Alienware M15 R6 TEST: the supercharged and classy gaming notebook with an i7 11800H, 32 GB and an RTX 3080

The Alienware M15 R6 is a laptop gamer who, as always with Dell, can be made to order in several configurations. The “smallest” model is equipped with a Intel Core i5 11400H, of a NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 and a 165 Hz screen. The others carry a Intel going up to Core i9 11900H, graphics cards up to GeForce RTX 3080 and 240 or 300 Hz screens. On the RAM side, it will be 16 or 32 GB, as desired. In our case, we inherited a high-end model with a i7, an RTX 3080, 32 GB of RAM and two 1 TB M2 SSDs. After torturing him for several weeks, here is our opinion on the beast.

Alienware M15 R6 Datasheet

  • Processor: Intel Core i7-11800H;
  • Hard Drive: 2 x 1TB (1024GB) M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD;
  • Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 8GB GDDR6 125W;
  • Installed RAM: 32 GB (DDR4 3200 MHz);
  • Screen size: 16″ thin edges 165Hz;
  • Display Specs: 15.6″ FHD (1920 x 1080) 360Hz 1ms 16:9 display with ComfortView Plus, NVIDIA G-SYNC and Advanced Optimus;
  • Sound Card: Stereo speakers, Realtek ALC3254 with A-Volute Nahimic audio processing software – built-in Alienware Sound Center (AWSC), 2W x 2 = 4W total;
  • Alienware Cryo-Tech cooling technology made with copper alloy thermal components;
  • Alienware HD webcam (1280 x 720 resolution) with dual microphones and Windows Hello IR support;
  • Alienware M-Series AlienFX 4-Zone RGB Keyboard – French;
  • Wireless communication: Killer Wi-Fi 6 AX1650 (2×2), 802.11ax wireless and Bluetooth
  • 3 USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A ports, one with PowerShare technology
  • 1 USB-C port with Thunderbolt 4i, USB 3.2 Gen 2;
  • Display Port 1.4, and Power Delivery features 15W output (5V/3A);
  • 1 HDMI 2.1 output port;
  • 1 power/DC-in port;
  • 1 Killer E2600 Ethernet RJ-45 port rated 1 Gbps;
  • 1 universal headphone jack;
  • Battery: Lithium ion (Li-Ion), 4 cell;
  • Weight: 2.42kg;
  • Size: 356.2 x 272.5 x (between 22.85 and 12.9 mm);
  • Operating System: Microsoft Windows 11 Home.

Dell keeps its fundamentals and this Alienware M15 R6 keeps the usual sobriety of the range R15 by offering rounded lines and a very tasteful slightly sequined black dress called “Dark Side of the Moon” which is undoubtedly a little nod to fans of the pink floyd. The texture of the inner and outer shell of the PC does not mark, and no fingerprints can be seen, which is very appreciable. The top of the bonnet still features the head ofAlien light of the brand and the stylized numbers 1 and 5 at the bottom right which make it possible to identify the model at first glance. The PC is very thin and the sides have two small ventilation grilles, an RJ-45 port, an audio headphone jack and two USB ports. The rear edge is circled by a configurable LED strip, like everything that is illuminated on this PC, via theAlien Command Center. There is also an additional USB port, a USB Type-C port, two air vents, an HDMI socket and above all the power connector. This point of detail is well thought out, because the thread remains at the back and does not interfere with the sides as is often the case with other models. On the underside, the PC rests on two long non-slip pads, one at the front and the other at the back, which further space the PC from the table to allow air to circulate via the large air vents in honeycomb shape.

Once the lid is open, the 16:9 screen takes up most of the lid thanks to thin bezels. With a diagonal of 15.6 inches, the screen offers Full HD resolution (1920×1080 pixels – 1080p), a refresh rate of 300 Hz and a latency of one millisecond. The matt panel does not reflect light at all, displays a beautiful, well-contrasted and bright image, and did not cause any particular visual fatigue even during long sessions. Between the keyboard and the screen, there are ventilation grilles again in the shape of a honeycomb and above all the essential luminous ignition button at the top of theAlien. The backlit keyboard offers flat keys of correct size offering a really very pleasant, quiet and responsive typing, which is ideal for office automation or mode. gaming. If there is no numeric keypad, on the right side there are easily accessible keys for sound and microphone management and, on the top, the classic function keys that are easily recognizable, because a bit smaller than the others.

This Alienware M15 R6 is equipped with a processor Intel Core i7-11800H supported by 32 GB of RAM in DDR4 and a graphics card NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 with 8 GB of GDDR6 (processor GA104 from home Samsung). On paper, the beast has something to seduce and as always, we heckled it with benchmarks and stress testing before normal use with screen games and other VR. You will see, he did not disappoint us in all areas by responding without fail. You will find the certificates CPUZ here and those of GPUZ the.

CPUZ Alienware M15 R6 01CPUZ Alienware M15 R6 02CPUZ Alienware M15 R6 03M15 GPU Z

And for benchmark fans:

PC MARK Alienware M15 R6 01VR Mark Alienware M15 R6 01Alienware M15 R6 01 OverlayCinebench Alienware M15 R6 01

To complete the tour of the owner of the heart of the machine, we must talk about the storage available within it. Two 1TB PCIe M.2 SSDs (Samsung PM9A1) are present, whose transfer rate is correct for this type of storage medium with 3,419.44 Mb/s in reading and 3,149.31 in writing peak. In real tests, we transferred the complete repertoire of Shadow of the Tomb Raider (37.5 GB) from our external hard drive (WB_Black D30) in one minute and forty seconds, an average and stable rate of 390 MB / s. Quantity and speed, there is not much to criticize on this part of theAlienware M15 R6.

Crystal Mark Alienware M15 R6 01External SOTTR transfer speed to PC Alienware M15 R6 01

One of the important points on a laptop is to have good ventilation to avoid heating and this Alienware M15 R6 does this job perfectly. We were able to use it, even for long demanding sessions, without experiencing excessive heat development or high shell temperatures. We were also able to play with the beast on our knees without problems. Admittedly, to achieve this result, the fans sometimes go up a little in the towers, but this remains very reasonable and not annoying. In terms of connection, the Wi-Fi 6 card gave us perfect satisfaction whether it was with our router Netgear AX 11000 or less advanced routers like the Honor Router 3.

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In conclusion, theAlienware M15 R6 is a laptop gaming very powerful, ultra-thin and sober top-of-the-range, which remains faithful to the habits of the brand. Whether in office use, thanks to its pleasant keyboard, or in gaming thanks to its high performance, it responds without fail to all needs. As with all laptops gaming, the battery will be able to hold a correct charge for office work, thank you mode Economy, but won’t be able to entertain us for more than an hour without the help of its charger. The sound part is quite good and powerful, but remains below other machines of the same level tested recently like the Predator Triton 500 SE, for example. Afterwards, who still plays without headphones? Otherwise, the ventilation has played its role perfectly and has never exceeded an exceptional noise level and therefore does not really interfere with the sound part. Add to this a full panel of connectors, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.1, 32 GB of RAM, two fast SSDs and you will understand that we really appreciated this Alienware M15 R6. True, the prices of these machines remain high. Know that behind, you will have an after-sales service of Dell very efficient who even knows how to take the time to help you on out-of-warranty machines in order to avoid a return home, which is quite unique in the industry.

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