14 DAY TRIAL // It has been quite a while since Dell's Alienware hasn't come out with a product refresh to its range of portable or desktop computer systems. However, for all those gaming and technology enthusiasts patiently waiting for the company to release its next best thing, Alienware has just introduced the new M17 gaming portable system, which combines the latest Intel processors with the graphics capability of an ATI CrossFireX setup.
Prior to the introduction of the new laptop, several of the company's partners received an Alienware Insider email, titled "Countdown to Launch," with an image that indicated today as the release date of a new product. The caption of the image simply read that "The Evolution Continues."
In true Alienware fashion, the new portable system has been designed to deliver an impressive computing performance, most probably required only by those high-end gamers out there that will go all out to acquire such a high-end desktop replacement.
Encased in a chassis that follows close the company's long-time design, an Intel Core 2 Quad or Extreme CPU can be combined with up to 4GB of DDR3 memory, two ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3870 GPUs, a WXGA+ / WUXGA panel, an optional ATSC HDTV tuner, up to 640GB of HDD space in a RAID 0 array, a dual-layer DVD writer / optional Blu-ray reader, WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1, Gigabit Ethernet, all meant to deliver the best gaming performance a user can get from their laptop.
Other features include a facial recognition sensor and even an impressive 12-cell battery that should be enough to power all the high-end hardware fitted inside this "monster" of a laptop. Come to think of it, “monster” is just the right term to describe the physical specifications, as this thing weighs 9.5 pounds out of the box.
Price-wise, you are looking at a system that can be yours for a starting price of $1,399, but this figure is bound to go way higher than this once you get started on further upgrading the system.