CES 2024 | Alienware x16 R2 unveiled with high-end Intel Meteor Lake CPUs and GeForce RTX 40 series graphics cards

Last year, AMD showed off the Alienware x16  (curr. $3,346 on Amazon) as "one of the world's most premium gaming laptops". Its legacy continues this generation with the Alienware x16 R2. Most of its innards remain the same, but it gets the all-important Intel Meteor Lake treatment, and some of the lower-end screen configurations get the axe.

One can configure the Alienware x16 R2 with Intel Core Ultra 7 155H and Core Ultra 9 185H Meteor Lake processors. Only the former will be up for grabs initially. Similarly, GPU options include the GeForce RTX 4060 (140 W), RTX 4070 (140 W), RTX 4080 (175 W) and RTX 4090 (175 W). Models powered by the last two GPUs will launch later this year. The CPU and GPU combined can access 220 Watts of power.

Dell says the Alienware x16 R2 uses its proprietary Element 31 cooling material on all GPUs and some high-end CPUs, too. The GeForce RTX 4080 and RTX 4090-powered SKUs get a vapour chamber for extra cooling and a full-metal anodised aluminium and magnesium alloy chassis. The others don't really need it, given their lower power requirements.

Memory configurations are a bit of a mess for the Alienware x16 R2. GeForce RTX 4090 and RTX 4080 variants get 32 GB LPDDR5X 7,467 modules. Some RTX 4070 models get 32 GB LPDDR5X 6,400 modules, while other RTX 4070 and RTX 4060 versions get 16 GB of LPDDR5X 6400 memory. For storage, one can use up to a single 4 TB PCIe Gen4 NVMe SSD or 2x 4TB modules in RAID 0.

As mentioned earlier, Dell has decluttered the Alienware x16 R2's display configurations. Now, one gets a 16-inch QHD+ (2,560 x 1,660) IPS LCD screen clocked at 240 Hz. It has a 3 ms response time, covers 100% of the DCI-P3 colour gamut and is compatible with Nvidia G-Sync and Advanced Optimus.

Connectivity options on the Alienware x16 R2 include Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3, one Thunderbolt 4.0 port, one USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C port, one HDMI 2.1 port, one miniDP 1.4 port, two USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A ports, a 3.5 mm audio jack and an SD card reader. One can optionally add a CherryMX mechanical keyboard for some extra clack.

The Alienware x16 R2's price starts at $2,099 for the base configuration. Dell hasn't specified when you can buy it and says it is "coming soon".