Bob from California - Alienware M14 R2 - 256GB mSATA SSD (CRUCIAL M4) Installed...

Hi all,

I'm a new-bee here at OCN. (My first thread)

I've recently purchased a new Alienware M14 R2 (14 inch Laptop) and installed a Crucial M4 (micro) Solid State Drive.

This mSATA SSD is about the size of two regular postage stamps (side by side) and will set you back about one dollar per gigabyte.

This little SSD sent my WEI sorring to 7.9.

But, unfortunately for me, when Windows 7 did its automatic updating my laptop crashed and stopped functioning.

I ended up with a blank display and a blue colored keyboard. It's much worse than the blue screen of death (BSD) -- its the all new Alienware blue keyboard of death (BKD). I had to send it back to Dell Computer to be repaired.

I will post the information that I receive from Dell as to the actual problem and their suggested solution.

I should have turned off Windows automatic updating and just picked and choose the critical update but Windows downloaded (what appeared to be 100's of updates) and it killed my laptop.

Anyway, when it was working; it screamed with zero wait-time in most situations. I'm convinced that adding a SSD is one of the best upgrades for any computer.

Here is my build:

Alienware M14 R2
Windows Experience Index

CPU: QM3720 i7 w/8MB L3 Cache = 7.6

RAM: 16GB / 1600 MHz. = 7.8

GPU: nNvida / GTX650 = 7.1 (I know; I can do better)

Main Drive: 256GB mSATA (M4) SSD = 7.9 (WHO'S YOUR DADDY?)

And a 750GB HDD for storage.

Oh yeah, I'm using my Sprint EVO 3D (Not so Smart Phone) to post and type this thread.

Thanks for reading,

California Bob

Yes!

Very good.

I was just informed today that its (like you said) the motherboard.

But we all know a lazy tech-guy (at Dell) will alway blame the MB rather than admit he has no CLUE!

So, I hope they send me back my laptop with a motherboard containing all of my original hardware .



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Do you own an Alienware Computer ?

And if so, on a scale of 1-10 how reliable are they?

This is my first AW and it lasted only three days.

It died after Windows preformed an automatic update that included many files.

Bob

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Wow, it's an Alienware family.


Thanks for the helpful information.


They are definitely fun to look at with their glowing multicolored accents.

My main three choices were the Clevo W110ER, ThinkPad W530 and the Alienware M14 R2.

I didn't go with the W110ER because I read and type a lot and the 11 inch screen produces extremely small text - I know, I can change the text size but I'd have to shift webpages left and right in order to read them.

And it has a very short battery life compared to the M14 R2.

But, for gaiming it's probably the best ultra-portable there is.

I was looking to by it with the 3820 i7 CPU and 16GB of RAM.

All for $1100 (great deal for an awesome computer)

I also looked at the Sager laptops but could not find one with a 13 or 14 inch screen because my work / play stations can't accommodate a larger laptop.

I liked the ThinkPad W530 but the 15.6 inch screen was to large for my working environment. It has a 10 hour battery (so they claim) had options for a 2GB GPU and had similar specs of an Alienware M14 R2. It was also $500 dollars more compared to the M14 R2.

Lenovo really needs to manufacture a 14 or 13 inch high-end laptop.

I've become extremely a custom to the track-point mouse on laptops because I have been using them for over 13 years and my Dell D630 laptop was my last computer. Before that I used another laptop with a trackpoint.

So, now I'm trying to get use to a laptop with a tracpad.

I can't wait to get my computer back.

Bob

Yeah, There are numerous complaints about Alienware laptops getting to hot to the touch.

I tested out my M14 R2 and it only get slightly warm to the touch so I think they fixed the heat issue with the 2nd revision (R2) but the 5600 RPM cooling fan is very loud.

There should be a high-end laptop store where we can try before we buy.

I went to a Fry's electronics store in Burbank, California and looked at a 11 inch Sony notebook and determined that the text was to small for my eyesight that's why I passed on the Clevo W110ER but on the other hand if I were to see one in person I'd know for sure. One gets more usage from a small computer as its more easily accessible. For example, a smartphone (micro computer) gets 10 times the usage compared to a standard laptop do to is compact size.


Bob

I looked online at your P150 15 inch laptop and it's described as the most powerful 15 inch Gamiming laptop (when fully customized with a GTX 680M or the Radeon HD 7970)

The computer is sold under many names like: Origin PC, Sager, AVAD and Clevo P150EM.

I wonder who is the original manufacturer ?

I found that the new Mac Book Pro Retina is great for gaming and an all-around superb 15 inch laptop but the major drawback is the price of $2200-$2400.

I went to a local apple store and checked it out. The retina display is awesome.

I've viewed a YouTube video of it being tested and displaying high frame rates while set to the highest resolution settings - not 100% sure which game they used but it was a very GPU demanding game.

I have to admit, Mac laptops are downright ugly. All that mind power going into engineering that world class computer and it looks like it's built out of a piece of scrap metal. OMG anodize it clear coat it or do something with it or at least give it some texture. The computer has absolutely no personality. Oh yeah, I forgot, it's an apple.

Bob