Alienware X17 R1 vs. MSI Alpha 17 A4DX: Full specs comparison

We have comprehensively analyzed the technical specifications for the Alienware X17 R1 and MSI Alpha 17 A4DX models. Our report includes intricate details such as the CPU, memory, storage, battery life, display quality, and other features.

Alienware X17 R1 Pros

Reasons that Alienware X17 R1 is better than MSI Alpha 17 A4DX.

Newer manufacturing

2021 vs. 2020

Much faster CPU performance

Intel Core i9-11980HK inside Alienware X17 R1 has a 50% better multi-core CPU performance score than the AMD Ryzen 7-4800H inside MSI Alpha 17 A4DX.

Geekbench 5 multi-core score
Alienware X17 R1 - Intel Core i9-11980HK
9,677
Alienware X17 R1 - Intel Core i7-11800H
7,908
MSI Alpha 17 A4DX - AMD Ryzen 7-4800H
6,440
Supports faster memory

Alienware X17 R1 supports a faster memory speed than the MSI Alpha 17 A4DX. It supports up to 3466MHz versus 3200MHz of system memory on the MSI Alpha 17 A4DX.

Memory type and speed
Alienware X17 R1 - DDR4 XMP
3,466 MHz
MSI Alpha 17 A4DX - DDR4
3,200 MHz

MSI Alpha 17 A4DX Pros

Reasons that MSI Alpha 17 A4DX is better than Alienware X17 R1.

About 14% lighter

MSI Alpha 17 A4DX weighed 5.73 pounds, 14% lighter than the 6.65 pounds Alienware X17 R1.

WeightAlienware X17 R1MSI Alpha 17 A4DX
Pound
6.65 lbs.
5.73 lbs.
Kilogram
3.02 kg
2.60 kg

Key Similars

Similar characteristics share between Alienware X17 R1 and MSI Alpha 17 A4DX.

Supports the same maximum memory size of up to 64GB

Both laptops supports up to 64GB of system memory.

Max system memory size
Alienware X17 R1
64 GB
MSI Alpha 17 A4DX
64 GB
Upgradable memory

Both laptops come with available RAM slots that allow you to replace or upgrade when needed.

MemoryAlienware X17 R1MSI Alpha 17 A4DX
Slots
x2
x2
TypeDDR4 XMPDDR4

Prices

Here are the latest price updates and offers for both devices.

Alienware X17 Price
Alienware X17 R2 VR Ready Gaming Laptop - 17.3-inch FHD 360Hz 1ms Display, Core i7-12700H, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070Ti 8GB GDDR6, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi 6, USB-C, Windows 11 Home - White
Alienware X17 R2 VR Ready Gaming Laptop - 17.3-inch FHD 360Hz 1ms Display, Core i7-12700H, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070Ti 8GB GDDR6, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi 6, USB-C, Windows 11 Home - White
By Alienware
$1,879.99
$2,149.97 13% OFF
Dell Alienware X17 R2 Gaming Laptop - 17.3-inch FHD 480Hz Display, Intel Core i9-12900HK, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080Ti 16GB GDDR6, VR Ready, Wi-Fi 6, Windows 11 Home - Lunar Light
Dell Alienware X17 R2 Gaming Laptop - 17.3-inch FHD 480Hz Display, Intel Core i9-12900HK, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080Ti 16GB GDDR6, VR Ready, Wi-Fi 6, Windows 11 Home - Lunar Light
By Dell
$2,296.00
Dell Alienware X17 R2 Gaming Laptop (2022) | 17.3" 120Hz 4K | Core i9-2TB SSD Hard Drive - 32GB RAM - RTX 3080 | Cores - 12th Gen CPU - 8GB GDDR6X Win 11 Home
Dell Alienware X17 R2 Gaming Laptop (2022) | 17.3" 120Hz 4K | Core i9-2TB SSD Hard Drive - 32GB RAM - RTX 3080 | Cores - 12th Gen CPU - 8GB GDDR6X Win 11 Home
By Dell
$2,545.47
MSI Alpha 17 A4DX Price
MSI Alpha 17 Laptop: Ryzen 9 7945HX, GeForce RTX 4070, 17.3" QHD 240Hz 3ms, 16GBDDR5, 1TB NVMe SSD, Type C, Cooler Boost 5, Win11 Home: Aluminum Black 17C7VG-007US
MSI Alpha 17 Laptop: Ryzen 9 7945HX, GeForce RTX 4070, 17.3" QHD 240Hz 3ms, 16GBDDR5, 1TB NVMe SSD, Type C, Cooler Boost 5, Win11 Home: Aluminum Black 17C7VG-007US
By MSI
$1,999.99
MSI Alpha 17 17.3" 144Hz Gaming Laptop AMD Ryzen 7 5800H 16GB RAM 512GB SSD AMD Radeon RX 6600M 8GB GDDR6
MSI Alpha 17 17.3" 144Hz Gaming Laptop AMD Ryzen 7 5800H 16GB RAM 512GB SSD AMD Radeon RX 6600M 8GB GDDR6
By MSI
$899.00
MSI Katana 17 Gaming Laptop: 13th Gen Intel Core i7, GeForce RTX 4060, 17.3" 144Hz FHD Display, 32GB DDR5, 1TB NVMe SSD, USB-Type C, Cooler Boost 5, Win11 Home: Black B13VFK-835US
MSI Katana 17 Gaming Laptop: 13th Gen Intel Core i7, GeForce RTX 4060, 17.3" 144Hz FHD Display, 32GB DDR5, 1TB NVMe SSD, USB-Type C, Cooler Boost 5, Win11 Home: Black B13VFK-835US
By MSI
$1,399.00

Availability

Alienware X17 R1MSI Alpha 17 A4DX
Released20212020
Release DateAvailable on June 1, 2021-
Pricing
  • $2,099.99
    i7-11800H 16GB 256GB RTX 3060 6GB FHD 165Hz
  • $2,479.99
    i7-11800H 16GB 512GB RTX 3070 8GB FHD 165Hz
  • $3,229.99
    i7-11800H 32GB 512GB RTX 3080 16GB UHD 120Hz
  • $3,629.99
    i9-11980HK 32GB XMP 512GB RTX 3080 16GB UHD 120Hz
-
Generations-

Exterior

Alienware X17 R1MSI Alpha 17 A4DX
Dimensions
  • 15.718” x 11.791” x 0.823” (399.23 x 299.49 x 20.9 mm)
    With FHD 360Hz diplay.
  • 15.718” x 11.791” x 0.843” (399.23 x 299.49 x 21.4 mm)
    With FHD 165Hz or UHD 120Hz diplay.
15.69” x 10.70” x 1.10” (398.5 x 272 x 28 mm)
Weight6.65 - 7.05 lbs (3.02 - 3.2 kg)5.73 lbs (2.6 kg)
Colors
Lunar light
With High Endurance Clear Coat and Silky - Smooth Finish
Aluminum Black
Keyboard and Trackpad
  • Keyboard
    • Alienware X-Series thin keyboard
    • Per-key RGB LED with AlienFX lighting
    • Anti-ghosting and N-key rollover technology.
    • 1.5mm key travel.
  • Touchpad
    • Multi-touch gesture Premium Precision glass touchpad with integrated scrolling.
    • 4.13 x 2.36 in (105 mm x 80 mm) precision touchpad with multi-touch gesture support.
    • Supports AlienFX touchpad.
  • Keyboard
    • Backlight Keyboard (Single-Color, Red)
    • Per-Key RGB gaming keyboard by SteelSeries with Silver-Lining Print.
  • Touchpad
    • Silky smooth touchpad with a multi-touch gesture.

Display

Alienware X17 R1MSI Alpha 17 A4DX
Size17.3 Inches17.3 Inches
Info
  • 17.3” FHD with 165Hz
    1920 x 1080 127 PPI ComfortView Plus 3ms response time 300 nits 16:9 100% sRGB 1000:1 Anti-glare WVA 7.2 W
  • 17.3” FHD with 360Hz
    1920 x 1080 127 PPI ComfortView Plus NVIDIA G-Sync Advanced Optimus 1ms response time 300 nits 16:9 100% sRGB 800:1 Anti-glare WVA 8.4 W
  • 17.3” UHD with 120Hz
    3840 x 2160 255 PPI ComfortView Plus 4ms response time 500 nits 16:9 100% Adobe RGB 1200:1 Anti-glare WVA 12.2 W
  • 17.3" FHD (1920x1080), 60Hz, IPS-Level
  • 17.3" FHD (1920x1080), 144Hz, IPS-Level

Ports

Alienware X17 R1MSI Alpha 17 A4DX
Alienware X17 R1 Ports
Image Source: Dell
Left (1)
  • 1 x power port
Right (1)
  • 1 x headphone jack
    Headphone/Microphone
Back (8)
  • 1 x Thunderbolt 4
    40 Gpbs, USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps), Power Delivery (5V/3A)
  • 1 x USB-C
    USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps), Power Delivery (5V/3A)
  • 2 x USB-A
    USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps), Powershare
  • 1 x HDMI
    v2.1
  • 1 x Mini DisplayPort
    v1.4
  • 1 x microSD card slot
  • 1 x RJ-45
    2.5 Gbps, Killer E3100
  • 1 x USB Type-C 3.2 Gen 1
  • 3 x USB Type-A 3.2 Gen 1
  • 1 x RJ45
  • 1 x SD (XC/HC) card reader
  • 1 x HDMI (4K @ 60Hz)
  • 1 x Mini-DisplayPort
  • 1 x Mic-in
  • 1x Headphone-out (SPDIF)

Internal Specs

Alienware X17 R1MSI Alpha 17 A4DX
Processor
  1. 11th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-11800H
    8 cores, 16 threads, 2.30 → 4.60 GHz, 24MB SmartCache, 45W
  2. 11th Gen Intel® Core™ i9-11980HK
    8 cores, 16 threads, 3.30 → 5.00 GHz, 24MB SmartCache, 65W
  1. AMD Ryzen™ 7 4800H
    8 cores, 16 threads, 2.90 → 4.20 GHz, 4MB L2 Cache, 8MB L3 Cache, 45W
Integrated Graphics
  1. 11th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-11800H
    Intel® UHD Graphics
    32 Execution Units, 350 → 1450 MHz
  2. 11th Gen Intel® Core™ i9-11980HK
    Intel® UHD Graphics
    32 Execution Units, 350 → 1450 MHz
  1. AMD Ryzen™ 7 4800H
    AMD Radeon™ Graphics
    7 Graphics Cores, 1600 MHz
Memory
8 GB 16 GB 32 GB 64GB
3200MHz or 3466MHz Dual-channel DDR4 SDRAM.
2 x SO-DIMM slots.
  • Max 32GB of 3200 MHz DDR4 Memory
  • Max 64GB of 3466 MHz XMP DDR4 Memory
Up to 64GB 3200MHz Dual-channel DDR4 SDRAM
2 x SO-DIMM slots.
Discrete Graphics
  • NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 3060
    6GB GDDR6 TGP: 115W Dynamic Boost: 15W Max Power: 130W Speed: 1387 → 1702 MHz
  • NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 3070
    8GB GDDR6 TGP: 125W Dynamic Boost: 15W Max Power: 140W Speed: 1215 → 1620 MHz
  • NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 3080
    16GB GDDR6 TGP: 150W Dynamic Boost: 15W Max Power: 165W Speed: 1350 → 1710 MHz
* All configurations include 12-phase HyperEfficient graphics voltage regulation.
AMD Radeon™ RX 5600M
Video memory: 6GB GDDR6 VRAM.
Storage
  • 2 x M.2 2280 slots (Up to 2TB each)
    Supports RAID-0
2 x M.2 SSD Combo slot (NVMe PCIe Gen 3 / SATA)

Connectivity

Alienware X17 R1MSI Alpha 17 A4DX
Wi-FiRivet Killer Wi-Fi 6E AX1675w
Triple Band 2.4GHz/5GHz/6GHz Up to 2400 Mbps WiFi 6 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax
802.11 AX Wi-Fi 6
BluetoothBluetooth 5.2Bluetooth 5.1
EthernetKiller E3100 2.5G Ethernet Controller
Transfer rate: 10/100/1000/2500 Mbps
Gigabit LAN
Speed: 10/100/1000 Mbps.

Battery

Alienware X17 R1MSI Alpha 17 A4DX
Size87 WHr, 6-cell smart lithium-ion battery65Wh (6-cell Li-Ion battery)
Power Supply
240W 330W
power adapter.
230W power adapter

Software

Alienware X17 R1MSI Alpha 17 A4DX
OS
Windows 10 Home Windows 10 Pro
Upgradable to Windows 11
Windows 10 Home
Built-in Apps
  • Alienware Command Center
    AlienFX lighting Game Library Auto-tune game profile functionality Fusion Alienware Adrenalin Alienware Mobile Connect
  • Microsoft Office 365 (30-day trial)
Dragaon Center MSI App Player SteelSeries Engine 3

Camera & Audio

Alienware X17 R1MSI Alpha 17 A4DX
Camera
  • Front-facing camera.
    Alienware HD (1280x720 resolution) camera.
  • Windows Hello IR support.
Front-facing camera
720p (1280 x 720 HD) camera.
Audio
  • Controller: Realtek ALC3281
    • 7.1 Digital Audio out using HDMI out connection
    • Alienware Sound Center via Alienware Command Center
  • Speakers:
    • 2 x 4W speakers
  • Microphone:
    • Dual-array microphones
  • Speakers
    • 2 x 2W Speakers
    • Giant Speaker
      5 times bigger than other louder sounds, more resonance, and higher quality.
    • Nahimic 3
      Enhance in-game 3D surround sound and make finite control over your music, movies, and conference calls.
    • Hi-Res Audio
      Immerse yourself in lossless music and enjoy the premium sound quality with Hi-Resolution Audio. Experience and listen to audio the way it was intended.
  • Microphone
    • Array Microphones.

Misc

Alienware X17 R1MSI Alpha 17 A4DX
SensorsWindows Hello IR Camera-
Warranty1 Year Hardware Service with Onsite/In-Home Service After Remote Diagnosis1-year Limited Warranty (Include 1 Year Global)

Key Features

Alienware X17 R1MSI Alpha 17 A4DX
At Glance
Released in Mid
2021
16:9 4K UHD
17.3”
2160p 120Hz
Weight
6.65 lb
3.02 kg
Up to
Intel Core i9-11980HK
8C/16T, 3.30 → 5.00 GHz
Geekbench 5
1,646
Single Core
Geekbench 5
9,677
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® UHD Graphics
32 Execution Units, 350 → 1450 MHz
Upgradable up to
64GB
3466 MHz DDR4 XMP
Alienware X17 R1 Ports
Nvidia GeForce
RTX 3080
16GB GDDR6 150W TGP
Released in
2020
16:9 FHD
17.3”
1080p 144Hz
Weight
5.73 lb
2.60 kg
Powered By
AMD Ryzen 7-4800H
8C/16T, 2.90 → 4.20 GHz
Geekbench 5
1,078
Single Core
Geekbench 5
6,440
Multi-Core
With integrated
AMD Radeon™ Graphics
7 Graphics Cores, 1600 MHz
Upgradable up to
64GB
3200 MHz DDR4
AMD Radeon
RX 5600M
6GB GDDR6

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