Alienware M16 R2 - Review

We have slowed down the amount of laptop reviews we do here for one big reason, lately all that the computers seem to do is either bump the specs with the newest chips or throw some random idea onto it and call it a day. The Alienware M16 R2 falls into both of those groups, it has the latest chips but also has a few fancy bells and whistles, with one those additions being of interest to me. So with a few features that I could see myself taking advantage of, was this worth it?

Whenever I review hardware, I always start with the form factor first, as if you can’t use the device, then it matters not about its functionality. From the moment I took the M16 R2 out of the box, I was impressed with the updated Legend design and the general layout of the machine. Lifting up the lid all I saw was a fancy Alienware symbol, which doubles as the power button and then the keyboard and below it the track pad. Nothing there stood out as special, it wasn’t until much later that I notice that the media control keys were not across the top of the keyboard, like on almost every other keyboard ever made, but were instead located on the right hand side of the keyboard. In an interesting twist, those media keys include a mute mic function, something that I don’t think I have seen all that often. The key that I was looking for though was the new Stealth mode, which is one of the features that I was very excited to test out. As far as the typing experience went on the keyboard, it was smooth and though it took me a bit to adjust to the slightly compact layout, I enjoyed using it.

The one thing I noticed taking the laptop out of the box, was that it a RJ45 Ethernet port, which is really rare these days. For the longest time, all laptops had them and then just out of nowhere they up and vanished from laptops not specifically aimed at businesses. The other ports were mostly what you would expect, a few USB-A’s a pair of USB-C’s with one being a Thunderbolt 4.0 port, a single HDMI 2.1, a headphone port and in a weird move a MicroSD card reader. If there was one issue with the ports is that both USB-C ports were at the rear of the machine, I would have liked to have seen one come around to a side. There really isn’t anything to write about the top of the laptop, it has the Alienware logo on it and number 16 faintly displayed in a corner, for me the fun was underneath. Flipping the laptop over, I spotted the usual hexagonal design that has been a staple of the Legend design since the 1.0 days, but about 2cm in from the edge was a lip. This lip ran around the entire laptop, but had times when it ran flush with the case, with the part closest to me being thin, but the rear of the laptop was where it was thick. It looks cool, but actually does something cooler, creates airflow underneath the laptop so when you are doing some intense work, you can still keep it cool, or at least try to.

This seems like a good time to point out my experience with the laptop in both a significant gaming session and general use. First up the gaming, as normal I always throw DOOM the 2016 release onto any machine I am testing, it serves as a good benchmark and it ran flawlessly. A little Marvel’s Spider-Man and again ran smoothly as I thwipped across New York, but the game I put the most time into was XDefiant from Ubisoft. The game had just launched and I used the laptop as a means to test the game out and it also ran great, the problem with all three games was that in order for them to run great, the laptop had to speed up the fans. Remember that air gap I mentioned earlier, because the laptop was raised off my desk slightly, when the fans kicked in, there was nothing to muffle the sounds of them, which meant I heard them very loudly and often. There were times when I had headphones on that I could feel the desk vibrating from the fans spinning, but I couldn’t hear them, but without headphones they were hard to ignore.

Which is why when I was using the laptop in a general use scenario, things played out very differently, the laptop barely made any noise. The most common noise was the typing I was doing and while the machine would make some noise when shutting down, it was a rare thing. I spent a solid afternoon just writing on the laptop, I had it on my lap and I typed away for around 5 hours, it was a productive afternoon. Not once in that entire time that I had the machine on my lap did I get uncomfortable from heat, something which I have had from other laptops. The few times I spun up a game, I of course could feel the heat on my legs, but general use, there was nothing and it was great.

As for that special feature that I was keen to try out, it was Stealth Mode, which sadly did not cover me in retroreflective panelling. What it did do though was turn off all that annoying RGB lighting, well I should say it turned off the colour, the keys were set to a dull white instead. It also puts the laptop into a Quiet Mode, meaning its not the mode for gaming, but basic use, maybe a video to be watched or two. If you do start up a game while Stealth Mode is engaged, it does automatically exit Quiet Mode for the game, then load it back up once you leave the game. I am someone who has never understood why all companies who make ‘gaming’ machines insist on putting lights everywhere. A few owners might enjoy having their stuff light up, but not the majority, it is the same with cars, a few folks like to mount lights underneath, but not the majority. The difference between a laptop and a car is that the car companies don’t install those lights for everyone, so having a laptop that finally let me turn them off was great.

The last aspect of the M16 R2 that I need to talk about is the screen, as it was stunning. The display was 16 inches on the angle with a resolution of 2560 X 1600, giving it a 16:10 aspect ratio. Because the screen was a QHD+ screen and had a 240Hz refresh rate, that meant in a game like DOOM, the slaughtering of demons was so fluid. I put on some Disney+ and enjoyed watching Andor on the screen and even some of the IMAX Marvel movies and both looked fantastic.

All of that above requires a fair chunk of power to make it run and the battery inside the M16 R2 is nothing all that special, a 90Wh offering. On my writing day, I did get through most of it, before the laptop decided it needed to charge up again and the included power pack did so fairly quickly. I do wish that the charging brick was not actually a brick, don’t get me wrong they are much slimmer today than they were even a few years ago, but smaller is preferred. When I played XDefiant on the battery, from fully charged, I got around 2hours of gameplay which I thought was decent.

The Alienware m16 R2 Gaming Laptop is a great machine, it delivers solid performance in gaming, but also kept things smooth and comfortable with general use. While the laptop was able to keep the heat down in general use, its attempt when gaming mean the fans kick in and thanks to that stylish and practical lip, that can mean more noise. The Stealth Mode key is great, but it isn’t anything you couldn’t do yourself with a macro, or via the system software, so it isn’t a massive selling point. If you are looking at getting a new laptop, this one has the specs, the power and a little bit of style, which makes it a very attractive prospect.

The Score

8.5

Review unit provided by Alienware

The Pros

The laptop, when not gaming, is quiet and cool and has a battery that lasts for a good time

That raised part on the underside, allows for great airflow, which helps keep it cool…

The Cons

…the flip side is that it also lets the noise of the fans seep out when they are whirling away

Stealth mode is great, but nothing that can’t be done by other means