Dell and Alienware have been among the top names in gaming laptops for a long time and, in this guide, we’ve highlighted five of the best laptops from the two companies across a range of categories.
Both Alienware and Dell have been making computers for a long time. And, even though Dell acquired Alienware in 2006, both have continued to provide gaming desktops and laptops under their brand names.
However, both companies focus on different segments with their systems. Alienware caters more to the higher-end gaming market, whereas Dell typically sticks to the budget-tier and mid-range market. Either brand may make sense for you depending on your budget and needs.
In this post, we’ve covered five different Dell and Alienware gaming laptops across a handful of pricepoints and feature-sets to help you find the right laptop for your needs.
Table of Contents
– Best Dell & Alienware Gaming Laptops
2. 300Hz Pick: Alienware m15 R4
3. Ryzen Pick: Alienware m15 R5
Our Picks for the Best Dell & Alienware Gaming Laptops
In the table below, we’ve highlighted our selections for the best Dell and Alienware gaming laptops. We’ve made selections for the best 4K gaming laptop, the best 300Hz refresh rate option, the best Ryzen-based system, the best 17-inch laptop, and the best budget option.
|
|
NAME | SPECS | RATING | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
4K
|
 |
Dell XPS 17 9700 |
|
/10 | |
|
300Hz
|
 |
Alienware m15 R4 |
|
/10 | |
|
RYZEN
|
 |
Alienware m15 R5 |
|
/10 | |
|
17-INCH
|
 |
Alienware m17 R3 |
|
/10 | |
|
BUDGET
|
 |
Dell G3 15 |
|
/10 |
*Learn more about our choices for the best Alienware and Dell gaming laptops by clicking the “Read Review »” link.
1. Dell XPS 17 9700
Our pick for the best 4K Dell gaming laptop
While Dell’s XPS laptops aren’t technically geared towards gamers, they do come in hardware configurations that will work well for gaming. This Dell XPS 17 system is one such option.
It comes with an Intel Core i9-10885H processor, 32GB of RAM, an RTX 2060 GPU, and a 1TB SSD. It sports a 17.3-inch 4K display with a 60Hz refresh rate.
While the RTX 2060 GPU isn’t the newest generation laptop GPU, it is still solid enough to run most games on at least medium settings on the 4K display. That’s not the most ideal setup for a laptop—especially one that costs just under ~$2,800. However, if you’re looking for a 4K laptop for design work, or for other purposes outside of gaming, and you want something you can game on as well, this XPS 17 model is worth considering.
If you’re looking for something purely for gaming, though, you’d be better off with one of the options listed below.
2. Alienware m15 R4
The top 300Hz Alienware HP gaming laptop
This Alienware m15 R4 offers a high-end array of hardware that is perfect for serious competitive gamers. It comes with an Intel Core i7-10870H processor, 32GB of RAM, an RTX 3080 GPU, and a 1TB SSD. For its display, it comes with a 15.6-inch 1080P display with a 300Hz refresh rate.
The combination of the i7-10870H CPU and the RTX 3080 GPU are good enough to max out any game you throw at it, and the extra GPU power will allow you reach high enough framerates to take advantage of the 300Hz refresh rate display.
The only real downside of this laptop is the fact that it doesn’t come with one of the newer generation Intel Core processors. That’s not a huge deal breaker, though, as the slightly older i7-10870H is still more than powerful enough.
Overall, if you’re looking for a powerful Alienware gaming laptop that will give you an advantage in competitive games (thanks to the higher refresh rate), the Alienware m15 R4 is worth checking out.
3. Alienware m15 R5
The best Ryzen Alienware gaming laptop
For those of you that are looking for a Ryzen-based gaming laptop, Alienware’s m15 R5 is worth checking out. This laptop comes with a Ryzen 7 5800H processor, 32GB of RAM, an RTX 3060 GPU, and a 512GB SSD. Its display is a 15.6-inch 1080P screen with a 165Hz refresh rate.
It doesn’t come with quite as fast of a display as the m15 R4 (300Hz vs 165Hz), or with as powerful of a GPU, but it does come in at nearly $1,000 cheaper… so, if you don’t quite have enough to get the m15 R4 listed above, this is a solid alternative.
And, in terms of in-game performance, the combination of the RTX 3060 GPU and the Ryzen 7 5800H processor are powerful enough to where to you will be able to max out any game you throw at it.
4. Alienware m17 R3
The best 17-inch Alienware gaming laptop
If you’re like me and you prefer a bigger screen, then Alienware’s 17.3-inch m17 R4 might be the best option for you. Along with its larger screen, the m17 R4 comes with an Intel Core i7-10870H processor, 16GB of RAM, an RTX 3060 GPU, and a 1TB SSD. Its 1080P display also comes with a 360Hz refresh rate.
At just under ~$2,250, it is quite a bit less expensive than the m15 R4 (~$2,700) and quite a bit more expensive than the m15 R5 (~$1,800).
So, there are tradeoffs with this laptop. Despite the higher pricetag than the Ryzen-based m15 R5, it comes with the same GPU, a slightly weaker CPU, and half the RAM. On the flip side, it comes with a bigger screen and a faster refresh rate.
When comapred to the m15 R4, it comes with a weaker GPU and less RAM, but it has a higher refresh rate, a bigger screen, and a much lower pricetag.
Ultimately, all three options are worth considering. If you need as much GPU power as possible, go with the m15 R4 RTX 3080 laptop. If you want to spend as little as possible and you don’t care about the bigger screen size or higher refresh rate, go with the m15 R5 RTX 3060 laptop.
Or, if you prefer the higher refresh rate and the larger screen, and you don’t mind paying a bit extra, go with this Alienware m17 R4 laptop.
5. Dell G3 15
The best budget Dell gaming laptop
While Alienware doesn’t typically produce laptops for ~$1,000, Dell does. And, while this laptop doesn’t come in at under $1,000, it isn’t too much above it either. This Dell G3 15 3500 gaming laptop comes with an Intel Core i7-10750H processor, 16GB of RAM, an RTX 2060 GPU, and a 512GB SSD. The display is a 15.6-inch 1080P screen with a 144Hz refresh rate.
The RTX 2060 is slightly older than the newer 3000 series GPUs, but it is still a solid GPU that will allow you to max out any game you throw at it.
Ultimately, this is about as good of a configuration as you’re going to find on a ~$1,000 gaming laptop. About the closest competitor to this laptop is either ASUS TUF Dash 15, (which is cheaper and has a newer CPU-GPU combination, but also has half the RAM) or the Acer Nitro 54-77KG (which is more expensive, but has a newer CPU-GPU combination and a bigger screen). All are viable options, though, and come with tradeoffs. The right option for you will depend on your budget and your specific needs.
Which Dell or Alienware Gaming Laptop is Right for You?
Both Dell and Alienware have gaming laptops that may or may not make sense for you. In this post, we’ve made recommendations for five different gaming laptops from Dell & Alienware to help you pick the right option for your needs and budget.
