The x14, PC gaming ultra thin from Alienware (Dell), is now available. With its GeForce RTX 3060 and its 12th generation Intel Core i7, it is in front of the MacBook Pro 14 M1 Pro in terms of performance and price. A good alternative?
Announced at CES in Las Vegas in January 2022, the x14 from Alienware (brand gaming from the manufacturer Dell) caused a sensation with its thinness of barely 14.5 mm and its weight of 1.8 kg, a great feat for a pro/gaming. With its white dress and its compact and futuristic design, it could on paper be used by creatives to work on the move given its configuration.
Similar price and performance
If there are several, the most efficient remains that consisting of an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 graphics card and an Intel Core i7-12700H processor. With 16 GB of DDR5 RAM and 512 GB of SSD, its price rises to 2348 € on the Dell site, which puts it directly in front of a MacBook Pro 14 M1 Pro (with 10 CPU cores and 16 GPU cores ) at €2479, equipped with the same amount of storage and memory.
Obviously, each of these computers has its own intrinsic qualities, but for a Windows user, this x14 can prove to be a good solution in order to take advantage of hardware acceleration in compatible 3D, video or photo software. In terms of pure performance, the x14 and the MacBook Pro M1 Pro should be quite close depending on the application, although of course we would have to run the x14 in our lab before being sure.
Video games or silence, you have to choose
The x14 is also in essence much more versatile than the MacBook Pro since it is possible to play with it in its spare time, all on a G-sync screen refreshed at 144 Hz. This more specialized screen for gamers will however have to face to a Liquid Retina XDR Apple which borders on perfection, as we have seen in our tests.
Finally on the connector side, the PC is not left out with a USB-C 3.2 port, a USBA 3.2 port, two Thunderbolt 4 ports, an HDMI 2.1 port, a microSD card reader and a headphone output. The MacBook Pro’s is pretty much the same, but its webcam shoots at 1080p while the x14’s is only at 720p.
By excluding the eternal MacOs / Windows debate, the x14 would undoubtedly win the battle of versatility, but it is certain that the MacBook will have advantages to assert in terms of autonomy, battery performance and operating silence. Those reluctant to the typical Alienware design can always turn to the Dell XPS 13 Plus, a renewal of the range which promises to be resolutely modern and whose release is fast approaching, in June if all goes well.