Alienware 15 (2014)

Fast and powerful ; Excellent build quality ; Great screen for high performance gameplay

Larger than most 15-inch machines ; Poor battery life ; 1080p display has shallow viewing angles

The Alienware 15 is almost everything you could ask for in a midsize gaming laptop. It's a stylish, powerful machine with the latest GPU architecture, Intel's new seventh-gen CPUs and a fantastic build quality -- it's just a little large for a machine...

Superb build quality ; Gamer' oriented design remains stylish ; Excellent performance ; High quality screen and keyboard ; Good value

Heavy and fairly thick for the performance level ; No optical drive ; Speakers have fairly weak bass

Thinner than other Alienware gaming laptops. Nice redesign. Many customization options.

No per-key backlighting.

Alienware has not yet released pricing information for this laptop, but it seems safe to assume it will cost about the same as the current incarnation of the laptop: $1,199.99. We named the 2015 Alienware 15 our Editors' Choice for entry-level gaming...

Solid design. Excellent gaming performance. Full HD display is well suited to gaming. Customizable lighting and macro commands. Good sound quality. Sizable storage. Graphics are upgradable with Alienware's external Graphics Amplifier.

Heavy. No touch capability.

Conclusion While the Alienware 15 is about as pricey as an entry-level gaming laptop can get—$1,500 is pretty much the cutoff before you enter midrange—it delivers what you want from a gaming rig: superior gaming performance, best-in-class battery...

Highly customizable; Optional Graphics Amplifier; More affordable than the competition; High-quality audio

Runs very hot; Heavy

Optional graphics amplifier, Extensively illuminated, Up to three mass storage devices, IPS panel with lots of contrast, USB stick with Recovery SW, High-end chassis, Good input devices, Good sound, Useful tools, Powerful battery

Position of the keyboard takes getting used to, Not easy to maintain, Battery runs on empty quickly under load, CPU throttling during the stress test, Many issues with drivers (AMD), Processor and GPU are soldered on, Moderate emissions, No SSD

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Excellent build quality ; Great keyboard and display ; Fantastic gamer-focused performance ; "Upgradeable" with external Graphics Amplifier

Thicker and heavier than competitors ; Adequate but unimpressive speakers considering the size and weight ; No optical drive ... considering the size and weight

Optional graphics amplifier, Input device quality, Up to three storage devices, High-contrast IPS screen, Large wrist rest, Outstanding performance, Moderate temperatures, Recovery on USB flash drive, High-quality chassis, Lush illumination, Decent...

Unusual keyboard positioning, Somewhat awkward maintenance, Battery not directly accessible, Relatively loud in 3D operation, SSD could be faster, CPU and GPU soldered

In contrast to the Alienware 13, the 15-inch model does not suffer under its CPU. The Core i7-4710HQ is strong enough to even cope with demanding games like Assassin's Creed Unity. Thus, the graphics amplifier also has a right to exist. Some games will...