AlienwareM18 R2 Gaming Laptop - 18 QHD+ 165Hz 3ms Display, Intel Core i9-14900HX, 32GB DDR5 RAM, 1TB SSD, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 12 GB GDDR6, Windows 11 Home, Onsite Service - Dark Metallic Moon

I've tried just about every name brand laptop in this category (gaming laptops) and this was the only one (Alienware) that I did not try. The reason I didn't try was because of all the not-so-great reviews and how the cons were just simply not 'acceptable' for 2024. After much trial and tribulation, I figured I had nothing left to lose except to not try this brand. Well low and behold! This laptop was PERFECT for me! I wanted a portable AND capable Beast and this fit the bill PERFECTLY! It maybe a little chunky for people who don't eat meat or work out, but for me it was a very acceptable compromise for what I was looking for in a laptop (a consistent gaming experience whether at home or abroad). It plays all my games at max settings without any problems at all. Others I've had always ended up throttling themselves (despite being 'higher spec'd' than this one) and either stuttered or over-heated to the point it would lock up or shut down. This laptop might get a little 'loud' but it never over heats, never shuts down, and to my surprise, never throttled, not even once. I bought a laptop backpack for this laptop here in Amazon (just look up backpacks for 18.4" laptops). It works PERFECTLY for my needs. Tech Support is practically built right into this machine too. Most questions I had about anything was easily found with the included software packages. I have no regrets with this purchase and can easily recommend this to people who want a great laptop and a Beast without all the marketing and fluff (and failures) of the other 'Top Tier' or 'Higher Spec'd' laptops out there (looking at you ASUS and LENOVO). Oh wait, I do have one regret, and it's that I didn't get this sooner and let my own bias and the bias of other laptop 'Professional Reviewers' sway me away from this brand early on during my searches for the PERFECT laptop for ME.

I absolutely love this machine now...switched to 32gb of kingston fury impact ddr5 running at 6400 mt/s and it runs amazing. I have hyperthreading on. Everything is turned on and running stable. No more crashing on Diablo 4 fenris error...Even with DLSS and frame generation turned on. My first ever Intel machine and I love it despite the rocky start we got off to. Alienware has a great aesthetic and the build quality of their laptops are second to none. I just wish they could do better in the display department, 165hz is a bit slow for a system with a 4080, and the FHD 480hz resolution leaves a lot to be desired in the 18in model. I have the 360hz FHD display on my M15 R5 that has a 3070 gpu, and its great for the smaller screen, I would really like to have been able to get this one with a UHD 4k option, also sound card is lacking. Speakers are the exact same junk that they used on my smaller laptop, considering there are smaller form factor machines in this size that they have managed to stuff a subwoofer inside of, Alienware is still late to the party when it comes to gaming devices and I believe Dell being largely to blame as their niche has always been in the office segment. They really need to step it up in their display technology as well as audio delivery if they are ever going to be as nice as Razer and MSI laptops in my opinion. Granted, I would have had to spend another 1000 dollars to get a Razer Blade 18 with similar specs.

UPDATE 7/11/2025Well I didnt think it could get much worse. After LOTS of back and forth - Dell suggested they cover labor and I cover parts. I agreed while still maintaining the images they sent me were NOT of my laptop. I paid $200 plus to cover repairs. Then had to wait additional weeks to get the machine back because a part was on back order.When I got the machine back the packing slip showed they replaced the LCD and the palm rest. I started it up - the screen flickered a few times - then the ALIENWARE logo wouldn't come on when booted. Sighs - I reached out to Dell again explaining the NEW problems and sent them a video of my actual machine demonstrating the NEW problems and pointing out how the machine in the photos they sent was not the same machine as mine- they agreed to send someone to replace the motherboard and LCD again.At that time I was told the differences in the photos were because a part on my laptop was missing - nope not true just a cover - because later pointed out 5 differences between my machine the machine in the photos.The kind tech came to my house did his job - left my house - and guess what now NVIDIA driver doesnt work at all - no video card works no sound card - its a gaming pc but im stuck using the intel processing because the NVIDIA drivers arent working.Lol I reach out to dell ADVANCED RESOLUTIONS mind you again - explaining the NEW problems and asking for a replacement. They refused to send a replacement but offered me a box to send the machine back to them....I told them I simply dont trust their Colorado Depot because they scammed me by sending fake photos and having me pay $200 for unnecessary repairs. I let them know they can send a NEW tech to my home to work out ALL of the machines problems - and requested a refund based on the fake images and unnecessary repairs.I also let them know if that was an unacceptable resolution - they should escalate this issue to their legal department - Im a practicing attorney - Ive been licensed in California for many years so if i have to sue - at least i wont have crazy legal fees.I'll provide another update.UPDATE- If I could give negative stars I would. After sending the device into customer service - no motherboard issue - instead they're claiming the LCD screen was cracked along with the palm rest and the back of laptop - consistent with a fall....ummm nope never dropped its super heavy and stays on a desk all day. Basically a scam - they want $350 to fix that stuff on a 6 month old laptop. I'm currently talking with customer service to see if someone DROPPED it upon after delivery - I cant possibly be responsible for damage during shipping as THEY PROVIDED SHIPPING LABEL and I'm assuming insurance. I regret purchasing the device and the customer service is HORRIBLE because NOTHING is wrong with the device they are making up issues to make money - AVOID AVOID AVOID AVOID....READ THE REVIEWS - BELIEVE THE REPORTED ISSUES. I may have a motherboard issue after only a few months of use. I bought this laptop to play TWO games - both are web based and they worked perfectly for a while - then recently It stopped working on one of the games - and crashes IMMEDIATELY upon log in or shortly there after - I cant play the game on it at all. Ive updated game, cleared appdata, updated drivers, and even FACTORY RESET. NOT FIXED. Ive contacted the game - they cant find an issue on their end - I've contacted Microsoft - they cant find a problem - Ive contacted DELL they tried to help - I even paid the $99 for additional software support and after 3 hours they say I need to send it in bc its still w/in warranty. Im extremely disappointed because a friend TOLD ME NOT TO GET AN ALIENWARE LAPTOP but i didnt listen - hopefully sending it in fixes the issue or thats $3000 down the drain.

In my opinion, the best looking laptop. You can really feel all the power of the 4080, it can run almost any triple A game. The cooling system is amazing also when you are gaming you can feel the coolness in the fan area. The screen quality could be better for the price, i.e. maybe an OLED or at least 240 refresh rate.