Just ahead of CES 2017 in Las Vegas, Dell has revealed its refreshed lineup of Alienware gaming laptops along with a new Inspiron 15 7000 Gaming series laptops. There are a total of five base models in the following pages, packed with Intel’s latest seventh-generation “Kaby Lake” Core processors, and Nvidia’s Geforce GTX 1050 and GTX 1050 Ti graphics chips.
All five models listed on the following pages start with discrete GeForce GTX 1050 graphics chips, along with Intel’s integrated graphics component. PC gamers wanting an on-the-go powerhouse may want to start with the Alienware 15 and Alienware 17 laptops, as they’re the only two of the group offering GTX 1070 and GTX 1080 graphics chips. The Inspiron 7000 Gaming series appears to be more price friendly, offering a great PC gaming experience without breaking the bank.
On the Alienware front, Dell says that the refreshed models are based on a new industrial design that includes anodized aluminum, magnesium alloy, steel, and copper. They also rely on a new chassis design providing increased ventilation, enabling the laptops to have a higher power usage ceiling and push most of the heat out through the back. Dell also has a new finishing process to reduce the annoying amount of “smudginess” and fingerprinting in the keyboard area, and a new steel-reinforced Alienware TactX keyboard.
Dell Alienware 13
For starters, this model provides four discrete GPU options ranging from the GTX 1050 to the GTX 1060, and two seventh-generation Intel Core options. The base model includes a 1,366 x 768 resolution, 8GB of DDR4 system memory, an Intel Core i5-7300HQ, a discrete GeForce GTX 1050, and a 180GB SSD. The included ports consist of Thunderbolt 3, Mini DisplayPort 1.2 output, HDMI 2.0 output, and an Alienware Graphics Amplifier port.
One of the options customers can select is a touch-enabled screen with a 2,560 x 1,440 resolution. There are also five memory configuration options, seven storage options, three resolution options, and two Wireless AC/Bluetooth options. What Dell doesn’t offer is Wireless AD (WiGig) connectivity as we saw with Lenovo’s new pre-E3 2017 laptop explosion in late December.
| Operating system: | Windows 10 Home (standard) Windows 10 Pro |
| Display: | 13.3 inches |
| Resolution: | 1,366 x 768 (TN @ 200 nits) (standard) 1,920 x 1,080 (IPS @ 300 nits) 2,560 x 1,440 with Touch (OLED @ 400 nits) |
| Processor: | Intel Core i5-7300HQ (standard) Intel Core i7-7700HQ |
| Memory: | 8GB DDR4 @ 2,400MHz (1x 8GB) (standard) 8GB DDR4 @ 2,667MHz (1x 8GB) 16GB DDR4 @ 2,400MHz (2X 8GB) 16GB DDR4 @ 2,667MHz (2x 8GB) 32GB DDR4 @ 2,400MHz (2x 16GB) |
| Graphics: | Intel HD Graphics 630 (standard) GeForce GTX 1050 w/ 2GB GDDR5 (standard) GeForce GTX 1050 Ti w/ 2GB GDDR5 (i5 only) GeForce GTX 1050 Ti w/ 4GB GDDR5 (i7 only) GeForce GTX 1060 w/ 6GB GDDR5 |
| Storage: | 180GB M.2 SSD (Standard) 180GB M.2 SSD (Boot) + 180GB M.2 SSD (Storage) 256GB PCIe SSD (Boot) 512GB PCIe SSD (Boot) 512GB PCIe SSD (Boot) + 256GB PCIe SSD (Storage) 1TB PCIe SSD (Boot) 1TB PCIe SSD (Boot) + 1TB PCIe SSD (Storage) |
| Audio: | 2.0 speaker configuration 7.1 digital audio via HDMI output |
| Battery: | 76 watt-hour (standard) |
| Connectivity: | Killer 1435 Wireless AC & Bluetooth 4.1 (standard) Killer 1535 Wireless AC & Bluetooth 4.1 |
| Ports: | 1x gigabit Ethernet 2x USB 3.0 port (one charges) 1x USB 3.0 Type-C 1x Thunderbolt 3 Type-C 1x Alienware Graphic Amplifier 1x HDMI 2.0 1x Mini DisplayPort 1.2 1x audio out (1/8”) 1x headphone jack (1/8”) 1x Noble lock port |
| Power adapter: | 180 watts (standard) |
| Colors: | Epic Silver |
| Cameras: | HD camera with IR presence detection |
| Size: | 0.87 x 10.6 x 13.0 inches (touch model) 0.94 x 10.6 x 13.0 inches (non-touch model) |
| Weight: | 5.8 pounds |
| Other features: | Alienware TactX keyboard with four multicolor RGB zones Backlit button image sensor trackpad |
| Installed software: | Alienware Sound Center Audio Recon AlienFX AlienFusion AlienAdrenaline w/ Accelerator Tobii Aware |
| Starting price: | $999 |
| Availability: | Unknown |