Computex 2019 | New Dell Alienware m15 R2 is essentially a miniaturized Area-51m

Normally, manufacturers wait two years or more before fully refreshing the design of a laptop series. The current 2019 XPS 15 7590, for example, hasn't had any major chassis changes since its introduction over three years ago. Thus, we were surprised to find a brand new never-before-seen Alienware m15 design at Computex 2019.

Called the Alienware m15 R2, the chassis is set to eventually replace the barely one-year old first generation Alienware m15. The system will be slightly thinner with a design language inspired by the larger 17.3-inch Area-51m unveiled at CES 2019. This approach of sharing one common visual design language across a single family of devices common in the world of laptops including on the XPS series, Asus ZenBook series, and the Lenovo Legion series.

As with any chassis redesign, expect some major changes both inside and out. The Alienware m15 R2 will have per-key RGB lighting and deeper 1.7 mm keys than last year's model with rearranged ports as well. Intel 9th gen CPUs come standard up to the unlocked Core i9-9980HK. Dell is promising 30 percent improved cooling with all the new changes to the chassis.

Storage and display options remain identical between the two generations up to the same 4K UHD OLED panel. GPU options will be slightly different, but they will still max out at the RTX 2080 Max-Q.

There are a couple of downsides on the Alienware m15 R2. Battery capacity has dropped to 76 Wh from 90 Wh on last year's model and system RAM is now soldered and non-upgradeable up to 16 GB DDR4-2666 only. Dell says they will offer 32 GB options in the future when the appropriate DIMMs become available. It's disappointing that not even one SODIMM slot will available as even the less expensive and slightly thinner Asus Zephyrus G GA502 offers the feature.

The Alienware m15 R2 will launch on July 1st for a starting price of $1500 USD in the same dark gray and light gray color options as the Area-51m. The original 2018 Alienware m15 will continue to be available through Dell.com for the time being.