Hi, I've never owned a laptop before, and a high-end laptop is a mandatory requirement for my college program this September. I've already decided to get a laptop that I can play all my games on (HL2, CS:S, WoW, BF2 on release), so I am looking at Dell's and Alienware's high end systems. I don't want to spend a fortune, keeping the price (without tax/shipping) below $2700.
After looking elseware, like Voodoo and Falcon-NW, I've determined that for the price, the Dell XPS and Alienware 7700 will give me better performance for my budget. My dilema is deciding which machine to go with, here's the specs for each, same price for both:
Dell Inspiron XPS Gen 2:
17 inch UltraSharp? Wide Screen UXGA Display <--- i like the 1600x1200
Intel® Pentium® M 760 Processor (2GHz/533MHz FSB)
1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz
60GB 7200rpm Hard Drive
24X CD Burner/DVD Combo Drive
256MB NVIDA® GeForce? Go 6800 Ultra
Intel® PRO/Wireless 2915 Internal Wireless (802.11 a/b/g, 54Mbps)
Alienware Area-51m 7700:
Area-51m 7700 Case with 17" WideSXGA+ 1680 x 1050 LCD Display with Built-in Camera
Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor 540J w/ HT Technology 3.2GHz 1MB Cache
1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SO-DIMM at 533MHz - 2 x 512MB
Area-51m 7700 NVIDIA GeForce? 6800 Go with 256MB of DDR3 memory
Intel® High-Definition Audio (24-bit, 192Khz) with 7.1 surround sound (None on Dell)
60GB 7200 RPM ATA100 - Hitachi
24x10x24 CD-RW / 8X DVD Combo w/Software MPEG2 Decoder
Internal Wireless 802.11a/b/g miniPCI Card
One big question: the 7700 comes with either the NVIDIA GeForce? 6800 Go with 256MB OR ATI MOBILITY? RADEON X800 with 256MB... I've heard the 6800 is amazing, but want to make sure it's a better choice. As far as looks go, I like the 7700 better. My main concerns are the display: I am familiar with the 1600x1200 res and love it, I don't know how a wide screen looks for gaming, but willing to try it out. The Alienware has nice sound capability, great for Zalman headphones I'm getting... Other than that, they're pretty much the same, so any input on either company or machine would be appreciated, and if they come out even, I'll go with the one that gives me the best deal when it comes time to buy.
Thanks,
d2arc
After looking elseware, like Voodoo and Falcon-NW, I've determined that for the price, the Dell XPS and Alienware 7700 will give me better performance for my budget. My dilema is deciding which machine to go with, here's the specs for each, same price for both:
Dell Inspiron XPS Gen 2:
17 inch UltraSharp? Wide Screen UXGA Display <--- i like the 1600x1200
Intel® Pentium® M 760 Processor (2GHz/533MHz FSB)
1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz
60GB 7200rpm Hard Drive
24X CD Burner/DVD Combo Drive
256MB NVIDA® GeForce? Go 6800 Ultra
Intel® PRO/Wireless 2915 Internal Wireless (802.11 a/b/g, 54Mbps)
Alienware Area-51m 7700:
Area-51m 7700 Case with 17" WideSXGA+ 1680 x 1050 LCD Display with Built-in Camera
Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor 540J w/ HT Technology 3.2GHz 1MB Cache
1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SO-DIMM at 533MHz - 2 x 512MB
Area-51m 7700 NVIDIA GeForce? 6800 Go with 256MB of DDR3 memory
Intel® High-Definition Audio (24-bit, 192Khz) with 7.1 surround sound (None on Dell)
60GB 7200 RPM ATA100 - Hitachi
24x10x24 CD-RW / 8X DVD Combo w/Software MPEG2 Decoder
Internal Wireless 802.11a/b/g miniPCI Card
One big question: the 7700 comes with either the NVIDIA GeForce? 6800 Go with 256MB OR ATI MOBILITY? RADEON X800 with 256MB... I've heard the 6800 is amazing, but want to make sure it's a better choice. As far as looks go, I like the 7700 better. My main concerns are the display: I am familiar with the 1600x1200 res and love it, I don't know how a wide screen looks for gaming, but willing to try it out. The Alienware has nice sound capability, great for Zalman headphones I'm getting... Other than that, they're pretty much the same, so any input on either company or machine would be appreciated, and if they come out even, I'll go with the one that gives me the best deal when it comes time to buy.
Thanks,
d2arc
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