Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Before today, you needed to spend at least about $1,700 to purchase one of Dell’s Alienware laptops (although renewed discounts from Dell mean you’ll likely pay less than that number). With the arrival of the Alienware 15, the entry price has dropped to $1,300.
Of course, you’ll need to accept some trade-offs to get to that low price, but the Alienware lineup has expanded downward to appeal to more gamers — specifically, those who find themselves with lower budgets in this era of gaming. Short supply and high prices.
Dell also announced two major laptops today in the Dell 14S and 16S. Let’s take a look at the three new models.
New Alienware software for beginners
The Alienware range now consists of three tiers, with the new Alienware 15 at the bottom. 16/16X Aurora In the middle and leading 16/18 Area-51 At the top.
The Alienware 15 offers a selection of current and previous generation Intel and AMD processors and Nvidia RTX GPUs up to the RTX 5060. It’s based on a 15.3-inch IPS display with a 1920 x 1200 pixel resolution and a 165Hz refresh rate, which is encased in an all-plastic chassis. These are fairly uninspiring display specifications, as is the 300 nits brightness rating.
The AMD and Intel options are a generation or two behind the times. You have a choice between a pair of AMD Ryzen 200 series processors (Ryzen 5 220 or Ryzen 7 260) or a pair of Intel Raptor Lake chips (Core 5 210H or Core 7 240H). Dell says it will add Ryzen AI 400 series processor options soon.
GPU options span three generations: RTX 3050, 4050, 5050, or 5060. The graphics chips are controlled to keep temperatures under control. The RTX 3050 and 4050 are set to 70W, and the 50-series GPUs go up to 85W. That’s one of the sacrifices you make when you step down from the Alienware 16X Aurora, which I tested with an RTX 5060 running at its full 115W power.
The Alienware 15 also lacks Aurora’s aluminum top plate which adds a touch of style and more sturdiness to protect the screen. It also lacks the Aurora’s RGB keyboard backlighting and only illuminates its keys in basic white.
Two factors I liked to see in the Alienware 15 relate to upgradeability and sustainability. The RAM and SSD are not soldered to the motherboard and can be replaced or expanded.
Okay, let’s talk about pricing. Prices for AMD-based models start at $1,299, and Intel-based models start at $1,349.
Alienware price 15
| CPU | GPU | ram | SSD | price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryzen 5220 | RTX 4050 | 16 GB | 512 GB | $1,299 |
| Ryzen 7260 | RTX 4050 | 16 GB | 512 GB | $1,399 |
| Ryzen 7260 | RTX 5050 | 16 GB | 512 GB | $1,459 |
| Ryzen 7260 | RTX 5060 | 16 GB | 1 TB | $1,849 |
| Core 5210H | RTX 4050 | 16 GB | 512 GB | $1,349 |
| Core 7240H | RTX 4050 | 16 GB | 512 GB | $1,449 |
| Core 7240H | RTX 5050 | 16 GB | 512 GB | $1,509 |
| Core 7240H | RTX 5060 | 32 GB | 1 TB | $2299 |
Prices listed above are US menu prices. I expect Dell to discount the various configurations of the Alienware 15 with some regularity as you may be able to find a sale price under $1000 for one of the lower configurations because the Alienware 15 is less attractive when you can find 16 Auroras are discounted to just $1,200.
Slim twins: Dell 14S and 16S
Dell has announced a new laptop series that sits between Dell’s entry-level laptops and its Dell Plus line. The new Dell 14S and 16S are slimmer versions of the Dell core series and feature an all-metal chassis. And it looks very thin: Dell lists the thickness at just 0.6 inches for both the 14- and 16-inch models.
The Dell 14S comes in Frost Blue or Sky Blue.
These new mainstream laptops feature a selection of Intel Tiger Lake Processors, from Core Ultra 5 322 to Core Ultra 9 386H, including the Core Ultra X7 358H featuring the industry-leading Intel B390 integrated GPU with 12 Xe cores. I’ve tested laptops with this CPU, and it offers a great combination of slim design, quiet operation, and long battery life with enough 3D performance to satisfy casual gamers.
Display options abound, with both basic IPS panels and premium OLED panels available, with and without touch support. You can outfit either model with up to 32GB of RAM and up to 2TB of storage.
The Dell 16S is a slim 16-inch laptop based on Intel’s Panther Lake processors.
Often times, a manufacturer offers a sparse selection of ports when you opt for a sleek, ultra-slim design, but fortunately, that’s not the case here. Both the Dell 14S and 16S feature a wide range of ports with two Thunderbolt 4 ports, two USB-A ports, an HDMI connection, and a headphone jack.
I’m looking forward to testing it out to see how it compares to two of my favorite light and thin laptops, Asus ZenBook A14 and ZenBook A16.
The Dell 14S and 16S are available now. The Dell 14S starts at $1,270, and the Dell 16S starts at $1,320.
