We love the improvements Dell announced today, but they are still going to cost you more of course. This is the ongoing trend this year of increased prices, so Dell is not an outlier.
Alienware 16X Aurora
In the biggest update today, we are seeing a better screen, better CPU, and better GPU option in the higher-end 16X Aurora laptop. At its new MSRP of around $2,900, you can get it with an Anti-Glare OLED display, a refreshed Arrow Lake 290HX Plus CPU, and an RTX 5070Ti. This is nice considering the IPS screen was one of our cons on this laptop originally. Plus, having more VRAM like the 5070Ti has (12GB) will make it so you can make the most out of the screen and likely game at native resolution with decently high settings. The new CPU won't hurt there either, we're just hopeful it goes on some good sales because the MSRP is a bit steep in our eyes for a laptop with less premium build quality than the Area-51s.
Pros
- Good CPU and GPU performance
- Sturdy build
- Nice screen that covers a wide color gamut with an optional OLED screen that is even better
- MUX switch
- Two full-sized M.2 SSD slots
- IR for Windows Hello
Cons
- Quite Heavy
- Dated design
- Quiet speakers
- Clunky trackpad
Alienware 16 & 18 Area-51
Both the 16 & 18-inch models of the Area-51 are being updated with the Arrow Lake HX refresh as well, which we're excited to get in to test and see if they perform better. These will be the Core Ultra 7 270HX Plus and Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus. On top of that, the 16-inch is also getting the Anti-Glare OLED screen option like the Aurora. Big win considering how premium and well built that laptop is. Its screen will be a cherry on top.
Pros
- Performs well amongst competitors
- Price is competitive
- Thunderbolt 5
- SD Card Reader
- PCIE 5.0 SSD
Cons
- Extremely heavy
- Feels warm even in light use
- Soldered Wi-Fi card (though it is Wi-Fi 7)
Pros
- Extremely powerful
- Feels premium
- Remains cool even during performance use
- Fan noise is minimal if used on Balance mode (95% of max performance)
- Thunderbolt 5, 2.5 Gbe, PCIE 5.0 SSD, SD Card Reader
Cons
- Heavy, almost 10 pounds
- Does not have an OLED or Mini-LED display
- Soldered Wi-Fi card (though it is Wi-Fi 7)
