Alienware’s new 14-inch X14 gaming laptop, which was announced in January at CES 2022, is now available for purchase. While the X14 is significantly smaller (and thinner) than the 15-inch X15 or 17-inch X17, it shares some of the features of those more expensive, more powerful devices. The Alienware x14 is the world’s thinnest gaming laptop, according to Dell. The model will include a variety of unique features designed to extract the most performance from the 12th generation Core i7 CPU and GeForce RTX GPUs up to the 85 W TGP RTX 3060. Dell merely had to wait until Intel granted the green light to begin distributing laptops with the new processors because the Alienware x14 ships with Alder Lake CPUs. The MSI GE76 was the first model to debut with such CPU options, and the Alienware x14 is expected to follow later this month.
The base configuration starts at $1649 USD and includes a 14-inch FHD IPS display with Advanced Optimus and G-Sync, a Core i7-12700H CPU, a GeForce RTX 3050 GPU, a 256 GB NVMe SSD, and 16 GB of soldered LPDDR5 RAM. A more colour accurate DCI-P3 FHD display, a faster Core i7-12900H CPU, an RTX 3060 GPU, a 2 TB NVMe SSD, and 32 GB of RAM are among the higher-end possibilities. Also, keep in mind that the vapour chamber and liquid metal thermal interface are only available on RTX 3060 GPU SKUs.
A system with those features will set you back $2,299.99, which isn’t cheap for an RTX 3060-equipped laptop. There are less expensive alternatives available at launch, and more are on the way. As mentioned above, prices for the entry-level X14 start at $1,649.99, which has the same Core i7-12700H processor, but 16GB of LPDDR5 clocked at a somewhat slower 4,800MHz speed, 512GB of storage, and Nvidia’s RTX 3050. Alienware claims that versions with Intel’s Core i5-12500H processor will be available in the future, but it doesn’t have pricing to disclose on the spot.
Quick review:
Despite its specifications being oriented toward a more casual crowd of gamers than typical, it is a logical fit in Alienware’s portfolio. It’s a surprisingly fast laptop for gaming as well as artistic chores like video exporting in Adobe Premiere Pro.
Unfortunately, the size reduction comes at the expense of gaming performance when compared to Alienware’s other X-series laptops. However, if you want to run every game at its top graphics settings, this product is not recommended. Furthermore, its keyboard arrangement and track pad should have been improved. While its Alder Lake mobile engine ripped through video outputs, it didn’t give the same type of battery life miracle. The battery life on the X14 is approximately 4-5 hours.
