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Alternatives to Alienware Area-51 m5550

post #1 of 11
9/5/06 at 5:37pm
Thread Starter 
Hello.

I'm looking for a desktop replacement with a 15.4" widescreen monitor (preferably glossy) for work and entertainment purposes (music / movies / games). I found that the Alienware Area-51 m5550 seems to fit most of my needs, but I've gotten the impression that when you get Alienware you're paying a lot for the brand and looks, which to me are not that important. Money itself is not a problem but I'd still rather not pay for anything I don't need.

Here's what I plan on getting:

15.4" WideXGA 1280 x 800 LCD with Clearview Technology - Saucer Silver
Genuine Windows® XP Professional with SP2
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T7200 2.0GHz 4MB Cache 667MHz FSB
256MB NVidia® GeForce™ Go 7600
2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SO-DIMM at 667MHz - 2 x 1024MB
100GB 7200 RPM SATA with NCQ
DVD-Burner: 8x Dual Layer DVD+/-RW / 24x CD-RW Combo w/Software
Integrated 10/1000Mb Gigabit Ethernet & 56K V.92 Modem
Internal Intel® PRO Wireless 3945 a/b/g Mini-Card

...for the price of €2600 with the warranty and software fees and an external hard drive thrown in.

Can anyone recommend me other laptops with similiar specs for comparison so I can make a more well educated choice?

EDIT: Added video card
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post #2 of 11
9/5/06 at 6:03pm
Check out Acer, Asus, Sager, and Hypersonic, to name a few. Quanta also had a system that was comparable to the previous version (m5500), so I assume they will also have an updated one.

Generally, Alienware is more expensive than others...but it is worth lookng closely, as pricing on the m5550 is not over the top compared to some of the higher end models. I have the m5500, and have been very happy with it, but also believe the other brands are good as well.

You didn't mention the video card, but assume you are looking at a config with the go 7600. I'd recommend you go with a 15.4" system with either the nVidia go 7600 or the ATI x1600.
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post #3 of 11
9/5/06 at 7:23pm
Thread Starter 
I took your advise and I found a few models that come close, but however none of them seem to have Core 2 Duo. How big of a difference does this make compared to other processors on the market?
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post #4 of 11
9/6/06 at 6:59am
Alienware is one of the first out with Core 2 Duo in the 15.4" notebooks, but I'd expect others will follow soon. From a processing point of view, you'll see a few % speed increase to up to about 20% for intensive tasks like video rendering (that is, not a really noticeable difference for most applications). BUT, if you have a choice, the advantage Core 2 Duo has is it is 64-bit, with doesn't mean much now, but may in a year or so...
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post #5 of 11
9/7/06 at 4:52am
You could look at a Dell 1705 or XPS 1710 i think it was
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post #6 of 11
9/7/06 at 12:49pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by bjorgen
You could look at a Dell 1705 or XPS 1710 i think it was
Those are 17" notebooks not 15.4"s like he is looking for.
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post #7 of 11
9/7/06 at 1:25pm
Trey the HP 15.4" DV6000t
Just ordered one myself and I was in the same boat as you....The Dell Inspiron E1505 is just ugly....

Only downside to HP is they do not have 7200 RPM HDDs on the DV6000 yet, only on the DV9000
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post #8 of 11
9/7/06 at 1:46pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Imperil
Those are 17" notebooks not 15.4"s like he is looking for.

My bad, hehe
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post #9 of 11
9/7/06 at 4:43pm
Thread Starter 
msindi,

I took a close look at the HP dv6000t and thought it was really close, but I decided not to get one due to the inferior graphics card and the thing you already mentioned about HD speed. I just put in my order for the m5550 today
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post #10 of 11
9/7/06 at 6:30pm
CONGRATS, betbetpush. I believe you'll be very happy with the m5550.
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post #11 of 11
9/8/06 at 12:09am
dell E1505 is basically like m5550 expect its not leet and doesnt have an 7600 option
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