The Alienware m18 R2 is designed with one thing in mind: power.
Im a size queen when it comes to laptops, particularlygaming laptops.
And you might ask, whats so great about a massive gaming laptop?
Photo: Sherri L. Smith
Intel Core i9 processor?
Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 GPU with 16GB of GDDR6 VRAM?
And okay, I know the whole mobility thing is up for debate.
Photo: Sherri L. Smith
And despite all those high-powered specs, the m18 R2 stays remarkably cool thanks to Alienwares proprietary cooling system.
And youve got that clicky ultra-low profile Cherry MX keys with that mesmerizing, customizable RGB lighting.
However, this laptop has a few caveats in terms of display and audio.
Photo: Sherri L. Smith
But if you want jaw-dropping power, youll be hard-pressed to outdo the Alienware m18.
But enough about ports, lets talk about the actual design.
Its been toned down for my tastes in the modern era.
Photo: Sherri L. Smith
But you still have some zones and 16.8 million RGB colors to flex your creativity.
However, there are also some vents along the sides of the notebook.
Its a bit warm, but its nowhere near where your hands would normally be on a regular basis.
Photo: Sherri L. Smith
The undercarriage vent hit 105 degrees, which let me comfortably play on my lap.
Alienware m18 R2 Display and Sound
Glossy or matte?
Its an age-old battle for laptop users.
A pox on bottom-mounted speakers!
The artists vocals had a hint of tinniness at maximum volume, but the percussion and guitars were clear.
The choral vocals and dialogue sounded great on Warhammer 40K: Darktide sounded great.
The audio was rich and full, but I wanted more from the actual combat.
Hitting enemies with a serrated shovel didnt give that meaty thunk that I was looking for.
And gunfire was quieter than expected.
The 1920 x 1080p webcam on the m18 R2 is one of the better-integrated shooters Ive seen this year.
You could also read the text on my t-shirt without issue.
Either way, my review unit can play any AAA title at high frame rates and smooth rendering.
The processor gave excellent results on both single and multi-core tests such as Geekbench 6 and Cinebench.
Id love to see how Alienware would fare against the Razer Blade 18 or theAcer Helios 18.
The m18 R2 kept up the pressure on the Blender benchmark, averaging 89 seconds after three runs.
But how does it translate to actual games?
But more often than not, the fps counter stayed in the 92-97 fps range.
Thats not too shabby.
I also attempted to put the m18 R2 through its paces with Cyberpunk.
The frame rate topped out at 113 fps and kept a comfortable frame rate range of 95 102 fps.
All in all, the M18 R2 is an absolute beast whether youre using it for work or play.
Alienware m18 R2 Battery life
Yes, the Alienware m18 R2 has a 6-cell, 97Wh battery.
It also has the aforementioned Intel Core i9 processor and Nvidia RTX 4090 GPU.
The laptop didnt fare so well when I played Cyberpunk, tapping out after 1 hour and 21 minutes.
Verdict
Play times over!
Grant me Powweeeeerrr?!
Other concerns include a rather dim display and weak audio.
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