In a nutshell: At Computex, Alienware unveiled its new X-series of thin and powerful gaming laptops. The lineup includes two models chosen the x15 and x17, and they're the thinnest Alienware machines in their respective size categories (15.6- and 17.3-inches). Featuring Alienware'south updated 'Legend 2.0' design linguistic communication, the x15 and x17 are launching with a choice of Intel 11th-gen Tiger Lake and Nvidia 3000-series chips, aslope a custom cooling arrangement that utilizes iv fans and a new thermal interface material called Element 31.

Dell's gaming arm, Alienware, claims the new x15 is the globe'south most powerful sub-16mm gaming laptop bachelor correct now. Coming in at xv.9mm thin, the sleek x15 is but a hair'due south width thicker than the recently-refresh Razer Blade 15.

The base of operations Alienware x15 comes in at $300 cheaper than its Razer rival, packing the aforementioned CPU (8C/16T Intel Core i7-11800H), GPU (RTX 3060), and RAM (16GB DDR4). The configuration differs when it comes to the display spec and storage. Here the x15 offers a 1080p/360Hz or 165Hz panel and 256GB of NVMe storage vs. Razer's QHD/240Hz screen and a 1TB SSD.

A fully loaded x15, meanwhile, comes equipped with an 8C/16T Core i7-11900H, an 8GB RTX 3080 (90W), 32GB RAM, a 2TB m.2 SSD (up to 4TB in RAID 0), and a QHD/240Hz display. To absurd all this hardware inside the x15's slim chassis, Alienware has installed the latest version of its Cryo-tech cooling system.

This solution consists of iv fans that can spin/end independently with Smart Fan command engineering and includes Element 31, Alienware's proprietary gallium-silicon liquid metal that acts every bit a thermal interface, which the company claims offers a 25 percent comeback in thermal resistance over previous Alienware laptops. This material is also said to last longer than conventional pastes, though buyers should be enlightened that Alienware will only apply it on RTX 3070- or 3080-equipped x15s and x17s.

The latter 17.three-inch model starts at $ii,099 and is able to pack beefier internals than the x15 due to its larger size and thicker dimensions (20.9mm). This includes a more than powerful 130W variant of the RTX 3060 on the base model, while a fully kitted-out version packs a 16GB RTX 3080 (165W), an 8C/16T Core i9-11900HK, 64GB RAM, and a like storage configuration every bit the x15. The latter's FHD displays are likewise available on the x17, alongside an boosted 4K/120Hz option and the power to spec 1.8mm Red MX ultra-low profile mechanical switches for the keyboard.

Both X-series models come with an 87Whr battery, Windows Hello-capable 720p webcams, but interestingly, they lack Alienware's Graphics Amplifier port on the rear. In a statement to The Verge, Alienware notes that it removed the proprietary port since its Graphics Amplifier solution would have been unable to take full reward of the latest desktop GPUs and offered limited performance improvement over the laptops' onboard graphics. Consequently, dropping the port allowed Alienware to add extra ports and proceeds more than thermal headroom.

Featuring a magnesium alloy chassis, the Alienware x15 and x17 laptops are initially launching with limited configuration options. Withal, buyers will be able to cull from the complete range from June xv onwards.