The Alienware M15 R7 is Dell’s top-of-the-line gaming notebook for this generation. It was released in Brazil in August 2022with specifications that promise to please even the most demanding gamers.
Will this machine be able to show the user great developments in practice? We’ve been testing a unit over the past few weeks and show it to you in detail in this full review.
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Design and connectivity
We started with the design, with a construction that mixes magnesium alloy and plastic. The material disappoints for the price charged for the product, but in general it gives a sense of security in relation to its durability.
Since we have an advanced gaming laptop here, your body follows the power. It is of the larger style, with a wide casing and a thickness of approximately 2.4 cm. The weight reaches about 2.5 kg. That is, it’s not the kind of product you’ll easily carry in your backpack.
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The surface has a matte finish and manages to blend hand comfort with the ability to deal with fingerprints well. But I can’t say the same about dust and fur. The touchpad offers a pleasant feel despite the small area.
The keyboard is backlit with RGB lights, but we noticed a problem here. The LEDs do not include additional commands, such as accents or other signs. Given the Alienware’s unusual key arrangement, it may take some time to get used to typing everything right in dark places. At least Dell introduced the ABNT2 standard, something absent until then.
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The company also installed a new cooling system, with double the number of blades on the fans and vents in different directions. We believe the technology is good efficiency, but the case still heats up noticeably when required.
The notebook has a rear lock in addition to the monitor, where the USB-C port with Thunderbolt 4 and Power Delivery, one of the USB 3.2 Type-A inputs, the HDMI output and the power input are located. The other two USB 3.2 Type-A ports appear on the right side; and on the left are the Ethernet port and the global headphone and microphone jack.
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The number of voices is generally satisfactory, but there is no memory card slot here. If even the ultra-thin ones bring the solution, not having it in a machine of this size is the fault of the manufacturer.
The box follows the notebook’s size proportion, but contains nothing but the basics. You will find only the notebook, the power cord, the power supply and the instruction manuals.
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multimedia
The M15 R7 packs a 15.6-inch display with thin bezels for the category. Dell doesn’t report the material, but the wide viewing angle seems to indicate an IPS LCD. The resolution has been increased compared to the predecessor and now reaches Quad HD.
This Alienware has also improved the pixel density and the quality provided just by looking at this panel is very clear. You will still have support for Dolby Vision, to enhance the picture in compatible streams.
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For gamers, the highlight here is the 240Hz refresh rate. It guarantees high fluidity not only in animations but also in the heaviest games. The 2ms latency allows for a very fast response, especially in first person shooter titles. But we’ll talk about this later.
Moving on to the sound area, we see a 5W RMS stereo sound system, with two speakers of 2.5W each. Each is located on one side at the bottom of the notebook. It is above average in terms of power and does not disappoint at maximum volume.
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The quality pleases and presents a good balance between low, mid and high. If you need something more complete, there is support for Dolby Atmos natively, to better equalize the sound.
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system and performance
The Alienware M15 R7 is equipped with a 12th generation Intel Core i7 H-series processor. It comes with 32GB of RAM and 1TB of SSD storage.
Key specs also include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti graphics card, which stands out for offering Optimus Advanced technology, which automatically switches its use to integrated graphics as needed.
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As for the software, this laptop comes with Windows 11 natively. But what stands out in the system is the presence of the Alienware Command Center. It consists of a program that manages the entire operation of this machine.
In it you can monitor the performance of the aforementioned components and configure different operating profiles, as well as adjust the keyboard lighting as you like. It is the ideal software for those who love to overclock their components and customize the LEDs on the keys.
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The notebook also has a sort of “turbo mode”, which can be activated with a button and which allows not only to overclock, but also to activate the fans, to have a performance gain without increasing the heating so much.
As expected from a machine of this size, you will have no problem with any action, however complex it may be. We did some benchmark tests and overall we had high numbers.
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In 3DMark’s Time Spy, he scored more than 11,000 points, a figure higher than Avell’s competitor, the A72 HYB. In PCMark 10 it achieved around 7,300 points and remained at the top of the online comparison. In other words, this is a no-nonsense laptop when it comes to performance.
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Games
But after all, how does this machine perform in games? As it is the strong point of the M15 R7, we naturally have nothing to complain about when it shows all its power in games. We tried from the simplest to the most complex, all in Full Quad HD resolution.
Starting with Fall Guys, the highlight here is the ability to keep up with high fluidity and without any choking in the middle of a multiplayer with so many simultaneous competitors. In Street Fighter V the colors stand out more to the eyes, thanks to the high definition of this screen.
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In CS: GO, we can easily highlight the high fps speed achieved by this machine. Being a first person shooter, being at an average of 200 fps makes the difference to shoot first over the opponents, even more so with the very low latency present here.
We also tested the full power of the GPU in games like DOOM Eternal and God of War. In these, the presence of Ray Tracing technology is the main point, as the scenarios of lights and shadows end up making the experience even more immersive.
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Battery
We have come to the so-called weak point of this notebook: the battery. Here we did our traditional test with the simulation of a working day. We mainly use the navigation, communication and applications of the Office suite.
The result ended up disappointing. In just 1 hour and 35 minutes, the notebook completely discharged. Most likely the power of the hardware and the presence of several LEDs lit by default ended up affecting the total autonomy.
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As for charging, the 240W adapter didn’t turn out to be that fast in proportion to its power. It takes 2 hours and 40 minutes for the battery to reach full charge again.
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Dell
02 ago
Dell
19 Jul
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Final remarks
Overall, we see here a gaming notebook that meets the most demanding level you can have on the market. The graphics and processing components offer the best at the moment, the screen guarantees the image and fluidity necessary for an above average experience, as well as high sound quality.
The warnings are due to more parallel details. We include here the construction with poor materials, the impractical body to carry and the disappointing battery in terms of autonomy, in a segment that no longer stands out for durability.
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The M15 R7 can be found in Brazil for a suggested price of R $ 14,799. It’s a very high value to buy, which would be in a more recommended condition if it were close to R $ 10,000, something below its direct competitor Avell, for example.
Did you like what this gaming notebook offers? Do you think it is worth paying the price for a unit? Comment with us!
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