Dell’s Alienware brand targets gamers: an audience emphasised by the new Alienware 18 laptop. Overclocked to 4.4GHz (Intel Core i7 Haswell processor), the product runs very quickly. A new thermal solution (copper heatsinks and three exhaust vents) was developed to handle the heat output.
Intel’s Smart Cache shares the cache memory in the CPU and GPU, to speed loading times. Additionally, the processor supports Intel’s Hyper-Threading technology providing up to eight-way multitasking, so runs more programmes in the background while keeping resource use low.
Dual graphics cards, from Nvidia (dual GTX 880M) or AMD (dual Radeon R9 M290X), can be supported. Laptop settings – including lighting, special effects and game performance, as well as game-recording options – can be controlled from the Alienware Command Centre 3.0.
Running Windows 8.1, the Alienware 18 features an 18.4″ display with 1920 x 1080 resolution. 8GB or 16GB RAM is available, as well as a 500GB hybrid HDD or 1TB HDD and 256GB SSD combo. Connections for mini-DisplayPort, HDMI, USB 3.0 (x4, 1 with PowerShare) and RJ45 are featured, along with integrated speakers.
Dell is selling the Alienware 18 worldwide now, starting at $2,100. A smaller (17.3″) model is also available: the Alienware 17, with a 4GHz (overclocked) processor, single Nvidia GPU and optional 3D display. It starts at $1,400.
