Dell Alienware X16 (16-Inch, 2023)

Fantastic gaming performance Solid build quality Compact enough to travel Comfortable AlienFX keyboard Unique RGB trackpad

Runs hot or loud, with little in between Disappointing screen Limited USB-C power delivery

“Powerful, portable, and built to last, the Alienware x16 is still a solid laptop despite its issues.”

Thin, premium design ; Pushes top-end frame rates ; Sharp QHD+ 240Hz gaming display ; Optional Cherry MX mechanical keyboard ; Customizable RGB key, touchpad, and chassis lighting

Expensive at all price tiers ; Still outpaced in top configuration ; All connections pushed to rear base edge

Alienware’s x16 R2 is a costly but high-quality gaming laptop for cash-flush enthusiasts on the hunt for their next premium, powerful, but still portable system.

Stunning RGB multi-touch touchpad ; Great performance ; Great sound

Expensive ; i9-13900HK instead of HX ; Battery life could be better

Every part of the Alienware x16 is top-notch: the stunning, clear, very bright and colorful 2560x1600 display, the cracking sound system, the RGB lighting, particularly the gorgeous RGB touchpad, and of course, the guts of the machine, the Nvidia RTX...

High-end performance ; Premium build quality ; A great mechanical keyboard ; Excellent speakers

Expensive ; Low display brightness ; No HDR for games ; No Ethernet jack

The Alienware x16 R2 is a premium 16-inch gaming laptop at a premium price. But its mechanical keyboard and the highest-end hardware will cost you extra.

Impressively thin design ; Excellent keyboard & touchpad ; Strong performance and graphics ; Solid battery life ; Great thermals

Price-to-performance ratio is rough ; Display isn’t the best for a $3K+ gaming laptop ; Messy audio

The Alienware x16 R2 champions your copious cash with powerful performance, an excellent mechanical keyboard, and a relatively long battery life.

Slick looks don’t compromise performance ; Plenty of power ; Comfortable keyboard

Gets seriously loud under load ; Rivals pack in more power for the cash ; Display could be better

A distinctive laptop with ample gaming grunt, lots of connectivity and a superb keyboard, but rivals have superior screens.

Solid premium build ; Thin profile (18.57 mm) ; Vapor chamber cooling + liquid metal for the CPU and GPU dies (for RTX 4080 and 4090-based laptops) ; High CPU frequencies under long load (3.44 GHz / 3.29 GHz P and E-core clock) ; Wide viewing angles +...

High price ; Soldered RAM and no Gen 5 SSD slots ; Super High VRAM temperatures – 110ºC, which lead to TGP throttle ; Short battery life

Premium build quality, sleek design; quintessential Alienware ; Good port selection, despite lacking Ethernet port ; Future-Proofing thanks to onboard NPU (Neural Processing Unit), which enhances capabilities for AI-related tasks

Performance underwhelming: Processor performance lower compared to previous generation processors ; Extremely pricey ; Mixed gaming performance ; Low display peak brightness

The presence of an NPU on-board makes the Alienware X16 R2 future-proof and capable of accelerating AI-related tasks. However, as far as gaming is concerned, an NPU brings nothing to table, at least right now. If anything, they’re slowing down raw CPU...

+ It's a very powerful machine ; + Attractive design ; + The lowest display option is already great, which is what this comes with ; + Powerful speaker system that literally shakes the laptop ; + Excellent array of connectivity options ; + CherryMX...

- CPU thermal throttles pretty often ; - Soldered-on RAM ; - It gets very noisy under load ; - Abysmal battery life ; - Very pricey

The 2023 Alienware x16 had the potential to become quite the beast of a gaming laptop but falls short in some areas that I'm surprised haven't been addressed yet since it's a prominent issue in a number of their laptops.

Slick looks don’t compromise performance ; Plenty of power ; Comfortable keyboard

Gets seriously loud under load ; Rivals pack in more power for the cash ; Display could be better

A distinctive laptop with ample gaming grunt, lots of connectivity and a superb keyboard, but rivals have superior screens.