Gamers should go with the Alienware 16X Aurora model
For 2025, Alienware replaced its venerable m16 laptop with two new models - the 16X and 16 Aurora. Of the two, the 16X Aurora is the model I would recommend for most gamers. It has a higher price tag but the upgrades more than make up for the relatively small price premium. Here's a list of all of the improvements:
- Better display (2560x1600 240Hz G-Sync vs 2560x1600 120Hz)
- More powerful CPU (Intel Core Ultra HX series vs Intel Core H-series)
- Higher GPU TGP rating and thus better performance
- More premium materials (metal alloy lid and chassis vs lid only)
- RGB keyboard vs white-only backlighting
- Thunderbolt 4.0 port
Compared to other Alienware laptops, the 16X Aurora is designed to look less like a gamer's laptop. It boasts a sleek, understated design with the absence of extraneous visual-only embellishments or unnecessary RGB lighting outside of the keyboard illumination. This is a solidly built machine with a metal (magnesium alloy) chassis and anodized aluminum lid and bottom shell. The keyboard deck is made out of a sturdy composite plastic so that your hands don't get too hot or sweaty. Under the hood, the 16X Aurora packs a punch with powerful components and Cryo Chamber cooling.
It's equipped with a Geforce RTX 5070 mobile GPU
The RTX 5070 performs about 5%-10% better than the RTX 4070 that it replaces. That's not a very big generational improvement, but the RTX 5070 has the newer DLSS 4 technology with multi-frame generation, which widens the performance gap in games that support it. There are 16X Aurora laptop configurations equipped with RTX 5060 GPUs available, but I'd strongly recommending bumping up to the RTX 5070 to be able to play games comfortably on the display's enhanced 2560x1600 resolution .
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Eric Song is the IGN commerce manager in charge of finding the best gaming and tech deals every day. When Eric isn't hunting for deals for other people at work, he's hunting for deals for himself during his free time.
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