Alienware X15 R2 Review – The Mobile Powerhouse!



In this video we review the new Alienware X15 r2 with its powerful new 12th gen CPU. Can this years new CPU’s and subtle tweaks make the increased price over the X15 r1 worthwhile?

X17 r2 review: https://youtu.be/fTeGnK63PyQ
New Alienware Horizon Bags review: https://youtu.be/FhtdVNVvsLo
Alienware Tri mode gaming mouse review: https://youtu.be/m-DgwDjTHVk

Timestamps: –
0:00:00 – Intro
0:00:51 – Externals / Chassis
0:02:30 – Ports
0:06:36 – Deck
0:07:02 – Trackpad
0:07:20 – Keyboard
0:08:29 – Speakers
0:09:34 – Screen
0:10:28 – Webcam
0:10:50 – Internals
0:12:03 – Performance
0:14:07 – Gaming
0:15:31 – Battery
0:18:09 – Prices and Edition Comparisons
0:19:28 – Conclusion

source

This Post Has 49 Comments

  1. Chris Le Blond

    great reviews, i've been watching a lot of your stuff lately! how are the external temps, keyboard area specifically for typing/working under load? i'm on the fence between x17 and x15!

  2. SlitRose

    Upgrading from my Omen to the X17 R2 after watching your review on it. Just have to wait a little over 2 weeks now…lol. Love the reviews, keep up the great work!

  3. Lukas Adrianto

    Awesome review as always! I still have one more question, since im still waiting for my x15 r1. I found other alternative like the ge76 with the same price, but it only has i7 11th gen 1080p panel, 16gb of ram and 1tb ssd with rtx 3080. Should I consider that or should I just stick with the x15 r1 with i9 32gb ram rtx 3080 2tb ssd with qhd panel?

  4. Infinite_Xiao

    Would be interesting to see the difference between x15 r2 3080ti vs x17 r2 3080 ti.

  5. Alphajai

    The x15 r1 has a $1000 discount on dell now, should I get it instead? How about the x17r1? it is also $800 off on dell.

  6. No Regret

    Alienware X15 R2 with QHD, RTX 3060 , 1TB HD is $2300 in the US. Alienware M15R5 with QHD, RTX 3070, 1TB HD is $1700. This is a $600 difference for a worse graphics card, but a better CPU. M15R5 also has 1 more USB port and RJ45 port. An extra USB port is essential for anyone who wants to plug in external keyboard, mouse, controller, throttle and joystick (MS Flight SIM and DCS World). That missing RJ45 port will take up another USB port for Ethernet dongle. You are down 2 USB ports now. One might need to use those missing USB ports for wireless mouse dongle for 2.4Hz connection. No serious gamer plays Counterstiike via Bluetooth connection or on WIFI for that matter. Wired headphones also need a USB connection. Sure, you can use USB C to USB A converter, but its a hassle. You do not need USB C aside for external hard drivers, phones and external displays. HDMI 2.1 will take care of the external display connection. Alienware X15R2 does not make any sense whatsoever. You can use that $600 difference to make an early upgrade to RTX 4000 when it becomes available. Besides, most games are GPU rather than CPU intensive anyway. I would take RTX 3070 over RTX 3060 any day and save $600 as a bonus and have 2 additional USB A ports to plug in my mouse and for 2.4Hz transmitter for my Xbox controller and/or joystick for MS Flight Sim. I am also positive that RTX 3070 will be superior to RTX 3060 in most games. I say , get M15R5 with RTX 3070 for $1700 while you still can, or wait for RTX 4000 series laptops.
    PS I literally bought Alienware M15R5 with RTX 3070 for my friend 2 weeks ago. It is not available anymore. Only one configuration for $1049 with RTX 3050 and no QHD remains as well as one configuration for $1350 for RTX 3050Ti and No QHD. Dell must have figured that it did not make any sense to get X15R2 over M15R5 as it was before (with QHD and RTX 3070)

  7. Sinjin Hawke

    can u please post LatencyMon results? only takes a few mins! dell said they fixed DPC latency issues but im skeptical

  8. Drew Dough

    thank you for your content. I have watched all your reviews of the X models and still can't decide between 15 and 17. The 17 is only available in 1080p now if that counts for anything. I almost strictly use my current laptop on my desk connected with dual monitors and ignore the laptop screen. I wonder though if I had a 17 if I'd use the screen more and if it would be worth carrying around. I almost never use the laptop anywhere but on a desk with monitors and carrying it means to the airport and back. I am mostly doing development, 3d editing etc, with occasional gaming. Any advice? Thank you again!!

  9. CompMan

    When do you expect your 3080Ti will arrive? Curious to see if yours is capped at 125Watts like mine.

  10. erdiel dominguez

    Let’s see what I think about the r1 when it gets here. I’ve always been a console player so this laptop scene is new to me. Chose the x15 r1 with the 3080 only for the rgb track pad and the heavy discount I got. I work on a cargo ship now and bringing a series x along with me is a pain in the ass plus tv is limited. Hoping the r1 will satisfy my needs with it.

  11. Idontknow2689

    Looks like Dell finally released a true successor to the M15 R4!

  12. Pete McD

    Great review. Definitely the X15 is now on my list. X15 vs X17 same spec would be very interesting to see especially the 4800 RAM vs the X15's 5200 and how that affects performance as well

  13. Patrick Brown

    Surprised at how well the R2 is over last years. I suspect the 3070 TI will be the sweet spot for this one, as it will last 3-5 years. That said, I would still prefer the ports and better cooling on the X17 R2.

  14. DJ YOUN

    I am clearly going to get a X15 R2 over a R1. Thank you for your thorough review.

  15. F L

    I am buying the 15 r2 3070ti 32gb ram version tomorrow

  16. G

    "USB 3" is meaningless.. you meant to say "USB Type A".. this is the term that refers to the connector form factor.

  17. G

    How can a reviewer not know to call it "USB Type A"? He keeps calling that old gen connector "USB 3". This is something my grandma would do 🤣

  18. Martin Stampka

    Hi! Does anyone have an idea how to clean the upper ventilation? 🙂

  19. Justin Reeves

    Dell are driving me mad right now! Every product they sell seems to have one vital thing missing. For this one, soldered RAM. If it was 64GB then that’s ok (providing it doesn’t fail and brick the machine). For the X17 R2, crappy FHD screen. Same problems exist (in U.K.) for XPS desktops. Not one preconfigured machine makes any sense – such as top i9 processor, with max 16GB RAM. And so on. And we have zero configuration options.

    Dell won’t state if or when the X17 R2 will get UHD screens. I’m a software developer doing a fair bit of creative work that may need to be done on the move. So I need max pixels and high RAM. Plus I want to game on it. Don’t think I’m asking for too much for nearly £5000, once warranty added. Come on Dell, get a grip with what your customers actually want, versus what you think they want.

  20. For almost the same price, do you recommend the x15 or the x17? (Both with i7 and 3080ti)

  21. Henrik G

    Just a tip. There are many channels that review gaming/workstation laptops. If you want to stick out from the rest, talk about the warranties and customer care programs of the manufacturer. Nobody else does that, but to me it is essential. Dell are very good, but also very expensive.

  22. than the duy

    Would be an interesting comparison between the new X15 R2 with m15 R6, since the graphical power has increased quite significantly this year!

  23. Ivan Ameruoso

    I just wanted to thank you for helping me through the process of choosing a new laptop. In the end I've gone for the x15r2 with 3070ti, qhd screen and 32gb of ram. I was able to get 15% off with the student discount, and looking at the prices of the competition I think it has a great value considering the amazing build quality. So again, thank you so much for your help.

  24. Chris S

    Given that I bought an x15 R1 with the same specs, I probably wouldn’t shell out an extra 200+ dollars for this machine, and probably would have just upgraded the ram on my R1. That being said The fan noise improvements seem really appealing.

  25. Bugatti 430

    It’s a shame that still in r2 there is no 2k option.What makes me unhappy about x17r1 is the screen really sucks, planning to get a 2k 240hz from AliExpress and changing it.

  26. Marco Pooh

    Loved the review Dave! Detailed and gets straight to the point, you’re always my go to channel for anything Alienware!

    I’m glad there’s improvements in non gaming aspects such as the quiet fans on idle & speakers

    Speaking about speakers, are there different sound profiles to choose from since there’s Dolby now? If yes, what’s the difference between the profiles?

  27. Justin Reeves

    Just watched your reviews of this and x17 r2 again. I’ve ordered the x15 r2 based on your opinion. You clearly know a lot more about it than I do. Went for i9, 32gb, 2tb, QHD, 3080ti. Bit worried about soldered ram failing so maxed out the warranty also. Cheers for such thorough “warts ‘n’ all” reviews. Nice mix of good and bad stuff to consider.

  28. Andy Lowe

    I wonder if some of the improvement between the R1 and R2 is just driver updates. It would be interesting to crack out your R1 now and see if there is really that much difference besides the 12th gen CPU being awesome.

  29. MrQuaazga

    Frankly, I prefer the 17 inch, and I don't care about slim and light. I prefer larger screen and heavier and thicker. I am really thinking about this bigger Alienware laptop. Thanks for your review.

  30. Lincoln

    I need to hear fan noise not db. But thanks for the video! 🙂

  31. ZerohBeat

    Wow, The jump compared to r1 seem really significant! Shame there is no 2nd USB 3.2….. haha… Really happy that Dell / Alienware have improved the series soo much. Gives me confidence for the future revisions hehe. I am really happy with my x15 r1… (If I could have waited another 8 months, I would have gotten the x15 r2 instead hehe). I just bought a cheap ÂŁ15.00 USB-C to 4 USB 3.0 port dongle 🙂

    I got the basic screen, i9, 32GB RAM, 3070, 1TB. Its been great so far. Took me a bit of time to get used to the fans (as I am sensitive to their high pitch noise which thankfully few people can hear). The machine is so "silent" even on full load. From time to time I do use headsets but most of the time, I don't feel the need to when playing games / programming / watching.

    IF Dell / Alienware can lightly shrink the size and keep the same performance so that it can fit better in my bag…. Maybe by max 0.5cm hehe.

  32. Average guy

    Can you please do a x17 r2 vs x15 r2 very soon please

  33. Da latest Hits

    what is the tgp for the 3070ti and the 3080ti? also would you rather go for i9 and 3080ti or i7 and 3070ti

  34. The X15 R2 has a 140W 3070 Ti and a 145W 3080 Ti GPU. Do you think for rendering high resolution files, will it be better to get the 3080 Ti for that extra 5 Watts and double the memory (16GB)?

  35. Apotheosis

    Yeah, guys do not waste your time please. I got the x17 R2 and that “great” cooling doesn’t supply the cpu with a heatsink yikes… reached 105 degrees celcuis returned it built a pc much better than any laptop….

  36. milind vir

    How are the speakers compare to last year model?

  37. すぎ

    Hello. I'm looking from Japan. I'm thinking of buying this computer. Can you hear the fan's sound just by watching youtube or using chrome?
    Is it possible to prevent the fans from turning by controlling it when not playing the game?

  38. Mogster Kupo

    Thanks for the review. Do you know what it's like with an external monitor?

  39. Reviews It all

    I’m selling my R3 M15 on fb marketplace. Excellent condition 2070 super

  40. Daniel Carracedo

    David o/ always a pleasure to watch, like, and comment on your videos.

    Ive already disassembled my X15 and removed LM, im thinking about removing the “shield” around the cpu (the thing that prevents LM to split over the MB) since im not going to put LM ever again, to ensure a better contact between cpu and heat sink.

    I would also like to mention, for people like me who already have the R1, that after undervolting, underclocking and disabling hyperthreading, you can go from 2,5h of battery up to 5h. I would like to know how many hours this 12th gen can get with the same tweaks (iGPU is also much more efficient than previous gen), maybe 7h or 8h?

    I think CPUs are getting so much efficient that now the power consumed by screen, fans, wifi, etc.. is more limiting than the power drained by cpu, when doing normal tasks, like browsing, youtube, word, excel, etc… (obviously not while gaming, but we dont game on battery, right?)

    Last, have you thought about opening a discord channel?

    Thanks!!

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