Alienware M15x Laptop

Last June, Alienware released their 17-inch "desktop replacement" gaming laptop, the M17x. Today, Alienware is launching a smaller and lighter laptop, the 15-inch M15x. It also happens to be the first Alienware laptop that uses Intel's new mobile Core i7 processor. You have the choice of three different versions of the processor with the most powerful being the the 920 XM with a clock speed of 2 Ghx. It also has an Nvidia GTX 260M graphics chip with either 512 MB or 1 GB of memory.

The actual design of the m15x resembles the M17x although the actual material for the 15-inch mode is different. It will come with some nice features including a slot-loading disk drive (DVD or Blu-Ray), support for up to 8GB of RAM, support for both regular and solid state hard drives and more. The product is available right now with a starting cost of $1,499.
Alienware Aurora and Aurora ALX

With Alienware now no longer using AMD processors, their Aurora PC desktop model, which was previously an AMD-based PC, is now being changed to reflect a more mainstream gaming PC experience. That change also comes to the PC's case design which is based on the MicroATX motherboard design. That will allow the Aurora and Aurora ALX to have a smaller footprint and a smaller weight of around 45 pounds.

Pricing for the Aurora based PCs start at $1,299 and the ALX model has support for an overclocked Intel Core i7 processor to 3.6 Ghz. You can cram up to 24 Gigs of memory in the Aurora and set it up with either Nvidia or ATI graphics chips in SLI (Nvidia) or CrossFireX (ATI) mulit-card set ups. The CPU is liquid cooled and has support for other air cooling features that should keep the PC cooler than other set-ups. There's also support for up to two TB of hard drive space (with options for a 256 MB solid state drive) and it also comes with the AlienFX lighting system that will give gamers access to 25 million different color combos. The Aurora models are on sale now.
Alienware Area-51 and Area 51 ALX

It's the flagship line of desktop PCs for Alienware and they are getting a big revamp in terms of their chassis design as well. The Area 51 models also have liquid cooling and Intel's Core i7 processors and you can even choose to get the ALX model overclocked up to 3.86 Ghz at the factory. The massive (84 pounds) desktop PC has a whopping six hard drive trays which means you could go nuts with hard drive space if you wanted

Again, there's support for both Nvidia or ATI graphics chips in SLI (Nvidia) or CrossFireX (ATI) multi-card set ups. Up to 12 Gigs of memory are supported by the Area 51 and like the Aurora there's also support for the AlienFX lighting system. One interesting thing about both the Area 51 and the Aurora is that gamers should be able to put in their own upgradable components with little fear of dealing with proprietary hardware. The one exception is the power supply which Alienware will replace if something goes wrong with it. The Area 51 models are not yet on sale but should be available for purchase sometime in October with a starting price of $1,999.

Conclusion

The Alienware division of Dell is going all out with this latest product launch and in speaking with Alienware reps over the phone a couple of days ago its clear that they are very enthusiastic about the future of PC gaming in general. With the launch of Windows 7 now just under a month away, Alienware will even let customers order their new PCs now but wait until Windows 7's launch date of October 22 to ship them to customers if they want to have Windows 7 out of the box rather than do an upgrade later. It should be interesting to see how customers react to not having an AMD option for a processor for these models but we don't think it will be a huge stumbling block.