The Alienware M17 is said to be one of the first laptops to use ATI’s CrossFireX technology, ™ providing scalability and performance along with its DirectX® 10.1 support. It is a notebook with a 17-inch Widescreen WUXGA display with 1920 x 1200 pixel resolution and Clearview™ technology and features an integrated 2.0 megapixel webcam for video conferencing with friends and family.
It also features instant access buttons that provides users with instant access to Internet, Email functions, as well as multimedia functions such as the Windows Media Player and Power DVD application.
The buttons also lets users control music functions instantly without accessing the software through its Play/Pause, Skip Forward and Skip Backward buttons. The M17 also features security functions like AlienSense Facial Recognition Software, Biometric Fingerprint Reader and a Kensington Lock Slot that prevents unauthorized usage. The ATI PowerPlay™ function allows users to monitor GPU usage in the notebook and adjust the graphics power according to current resource requirements; Intel® Core™2 Quad processing power for multitasking abilities and speeds when taking on resource-intensive tasks such as playing next-generation games, video editing and more; a memory storage capacity up to 1TB that can hold over 150 games, 250 full-length movies or 250,000 songs. When installed with the optional 7200RPM drive, the Alienware M17 features Free Fall Sensor technology to protect data; and Alienware M17 Command Center, AlienFusion interface and AlienFX lighting system interface. The optional internal TV tuner on the M17 lets users watch, record and save for later TV shows and movies, including full HD programming, and the notebook is designed for HD video and 3D games.
Specifications:
The Alienware M17 is a 1.7 x 15.65 x 11.8 inch, 9.5 lbs form factor notebook that runs either Windows Vista® Home Premium (32- or 64-bit) or Windows Vista® Ultimate (32- and 64-bit). Users can have the choice of powering the notebook with either Intel® Core™2 Duo and Extreme processors (with 6MB Cache, 1066MHz FSB) or Intel® Core™2 Quad and Extreme Processors (12MB Cache, 1066MHz FSB). It supports the Intel® PM45 + ICH9M-E chipset, and has up to 8GB DDR3 memory (dual channel) capacity at 1066MHz via two dedicated SO-DIMM slots. The notebook also supports a choice of either single graphics with ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 3870 or with a one that is CrossFireX enabled. The notebook has optional integrated HDTV (ATSC) Tuner (Coaxial), one HDMI 1.3b connector and one VGA connector. Users can choose between a 320 GB (5400 RPM) or 500GB (7200rpm) SATA hard disk drives or dual hard drives with RAID 0 support with up to 640 GB (5400 RPM) or 1TB (7200rpm) capacity. Optical drive choices include 8x Dual Layer Burner (DVD±RW, CD-RW), 8x Dual Layer Burner (DVD±RW, CD-RW) with LightScribe Technology or Dual Layer Blu-ray Disc Reader (BD-ROM, DVD±RW, CD-RW). The Alienware M17 also supports wireless connectivity via internal Intel WiFi Link 5300 a/b/g/Draft-N, Bluetooth 2.1 as well as wired connectivity via integrated Gigabit Ethernet RJ-45 (1000 Mbps). It has high-definition digital audio support with integrated 4 channel support, up to 7.1 support through digital out and two speakers with subwoofer. The notebook also features one auto-sensing headphone jack, one auto-sensing microphone jack, one TOSlink digital out optical audio, 3 Hi-speed USB 2.0 ports, 1 eSATA/USB 2.0 Combo (2-in-1 port), ExpressCard Slot, IEEE 1394a (4-pin) port, and a 7-in-1 Media Card Reader (SD/MS/MSPRO/RS-MMC/MMC). It is powered by a 12 cell battery.
Reviews:
“Alienware is trying to have it both ways with the new M17, combining a relatively low starting price with some very pricey upgrades, including quad-core CPUs and ATI CrossFireX video cards. Our configuration wasn’t very exciting, but turned in capable gaming scores.” – (CNET, 2008)
“those who want to get their game on will get a good deal out of the Alienware m17. As a gaming machine, the m17 delivers speed where it counts, but it lags a little in more conventional office-application tests”.– (PC World, 2009)
“Subtle but effective design. The ATI’s CrossFireX technology in the Alienware M17 delivers excellent 3D performance scores. A strong multimedia feature set” – (PC Mag, 2008)
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