Dell Alienware m18 R2 vs Alienware 18 Area-51

Please select specific configurations for the laptops to get a more accurate comparative review
Display
2560 x 1600
CPU
GPU
RAM
Storage

Review

Evaluation of Dell Alienware m18 R2 and Alienware 18 Area-51 important characteristics
Performance
System and application performance
Gaming
Performance in popular 3D games
Display
Viewing angle, color accuracy, brightness
Battery Life
Potential battery life in light and average use
Connectivity
Ports, webcam and other interfaces
Portability
Design, materials, durability and usability
NanoReview Score
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Primary usage:

Value for money (Beta)

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Currency
VS
32.3
(Mediocre)
Value Index
28.3
(Mediocre)

Key Differences

What are the key differences between the notebooks
Advantages of the Dell Alienware m18 R2
  • Higher screen refresh rate: 480 versus 300 Hz
  • Can run popular games at about 36-49% higher FPS
  • Higher number of cutting-edge USB Type-C ports: 3 versus 2
  • Performs slightly better (up to 14%) in 3DMark Steel Nomad Lite
Advantages of the Dell Alienware 18 Area-51
  • Significantly easier to carry: weighs 1080 grams less (around 2.38 lbs)
  • Around 83% better multi-core CPU performance in the Cinebench 2024 test
  • Thinner bezels and 24% higher screen-to-body ratio
  • Better webcam recording quality
  • Provides 67% higher max. screen brightness: 500 vs 300 nits
  • 33% sharper screen – 168 versus 126 pixels per inch (PPI)
  • Much smaller footprint: 19% more compact case (164.1 vs 203.5 square inches)

Tests and Specifications

Comparison table of test results and technical specs

Case

Weight 4.23 kg (9.33 lbs) 3.15 kg (6.95 lbs)
Dimensions 410.3 x 319.9 x 24.1-25.1 mm
16.15 x 12.59 x 0.95-0.99 inches
365 x 290 x 21.6-28.5 mm
14.37 x 11.42 x 0.85-1.12 inches
Area 1313 cm2 (203.3 inches2) 1059 cm2 (164.1 inches2)
Screen-to-body ratio ~71.6% ~88.7%
Side bezels 11.3 mm -11.3 mm
Colors Black Black, Green
Material Aluminum Top: Aluminum
Transformer No No
Opening angle 135° 140°
Size comparison
Cooling solution
Cooling system Active Active
Vapor chamber Optional Yes
Liquid metal Yes No
Number of fans 4 4
Noise level (max. load) 56.6 dB 55.9 dB

Display

Size 18 inches 18 inches
Type IPS LCD IPS LCD
Refresh rate 480 Hz 300 Hz
PPI 126 ppi 168 ppi
Aspect ratio 16:10 16:10
Resolution 1920 x 1200 pixels 2560 x 1600 pixels
HDR support No Yes, HDR10
Sync technology G-Sync G-Sync
Touchscreen No No
Coating Matte Matte
Ambient light sensor No No
Display tests
Contrast 1000:1 1200:1
sRGB color space - 100%
Adobe RGB profile 100% 89.7%
DCI-P3 color gamut - 96.1%
Response time 3 ms 3 ms
Max. brightness
300 nits
500 nits

Battery

Capacity
Voltage 11.4 V 11.7 V
Full charging time 2:00 hr 2:00 hr
Battery type Li-Ion Li-Po
Replaceable No No
Fast charging Yes Yes
Charging via USB (Power Delivery) Yes Yes
Charging port position Bottom Bottom
Charge power 280 / 360 W 360 W
Weight of AC adapter 1076 grams 1045 grams

CPU

CPU name
Base frequency 2.2 GHz 2.4 GHz
Turbo frequency 5.2 GHz 5.2 GHz
Cores 16 (8P + 8E) 20 (8P + 12E)
Threads 24 20
L3 Cache 30 MB 30 MB
Integrated GPU Intel UHD Graphics (16EU) Arc Graphics (4-Cores)
Fabrication process 10 nm 3 nm

Benchmarks

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Cinebench 2024 (Single-Core)
Cinebench 2024 (Multi-Core)

Graphics Card

GPU name
TGP 140 W -
Nvidia Optimus MUX Yes, Advanced Optimus
Type Dedicated Dedicated
Fabrication process 5 nm 4 nm
GPU base clock 2295 MHz -
GPU boost clock 2370 MHz -
FLOPS 16 TFLOPS 9.7-16.6 TFLOPS
Memory size 8 GB 8 GB
Memory type GDDR6 GDDR7
Memory bus 128 bit 128 bit
Memory speed ~16 Gbps ~24 Gbps
Shading units (cores) 3072 3328
Texture mapping units (TMUs) 96 104
Raster operations pipelines (ROPs) 48 48
GPU performance 16 TFLOPS 9.7-16.6 TFLOPS

GPU Benchmarks

Steel Nomad Lite Score
Blender GPU 3566 2769
Solar Bay 53453 40627
Expected FPS based on average performance across 9 popular games. Details

RAM

RAM size
Channels 1x8 GB 1x16 GB
Clock 5600 MHz 6400 MHz
Type DDR5 DDR5
Upgradable Yes Yes
Total slots 2 2
Max. ram size 64 GB 96 GB

Storage

Storage size
Bus PCI-E Gen 4.0 (4x) PCI-E Gen 5.0 (4x)
Storage type SSD (M2) SSD (M2)
Channels 1x512 GB 1x512 GB
Upgradable Yes Yes
Total slots 4 3
NVMe Yes Yes

Sound

Audio chip Realtek ALC3254 Realtek ALC3329
Speakers 2.0 2.2 (2 tweeters and 2 woofers)
Power 2x2W 2x2W, 2x2W
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Loudness ~82.5 dB ~87.9 dB
Microphones 2 2

Connectivity

Wi-Fi standard v7 v7
Bluetooth v5.4 v5.4
Fingerprint No No
Infrared sensor Yes Yes
Optical drive No No
Webcam Above the display Above the display
Webcam resolution 1920 x 1080 3840 x 2160
Ports
USB-A 3x USB 3.2 3x USB 3.2
USB Type-C 3x USB 4.0 2x USB 4.0
Thunderbolt Thunderbolt 4 Thunderbolt 5
HDMI 1x HDMI 2.1 1x HDMI 2.1
DisplayPort No No
VGA No No
Audio jack (3.5 mm) Yes Yes
Ethernet (RJ45) Yes Yes
SD card reader Yes Yes
Proprietary charging port Yes Yes

Input

Keyboard
Keyboard type Mechanical Mechanical
Numpad Yes Yes
Backlight Yes Yes
Key travel 1.8 mm -
Touchpad
Size 13.1 x 8.0 cm 13.1 x 8.0 cm
Surface Glass Glass
Windows Precision Yes Yes
Further details
Notes on Alienware m18 R2:
    - A 32GB memory option supports 6400 MHz via XMP, while others max out at 5600 MHz.
*Disclaimer! Ports, speakers, display, and other specifications can vary depending on the laptop's specific configuration or region.

Cast your vote

So, which laptop would you choose?
6 (42.9%)
8 (57.1%)
Total votes: 14

Comments

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