ColdSun's Area-51 m5750 Review - Page 3

I have bad eyesight and Im only 21,

yea im still leaning towards the WXGA, and I think thats what Im gonna get, I just need some more convincing.

Abadi-

The 1440x900 res is perfect. It has plenty of real estate for lots of windows and multi tasking... I own the 1920x1200... but I have messed around with lots of 17" 1440x900 screens at places like Best Buy. They all seem to have plenty of space to work with and not small enough to make you squint.

You should hit a local store like Staples, Best Buy, Office Max, Circuit City... check out the screen sizes and resolutions and see what you like.

1440x900 wont dissapoint.

I have been thinking about getting m5750, however i wanted know what the specs on ati radoen x1800 vs x1600 and lastly one of my friends wanted me to go for the Asus s95j intsead of m5750, he won't give me a real reason besides Alienware s@#ks. If someone could help me out with this please, so i can get this order and done with.

You're friend is probably saying Alienware sucks because they have always been known to be overpriced gaming computers that he has drooled over for years, but couldn't afford one. If you purchase any laptop, go for the alienware. I mean come on, look at that glowing head.

As much as I hate to say this... this is the reason there are AW haters out there. Before I could afford an AW I was under the same impression... but after owning one... there is more to it that just slamming parts together from Newegg and saying "sweet". There is just something about it.

O.K. I order it and heres what i got with my m5750.


Processor: Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T7200 2.0GHz 4MB Cache 667MHz FSB
Operating System (Office software not included): Genuine Windows® XP Professional with Service Pack 2
Display: Alienware® m5750 17" WideUXGA 1920 x 1200 LCD - Saucer Silver
Motherboard: Alienware® Intel® 945PM + ICH7 Chipset
Memory: 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SO-DIMM at 667MHz - 2 x 512MB
Hard Drive: Single Drive Configuration - 100GB Serial ATA 1.5Gb/s 7,200 RPM w/ NCQ & 8MB Cache
Primary CD ROM/DVD ROM: 8X Dual Layer DVD+/-RW / 24X CD-RW Combo w/Software
Video/Graphics Card: 256MB ATI Mobility™ Radeon® X1800
Sound Card: Intel® 7.1 High-Definition Audio
Wireless Network Card: Internal Intel® PRO Wireless 3945 a/b/g Mini-Card
Communications: Integrated 10/1000Mb Gigabit Ethernet & 56K V.92 Modem
Bluetooth: Bluetooth™ USB Adapter
Warranty: 1-Year AlienCare Toll-Free 24/7 Phone Support w/ Onsite Service
AlienRespawn: Alienware® Respawn Recovery Kit

Nice! You're going to love it

Coldsun, I just got the same laptop - are you noticing any problems with dark grey colors on your screen? For example, in Oblivion, during night time, the greys look a little spotting, like some pixels are registering grey and some black - and when you move, it feels like there's a screen over these colors (i.e. a shape will move on screen, but the colors look stationary).

You might have to lean in close to notice.

Kargos,

Have you tried optimizing your display? (ie. Putting in a DVD or Launching Media Center and going to visual setup) To adjust the brightness, contrast, colors, etc ?

What you might be seeing is that you have your contrast too high or too low (by default, my display had its brightness way too high, and contrast also up too high), and where the colors of black/white are supposed to blend, they arent. So what you end up with, is what seems like a shape inside of a color moving against a stationary background.

I'd check that and then see if you get any better results.

The only other thing I can think of off the top of my head, is that you are experiencing some light leakage from the backlight of the LCD... does lowing the LCD brightness help? (using the FN+F7/F8 keys to adjust this, which is just the brightness of the backlight)

Hi Everybody,
I need Some help deciding what to get.
Aurora m9700
Processor: AMD Turion™ 64 Mobile ML37 2.0GHz 800MHz FSB 1MB L2 Cache
Operating System (Office software not included): Genuine Windows® XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2
Chassis: 17" WideUXGA 1920 x 1200 LCD with Clearview Technology - Saucer Silver
Motherboard: Alienware® NVIDIA® Mobile SLi Chipset
Memory: 1GB Dual Channel DDR SO-DIMM at 400MHz - 2 x 512MB
Hard Drive: Extreme Performance (RAID 0) - 160GB (80GB x 2) Serial ATA 1.5Gb/s 7,200 RPM w/ NCQ & 8MB Cache
Optical Drive: 8X Dual Layer DVD+/-RW & 24X CD-RW Burner
Video/Graphics Card: 256MB NVidia® GeForce™ Go 7900 GS
Sound Card: High-Definition Audio with surround sound
Wireless Network Card: Internal 802.11b/g WiFi Card
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
Warranty: 1-Year AlienCare Toll-Free 24/7 Phone Support w/ Onsite Service
AlienRespawn: Alienware® Respawn Recovery Kit
OR
Area-51 m5750
Processor: Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T7200 2.0GHz 4MB Cache 667MHz FSB
Operating System (Office software not included): Genuine Windows® XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2
Display: Alienware® m5750 17" WideUXGA 1920 x 1200 LCD - Saucer Silver
Motherboard: Alienware® Intel® 945PM + ICH7 Chipset
Memory: 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SO-DIMM at 667MHz - 2 x 512MB
Hard Drive: Extreme Performance (RAID 0) - 160GB (80GB x 2) Serial ATA 1.5Gb/s 7,200 RPM w/ NCQ & 8MB Cache
Primary CD ROM/DVD ROM: 8X Dual Layer DVD+/-RW / 24X CD-RW Combo w/Software
Video/Graphics Card: 256MB ATI Mobility™ Radeon® X1800
Sound Card: Intel® 7.1 High-Definition Audio
Wireless Network Card: Internal Intel® PRO Wireless 3945 a/b/g Mini-Card
Communications: Integrated 10/1000Mb Gigabit Ethernet & 56K V.92 Modem
Warranty: 1-Year AlienCare Toll-Free 24/7 Phone Support w/ Onsite Service
AlienRespawn: Alienware® Respawn Recovery Kit
They are both about the same price, i will use it primarily for school and the net, i do play games, I like to play battlefeild 2 online, i think that would be the most intense thing i would use it for other than burning dvds and ipod stuff. I am not a super gamer but i do like good performance when i do. What do yall think would be the best for me? And what do you think is going to be the best system gouing into the future with everything thats coming?
Thanks So much!

If you are going to be doing more work than gaming... I would get the m5750. While its gaming prowess isnt as hardcore as the m9700.... its certainly no slouch.

I have played: WoW, FarCry, BF2, EQ2, Vanguard, Rise of Legends, CS:S, and CoD 2. All have played in native res of 1920x1200 with full settings with no problem at all.

The m9700 could do that too, and with ease, especially if you get the SLi. However if you want to do more than game the m5750 might be a better choice... it has a slimmer form factor and its slightly less weight. The Core 2 Duo is an extremely nice chip and multi-tasks like its going out of style.

Thats not to say the m9700 cant do any of that either... but its primary function is to play games... the m5750 is more of the all-rounder.

Hope this helps.

Thanks for the reply!
That is my big delemna, I want somthing that is gonna last a cuople of years and run anything i throw at it. What is going to be the easiest to upgrade? What is the better system? Are they pretty close to the same? If i get one more geared for games is it gonna be that much slower when i multitask or is the difference nominal? What is the best "Bang for the Buck"? What is gonna have a better life span?

Any help is greatly appriciated!

Depends I guess. Depends on what your needs are. I could live with a laptop like I have for the next 3-4 years... that doesnt mean a thing to a hardcore gamer... he might trade up that m9700 (or any laptop they might own at the time) the second he/she sees a new version of the m9700.

If you're going to go with upgradability... I would say the m9700... especially if you are going to only get the single 7900 GS off the bat. Then later on down the line you can add another... then later upgrade to the 512 7900 GS (I personally am going to wait till the new lappies have the DX10 and SLi cards with a Core 2 Duo )

In terms of multi-tasking... that also depends. If you are going to be burning a CD, while watching some TV on your tuner and surfing the web, encoding music/vidoes. I would recommend you stick with something thats a Dual Core.

Neither are the "better system" the m9700 obviously has the gaming in its pockets. The m5750 likes to pull out the "jack of all trades" card. It does everything, maybe not as great as a specialized laptop, but it does it well.

It all comes down to what you think you are going to like more. I think you have already decided on the m9700... you are looking for someone to agree with you

Thanks for the input
I honestly cant say that i have decided! I am stuck at that cross road where I could go either way. I just want to be happy with my decision and not be a guy looking back with regrets. I want the best for the money, its alot of money and a big decision. I like to burn dvds and play games, all the other stuff I do is school (word, excell, powerpoint) and surf the net i would watch an ocasional dvd. The price diference between these 2 is around $50 and weight is like half a pound, nothing to big. I am just wondering what is the BETTER system? What has the best future?

I have decided to order one or the other tommorowwwwwww! Even if it comes to a coin flip
Thanx for all yalls input!

kalison,


Thanks for the ideas, I'll play around a bit with it tonight - I already optimized the desktop in ATI control panel, but as you know, 3d settings are different.

I must say though, I'm really impressed by the performance of this laptop - I'm moving to Malawi (Africa) in two weeks and felt that I'd have to scale my gaming down a bit, so got this laptop as a more work-oriented laptop that could handle some of the less intensive games (Civ4, KOTOR2, etc). I just popped in Oblivion to see how it looked widescreen, and was blown away when it performed better on this laptop (at a higher resolution) than it does on my desktop! (3 ghz P4, 1g ram, Radeon X800 XT 256 mb).

I've got almost the exact same laptop you do, except less ram (a gig), but I never expected it to be this good as a gaming laptop!

I honestly can't tell you that... neither are better than the other in an overall statistic.

You wont regret getting either one.

Ordered BABY!!!!!!

Well everybody I did it. I ordered My Lappy today!!
This is what I ordered. I received an email .with another hundred dollars of the screen upgrade ......well i couldnt pass it up!

Aurora m9700
Processor: AMD Turion™ 64 Mobile ML37 2.0GHz 800MHz FSB 1MB L2 Cache
Operating System (Office software not included): Genuine Windows® XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2
Chassis: 17" WideUXGA 1920 x 1200 LCD with Clearview Technology - Saucer Silver
Motherboard: Alienware® NVIDIA® Mobile SLi Chipset
Memory: 1GB Dual Channel DDR SO-DIMM at 400MHz - 2 x 512MB
Hard Drive: Extreme Performance (RAID 0) - 160GB (80GB x 2) Serial ATA 1.5Gb/s 7,200 RPM w/ NCQ & 8MB Cache
Optical Drive: 8X Dual Layer DVD+/-RW & 24X CD-RW Burner
Video/Graphics Card: 256MB NVidia® GeForce™ Go 7900 GS
Sound Card: High-Definition Audio with surround sound
Wireless Network Card: Internal 802.11b/g WiFi Card
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
Warranty: 1-Year AlienCare Toll-Free 24/7 Phone Support w/ Onsite Service
AlienRespawn: Alienware® Respawn Recovery Kit

I didnt either! While I was waiting on this one to come... i was wondering if I had made the right choice instead of getting the m9700... because I hate it when I have to turn lots of stuff down to play games... but was I wrong! The x1800 performs wonderfully! I wonder if there will be a way to upgrade to the x1800 xt?

This computer has done wonders for me... it really is a great replacement to my desktop. It does everything so well and I can even get my gaming fix!

I almost changed from m5750 for minimal config of m9700 and possibility of having "upgradable" system for future. But I guess these lappies evolve just too fast that its better to get completely new one when it comes to the market... I'll stick to Kalison's quote...

yeah ! what are those cards compatible with ? what kind of upgrade could we expect.. ?