Photo by Cameron Faulkner / The Verge
For CES 2022, Alienware is updating the specs in its X- and M-series laptops, but the company is also introducing an all-new laptop called the X14. It’s a 14-inch gaming laptop that fits right in with the X15 and X17 in terms of design, though obviously, it’s made for people who don’t want to lug around a hefty machine. It’s about four pounds, compared to the X15 that starts at around five pounds. This puts it at a similar weight to Razer’s Blade 14.
The X14 starts at $1,799.99, which is by no means affordable, but you’re getting some capable specs in this 14-inch laptop. It has Intel’s latest 12th Gen processors (up to the Core i7-12900H), up to the Nvidia RTX 3060 graphics (the X14’s RTX 3060 yields a total graphics power of 85W once the laptop’s dynamic boost feature kicks in), and DDR5 RAM clocked at 5,200MHz — that’s much faster than what’s currently available in most gaming laptops. The X15 and X17 for 2022 also support up 5,200MHz RAM.
Photo by Cameron Faulkner / The Verge
Here’s the X14 sitting atop the X15. Cute, no?
The RAM can’t be added or changed post-purchase, as Alienware is soldering it to the board. Though, the single M.2 slot can be swapped with up to a 2TB M.2 SSD, if you want to upgrade down the line.
Alienware is touting that the X14’s 14.5mm-thick chassis is the thinnest 14-inch gaming laptop in existence and that it’s the only laptop of this size to feature both an Nvidia G-Sync display and Nvidia’s Advanced Optimus feature. That allows the laptop to automatically run off the dedicated GPU for more power or scale back and work with the integrated graphics for better battery performance. The X14’s 80Wh battery may deliver better-than-expected results for a gaming laptop, but Alienware didn’t have a battery life claim to share in time for CES 2022.
Photo by Cameron Faulkner / The Verge
Another shot of the X14 showing off just how tiny it is.
Alienware hopes to release the X14 in early 2022, and we’ll be sure to compare it to other 14-inch gaming laptops during our testing. It’s a surprisingly competitive space, with Asus’ ROG Zephyrus G14, the Razer Blade 14, and others, so I’m curious to see how it stacks up.