Review: Alienware Aurora m9700

Review: Alienware Aurora m9700
Configuration:

Processor: AMD Turion™ 64 Mobile ML40 2.2GHz 800MHz FSB 1MB L2 Cache
Operating System (Office software not included): Genuine Windows® Vista Ultimate - Without Remote Control or TV Tuner
Chassis: 17" WideUXGA 1920 x 1200 LCD with Clearview Technology - Conspiracy Blue
Motherboard: Alienware® NVIDIA® Mobile SLi Chipset
Memory: 2GB Dual Channel DDR SO-DIMM at 400MHz - 2 x 1024MB
System Drive: Extreme Performance (RAID 0) - 200GB (100GB x 2) Serial ATA 1.5Gb/s 7,200 RPM w/ NCQ & 8MB Cache
Optical Drive: 8x Dual Layer CD-RW/DVD±RW w/ Nero Software
Video/Graphics Card: Dual 256MB NVidia® GeForce™ Go 7900 GS - SLI Enabled
Sound Card: High-Definition Audio with surround sound
Wireless Network Card: MIMO Wireless Bundle
Includes Airgo Wireless Card and Netgear WPN824 RangeMaxTM Wireless MIMO Router
Communications: Integrated 10/1000Mb Gigabit Ethernet & 56K V.92 Modem
Bluetooth: Integrated Bluetooth® Device
Primary Battery: Alienware® m9700 12-cell Lithium-Ion Smart Battery Pack

Setting the stage:

I used to be a pretty heavy duty gamer. Especially all of the latest RPG, RTS and MMO's. One of the things I prided myself on is never having to run any of those games in some degraded graphics mode. Or at least not too degraded and certainly not for too long. I became a fan of Alienware back in 1999 and, after several reviews and some consideration I finally decided I would stop building my own PCs for the very first time. I worked with one of Alienware's sales reps to ensure that I would get the latest and greatest (for that time). And let me tell you, that system was a knockout. I had two issues with that system...ever. One was trying to find reasonably priced RAMBUS memory which is still outrageously priced. The other was to replace the 15,000 RPM SCSI drives which seem to die after a period of time. Most likely from overheating which could be my fault for not providing as much ventilation as I should have. :)

After I outgrew that machine and started dealing with quite a bit more work related travel I decided to purchase a desktop replacement system. Basically a notebook with all of the power of a desktop so I could take it on the road with me. That led me to a direct comparison between Alienware and Hypersonic-PC. Hypersonic-PC won out due to a significant price difference (a few $100) and the fact that it was providing DDR2 memory. That was back in January of 2005 and that system, while heavy and extremely hot while it was running, proved to be a good running machine until a few months ago. Unfortunately, I did not purchase the extended warranty with that system and was ready to upgrade anyway. With that in mind I was also looking for onsite support rather than having to lose my system (and all of my personal data) for any period of time. In the end it was my past experience with the Alienware desktop system and their onsite support option finally swayed my decision to purchase this system.

Fantasy vs. Reality:

This system has had several reviews over the past 8 months or so and most of them have been very positive. According to the specs above and those previous reviews you should expect this system to offer some high end gaming experiences. I expected smooth 1920 X 1200 full screen graphics and full anti-aliasing capability. That was the fantasy.

Unfortunately the reality of the hardware information above doesn't meet well with the reality of the Windows Vista OS or with Alienware's lack of aggression in recent years to stay at the cutting edge of technology without nearly doubling the sticker price (see the Alienware Aurora mALX). I suppose that should be an understandable situation considering they were acquired by Dell this past year. Unfortunately, even Dell's XPS series are showing some more rapid improvement in hardware components and capabilities although Dell still steers clear of offering up truly customizable solutions.

Pros and Cons:

The Pros of this system:

• Chassis and LCD display offer quite an artistic and vibrant setting for gaming, watching movies or doing word processing.
• The keyboard layout and size are easy to work with.
• The display is crystal clear and offers a brilliant visual experience
• The Alienware logo "alien head" on the cover will have anyone in the know coming up to comment on your system.
• One of the configurations that Alienware has been known for is it's RAID 0 arrays in it's desktop replacement systems.
• You really can't beat the possibilities offered by NVidia's SLI Enabled video configuration. With two 256MB GeForce Go 7900 GS video cards (certainly not the max capacity cards available but more within budget...) this system should be expected to scream right through any game on the market at the moment.
• The weight comes in at just a little over 10 pounds. That's light compared to the 15+ pounds some comparably configured systems are weighing in at.
• Onsite support (the beauty of being acquired by Dell I suppose)...
  

The Cons:

• The Turion 64 processor is only a single core processor unlike most current offerings from most other manufacturers that offer the dual-core processors.
• The 2GB of memory is only DDR while most comparably equipped systems are now offering DDR2.
• The Synaptics touch pad interferes with normal typing.Interestingly enough, the system itself should still have been plenty for most gaming and day-to-day needs. Unfortunately, I felt the need to make the leap to Windows Vista. Here are the results of that bad decision:
• Alienware never disclosed to me that they would be providing Windows Vista Ultimate 32bit instead of 64bit. Regardless of the fact that they haven't certified the product yet or that they "want to provide end users with the best experience possible according to their testing and configurations" I am a knowledgeable end user and expected to receive this system with the 64bit OS. At least then I would've known that the OS and the hardware were on the same playing field and I could've expected better performance even if I would've had to deal with additional compatability issues with games and peripherals.
• NVidia has still not provided drivers for Windows Vista to be able to make use of the SLI configuration. To Alienware's credit they did mention that this was the case during the final purchasing pages. Also to their credit is the fact that they added me to a mailing list to ensure that I would be kept up-to-date on the latest news coming from NVidia regarding drivers and upcoming products, of course. So, the long and short of it is; I'm stuck with a 256 MB video card until NVidia and Microsoft figure things out.
• Windows Vista is still not being as readily accepted by the gaming community or corporate IT which is delaying adoption by the general user community as well.
• Vista seems to get very "clippy" periodically. Not sure if that's due to some of the new security coding Microsoft built in or what but the only task that is running CPU cycles is taskmgr.

Summary:

Nothing above is specifically geared at discrediting Alienware or their system. Honestly, I'm sure it would've been a much better system had I not opted for the Windows Vista Ultimate package. However, the truth of the matter is that this system doesn't even perform as well as my P4 3.0GHz HT Hypersonic-PC laptop for all that the AMD Turion 64 is touted as a superior chip.

The video of the NVidia 256MB PCI-Express video card (only listing one since that's all I get for now) doesn't perform as well as the ATI Radeon 6800 Go I am running in my Hypersonic-PC laptop. The graphics are very choppy and I get a lot of intermittent lag when moving fast or making quick transitions within games.

The memory isn't really worth mentioning but it would be nice of Alienware to take a little time to start upgrading their memory options and capabilities. Let's face the facts, DDR3 just hit the market and there really isn't a valid reason why any "cutting edge" computer manufacturer should be providing technology that's more than three years old.

Add on top of that the fact that the Windows Vista operating system is not ready for Prime Time and this system is a real let down. I made a purchasing decision based on a support agreement when I really should have looked at the package being offered. Even if that package did not disclose all of the relevant facts.

Recommendation:

My recommendation would be to steer clear of purchasing an Aurora m9700. There are plenty of other companies out there that are offering similar products and most are offering superior configurations if not superior support options. There is nothing wrong with keeping an eye out for new product offerings from Alienware but, for the price ranges and capabilities, the Aurora m9700 is not the system you want to spend your money on.

Disclaimer:

To help solidify this recommendation as well as to offer up the reasoning behind this review let me tell you what the results of discussions with Alienware were regarding the cons listed above. With regard to the Turion 64 vs a Turion 64 dual I was given the following email result:

Dear Mr. Reed,

Thank you for corresponding with Alienware Sales.

Even though the Turion X2 is the latest in mobile processors from AMD, it has not been offered yet on our systems due to design, marketing, development and testing reasons.

We always analyze from every point the options that will guarantee that we will be offering cutting edge technology but also stability.

We regret this fact that we are not offering the Turion X2 processor disappoints you. You can always keep an eye on the website and you might be surprised with the upcoming products we develop.

If there is anything that we may be able to assist you with, just let us know and we will be more than glad to help you.

Best regards,

XXXXXXXXXXX
Electronic Support - Sales Department

Alienware Corporation
Phone: 1.800.494.3382
Fax: 786-388-5720
www.alienware.com

With regards to the Windows Vista Ultimate 32bit vs the Windows Vista Ultimate 64bit I was verbally told by the customer support representative that they are aware that their website does not include any reference to the fact that you will be receiving the 32bit version of the OS. I also received this from their support team:

Dear Mr. Reed,

Thank you for contacting Alienware Technical Support.

Let us inform you that the reason why Alienware has chose not to support Microsoft Windows Vista 64bit edition is the great amount of incompatible games, software and drivers. Our commitment is to provide every customer with a fully functional high-end system. As much as we would have liked to provide this feature considering the advantage running a 64bit system would mean, we are certain it is still not the right moment to take that step.

Please accept our most sincere apologies if at any moment we made you believe Alienware was supporting this version of the operating system. Please be advised that currently no drivers are available for the Aurora m9700, so it would not be wise to do the upgrade at all. Your kind understanding in this regard is really appreciated.

We hope this information is of assistance. Please do not hesitate to contact us back if you have any questions.

Best regards,

XXXXXXXXXXXX
Electronic Support Department – Technical Support

Alienware Corporation
Phone: 866.287.6727
Fax: 786.388.5700
www.alienware.com

Final Word

Alienware, like most hardware companies these days, is at odds with itself regarding the return of merchandise. First, they tell you that customer satisfaction is the primary goal. Then they tell you that a 15% restocking fee may apply to returned merchandise. Of course, what this means is: Unless you have an ongoing issue with the hardware or electronics you will be charged a 15% restocking feel since we feel that your dissatisfaction with the product you received is not a valid enough reason to return the product.

Please read the fine print and be sure what the return policy is. I didn't do this so now I'll be out $500 or so when I return this product. I did attempt to offer up an alternative to returning the product right away but they flatly refused to consider that alternative. I also provided them with the above review (without the Final Word section) in an attempt to coerce them into removing the penalty. Neither worked. As a matter of fact neither the Sales Department nor the Customer Service Department at Alienware bothered to respond to my blatant attempt at coercion. :)

In response to Alienware's lack of response I will tell my readers to look at other alternatives if you are looking for cutting edge desktop replacement system. Here are a few options to consider:

** http://www.hypersonic-pc.com ** (Having experience with Hypersonic-PC in the past, I would highly recommend them from the hardware perspective. I was disappointed with their lack of response regarding driver updates as well as the driver page layout but the machine was rock solid for 2.5 years of use. I need to mention that their support numbers seem to be either busy or broken. They still respond via email but even their in-house support is going to voice-mail.)
http://www.xtremenotebooks.com (A little more expensive than Alienware or Hypersonic-PC but offering all of the options a gamer could want and not too much higher)
http://www.targacomputers.com (This is one I ran across recently. It offers comparable configurations to the Alienware, Hypersonic-PC and Xtreme Notebooks but the prices are a little better.)
http://www.pcmicroworks.com (Pretty site and some really cool options make this a contender. Prices are not outrageous...or at least not any more than the rest of these systems. :))
http://pro-star.com (Yet another alternative and comparable in price although not offering a RAID configuration that I could find.)
http://www.vigorgaming.com (A touch more expensive and only offering a 2 year warranty. That always bothers me when the industry standard is up to 3 years.)
http://www.widowpc.com (Decent systems but not offering RAID configurations and a bit pricey)
http://www.voodoopc.com (Very visually appealing in similar fashion to Alienware but extremely pricey)

Those are just some of the more known builders of custom PCs and laptops. It seems as though there are new ones being added all the time so be sure to do your searches. Not just on Google. Use Ask.com, Microsoft's Live Search, Yahoo, etc. It seems that each provides a slightly different list depending on how the keywords are structured.

Good luck with the search for a decently priced and fully functional desktop replacement/gaming mobile system. One last thing to add before I finish this is to look at the weight if you plan on lugging that thing around.

Cheers,

M Reed
Part time gamer, full time geek.