Dell desires the Alienware Aurora 16X to be your star mid-vary gaming laptop computer, and it largely succeeds in that position with its sturdy RTX 5070 efficiency and beautiful 16-inch, 2K show. However after spending sufficient time with it, its keyboard will get too tiresome to sport with, and I clung to my gaming headset even when enjoying alone. Already, these flaws combined with a excessive price ticket are robust to swallow. Nevertheless, the Aurora 16X nonetheless will get the job executed (and in model), so it’d nonetheless be value looking.
Alienware Aurora 16X
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The Alienware Aurora 16X is Dell’s first try shortly to create a “midrange” gaming laptop computer.
Design and Options
Simply because it’s smaller than the Space-51 does not make the Aurora 16X smooth — it’s nonetheless a chunky beast, however I’m not mad about it. The indigo colorway spreads like a silk sheet over the Aurora’s anodized aluminum lid. I like this shade far more than what the Space-51 is carrying (teal), which is ironic as a result of that’s the costlier one.
The curved edges across the lid, hinge, and sides give a delicate method, which is a refreshing break from the same old edgy gamer look. With little-to-no flex over its iridescent Alienware emblem, this gaming laptop computer is hella sturdy. It stacks as much as 14.05 x 10.45 x 0.76~0.92 inches and 5.7 kilos.
Popping open the hood revealed extra of the identical smooth colorway, this time on a magnesium alloy body with a pleasant satin end. There’s a curved palm relaxation for consolation and ease of lifting the lid. In the meantime, the keyboard is neatly packed within the middle, however helps just one-zone RGB lighting, which appears low cost. The touchpad sits simply beneath, considerably smaller than I anticipated, and the bezels on the show look a bit thick as a result of angled lip.
A neat function in regards to the underside is there’s a thick slab that props the laptop computer up, with vents throughout it to make sure good airflow. Extra laptops want higher cooling designs like this — there’s nothing extra annoying than an underside that will get scorching sizzling since you positioned it on the flawed floor.
Configurations
The Alienware Aurora 16X is a traditional mid-vary gaming laptop computer, but it surely is available in expensive in contrast with different rigs in its class. However that’s what you get once you’re trying to purchase from a premium model like Alienware. Right here’s what’s packed within the unit Dell despatched me for evaluate:
Alienware Aurora 16X Specs
Show
16-inch, 2560 x 1600 (16:10), G-Sync
Processor
Intel Core Extremely 9 275HX (24-core)
GPU
Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 (Cell)
Connectivity
Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4
Ports
1x Thunderbolt 4 Kind C, 1x USB 3.2 Kind-C, 2x USB Kind-A, HDMI 2.1, RJ Ethernet, Audio Combo Jack
Audio
4x constructed-in audio system
This evaluate unit prices $1,999 (seen for $1,649), which is up there for an RTX 5070 gaming laptop computer. It additionally is available in an RTX 5060 model for $1,549. However in the event you’re on the lookout for one thing cheaper than that, you might want to lose the “X” within the Aurora 16X (sure, actually).
The Aurora 16 is available in two GPU variants, together with the RTX 5060 and RTX 5050, and each choosing an Intel Core 7-240H processor. They value round or beneath $1,000. However wait, what does the “X” actually lose you? Nicely, you drop to a 120Hz show with decrease brightness, a 720p webcam, and also you lose the Thunderbolt 4 port. The latter two are fairly insignificant, however dropping the show is hard.
Show
Whereas I’ll proceed to rant about Alienware needing to supply OLED or Mini-LED choices for his or her gaming laptops, the Aurora 16X’s IPS show is kind of gorgeous.
This show is a lot vivid, rated at 500 nits, and provides a crisp 2560 x 1600 decision, so I might admire the sharp strands of hair on Naoe Fujibayashi’s head in Murderer’s Creed Shadows. Making my means by Hijacked in Name of Responsibility: Black Ops 7, the brown wooden planks contrasted effectively towards the milky white ship, which was dreamy sufficient to get me killed by some jabroni working out of the cabin.
With Nvidia G-Sync to cut back display tearing and the 240Hz refresh fee, getting in automobile chases throughout Night time Metropolis in Cyberpunk 2077 felt satisfyingly easy as I drifted again onto the freeway. Nevertheless, take into account that if you wish to use the total breadth of the 240Hz refresh fee, you’ll want to show down the graphics fairly a bit. An RTX 5070 can’t get you fairly that far on the very best settings – particularly at 1600p.
All the pieces In-Between
There’s an honest variety of ports to get your important peripherals all related to the Alienware Aurora 16X, even in the event you don’t have Bluetooth equipment. There’s a Thunderbolt 4 slot for quick connectivity (nice for exterior storage) in addition to a further USB Kind-C port. You additionally get two USB Kind-A ports and a headphone jack to attach legacy gadgets. Then there’s an HDMI 2.1 slot to hook up with an exterior show, and an Ethernet port to hurry up your web velocity. However with Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4, you shouldn’t have to fret a lot about connectivity.
The keyboard is snug due to the comfortable palm rests, however the important thing journey is a bit brief. It’s okay to sort on, but it surely’s not satisfying to make use of when gaming. I want the keyboard was a bit larger on the deck. The angled palm relaxation makes it really feel like my hand is sliding off when within the WASD place. And the touchpad is in an identical boat the place it’s disagreeable to make use of – it’s too resistant, stiff, and small.
Laptop computer webcams are nearly by no means good, and the Alienware Aurora 16X’s 1080p shooter isn’t any exception. It’ll get you thru video chatting with pals, however between the grain imposed over the picture and the washed out colours, I wouldn’t attempt to stream with this factor.
Dolby Atmos isn’t sufficient to raise the audio system past middling. The dialogue in Cyberpunk 2077 sounded crisp, however mixed with the gunfire and techno music, it felt extra like a muddled mess. It gave me a headache listening to it for a short time. I extremely advocate gaming with headphones.
Efficiency
The Alienware Aurora 16X delivers all of the efficiency you anticipate from an RTX 5070, hitting strong numbers even within the highest settings on intensive AAA video games. Nevertheless, chances are you’ll wrestle in sure areas, particularly in the event you’re averse to supersampling know-how.
Earlier than I obtained to the crunchy numbers, the Alienware Aurora 16X suffered from some critical stuttering whereas gaming. I up to date my graphics drivers and Home windows 11, and sure, turned it on and off once more. I took a peak on the Alienware Command Heart (Settings > Efficiency) and noticed that Hybrid Graphics was enabled, which permits the laptop computer to change between built-in and discrete graphics to save lots of on battery life. I disabled that with the MUX Change and video games ran advantageous after that.
I reached out to Dell for some perception, and a consultant tried to duplicate the problem on a distinct machine, however didn’t see the stuttering. I’ve skilled points with hybrid graphics on different gaming laptops, so it won’t be an issue on Aurora 16X, however in the event you run into it, you now know what to do.
Name of Responsibility: Black Ops 7 ran easy as I began rinsing fools by a Japanese feudal fortress and a conflict-torn Alaskan city. The benchmarks mirrored that nice efficiency, too, proving that the Alienware Aurora 16X can deal with aggressive video games on the highest settings. Nevertheless, as I discussed earlier, the Aurora isn’t taking full benefit of its 240Hz display. If you’d like larger frames, you might want to flip the graphics down.
On a extra intensive take a look at, the Alienware Aurora 16X cleared 30 fps in Cyberpunk 2077 at its native decision set to Ray Tracing Extremely. Nevertheless, Ray Tracing Overdrive proved to be an excessive amount of for it, and that tracks with most mid-vary gaming laptops. However in the event you run it at 1200p, you’ll get playable frames on the highest settings.
With no upscaling know-how, the Aurora 16X’s RTX 5070 did decently effectively on the Metro Exodus benchmark, scoring near 60 fps at 1200p on the very best settings. But it surely didn’t get previous the 30 fps threshold at its native decision.
In video games like Murderer’s Creed Shadows, you possibly can see the good thing about body technology know-how. At Extremely Excessive settings on its native decision, the Alienware Aurora 16X jumped from unplayable to a mean of over 50 fps.
Battery Life
Gaming laptops sometimes don’t final very lengthy within the battery life division, though they’ve improved through the years, with laptops just like the Razer Blade 14 hitting over 7 hours. However the Alienware Aurora 16X isn’t a 14-inch gaming laptop computer with decreased energy output. Its chunky 16 inches lasted solely 3 hours and 20 minutes on Procyon’s Workplace Productiveness Battery Life Check. (That is with hybrid graphics enabled.)
The Alienware Aurora 16X isn’t going to get you very far when gaming on battery alone, to not point out the truth that the efficiency will tank as effectively. I extremely advocate maintaining the Aurora 16X plugged in always.