Our Alienware Area-51 m15x notebook came pre-installed with Windows Vista Home Premium. Outfitted with an Intel Core 2 Extreme 2.8Ghz CPU, 3 GB RAM and an Nvidia GeForce 8800M GTX, the m15x features horsepower comparable to desktop PCs these days. Taking it one step further is its support for Media Center IR remotes out of the box and a 15” screen capable of a 1920x1200 resolution; beyond 1080p found in the highest quality LCD and Plasma television displays. At 15 inches, the 1920x1200 resolution is going to be stretch for most people in terms of legibility. It’s sharp but the text is tiny and the default m15x model has 1440x900 which works better for day to day computing. Our experience is if you plan to hook this up to a television or LCD monitor that is larger than 20” then the 1920x1200 resolution is worth it.

Our Alienware m15x notebook came equipped with a Blu-Ray disc drive that not only read BDs but also wrote to BD-R and BD-RE discs. Nero 7 is included to facilitate this although there is no authoring application to allow you to convert raw video into BD structure. You will have to purchase the full Nero suite with an HD pack add-on for that. We hooked the notebook up to a Sharp Aquos D64U television via HDMI. Using the function keys, we transferred the display on to the television. One interesting thing is the natural resolution of the Alienware m15x is actually slightly higher than the 1920x1080 LCD televisions sold these days so we had to adjust the notebook’s resolution down to 1920x1080 in order for it to display properly on the television. Graphics were sharp on the television screen and text was easily legible on our 46” panel.

BD playback did result in a serious battery drain. Playing an entire movie on battery power is all but impossible even for shorter films like the 80 somewhat minute Simpsons Movie. Expect the power to last around an hour. To alleviate some of the battery life issues, the Alienware m15x notebook is able to switch between integrated and discrete graphics by using the function keys along the top of the notebook combined with a reboot of Windows. If you happen to be word processing or surfing the net, this mode will give you a lot more battery life. However, games that require 3D action and Blu-Ray support will be handicapped.

One thing we noted about the switch between integrated and discrete graphics is the lack of an indicator on the unit itself or in Windows of which graphics card is in use. We had to check the System Properties of the notebook in order to figure out if Intel or Nvidia graphics were in use. Still, the option to switch is not something we have seen in other notebooks and Alienware should be lauded for including it.

The m15x notebook comes in a silver casing that attempts to maintain as sleek a profile as possible. Although you won’t mistake this for a MacBook Air, the m15x has a latchless lid for easy opening and closing of the notebook. There are also no physical buttons besides the keyboard. All of the little dials and dip switches that come with traditional notebooks are replaced with touch sensitive buttons.

Indeed, the optical drive does not even have an eject button. You eject it by using the function keys on the notebook itself. We thought this was a little excessive since you have to power up the unit just to get a disc out and we’re not sure what aesthetic drawback there would be to having a tiny eject button on the drive. On the other hand, the speaker place is spot on with sound coming fully to your ears instead of your lap or on the side of the notebook.
As customary with Alienware machines, the m15x is a no compromise gaming rig. More often than not you will find yourself tweaking video settings or running games at a lower resolution in order to accommodate notebook gaming. With the m15x, there is no need to do so as we ran some of the latest PC games like Call of Duty 4 at a 1900x1200 resolution and were able to get favorable framerates that we would have expected from a desktop machine. Other PC titles like BioShock, Gears of War and Crysis were able to run without a hitch either. Running the notebook through 3DMark notched a 3376 score.

The m15x is designed to entertain whether it’s through games or movies. Gamers will definitely get a kick out of the graphical and processing prowess of the machine. High def videophiles will also appreciate the BD capabilities including the unique ability to write BDs. With some extra software we can envision this being a good base for HD video authoring too. All of this comes at premium price however, but in our experience with it you do get a top shelf experience.

Rating •••••90%•••••