Alienware


Alienware Corporation is an American computer hardware subsidiary brand of Dell. Their product range is dedicated to gaming computers and accessories and can be identified by their alien-themed designs. Alienware was founded in 1996 by Nelson Gonzalez and Alex Aguila. The development of the company is also associated with Frank Azor, Arthur Lewis, Joe Balerdi, and Michael S. Dell. The company's corporate headquarters is located in The Hammocks, Miami, Florida.

History

Founding

Alienware was established in 1996 as Saikai of Miami, Inc. by Nelson Gonzalez and Alex Aguila, two childhood friends. It assembled desktops, notebooks, workstations, and PC gaming consoles. According to employees, the name "Alienware" was chosen because of the founders' fondness for the hit television series The X-Files, which also inspired the science-fiction themed names of product lines such as Area-51, Hangar 18, and Aurora. In 1997, the corporation changed its name to Alienware.

Acquisition by Dell

had considered buying Alienware as early as 2002, but did not go through with the purchase until March 2006. As a subsidiary of Dell, Alienware retains control of its design and marketing while benefiting from Dell's purchasing power, economies of scale, and supply chain, which lowered its operating costs.
Initially, Dell maintained its competing XPS line of gaming PCs, often selling computers with similar specifications, which may have hurt Alienware's market share within its market segment. Due to corporate restructuring in the spring of 2008, the XPS brand was scaled down, and the desktop line was eliminated, leaving only XPS notebooks, but XPS desktop models had returned by the end of the year.
Product development of gaming PCs was consolidated with Dell's gaming division, with Alienware becoming Dell's premier gaming brand. On June 2, 2009, The M17x was introduced as the first Alienware/Dell branded system. This launch also expanded Alienware's global reach from six to 35 countries while supporting 17 different languages.

Products (after acquisition by Dell)

Windows OS-based consoles

Alienware announced that it would be releasing a series of video game consoles starting in 2014, aiming to compete with Sony's PlayStation 4, Nintendo's Wii U, and Microsoft's Xbox One. The first version in this series, the Alpha, ran Windows 8.1. The operating system and ability to play PC games is what separates the Alpha from the eighth generation of video game consoles. At the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2016, Alienware announced the second rendition of the Alpha, the Alpha R2. The R2 adds 6th generation Intel processors, a choice of either AMD's Radeon R9 M470X or Nvidia's GeForce 960 graphics cards, and support for Alienware's proprietary Graphics Amplifier. It also ships with Windows 10.

Graphics Amplifier

The Graphics Amplifier allows an Alienware laptop to run most full length desktop GPUs. A proprietary PCIe 3.0 ×4 cable is used instead of the Thunderbolt 3 cable used on most other eGPUs.

Laptops

18 inch

  • M18x – Introduced in 2011, it is considered a replacement for the original M17x design, but with a bigger chassis, a screen up to, dual MXM 3.0B GPU support, special keyboard macros, and up to 32GB of DDR3-1600MHz RAM. Shipped with Intel Sandy Bridge processors and the option of single or dual AMD Radeon 6870M/6970M/6990M Radeon HD 6000 series GPU, single or dual Nvidia GeForce 500 series GPU. Factory CPU overclocking was also an available option.
  • M18x-R2 – 2012 revision of the M18x; originally shipped with Intel Sandy Bridge processors, later shipped with updated with Intel Ivy Bridge processors, single or dual Nvidia GeForce 600 series GPU, single or dual AMD Radeon HD 7970M Radeon HD 7000 series GPU, up to 32GB of DDR3-1600MHz, and optional factory overclock.
  • Alienware 18 – 2013 refresh of the M18x; updated with Intel Haswell Processors, single or dual Nvidia GeForce 700 series GPU, single or dual AMD Radeon R9 M290X GPU, and up to 32GB of DDR3L-1600MHz RAM, and 1TB RAID 0 SSDs along with facelift with new design. Marketed as "Alienware 18" but listed in some countries as "M18XR3 Viking".
  • Alienware 18 R2 – 2014 Updated version of the Alienware 18 or "M18x R3"; updated with Intel Haswell micro architecture processors, single or dual Nvidia GeForce 800 series GPU, up to 32GB of DDR3-1600MHz, and optional overclock.
  • Alienware 18 R3 – 2015 version was a limited re-release of the previous Alienware 18, with updated dual Nvidia GeForce 900 series GPUs and up to 32GB of DDR3L-1600MHz.
  • Alienware m18 – The new version of the Alienware m series featuring 18-inch display, 13th-gen Intel Core / Ryzen 7000 series CPU and Nvidia GeForce RTX 40 Series Laptop GPU.
  • Alienware 18 Area-51 - The Area-51 line returns with an 18-inch QHD+ screen, Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX CPU with 24 cores, and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 50 Series Laptop GPU.

    17 inch

  • M17x – Introduced in 2009, it is the first laptop released by Alienware after the company was bought by Dell. The name and some of the design is based on the Alienware 17-inch laptop, the Alienware M17.
  • M17x-R2 – 2010 revision of the M17x, adding support for Intel i5 and i7 processors, dual MXM 3.0B graphic cards.
  • M17x-R3 – 2011 revision of the M17x, changes from aluminium chassis to a simplified plastic design, 3D Ready through a 120Hz screen. Removes Dual-GPU capability.
  • M17x-R4 – 2012 revision of the M17x, updated with Windows 8, Intel Ivybridge Processors and Nvidia GeForce 600 series or the AMD Radeon HD 7970M.
  • Alienware 17 – 2013 refresh of the M17x, updated with Intel Haswell Processors and Nvidia GeForce 700 series GPUs or the AMD R9 M290X with new facelift and body design. Marketed as "Alienware 17" but listed in some countries and order details as "M17XR5 Ranger". Updated with Nvidia GeForce 800 series in 2014
  • Alienware 17 R2 – 2015 revision of the Alienware 17, updated with Nvidia GeForce 900 series. Features FHD matte display or FHD touch display. A port on the rear for graphics amplifier. This model introduced BGA mounted CPU and GPU, removing the ability to replace the CPU or GPU without changing the entire motherboard.
  • Alienware 17 R3 – 2015 refresh of the Alienware 17, Windows 10 available. Features FHD overclocking display. Ultra HD IGZO display also available, as well as a Nvidia GeForce 900 series with 4GB GDDR5 and 8GB GDDR5 option.
  • Alienware 17 R4 – 2016 Alienware 17, Windows 10. Features 6th / 7th generation Intel CPU, Tobii eye tracking, Ultra HD display also available, as well as a Nvidia GeForce 1000 series with up to 8GB GDDR5.
  • Alienware 17 R5 – 2018 Alienware 17, Windows 10. Features Tobii eye tracking, Ultra HD display also available, as well as a Nvidia GeForce 1000 series with up to 8GB GDDR5, 8th / 9th generation of Intel processors.
  • Alienware M17 – 2018 Thin and light gaming laptop for 17" category. Comes with 8th Gen Intel CPU up to Core i9-8950HK, RTX 2070 Max-Q, 16GB of RAM and 1080p display with optional 4K upgrade.
  • Alienware Area-51m – 2019 desktop replacement gaming laptop with a desktop CPU, up to Intel Core i9-9900K, 128GB of upgradeable memory, upgradeable GPU and overclockable as well. Also features two power adapters and new Legend design language for Alienware.
  • Alienware M17 R2 – 2019 Thin and light gaming laptop for 17" category, replace the M17 after 6 months of announcing. Comes with 9th Gen Intel CPU up to Core i9-9980HK, up to RTX 2080 Max-Q, 16GB of RAM and 1080p display with optional 4K upgrade. The Alienware m17 R2 will be based on the same design language and chassis material as the beefier 17.3-inch Area-51M.
  • Alienware Area-51m R2 – 2020 Alienware took the world's first fully upgradable gaming laptop and added the latest 10th-gen Intel processors and an optional 4K screen — a first for the Area-51 lineup.
  • Alienware M17 R3 – 2020 Thin and light gaming laptop for the 17" category. Comes with 10th generation Intel CPU up to Core i9-10980HK, up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super 8GB GDDR6, 32GB of RAM and 60Hz 25ms 500cd/m 100% Adobe RGB color gamut display with Tobii Eye tracking technology.
  • Alienware M17 R4 – 2021 Thin and light gaming laptop for the 17" category. Equipped with 10th generation Intel CPU up to Core i9-10980HK, up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 16GB GDDR6 Graphics Card, 32GB DDR4 RAM at 2933MHz, 60fps. The RTX 3080 also includes support for ray tracing and DLSS.
  • Alienware X17 R1 – 2021 Thin and light gaming laptop for the 17" category. Equipped with 11th generation Intel CPU up to Core i9-11900H, up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 16GB GDDR6 Graphics Card, 32GB DDR4 RAM at 3466MHz, 60fps. Thinnest 17-inch Alienware laptop so far.
  • Alienware M17 R5 – 2022 Thin and light gaming laptop for the 17" category. Equipped with 6th generation AMD CPU up to Ryzen 9 6900HX, up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080Ti 16GB GDDR6 Graphics Card, 32GB DDR5 RAM at 4800MHz, 60fps.
  • Alienware X17 R2 – 2022 Thin and light gaming laptop for the 17" category. Equipped with 12th-generation Intel CPU up to Core i9-12900H, up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080Ti 16GB GDDR6 Graphics Card, 32GB DDR5 RAM at 4800MHz, 60fps. Thinnest 17-inch Alienware laptop so far.

    16 inch

  • Alienware m16 – The new version of the Alienware m series featuring 16-inch display, 13th-gen Intel Core / Ryzen 7000 series CPU and Nvidia GeForce RTX 40 Series Laptop GPU.

    15 inch

  • M15x – 2009 With 1st generation Intel i3/i5/i7 and Nvidia GeForce 200 series.
  • Alienware 15 – 2015 revision of the M15x, updated with Intel Haswell Processors and Nvidia GeForce 900 series. Features FHD matte display or UHD touch display. Features a port on the rear for graphics amplifier.
  • Alienware 15 R2 – 2015 refresh of the Alienware 15, updated with Intel Skylake processors and using the same NVIDIA graphics chipsets. Uses same FHD and 4K UHD screens and graphics amplifier port on the rear.
  • Alienware 15 R3 – 2016 Alienware 15, Windows 10. 6th / 7th gen Intel CPU, 1080p standard display and Ultra HD 4K display and 120Hz TN+WVA Anti-Glare 400nit NVIDIA G-SYNC Enabled Display also available, as well as a Nvidia GeForce 1000 series with up to 8GB GDDR5.
  • Alienware 15 R4 – Early 2018 Alienware 15, Windows 10. Features Tobii eye tracking, Ultra HD Display also available, as well as a Nvidia GeForce 1000 series with up to 8GB GDDR5, 8th / 9th gen Intel CPU
  • Alienware M15 – 2018 thin and light gaming laptop. 1080p standard display and Ultra HD 4K display and 144Hz IPS 1080p display also available, as well as a Nvidia GeForce 1000 series with up to a GTX 2070 Max-Q design.
  • Alienware M15 R2 – 2019 thin and light gaming laptop. 1080p standard display and 60Hz Ultra HD 4K display, 144Hz IPS 1080p, and 240Hz IPS 1080p display also available, as well as a Nvidia GeForce 20 series with up to a RTX 2080 Max-Q, 9th gen Intel CPU.
  • Alienware M15 R3 – 2020 thin and light gaming laptop. 1080p standard display and 60Hz Ultra HD 4K display, 144Hz IPS 1080p, and 240Hz IPS 1080p display also available, as well as a Nvidia GeForce 20 series with up to a RTX 2080 Super Max-Q, 10th gen Intel CPU.
  • Alienware M15 R4 – Early 2021 thin and light gaming laptop. standard display and 60Hz display, 144Hz IPS, and 300Hz IPS display also available, as well as a Nvidia GeForce 30 series with up to a RTX 3080 mobile and Intel 10th generation CPU. Features Tobii eye tracking with variant.
  • Alienware M15 R5 – 2021 thin and light gaming laptop. standard display and 60Hz display, 144Hz IPS, and 300Hz IPS display also available, as well as a Nvidia GeForce 30 series with up to a RTX 3080 mobile and AMD Ryzen 5th generation CPU. Features Tobii eye tracking with variant.
  • Alienware M15 R6 – 2021 thin and light gaming laptop. standard display and 60Hz display, 144Hz IPS, and 300Hz IPS display also available, as well as a Nvidia GeForce 30 series with up to a RTX 3080 mobile and Intel 11th generation CPU. Features Tobii eye tracking with variant.
  • Alienware X15 R1 – 2021 thin and light gaming laptop, updated with Intel 11th gen Alder Lake processors and Nvidia RTX 30 series GPUs. Thinnest 15-inch Alienware laptop so far.
  • Alienware M15 R7 – 2022 thin and light gaming laptop. standard display and 60Hz display, 144Hz IPS, and 300Hz IPS display also available, as well as a Nvidia GeForce 30 series with up to a RTX 3080 mobile and Intel 12th generation CPU. Features Tobii eye tracking with variant.
  • Alienware X15 R2 – 2022 refresh of the X15 R1, updated with Intel 12th gen Alder Lake processors and Nvidia RTX 30 series GPUs. Thinnest 15-inch Alienware laptop so far.