Alienware M11x - highend gaming laptop for under $1K

[hiphopcr]

Did you guys see this covered at CES?

Alienware M11x (http://gear.ign.com/articles/105/1059729p1.html)
http://gearmedia.ign.com/gear/image/article/105/1059729/ces-2010-alienware-m11x-hands-on-20100109075647157.jpg
Plays Modern Warefare 2 at it's highest resolution at 30 fps, weighs just 4 lbs, and will cost under $1000.

Makes me want to ditch my Macbook Pro for this better laptop at half the price.

[alexjlopez]

Yeah, I read about that one--nice performance for a relatively lightweight notebook. Great price too.

[Nous Anima]

Very nice.

For slightly lower gaming requirements on a 11.6in laptop (still very decent, but not as powerful - but a lot cheaper) check this (http://www.amazon.com/Acer-Ferrari-FO200-1799-11-6-Inch-Netbook/dp/B002YNRRHU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1263327168&sr=8-1) out.

[November Mike]

huh.. just when I said you couldn't get a powerful gaming laptop for under 4 digits...

This is really nice but the at 11 inches and no disc drive, it seems kind of lacking for me.
Oblivion and Fallout 3 are two games I'd really like to get on the PC, and steam doesn't have them.

There, beat you guys to it. :p

[alexjlopez]

The screen size can be remedied by plugging in a monitor, though I don't know what the performance hit would be like at higher resolutions. And these days, you can pick up a USB optical drive for about $50 or $60. I thought I'd miss an optical drive when I got my netbook, but the truth is I hardly ever use the USB drive I bought, it sits and collects dust in it's case mostly.

Oh, and both those games are available on Steam (including GOTY editions), as well as Direct2Drive and probably a few other downloadable sources.

[javierdlopez]

That would be correct...

http://store.steampowered.com/app/22370/

http://store.steampowered.com/app/900883/

:D

[November Mike]

I've been getting my butt kicked as of late... :o

Oh well.. Does anyone who uses Steam know if you are still able to MOD the games like you would if you had just bought the retail?

This is starting to make its way into my list of things I'd like to have now...
The screen size is not really that big a deal to me anyway because I haven't had a lap for many years now.. :D

[javierdlopez]

I've been getting my butt kicked as of late... :o

Oh well.. Does anyone who uses Steam know if you are still able to MOD the games like you would if you had just bought the retail?

This is starting to make its way into my list of things I'd like to have now...
The screen size is not really that big a deal to me anyway because I haven't had a lap for many years now.. :D

As far as I know, yes. I've downloaded a few mods for L4D and L4D2 and they install very easily. As long as the developer isn't "anti-mod" I don't think you'll have a problem with it. Which game in particular are you thinking about modding? Maybe I can check...

[November Mike]

Oblivion and Fallout 3 :D

[javierdlopez]

Yep, you can mod those over Steam. I went over to the Steam forums and they have threads explaining how to install mods.

http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/showthread.php?t=812322

http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/showthread.php?t=929551

[BJWanlund]

I'm impressed with this. I am going to be watching the M11x with great trepidation (because "under $1k" usually means $999.99 or something wimpy like that).

And since I do digital downloading, this netbook will be perfect! The Alienware take on the netbook sounds like fun.

BJ

[Yodaporn]

I may get this or something like this in the near future. I'm tired of fighting desktop systems, mine keep dieing of weird often un-diagnosable problems, but the few laptops I've owned have been rock solid.

[Nectar]

Very nice.

For slightly lower gaming requirements on a 11.6in laptop (still very decent, but not as powerful - but a lot cheaper) check this (http://www.amazon.com/Acer-Ferrari-FO200-1799-11-6-Inch-Netbook/dp/B002YNRRHU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1263327168&sr=8-1) out.

How about an even less powerful alternative in the 15/17 inch range? I'm not looking to play anything new. Just some of my pre-Doom 3 era games. Would modern integrated graphic cards handle those?

[Nous Anima]

Most of the intel integrated graphics chips are severely underpowered. It's hard to answer your question without being a little more specific (which chipset, which laptop, what games).

If you can find the Compaq 615 laptop (15.6inch) it's probably the best value for money while still being a somewhat decent gaming machine. Cheaper than the ferrari acer one, at least over here, a bit more powerful too .. good battery life ... but it's much larger which doesn't seem to be an issue for you.

[Nectar]

What's your opinion on this (http://www.dell.com/us/en/home/notebooks/laptop-studio-1555/pd.aspx?refid=laptop-studio-1555&s=dhs&cs=19&~oid=us~en~29~laptop-studio-new-15_anav1~~PDhisvdF&m_6=512N1T&mo=6~512N1T)? I'm looking to replace my desktop as well (I never get to use it) and was considering a more expensive gaming laptop but decided to settle on something mid-ranged and get a PS3.

Intel® Pentium™ Dual Core T4300 (2.1GHz/800Mhz FSB/1MB cache)
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English
15.6” High Definition (720p) LED Display
3GB2 Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 800MHz
Size: 250GB3 SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
512MB2 ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4570
Intel® Pentium™ Dual Core T4300 (2.1GHz/800Mhz FSB/1MB cache)

I have to take it "as is". Can't afford to go any higher. Even an extra gig of ram is out of the question.


but it's much larger which doesn't seem to be an issue for you.

Far from it. The bigger the better.

[Nous Anima]

Yeah, that spec is quite decent, better than the one I recommended. If you're willing to use lower settings on that you could even play some of the latest games.

How much can you get it for?

[Nectar]

I'll have to stick with the base price of $724. I may upgrade the hard drive to 320 since its just $25 more. 5400RPM is a little troubling. The one in my desktop is 7200RPM. Other than that, it's superior to my desktop in every way. Anything else I should reconsider?

[Nous Anima]

I'll have to stick with the base price of $724. I may upgrade the hard drive to 320 since its just $25 more. 5400RPM is a little troubling. The one in my desktop is 7200RPM. Other than that, it's superior to my desktop in every way. Anything else I should reconsider?If that's the minimum spec (or equivalent) you're looking for then you will probably not be able to find it for much less than that. The Compaq 615 is a lower spec but it'd probably still be sufficient for what you described and probably a lot cheaper (I bet you could find it for $500-$550).

I assume you don't care much about battery life either. See, I'd go for the acer ferrari one because of its much smaller size and longer battery life, but that's just me.

The only other thing to consider is probably reliability and build quality (also what kind of warranty you'll get).

[alexjlopez]

Are you tied to Dell or are you considering other brands/stores?

[Nectar]

I checked out the ATI Mobility Radeon and figure it might be worth the extra cash over the Compaq. I'll essentially be getting a new gaming system in addition to a PC.

No, battery life is not important. The last thing I want to see when I'm outside is a screen.


Are you tied to Dell or are you considering other brands/stores?

That reminds me. I sort of "owe" Dell. It was a past mistake that I vowed never to let happen again. I plan to pay for this outright but wonder if my name might cause problems. What if they wipe my whole account.

What other brands besides HP are worth considering?

[alexjlopez]

I took a quick look at what Best Buy had going on in that price range, but the trade-off seems to be more RAM for an inferior vid card. I don't recommend that, since you can always upgrade ram later on, not so with the vid card.

Dell makes great notebooks, my gaming laptop is a Dell. But I've had good luck with Gateway, Toshiba, and Acer as well.

Check this one out from Gateway: http://www.gateway.com/systems/product/529668438.php

[javierdlopez]

Wow. That Gateway, looks very nice for that price...

[Nectar]

I guess I should consider my options before posting. I just found this (http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/computer_can_series.do?storeName=computer_store&category=notebooks&a1=From+price&v1=%24500-%24800&series_name=dv6t_series&jumpid=in_R329_prodexp/hhoslp/psg/notebooks/$500-$800/dv6t_series)

Intel(R) Core(TM) i3-330M (2.13GHz, 3MB L2 Cache)
FREE Upgrade to 3GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
250GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive
512MB NVIDIA GeForce G 105M
15.6" diagonal High Definition LED HP Brightview Widescreen Display (1366x768)

Only $100 more. Processor doesn't seem to be dual core but specs are pretty much the same only with DDR3 and 7200RPM. I'm not sure how the GeForce compares with the Radeon but assume it's either better or about the same. I've had bad experiences with ATI cards.


Check this one out from Gateway: http://www.gateway.com/systems/product/529668438.php

..choices, choices...

[alexjlopez]

For mobile solutions, I find Nvidia and ATI to be comparable, I suppose it's just a matter of comparing dedicated RAM and ensuring that the chipset versions are comparable in terms of age. Here's a hierarchy chart for the various chipsets that isn't too old: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-graphics-card,2362-6.html

I bought my gaming laptop in 2007 and it has a Geforce Go 7900 with 512mb. For a three year old machine, it still plays games like Bioshock, Oblivion, and Left 4 Dead just fine and in full 1920x1200 resolution, so my guess is any of these chipsets will be fine as long as they have at least 512mb dedicated (not shared with system).

Maybe some of the more tech savvy dudes on the forums might have some input---Darksol?

[Nectar]

The Gateway is out of stock online (we don't have a Best Buy here). I checked benchmarks and the GeForce G 105M seems inferior to the Radeon HD 4570 (and it's certainly nothing like that 3-year old 7900). I kinda had my heart set on playing some Direct X 10 games. However, the HP has superior specs to the Dell and meets my original needs. The added reliability of a Nvidia card is also a plus. Not to play fanboy or anything but I've had some really bad experiences with my desktop's ATI card. Especially with older games. Giants: Citizen Kabuto would randomly crash and KOTOR 2 wouldn't run at all. After updating drivers, new issues would appear. I'm sure Windows 7 will provide enough compatability issues as it is.

[Nous Anima]

This is beginning to sound quite different from what you were initially asking about. Now we're talking about a really decent gaming laptop at a much higher price point. At this rate you might as well buy the Alienware machine which is by far the best option for a few more dollars :)

Short answer: the gateway machine is by far the better gaming choice. The ATI 5470 with 512mb of dedicated GDDR3 ram is faster than the ATI 4570 one , and that in turn is faster than the nvidia G105m gpu. Overall the gateway machine is just plain better in every way except for hard drive performance (but then it's a hefty 500gb one). I don't that would be an issue at all though, if you really do care about value for money and opt for the highest possible gaming performance.

I guess the only surprise here (for you) is that the nvidia gpu isn't even better than the 4570 radeon gpu.

I think ati has improved the stability and performance of its drivers in recent months quite a lot , although I think nvidia still has a slight edge.


For mobile solutions, I find Nvidia and ATI to be comparable, I suppose it's just a matter of comparing dedicated RAM and ensuring that the chipset versions are comparable in terms of age. Here's a hierarchy chart for the various chipsets that isn't too old: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/...rd,2362-6.html

I bought my gaming laptop in 2007 and it has a Geforce Go 7900 with 512mb. For a three year old machine, it still plays games like Bioshock, Oblivion, and Left 4 Dead just fine and in full 1920x1200 resolution, so my guess is any of these chipsets will be fine as long as they have at least 512mb dedicated (not shared with system).

Maybe some of the more tech savvy dudes on the forums might have some input---Darksol?Heh ...
Your geforce go 7900 is faster than all of the options above, at least in theory, by a very noticeable margin.

Performance depends on various things, including the amount of processing units in the gpu, the characteristics of those cores, how high the gpu is clocked, how high its dedicated ram is clocked, what type of ram it is, how wide the bus is, etc. In general it's a multiplicative function of gpu performance and available bandwidth, so you can have a very fast gpu but if you underclock it (to increase battery life) and/or compromise it further by only having a 64bit bus (instead of a 128/256bit bus) then it won't go anywhere near its peak theoretical performance.

I'm surprised you'd want to ask Darksol (who as far as I know isn't particularly tech savvy in this respect) instead of someone who actually earns a living writing (amongst other things) graphics engines and dissecting hardware architectures :)

[Nectar]

This is beginning to sound quite different from what you were initially asking about. Now we're talking about a really decent gaming laptop at a much higher price point. At this rate you might as well buy the Alienware machine which is by far the best option for a few more dollars

11 inch is too small. I was willing to pony up an extra $100 for more gaming performance. I was apparently wrong about the HP. Anyway, that Dell is looking worse and worse by the minute, and after seeing the Gateway, I don't know what to do. Getting it is out of the question as I will have to travel to another state. Now I'm looking for something similar at around the same price. This decision is getting harder.

[Nous Anima]

11 inch is too small. I was willing to pony up an extra $100 for more gaming performance. I was apparently wrong about the HP. Anyway, that Dell is looking worse and worse by the minute, and after seeing the Gateway, I don't know what to do. Getting it is out of the question as I will have to travel to another state. Now I'm looking for something similar at around the same price. This decision is getting harder.Just wait until the gateway becomes available online again ?? It does look like an excellent spec and I doubt you'll find much better at that price point.

P.S. I'm not sure why you think an 11.6inch screen is too small ... unless your eyesight is not as good, I can assure you it's perfectly fine.

[Nectar]

Just wait until the gateway becomes available online again ?? It does look like an excellent spec and I doubt you'll find much better at that price point.

Doesn't it seem a little too good for that price? My Gateway broke after a year. My eMachine also broke after a year. Gateway now own eMachines. That doesn't sit well with me. Perhaps it's not worth chasing.


P.S. I'm not sure why you think an 11.6inch screen is too small ... unless your eyesight is not as good, I can assure you it's perfectly fine.

I use it in an unorthodox way. I enjoy watching videos, DVDs, playing emulated games, reading ebooks, listening to music, and web surfing (text enlarged) from a comfortable distance. The laptop is basically a computer, game system, jukebox, DVD player, and television rolled into one. I can't be lazy without it.

Anyway, I'll stop bothering everyone and research my options a bit before posting again. You guys gave more helpful advice than I could ask for.

[Nectar]

One more question: How does a 1GB Nvidia GeForce GT 320M compare?

[Snoopiesgirl]

What about cooling for these high end laptops? How are they going to take the wear and tear of max settings for extended periods/long term use?

Wondering as I blow up computers a lot :P

[Darksol]

I'm surprised you'd want to ask Darksol (who as far as I know isn't particularly tech savvy in this respect) instead of someone who actually earns a living writing (amongst other things) graphics engines and dissecting hardware architectures :)

Yeah Mr Tech Savvy. Thats why you boast about your iPhone like Gen Dumbass and I am a Droid owner. And people like advice from people who have never been institutionalized either :).

[Nous Anima]

Yeah Mr Tech Savvy. Thats why you boast about your iPhone like Gen Dumbass and I am a Droid owner. And people like advice from people who have never been institutionalized either :).Calling me a Gen Dumbass is probably as ridiculous an "insult" as you could ever think of. But I guess in your own tiny parallel universe everything goes.

I never said I dislike the Droid, my only beef with the android platform as a whole (apart from making it harder to run native code/games on there) is their appstore - mainly the dumb decision to only allow installing apps on the 256/512mb internal flash storage ... outside of a few great apps you will find very few games that can even dream to compete with the vast majority of iphone games.

[Nous Anima]

What about cooling for these high end laptops? How are they going to take the wear and tear of max settings for extended periods/long term use?

Wondering as I blow up computers a lot :PThat could be a major concern - I would never use a laptop as a desktop replacement anyway, especially since I could put together a much higher spec desktop for a much lower price and customise it anyway I want. For me, once I have decent (but not particularly high) performance my main concern is portability, reliability and battery life.

[Nous Anima]

One more question: How does a 1GB Nvidia GeForce GT 320M compare?Is that the one in the new HP dv6t laptop? I'd have to see specific specs before I can tell you how it compares to the other ones, but I don't think it would be much faster than the radeon hd 5470 all else being equal (core clock, ram speed and bandwidth) - probably slower. But I don't know the specific configuration so it's hard to tell. It would still be good for most things, I'm just confused as to what exactly your priorities are in terms of gaming performance.

Have you considered just buying components in order to make your own desktop PC (and a nice 24 inch monitor as well) ? You're not really planning to use it as a laptop anyway so this way I think it'd cost you less.

[Nectar]

Priorities are still the same. I'm not looking for a high-end gaming machine or even a gaming laptop. Just a general all-purpose machine that I can game on. I was just exploring my options since it became evident that current gen gaming is possible within this range. Nothing wrong with trying to get the best possible.

I was hoping the GT 320M would at least be as good as the 4570. Then I could have the gaming capabilities of the Dell with the superior specs of the HP. I now decided to save $100 and stick with the G 105M. It should run the older games fine. The only extra value the ATI card (or possibly the GT 320M) has for me is the ability to run some DX10 games at medium settings, but I figured that not to be worth the price or reliability. The games would look better on the consoles anyway.

[Nous Anima]

The GT 320M should be roughly as good as the 4570, but it's hard to tell without knowing the specific configuration used in that laptop. In any case, it's certainly significantly better than the G 105M , although the latter should be sufficient for most things you have in mind, including playing some (but certainly not all) relatively modern games at low enough settings.

[Nectar]

What about this (http://www.amazon.com/Acer-AS8730-6951-18-4-Inch-Laptop/dp/B001NPEB6U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=pc&qid=1264569770&sr=1-1)?

2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 processor
320 GB hard drive (5400 RPM)
4 GB RAM (DDR 2)
Nvidia GeForce 9600M GT graphics (512 MB dedicated)
Windows Vista Home Premium (64-bit)

[Nous Anima]

What about this (http://www.amazon.com/Acer-AS8730-6951-18-4-Inch-Laptop/dp/B001NPEB6U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=pc&qid=1264569770&sr=1-1)?

2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 processor
320 GB hard drive (5400 RPM)
4 GB RAM (DDR 2)
Nvidia GeForce 9600M GT graphics (512 MB dedicated)
Windows Vista Home Premium (64-bit)This looks very solid, it could be one of the fastest machines in this thread so far. The cpu is very decent, plenty of ram and a great gpu as well. Looks like a balanced design so there shouldn't be any problems because the cpu is fast but the gfx card too slow, or vice versa. But like I said, they don't seem to mention much in terms of specific configuration. I'm guessing those 512mb of ram should probably be connected to the gpu via a 128bit bus instead of the 256bit bus that you'd get on a desktop card using the same gpu - that practically halves the bandwidth right there but it's still not too bad.

If it's a well built, reliable machine (see the reviews), I'd say go for it ... it should be plenty fast and that screen is also massive which is precisely what you're looking for, right?

The price isn't too bad either. Just remember to uninstall the usual bloatware that comes with most laptops and/or upgrade to windows 7! I'm not sure why it doesn't come with windows 7 preinstalled...

[javierdlopez]

What about this (http://www.amazon.com/Acer-AS8730-6951-18-4-Inch-Laptop/dp/B001NPEB6U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=pc&qid=1264569770&sr=1-1)?

2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 processor
320 GB hard drive (5400 RPM)
4 GB RAM (DDR 2)
Nvidia GeForce 9600M GT graphics (512 MB dedicated)
Windows Vista Home Premium (64-bit)

Nice one. I think it's a winner. :)

BTW, I bought my wife a cheapo Acer Laptop 4 years ago or so ($300 new) and it's still running. I only upgraded her to her new Dell because she wanted to do some video editing and mess around with her digital camera. But the old Acer, it still in one piece and hasn't fallen apart. Solid little sucker.

[yuckymucky]

What about cooling for these high end laptops? How are they going to take the wear and tear of max settings for extended periods/long term use?

The cooling on them is honestly something that is still evolving. If you have ever used a 1st gen MacBook Pro you will understand why, even the latest gen still get uncomfortably hot if they are in your lap. I have not really noticed it on netbooks but they are just not running anything powerful enough for it really matter. I have a Dell Precision laptop (or mobile workstation as they call it) from work and it pumps out heat like you wouldn't believe. However I have never had have an issue at all, and I am running it near full load at least once a week.

[Nectar]

The price isn't too bad either. Just remember to uninstall the usual bloatware that comes with most laptops and/or upgrade to windows 7! I'm not sure why it doesn't come with windows 7 preinstalled...

Reviewers say it comes with a free upgrade to Windows 7. This isn't a huge issue for me as I'm used to having outdated OSs (Running XP now and used Windows ME as late as 2004). However, if Windows 7 is faster and more compatible, sure thing.

EDIT: Apparently, even Diablo 2 has issues running on Vista 64. sigh

[javierdlopez]

There's been a recent patch to Diablo 2. When I first installed Win 7 64 bit, I couldn't get Diablo 2 to run, after installing the new patch everything, including the expansion packs work great. No more issues. :)

[alexjlopez]

I'm running Vista 64 on my main gaming PC and the only game I've had problems with is that Atari 80-games collection from Steam. Just have to make sure to "run as an administrator" in most cases where there is an issue, which are a lot less frequent than when Vista first launched.

[Nectar]

I hope you're right. I heard Vista doesn't like emulators either. Powerful as this laptop is, it won't have much value to me if I can't use those.

[alexjlopez]

Let me know which emulators you want a test for and I'll be happy to load it up. Even Dolphin (the gamecube/wii emulator) works like a charm.

[Nectar]

The essentials for me are MAME, ZSNES, Gens or Kega Fusion, Final Burn Alpha, and Project64. These were my mainstays for nearly a decade (I keep revolving emulators for other things). I'm sure MAME and Final Burn work but I've heard mixed things about ZSNES and don't believe Gens or Kega have been updated for a few years.

[alexjlopez]

I'll give those a shot when I get home tonight--I'm almost sure Zsnes works though, not sure about Gens or Kega.

[Nectar]

I'll give those a shot when I get home tonight--I'm almost sure Zsnes works though, not sure about Gens or Kega.

I wouldn't ask but I'm sure you have reason to check them out for yourself since you're still using Genecyst :)

On upgrading to Windows 7: Will this replace the Vista partition? I'm hoping so.

[alexjlopez]

I wouldn't ask but I'm sure you have reason to check them out for yourself since you're still using Genecyst :)

On upgrading to Windows 7: Will this replace the Vista partition? I'm hoping so.

Hehe, no problem, I probably do need to look into some newer solutions hehe.

On Windows 7, you have the choice of clearing all partitions and doing a "clean" install. I've done my netbook and my other laptop and it's a really smooth process. I haven't gotten around to doing my desktop pc since I really haven't had a need to--Vista 64 has been behaving for the most part.

[yuckymucky]

"Whoa, Nelly! We learned back at CES (http://www.engadget.com/tag/CES/) that Alienware (http://www.engadget.com/tag/Alienware/)'s pretty-much-a-netbook would launch in the Spring for less than a grand (http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/07/alienware-m11x-netbook-gets-official/), but now we know precisely what the base price will be: $799. The starting MSRP of the M11x (http://%20http//www.engadget.com/2010/01/07/alienware-m11x-hands-on) was delivered courtesy of the company's own website, but not in the most straightforward way. If you surf on over to the M11x microsite and view the source, you'll notice the following blurb tucked within the code:

The Alienware M11x, with over 6.5 hours of battery life and weighing under 4.5 lbs. will start at an amazing $799! Leave it to the folks at Alienware to enable truly mobile performance gaming at an affordable price.
So, a polarizing (albeit vivacious) design, an 11.6-inch display, NVIDIA GT335M switchable graphics and a 6.5 hour battery, all for $799. Shall we sign you up, or what?"

Taken from: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/28/alienwares-m11x-netbook-gets-a-base-price-799/

[Yodaporn]

Jesus, now I'm kind of psyched for that thing, at first I didn't realize that it was a netbook sized machine.

[Nectar]

It'll be the hottest netbook on the market.. literally.

[Nous Anima]

"Whoa, Nelly! We learned back at CES (http://www.engadget.com/tag/CES/) that Alienware (http://www.engadget.com/tag/Alienware/)'s pretty-much-a-netbook would launch in the Spring for less than a grand (http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/07/alienware-m11x-netbook-gets-official/), but now we know precisely what the base price will be: $799. The starting MSRP of the M11x (http://%20http//www.engadget.com/2010/01/07/alienware-m11x-hands-on) was delivered courtesy of the company's own website, but not in the most straightforward way. If you surf on over to the M11x microsite and view the source, you'll notice the following blurb tucked within the code:

The Alienware M11x, with over 6.5 hours of battery life and weighing under 4.5 lbs. will start at an amazing $799! Leave it to the folks at Alienware to enable truly mobile performance gaming at an affordable price.
So, a polarizing (albeit vivacious) design, an 11.6-inch display, NVIDIA GT335M switchable graphics and a 6.5 hour battery, all for $799. Shall we sign you up, or what?"

Taken from: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/28/alienwares-m11x-netbook-gets-a-base-price-799/
Wow .. now, this is really impressive! Very impressive indeed ... I guess I'm going to have to get one then :)

[alexjlopez]

The essentials for me are MAME, ZSNES, Gens or Kega Fusion, Final Burn Alpha, and Project64. These were my mainstays for nearly a decade (I keep revolving emulators for other things). I'm sure MAME and Final Burn work but I've heard mixed things about ZSNES and don't believe Gens or Kega have been updated for a few years.

MAME, ZSNES, and Project64 all work on my machine. Will check Gens and Kega Fusion tonight. :)

[Nectar]

I appreciate you taking the time out for me but the computer just jumped up to $1,120.40. I was going to order it today. Damn. I guess I'll have to keep looking.

[alexjlopez]

With the price dropping on that Alienware one, that might be a good thing--any word on a release date?

[Nectar]

I'm getting this (http://www.amazon.com/K61IC-A1-16-Inch-Versatile-Entertainment-Windows/dp/B002P3KMPS/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&s=pc&qid=1264805646&sr=1-15). Decision's final. Thanks to everyone for the advice and suggestions. Back on-topic now.

[javierdlopez]

I'm getting this (http://www.amazon.com/K61IC-A1-16-Inch-Versatile-Entertainment-Windows/dp/B002P3KMPS/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&s=pc&qid=1264805646&sr=1-15). Decision's final. Thanks to everyone for the advice and suggestions. Back on-topic now.

Congrats. Nice one.

[alexjlopez]

That is nice--cool!

[hiphopcr]

Here's IGNs Review (http://gear.ign.com/articles/106/1065816p1.html) of the laptop.

http://img59.imageshack.us/img59/8703/alienwarereview.png