisplayPort Alt Mode/USB4
- 1 RJ45 Ethernet port
- 1 Universal audio port
- 1 HDMI 2.1 port
- 1 Power-adapter port
- 1 Mini-Display port
In addition, it features a handy SD-card slot for expanded functionality. This comprehensive set of ports ensures seamless connectivity for a variety of devices and peripherals, making the Alienware M18 a versatile and convenient choice.
Webcam
The Alienware m18 R1 features a 1080p at 30 fps Full HD IR camera for crisp and clear video. Its dual-array microphones enhance audio capture, providing clear communication. The stereo speakers deliver a total of 4 watts, ensuring a powerful and balanced audio experience for multimedia and communication.
Battery
The Alienware M18 comes with a 6-cell 99Whr battery; however, its battery life is quite limited. According to various tests, the laptop can only sustain about 2 hours when web browsing or watching videos and approximately 1 hour when gaming. This is a significant weakness of the Alienware M18, making it less suitable for mobile use.
Additionally, the Alienware M18 may experience excessive heat during resource-intensive tasks such as gaming or video rendering. The underside of the laptop can reach temperatures up to 50 degrees Celsius, while the keyboard and touchpad can reach up to 40 degrees Celsius. This condition can cause discomfort for users and potentially impact the overall lifespan of the machine.
Conclusion
So, we have provided an overall review of the Alienware M18 laptop. We hope that this information proves helpful to you, aiding in a better understanding of the product and assisting you in making an informed decision when choosing a new laptop for yourself.
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