Alienware 15 Gaming Laptop (2015)

The Alienware 15 (2015) by Dell is a gaming laptop with a 15.6-inch display, Intel’s processors, and various dedicated video card choices. The 15.6-inch screen has either Full HD 1920×1080-pixel or 4K Ultra HD 3840×2160 resolution. In both cases, the panels are powered by IPS technology which enables wide viewing angles, while the 4K-equipped configurations additionally support touchscreen input. Processor choices are the dual-core Intel Core i5-4210H and an upper-mid-range solution and the higher-end Core i7-4710HQ with four cores. Graphics options are generous. Customers can chose between four GPUs. Namely, the upper-mid-range GeForce GTX 965M 2GB and 970M 3GB and the top-of-the-line GeForce GTX 980M 4GB and AMD Radeon HD M295X 4GB. System memory size is either 8GB or 16GB. That’s less than 24GB or whooping 32GB on some gaming notebook models, but still sufficient for comfortable gaming and heavy multitasking. As for storage space, the Alienware 15 offers a 1-Terabyte hard drive at 5,400rpm, which can be optionally accompanied by a 128GB, 256GB or 512GB solid state drive in M.2 form factor.

Outwardly, the most remarkable parts on the 1.3″ thick seven-pound chassis are the full-size keyboard without numeric pad and trackpad with real “click” buttons. Both the keyboard and trackpad sport LED backlight, with color customization enabled. The Alienware 15 has stereo speakers and a webcam, Wi-Fi, Ethernet LAN, and Bluetooth connections, and an admirable selection of ports and slots including four USBs at 3.0 speed, HDMI and mini DisplayPort video connectors, separate audio out and in jacks, a 9-in-1 media card reader, and the Graphics Amplifier port.

Just like the smaller Alienware 13 and larger 17, the 15-inch version supports Alienware Graphics Amplifier. It’s an external device which consists of a chassis, a built-in power supply and a slot in which you can put a full-blown desktop video card to improve graphics performance of the laptop.

Here are the specs of the Alienware 15 with descriptions of its features. For comparison against other laptops, you can use the "Compare Specs" button.

Brand	Dell
Screen Size	15.6-inch This is by far the most popular laptop screen size. It provides a lot of screen real estate, while avoiding bulkiness of the 17.3" laptops.
Screen Resolution	1920x1080 pixels Full HD Full HD is the most common laptop screen resolution today. It provides a good image sharpness and a decent amount of space on the display for the user interface and programs. However, it isn't as good as the top-tier 4K Ultra HD. 3840x2160 pixels Ultra HD, 4K The popular top-level Ultra HD 4K resolution is extremely sharp and delivers a lot of space for displaying content on the screen.
Touchscreen	Finger multi-touch input (optional) The device optionally comes with touchscreen capability.
Other Display Specs	IPS type Displays based on IPS technology provide much wider viewing angles than the budget-class TN screens.
Processor (CPU)	Intel Core i5-4210H dual-core 2.9-3.5GHz 3MB cache (User Benchmark CPU score: 47) Intel Core i7-4710HQ 4th Gen quad-core 2.5-3.5GHz 6MB cache (User Benchmark CPU score: 57)
Graphics (GPU)	AMD Radeon HD 295X 4GB GDDR5 dedicated video card (User Benchmark GPU score: 38) Nvidia GeForce GTX 965M 2GB GDDR5 "Maxwell" dedicated video card (for light gaming, but with improved smoothness) Nvidia GeForce GTX 970M "Maxwell" 3GB GDDR5 dedicated video card (able to run all games, but may not be smooth on high detail settings in heavy games) Nvidia GeForce GTX 980M "Maxwell" 8GB GDDR5 dedicated video card (able to run all games, but may not be smooth on high detail settings in heavy games)
System Memory (RAM) Size	8GB RAM The 8GB RAM size is the standard one in 2023. It provides comfortable multi-tasking for the most home and office users. 16GB RAM 16GB and greater RAM sizes are recommended for heavy multitasking, gaming, and specialized programs that require a lot of RAM.
Data Storage	1000GB (1TB) HDD 1TB is an excellent storage capacity, but HDD is a slow type of storage. 1000GB (1TB) HDD + 128GB SSD This is an excellent capacity, but the HDD portion is a slow type of storage. 1000GB (1TB) HDD + 256GB SSD This is an excellent capacity, but the HDD portion is a slow type of storage. 1000GB (1TB) HDD + 512GB SSD This is a huge capacity, but the HDD portion is a slow type of storage.
DVD Optical Drive	None
Keyboard & Input	Backlit keyboard with dedicated number pad The keyboard has backlit keys and a separate numeric pad on the right side of the keyboard. Touchpad with separate physical click buttons The touchpad features physical left and right click buttons, as opposed to click buttons integrated into the touchpad surface. Touchscreen
Speakers & Audio	Stereo speakers As usual, the device features a pair of built-in stereo speakers.
Camera	Front-facing web camera Laptops usually feature a frontal webcam located on the display bezel. This laptop is no exception.
Wi-Fi Wireless	802.11AC The 802.11AC is the previous-generation wireless networking standard. It's also known as Wi-Fi 5. 802.11AC is succeeded by 802.11AX Wi-Fi 6 with data transfer speed and multi-device connectivity improvements.
Ethernet Network Port	Yes This laptop has an Ethernet LAN port for wired internet and networking connectivity.
Bluetooth	Yes This laptop has a built-in Bluetooth module. It enables you to connect the computer to Bluetooth mice and other Bluetooth peripherals, smartphones, and other Bluetooth-equipped devices.
USB Ports	4 x USB 3.0 A total of four full-size USB Type A ports.
Video Output Ports	1 x HDMI HDMI is a widely used digital video output port. You can find HDMI-in ports on most computer monitors and TVs. 1 x mini DisplayPort DisplayPort is a digital video output port. It is not as widely used as HDMI. The laptop has a compact "mini" version of DisplayPort on its side.
Media Card Reader	SD card reader The laptop has a slot for full-size SD memory cards, used in many digital cameras. You can also use microSD cards with a card adapter.
Other Features	Alienware Graphics Amplifier Port
Battery	8-cell 92 Whr
Weight	7.1 pounds
Height	1.3"
Width	15.2"
Depth	10.6"
Windows Version	Windows 8.1 Windows 8.1 is eligible for free upgrade to Windows 10 Home. Check Windows.com for more info. Windows 8.1 Pro Windows 8.1 Pro is eligible for free upgrade to Windows 10 Pro. Check Windows.com for more info. Windows 7 Pro Windows 7 Pro is eligible for a free upgrade to Windows 10 Pro. Check Windows.com for more info.
Warranty	1-year A typical laptop warranty.