Dell Alienware X17 R2 (2021)

Dell Alienware X17 R2 (2021)

Manufacturer	Dell
Product family	Alienware
Release date	2021 (2021)
Introductory price	USD 2200 to 4500
Discontinued	No
Operating system	Windows 11 Home (Can be configured with Windows 11 Pro)
CPU	Intel Core i7-12700H Intel Core i9-12900HK
Memory	16 GB (2x8 GB) or 32 GB (2x16 GB) DDR5-4800 MHz
Memory slots	2 user accessible
Storage	512 GB or 1 TB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD
Storage slots	2 user accessible
Removable storage	1 microSD-card slot
Display	Screen size: 17.3 inch Panel type: IPS Coating: Matte (anti-glare) Resolution: 1920 x 1080 Refresh rate: 360 Hz or 480 Hz Brightness: 300 Nits Response time: 1 ms or 3 ms VRR: G-Sync Screen-to-body ratio: 78 %
Graphics	Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 Laptop 6 GB GDDR6 Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Laptop 16 GB GDDR6
Sound	2 x 2 W stereo tweeters + 2 x 2 W stereo woofers (8 W total) w/ Realtek HD audio chip
Camera	Front: 720p with dual-array microphones and Windows Hello IR support
Touchpad	Premium Precision glass touchpad with integrated scrolling
Connectivity	Intel Killer Wi-Fi 6E AX1675 Bluetooth 5.2 2 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 (Type-A) 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (Type-C, DP 1.4, Power Delivery) 1 x Thunderbolt 4 (Power Delivery) 1 x HDMI 2.1 1 x Mini DisplayPort 1.4 1 x RJ45 Ethernet port 1 x 3.5mm headphone/microphone jack
Battery	6 cell Li-Ion 87 Wh
Keyboard	Per-key AlienFX RGB backlit
Chassis	Color: Lunar Light Materials: High Endurance Clear Coat designed for stain resistance
Fingerprint reader	No
Facial recognition	Yes (Windows Hello IR support)
Website	Dell

All statements attributed to reviews are the reviewer's own opinion. Note that these claims were accurate at the time of publication and may be dated when you are reading this article. Read more.

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The Dell Alienware X17 R2 (2021) is a high-performance gaming laptop equipped with Intel 12th gen H series mobile processors and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3000 series mobile GPUs. Available configurations vary by store and location. The X17 R2 is positioned as a premium gaming laptop within Dell's Alienware lineup.

Primary Hardware

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Processor

The Alienware X17 R2 (2021) can come with the following processors:

• Intel Core i7-12700H with 14 cores (6 P-cores + 8 E-cores) and 20 threads, 24 MB cache and a max frequency of 4.7 GHz.
• Intel Core i9-12900HK with 14 cores (6 P-cores + 8 E-cores) and 20 threads, 24 MB cache and a max frequency of 5.0 GHz.

Dell supplies the processors with sufficient power and cooling for CPU-intensive tasks resulting in average to above-average performance compared to other laptops with the same processors. In CPU-only tasks, SKUs with the i7-12700H and i9-12900HK perform as expected. SKUs with i9-12900HK perform impressively well - scoring on average 10-12% higher than the average i9-12900HK and only 5% behind the average i9-12900HX. Performance sustainability is good but not perfect, with all processors losing about 5% performance in long stress tests.

Dell also supplies the processor with sufficient power in mixed CPU and GPU tasks like gaming leading to noticeably better performance than competitors with the same configurations. In particular, the SKU with i9-12900HK and RTX 3080 Ti performs better than most other laptops with this configuration and is only 10% behind the X17 R2 with i9-12900HX and RTX 3080 Ti.

All SKUs lose a significant amount of CPU performance when running on the battery.

Benchmarks:

• Cinebench R23:
  • i7-12700H: ~1800 pts (single-core), ~23000 pts (multi-core)
  • i9-12900HK: ~2000 pts (single-core), ~27000 pts (multi-core)

Graphics

In addition to the integrated Intel UHD Graphics, the Alienware X17 R2 (2021) ships with the following discrete GPUs:

• Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 Laptop GPU with 6 GB GDDR6 memory.
• Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Laptop GPU with 16 GB GDDR6 memory.

All configurations support Advanced Optimus, DLSS 3.5, Dynamic Boost 2.0, VR ready, and DirectX® 12 Ultimate technologies.

Dell supplies all GPU configurations with sufficient power even though RTX 3060 and 3080 Ti get diminishing returns beyond 100W. Nevertheless, in GPU-only benchmarks, SKUs with RTX 3080 Ti perform slightly above average while SKUs with RTX 3060 perform impressively with results that are up to 15% faster than the average laptop RTX 3060.

In gaming, the RTX 3080 Ti SKUs with the i9-12900HK perform significantly better than the competition with the same GPU and are just 10% behind the RTX 3080 Ti X17 R2 with the better i9-12900HX CPU. The RTX 3060 and i7-12700H SKU also perform above average and outperform laptops with the same RTX 3060 configured with a lower power processor.

All SKUs lose a significant amount of graphics performance when running on the battery.

Benchmarks:

• 3D Mark TimeSpy 2560 x 1440:
  • RTX 3060: ~9000 pts
  • RTX 3080 Ti: ~14000 pts
• 3D Mark Fire Strike 1920 x 1080:
  • RTX 3060: ~22000 pts
  • RTX 3080 Ti: ~32000 pts
• The Witcher 3 1920 x 1080 Ultra HBAO+:
  • i7-12700H and RTX 3060: ~90 fps
  • i9-12900HK and RTX 3080 Ti: ~140 fps

Memory

The Intel HM670 chipset used in the Alienware X17 R2 supports a maximum of 2 SO-DIMM sticks and the 12th Generation Intel H processors support up to 64 GB DDR5-4800 MHz memory.

Pre-configured SKUs come with either 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR5-4800 or 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-4800 Memory. These sticks perform identically even when paired with different CPUs.

Benchmarks:

• AIDA64 Memory Copy: ~75000 MB/s

Storage

The Alienware X17 R2 can ship with 512 GB or 1 TB M.2 NVMe SSD depending on the seller. The OEM SSD only uses 1 slot in all configurations leaving the other slot open for upgrades.

Reviews of the i9-12900HK + RTX 3080 Ti and i7-12700H + RTX 3060 SKUs note that both came with the Samsung PM9A1 1 TB SSD which is an OEM version of the popular 980 Pro. This is a downgrade from the SK Hynix PC801 used in the 2020 model since the transfer rates drop to 50 % after some time in stress tests due to thermal throttling.

Benchmarks:

• CrystalDiskMark 8:
  • SEQ1M Q8T1 (Sequential 1MB blocks): ~6500 MB/s (read), ~4800 MB/s (write)
  • RND4K Q1T1 (Random 4 KB blocks): ~85 MB/s (read), ~240 MB/s (write)

Co-processors

The Alienware X17 R2 does not have a dedicated NPU to accelerate AI applications.

Input Devices

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Keyboard

The Alienware X17 R2 comes with a standard keyboard layout with per-key AlienFX RGB backlit. The keyboard offers 1.5 mm travel and 0.2 mm pitch. The refresh rate of the display can be changed using the Fn + R keys - three steps (60, 360, 480 Hz) on the higher-end 480 Hz display and only two (60, 360 Hz) on the lower-end 360 Hz display. The Fn + Q keys can be used to switch between the three performance modes - Quiet, Balanced and Performance.

The typing experience is identical to the previous model with the only difference being the inclusion of the Co-Pilot key instead of the right Ctrl key. The deeper travel and stronger feedback result in a better typing experience than competitors like Razer Blade or Asus ROG Zephyrus.

Touchpad

The Alienware X17 R2 comes with a Premium Precision glass touchpad with integrated scrolling.

The touchpad is smaller than the ones in competitors like Razer Blade but is spacious enough for simple tasks. The clicking is shallow and lacks enough feedback.

Webcam

The Alienware X17 R2 comes with a 720p webcam with an electronic shutter and Windows Hello IR support.

The webcam has poor color accuracy with a minimum DeltaE of 2.31 and a maximum DeltaE of 17.75. The webcam looks soft but is much sharper than 720p webcams that used to be common a few years back. The clarity is adequate for casual calls. There is a physical kill switch on the right side that disconnects the webcam from the laptop. The webcam also supports Tobii Horizon head tracking that can be used in supported games.

Microphone

The Alienware X17 R2 comes with a dual microphone array.

Output Devices

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Display

Dell ships the Alienware X17 R2 with 2 confirmed factory color calibrated displays:

• BOE NE173QDM-NYC, 1920 x 1080, 17.3 inch, IPS, 360 Hz, 1 ms response time, anti-glare (matte), 100 % sRGB, 300 Nits, 1200:1 contrast
• BOE NE173QDM-NZ3, 1920 x 1080, 17.3 inch, IPS, 480 Hz, 3 ms response time, anti-glare (matte), 100 % sRGB, 300 Nits, 1200:1 contrast

All known displays support Dolby Vision®, Nvidia G-Sync, Advanced Optimus.

The BOE NE173QDM-NZ3 reaches the rated 300 nits, has good screen uniformity and has above average contrast for a IPS panel at around 1400:1 however the black levels are somewhat high at maximum brightness. It also covers almost 100% or sRGB and DCI-P3 as rated and covers around 88 % of AdobeRGB. The screen is not well calibrated out of the box and NotebookCheck records an average ColorChecker DeltaE of 4.3 on their unit. They also measure an average gray to gray response time of 4.8 ms.

The BOE NE173QDM-NYC is the lowest-end panel offered by Dell on this unit. NotebookCheck records average contrast of 1000:1 which is below the rated 1200:1 and a gray to gray response time of 12 ms on their unit however the measured brightness is 8% higher than rated at around 380 nits with good screen uniformity. This panel is also calibrated better than the higher end panel with ColorChecker DeltaE of 0.97 on the tested unit.

None of the tested panels exhibit any PWM flickflickering at any brightness level.

Audio

The Alienware X17 R2 comes with two bottom-facing stereo speakers near the front corners, each paired with a stereo tweeter and a stereo woofer, totaling 8 W.

The speakers have a low maximum volume around 75 to 80 dB for a 17.3-inch laptop. They produce balanced to high mids and balanced highs but lack any noticeable bass.

Connectivity

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WiFi

Dell equips the Alienware X17 R2 with an Intel Killer Wi-Fi 6E AX1675 WLAN module.

The Alienware X17 R2 performs noticeably worse than other laptops with the same module; however, it is still able to reach decent transfer speeds for regular use.

Benchmarks:

• iperf3 transmit AXE11000: ~630 Mb/s
• iperf3 receive AXE11000: ~1040 Mb/s
• iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6 GHz: ~820 Mb/s
• iperf3 receive AXE11000 6 GHz: ~1200 Mb/s

Bluetooth

The Alienware X17 R2 comes with a Bluetooth 5.2 module.

SD Card Reader

Dell includes a microSD card reader with the Alienware X17 R2.

USB

Dell equips the Alienware X17 R2 with the following USB ports:

• 2 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 (Type-A) with PowerShare
• 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (Type-C) with DisplayPort 1.4 and Power Delivery
• 1 x Thunderbolt 4 with Power Delivery
• 1 x Universal Audio Jack
• 1 x HDMI 2.1
• 1 x Mini DisplayPort 1.4
• 1 x RJ45 Ethernet port
• 1 x power-adapter port

Display Outputs

The Alienware X17 R2 comes with 3 display outputs:

• 1 x HDMI 2.1
• 1 x Mini DisplayPort 1.4
• 1 x USB-C with DisplayPort 1.4

The Alienware supports up to 4 displays simultaneously, including the built-in display.

Case

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The Alienware X17 R2 (2021) is available in one color: Lunar Light with a High Endurance Clear Coat designed for stain resistance. The chassis remains the same as the previous model except for the redesigned ventilation grilles at the bottom, which are now hexagons instead of rectangles. The display lid is made out of anodized matte aluminum alloy, while the keyboard deck and bottom cover are made out of PC-ABS plastic. The lid opens to the full 180 degrees; however, the hinge rigidity weakens past ~160 degrees. Surfaces are slightly roughened to reduce fingerprint buildup; however, it still attracts dust and fingerprints. The rear is elongated beyond the display lid and is thicker as well to accommodate a larger internal cooling solution. This contributes to the heavy weight. There are two Dell logos - one on the lid on the bottom left and another on the palm rest on the right. There is one big Alienware logo on the top right side of the lid.

The chassis has a more professional look compared to the Alienware X17 R1 (2020) with a uniform color instead of a two-tone silver and gray color scheme. There are fewer accents and angles as well.

Chassis rigidity is excellent with no audible creaking or weak points. The base and lid exhibit some twisting, but not enough to be concerning.

Maintenance

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The bottom panel is held on by 10 Philips-head screws. Four screws on the leading edge are shorter than the rest. There are clips securing the panel that must be popped up after removing the screws.

Upgradeable components:

• 87 WHr battery.
• Two M.2 2280 PCIe4 x4 SSDs each covered by an aluminum heatsink (most configurations only have one slot filled from the factory).
• Two DDR5-4800 SODIMMs covered by a single plastic shield (most configurations only have one slot filled from the factory).
• M.2 2230 wireless card.

Cooling System

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The Alienware X17 R2 is equipped with dual 60mm fans connected to the core components with five copper heat pipes. There is one shared heat pipe for the CPU and GPU, one dedicated heat pipe for the CPU and GPU each, and another smaller heat pipe for the VRMs. The system intakes air from the side and bottom grilles and exhausts air through the back grilles.

Heat

Surface temperatures vary depending on the configuration.

The i7-12700H + RTX 3060 SKU gets quite warm while idling, up to 39 °C on the bottom of the device. The left side with the WASD keys heats up more than the right side. Under heavy load, there is a hot spot of 57 °C on the bottom.

The i9-12900HK + RTX 3080 Ti SKU is slightly cooler while idling across all areas, reaching up to 36 °C on the bottom. The palm rest and the WASD keys remain comfortable during intensive tasks.

Benchmarks:

• i7-12700H + 3060:
  • Maximum upper side: ~43 °C
  • Maximum bottom: ~50 °C
  • Idle upper side: ~30 °C
  • Idle bottom: ~34 °C
• i9-12900HK + 3080 Ti:
  • Maximum upper side: ~44 °C
  • Maximum bottom: ~55 °C
  • Idle upper side: ~33 °C
  • Idle bottom: ~36 °C

Noise

There is no electronic noise or coil whine. The laptop is effectively silent during undemanding loads like light browsing or video playback, hovering below 30 dB(A). During intensive tasks, the fans quickly ramp up even when set to balanced mode. Fan noise while gaming in balanced mode is identical to performance mode despite temperatures being noticeably lower in balanced mode. During intensive tasks, the laptop emits noise above 50 dB(A) and is louder than most other gaming laptops. Most variants emit the same amount of noise, with more powerful configurations being slightly louder.

Benchmarks:

• i7-12700H + RTX 3060:
  • Load: > 50 dB(A)
• i9-12900HK + RTX 3080 Ti:
  • Idle: ~23 dB(A) (min), ~23 dB(A) (avg), ~25 dB(A) (max)
  • Load: ~45 dB(A) (avg), ~53 dB(A) (max)
• i9-12900HK + RTX 3080 Ti:
  • Idle: ~24 dB(A) (min), ~24 dB(A) (avg), ~29 dB(A) (max)
  • Load: ~46 dB(A) (avg), ~57 dB(A) (max)

Energy Management

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Power Consumption

The Alienware X17 R2 ships with a large 330 W AC adapter.

Dell remains very liberal with the power supplied to the CPU during combined CPU and GPU loads. Both the i7-12700H + RTX 3060 and i9-12900HK + RTX 3080 Ti SKUs consume around 220 W during load with temporary spikes to around 290 W.

The i7-12700H + RTX 3060 Alienware draws around 50 W when idling for the most part, reducing to 15-20 W after waiting a very long time, and any minor input brings the consumption back up to 50 W.

Battery Life

All Alienware X17 R2 SKUs come with an 87 WHr Li-Ion battery that Dell claims can charge from 0-40 % in 10 mins, 0 - 80 % in 30 mins, and 0 - 100 % in 60 mins using the provided power adapter.

The battery life during light tasks is slightly below average for this class of laptop. Many competitors now include 90+ Whr batteries. Reviews verify the charging claims to be accurate.

Benchmarks:

• i7-12700H + RTX 3060:
  • WiFi Browsing (150 nits): 308 minutes
  • Load: 105 minutes
• i9-12900HK + RTX 3080 Ti:
  • WiFi Browsing (150 nits): 290 minutes
  • Load (max brightness): 65 minutes

Biometrics

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The Alienware X17 R2 supports Windows Hello face recognition but does not have a fingerprint reader.

Software

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All SKUs ship with Windows 11 Home, but the laptop can be upgraded to Windows 11 Pro, either manually or when buying directly from Dell.

Preinstalled Software

Alienware Command Center

The Alienware Command Center program acts as the primary control center in the Alienware X17 R2. In addition to the performance profiles, the program also handles keyboard lighting macro keys, hardware troubleshooting, always on USB settings, toggling flip to start (opening the lid starts the laptop), battery conservation mode (limit charge to 80 %), MUX switch, system updates, and other things.

There are three preset performance profiles - quiet, balanced, and performance. Dell supports adding an AI engine in balanced mode that automatically adjusts system parameters based on the context. There is also a customized mode where the user can manually set various parameters.

Most reviewers use performance mode for performance benchmarks and quiet mode for the battery tests unless otherwise stated.

Alienware Arena

The Alienware Arena app shows all games installed in the PC in a single unified location. This may be helpful for users who use multiple platforms to play games.

Other Preinstalled Software

The Alienware also comes with other less useful software like Dell SupportAssist, which exists just to sell software and services, and Dell Mobile Connect, which allows users to connect their smartphones to the laptop.

There is also unwanted software like a 30-day McAfee security trial.

Accessories & Warranty

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The Alienware X17 R2 comes with a 330 W AC adapter and paperwork.

There is a one-year limited manufacturer warranty if purchased in the US.

Reviews Summary

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Overall Sentiment

The Alienware X17 R2 is considered one of the best gaming laptops at its price with high CPU and GPU performance relative to competitors. Often found under $3000, the Alienware is suitable for people looking for a high-performance gaming laptop without breaking the bank. The laptop also comes with a decent screen for gaming and is highly upgradeable. The primary downsides are the poor battery life, large size, and weight, which make it unsuitable for portable use away from an outlet for a long time.

Problems Summary

• No SD card reader.
• Below average speakers given the form factor.
• Slow WiFi compared to other laptops with the same module.
• OEM SSD loses 50 % performance during sustained disk loads.
• Plastic touchpad does not provide the best tracking experience.
• High idle power consumption
• Higher than average surface temperatures while idling and during intensive tasks.
• Below average battery life.
• Heavy
• Large size

Links

i7-12700H, RTX 3060, 16 GB RAM, 512 GB SSD: TomsHardware,

i7-12700H, RTX 3060, 16 GB RAM, 512 GB SSD: TechGuyBeau

i9-12900HK, RTX 3080 Ti, 32 GB RAM, 1 TB SSD: NoteBookCheck,

i9-12900HK, RTX 3080 Ti, 32 GB RAM, 1 TB SSD: NoteBookCheck