Dell XPS 15 9520 vs. Alienware M18 R1: Full specs comparison

We thoroughly analyzed technical specifications for Dell XPS 15 9520 and Alienware M18 R1 models, including CPU, memory, storage, battery life, display quality, and other features.

Dell XPS 15 9520 Pros

Reasons that Dell XPS 15 9520 is better than Alienware M18 R1.

About 43% lighter

Dell XPS 15 9520 weighed 4.06 pounds, 43% lighter than the 7 pounds Alienware M18 R1.

WeightDell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
Pound
4.06 lbs.
7 lbs.
Kilogram
1.84 kg
3.18 kg

Alienware M18 R1 Pros

Reasons that Alienware M18 R1 is better than Dell XPS 15 9520.

Newer manufacturing

2023 vs. 2022

Much faster CPU performance

Intel Core i9-13900HX inside Alienware M18 R1 has a 53% better multi-core CPU performance score than the Intel Core i9-12900HK inside Dell XPS 15 9520.

Geekbench 5 multi-core score
Alienware M18 R1 - Intel Core i9-13900HX
20,000
Alienware M18 R1 - Intel Core i7-13700HX
15,438
Dell XPS 15 9520 - Intel Core i9-12900HK
13,006
Dell XPS 15 9520 - Intel Core i7-12700H
11,774
Dell XPS 15 9520 - Intel Core i5-12500H
9,293
15% larger display

Alienware M18 R1 has a 18-inch screen size 15% larger than the 15.6-inch Dell XPS 15 9520.

Display size
Alienware M18 R1
18-inch
Dell XPS 15 9520
15.6-inch
Has six more ports and slots

Alienware M18 R1 has more ports and slots count than the Dell XPS 15 9520. It has twelve versus six amount of ports and slots on the Dell XPS 15 9520.

PortsDell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
full-size SD card slotYesYes
HDMINoYes
headphone jackYesYes
lock slotYesNo
Mini DisplayPortNoYes
power portNoYes
RJ-45NoYes
Thunderbolt 4Yes x2Yes x2
USB-ANoYes x3
USB-CYesYes
Total612
Much better versatile connectivity

Alienware M18 R1 has better versatile I/O connectivity than the Dell XPS 15 9520. It has nine versus four commonly used ports and slots on the Dell XPS 15 9520.

PortsDell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
full-size SD card slotYesYes
headphone jackYesYes
Thunderbolt 4YesYes
USB-CYesYes
HDMINoYes
Mini DisplayPortNoYes
power portNoYes
RJ-45NoYes
USB-ANoYes

Key Similars

Similar characteristics share between Dell XPS 15 9520 and Alienware M18 R1.

Supports the same maximum memory size of up to 64GB

Both laptops supports up to 64GB of system memory.

Max system memory size
Dell XPS 15 9520
64 GB
Alienware M18 R1
64 GB
Uses the same memory type and speed

Both laptops supports the same 4800MHz DDR5 RAM.

Memory type and speed
Dell XPS 15 9520 - DDR5
4,800 MHz
Alienware M18 R1 - DDR5
4,800 MHz
Upgradable memory

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

MemoryDell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
Slots
x2
x2
TypeDDR5DDR5

Prices

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

Dell XPS 15 9520 Price
Dell XPS 15 9520 15.6" FHD+ (Intel 12th Gen 14-Core i7-12700H (Beat i9-11980HK), 64GB DDR5 RAM, 2TB PCIe SSD, RTX 3050) Business Laptop, Backlit, Fingerprint, Thunderbolt 4, Webcam, Win 11 Pro
Dell XPS 15 9520 15.6" FHD+ (Intel 12th Gen 14-Core i7-12700H (Beat i9-11980HK), 64GB DDR5 RAM, 2TB PCIe SSD, RTX 3050) Business Laptop, Backlit, Fingerprint, Thunderbolt 4, Webcam, Win 11 Pro
By Dell
$1,599.99
$1,699.99 6% OFF
DELL XPS 15 9520 15.6" Laptop Intel Core i7-12700H(14-Core) 1TB PCIe SSD 32GB RAM FHD+ (1920x1200) 500 Nit RTX 3050 Windows 11 PRO
DELL XPS 15 9520 15.6" Laptop Intel Core i7-12700H(14-Core) 1TB PCIe SSD 32GB RAM FHD+ (1920x1200) 500 Nit RTX 3050 Windows 11 PRO
By Dell
$1,499.99
$2,029.00 26% OFF
Dell XPS 15 9520 (Latest Model) Intel 12th Gen Core i7-12700H (14-CORE) 1TB PCIe SSD 32GB DDR5 RAM FHD+ Non Touch RTX 3050 Win 11 Pro (Renewed)
Dell XPS 15 9520 (Latest Model) Intel 12th Gen Core i7-12700H (14-CORE) 1TB PCIe SSD 32GB DDR5 RAM FHD+ Non Touch RTX 3050 Win 11 Pro (Renewed)
By Dell
$2,362.99
Alienware M18 R1 Price
Alienware m18 AMD Gaming Laptop - 18-inch FHD+ (1920 x 1200) 480Hz 3ms Display, AMD Ryzen 9-7845HX, 32GB DDR5 RAM, 1TB SSD, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 GDDR6, 1-Year Premium Support - Dark Metallic Moon
Alienware m18 AMD Gaming Laptop - 18-inch FHD+ (1920 x 1200) 480Hz 3ms Display, AMD Ryzen 9-7845HX, 32GB DDR5 RAM, 1TB SSD, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 GDDR6, 1-Year Premium Support - Dark Metallic Moon
By Alienware
$2,840.07
Alienware X16 R1 Gaming Laptop - 16-inch QHD+ 240Hz Display, Intel Core i9-13900HK, 32GB LPDDR5 RAM, 1TB SSD, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 12GB GDDR6, Windows 11 Home - Lunar Silver
Alienware X16 R1 Gaming Laptop - 16-inch QHD+ 240Hz Display, Intel Core i9-13900HK, 32GB LPDDR5 RAM, 1TB SSD, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 12GB GDDR6, Windows 11 Home - Lunar Silver
By Alienware
$2,499.99
$2,999.97 17% OFF
Alienware m18 R1 AMD Gaming Laptop 18-inch FHD+ (1920 x 1200, 480Hz 3ms) Display, 1TB SSD, 12-Core Ryzen 9 7845HX (32GB RAM, NVIDIA RTX 4070 GDDR6, Windows 11 Home) Dark Metallic Moon
Alienware m18 R1 AMD Gaming Laptop 18-inch FHD+ (1920 x 1200, 480Hz 3ms) Display, 1TB SSD, 12-Core Ryzen 9 7845HX (32GB RAM, NVIDIA RTX 4070 GDDR6, Windows 11 Home) Dark Metallic Moon
By Alienware
$2,999.00

Availability

Dell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
Released20222023
Release DateAnnounced on March 25, 2022.
  • Announced on January 3, 2023 (CES 2023)
  • Available starting in Q1 2023.
  • AMD models will be available starting in Q2 2023.
PricingWindows 11 Home
  • $1,439
    i5-12500H, 8GB, 512GB, Intel UHD, FHD+ Non-touch
Windows 11 Pro
  • $1,499
    i5-12500H, 8GB, 512GB, Intel UHD, FHD+ Non-touch
  • $1,599
    i5-12500H, 16GB, 512GB, Intel Iris Xe, FHD+ Non-touch
  • $1,949 
    i7-12700H, 16GB, 512GB, RTX 3050, FHD+ Non-touch
  • $2,049 
    i7-12700H, 16GB, 512GB, RTX 3050 Ti, FHD+ Non-touch
  • $2,349 
    i7-12700H, 16GB, 512GB, RTX 3050 Ti, 4K UHD+ Touch
  • $2,399 
    i9-12900HK, 16GB, 512GB, RTX 3050 Ti, FHD+ Touch
  • $2,699 
    i9-12900HK, 16GB, 512GB, RTX 3050 Ti, 3.5K OLED Touch
Starting at $2,099 or $2,849 (CA)
Applicable Models-
  • Alienware m18 Gaming Laptop
  • Original Alienware m18 Gaming Laptop
  • First Gen Alienware m18 Gaming Laptop
  • Alienware m18 R1 Gaming Laptop
  • Alienware m8 (2023) Gaming Laptop
  • Alienware m18 with 13th Gen Intel-HX55 processors
  • Alienware m18 with RTX 4000-Series
Generations-

Exterior

Dell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
Dimensions13.56” x 9.06” x 0.73” (344.40 x 230.10 x 18.54 mm)16.15 x 12.59 x 0.95 - 1.05 - 0.988 inch (410.3 x 319.9 x 24.1 - 26.7 - 25.1 mm)
Weight
  • 4.06 lb (1.84 kg)
    Non-touch with 56Wh.
  • 4.22 lb (1.92 kg)
    Non-touch with 86Wh.
  • 4.31 lb (1.96 kg)
    OLED touch with 86Wh.
  • 4.62 lb (2.10 kg)
    4K+ touch with 86Wh.
N/A
Colors
  • Platinum Silver exterior Black interior
  • CNC machined aluminum in platinum silver with carbon fiber composite palm rest in black
  • Edge-to-edge Corning® Gorilla® Glass 6 on the touch panel
Dark Metallic Moon aluminum
Keyboard and Trackpad
  • Full size, backlit chiclet keyboard.
  • Built-in Fingerprint Reader.
    On power button.
  • 5.94 x 3.54 in (150.90 mm x 90 mm) touchpad with multi-touch gesture support.
  • Alienware mSeries Per-Keyy AlienFX RGB keyboard.
  • Alienware's CherryMX ultra-low-profile mechanical laptop keyboard with per-key AlienFX lighting.
    • 1.8mm key travel
    • Includes N-key rollover technology
  • Touchpad
    • Multi-touch gesture touchpad with integrated scrolling.
Chasis Information-
  • Featuring the new Alienware's Legend 3.0 industrial design language
  • Updated Perimeter foot enables increased bottom side airflow aiding system and gaming performance
  • Reformed V-rail edges aid in daily use providing an ergonomic approach to using the laptop
  • All configurations are certified for Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos technologies
  • Engineered with Alienware Cryo
  • Tech ™Cooling technology
  • Constructed with copper alloy thermal components
  • Vapor chamber cooling technology over both the CPU and GPU

Display

Dell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
Size15.6 Inches18 Inches
Info
  • 15.6” FHD+ Nontouch
    1920 x 1200 145 PPI 500 nits 16:10 100% sRGB 1650:1 60Hz Dolby Vision™️ Eyesafe®️ Anti-glare WVA 4.41 W
  • 15.6” 3.5K OLED Touch
    3456 x 2160 261 PPI 400 nits 16:10 100% DCI-P3 SDR (80000:1) HDR(124000:1) 60Hz DisplayHDR™️ 500TB Dolby Vision™️ Eyesafe®️ Anti-glare WVA 8.74 W
  • 15.6” 4K UHD+ Touch
    3840 x 2400 290 PPI 500 nits 16:10 100% AdobeRGB 94% DCI-P3 1600:1 60Hz DisplayHDR™️ 400 Dolby Vision™️ Eyesafe®️ Anti-glare WVA 10.4 W
  • 18” FHD+ 480Hz 3ms
    1920 x 1200, 16:10, 480Hz, 300-nits, 100% DCI-P3 gamut,1000:1 contrast ratio, ComfortView Plus, 3ms response time, NVIDIA G-Sync, AMD FreeSync + Dynamic Display Switching.
  • 18” QHD+ 165Hz 3ms
    2560 x 1600, 16:10, 165Hz, 300-nits, 100% DCI-P3 gamut, 1000:1 contrast ratio, ComfortView Plus, 3ms response time, NVIDIA G-Sync, AMD FreeSync + Dynamic Display Switching.

Ports

Dell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
Dell XPS 15 9520 Ports
Image Source: Dell
Left (3)
  • 2 x Thunderbolt 4
    40 Gpbs, USB 4.0 (40 Gbps), DisplayPort, Power Delivery
  • 1 x lock slot
Right (3)
  • 1 x USB-C
    USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps), DisplayPort, Power Delivery
  • 1 x full-size SD card slot
  • 1 x headphone jack
    Headphone/Microphone
Alienware M18 R1 Ports
Image Source: Dell
Left (4)
Alienware M18 R1 Ports - Left
Image Source: Dell
  • 1 x RJ-45
  • 1 x USB-A
    USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps), PowerShare
  • 1 x USB-A
    USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps)
  • 1 x headphone jack
    Headphone/Microphone
Right (1)
Alienware M18 R1 Ports - Right
Image Source: Dell
  • 1 x USB-C
    USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps)
Back (7)
Alienware M18 R1 Ports - Back
Image Source: Dell
  • 2 x Thunderbolt 4
    40 Gpbs, USB 4.0 (40 Gbps), 15W (5V/3A) Power Delivery, DisplayPort 1.4
  • 1 x USB-A
    USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps)
  • 1 x HDMI
    v2.1
  • 1 x Mini DisplayPort
    v1.4
  • 1 x full-size SD card slot
  • 1 x power port

Internal Specs

Dell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
Processor
  1. 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-12500H
    12 cores, 16 threads, 2.50 → 4.50 GHz, 18MB SmartCache, 45W
  2. 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-12700H
    14 cores, 20 threads, 2.30 → 4.70 GHz, 24MB SmartCache, 45W
  3. 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i9-12900HK
    14 cores, 20 threads, 2.50 → 5.00 GHz, 24MB SmartCache, 45W
  1. 13th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-13650HX
    14 cores, 20 threads, 1.90 → 4.90 GHz, 24MB SmartCache, 55W
  2. 13th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-13700HX
    16 cores, 24 threads, 1.50 → 5.00 GHz, 30MB SmartCache, 55W
  3. 13th Gen Intel® Core™ i9-13900HX
    24 cores, 32 threads, 1.80 → 5.40 GHz, 36MB SmartCache, 55W
Integrated Graphics
  1. 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-12500H
    Intel® Iris® Xe Graphics
    80 Execution Units, 400 → 1300 MHz
  2. 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-12700H
    Intel® Iris® Xe Graphics
    96 Execution Units, 400 → 1400 MHz
  3. 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i9-12900HK
    Intel® Iris® Xe Graphics
    96 Execution Units, 400 → 1450 MHz
  1. 13th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-13650HX
    Intel® UHD Graphics
    16 Execution Units, → 1550 MHz
  2. 13th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-13700HX
    Intel® UHD Graphics
    32 Execution Units,
  3. 13th Gen Intel® Core™ i9-13900HX
    Intel® UHD Graphics
    32 Execution Units, 300 → 1650 MHz
Memory
4 GB 8 GB 16 GB 32 GB 64 GB
4800 MHz Dual-channel DDR5 RAM.
2 x SODIMM slots.
8 GB 16 GB 32 GB 64GB
4800 MHz Dual-channel DDR5 SDRAM.
2 x SO-DIMM slots.
Discrete Graphics
  • NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 3050
    Ampere Architecture 4GB GDDR6 128-bit 2304 CUDA Cores 40W
  • NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 3050 Ti
    Ampere Architecture 4GB GDDR6 128-bit 2560 CUDA Cores 45W
  • NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 4050 - 6GB GDDR6
    TGP: 115W, Dynamic Boost: 25W, Max Power: 140W, 2370 MHz
  • NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 4070 - 8GB GDDR6
    TGP: 115W, Dynamic Boost: 25W, Max Power: 140W, 2070 - 2175 MHz
  • NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 4080 - 12GB GDDR6
    TGP: 150W, Dynamic Boost: 25W, Max Power: 175W, 1860 - 2280 MHz
  • NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 4090 - 16GB GDDR6
    TGP: 150W, Dynamic Boost: 25W, Max Power: 175W, 1590 - 2040 MHz
Storage
256 GB 512 GB 1 TB 2TB 4TB 8TB
  PCIe Gen 4 x4 NVMe SSD.
Up to 64Gbps.
  • Storage slots: 2 x M.2 2230/2280 slots.
4 x M.2 2230/2280 slots (Up to 2TB each)
Fans Number-4
Cooling Info-7 heat pipes and 5 vents.

Connectivity

Dell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
Wi-FiIntel Killer 1675 (AX211)
Dual Band 2.4GHz/5GHz Up to 2400 Mbps WiFi 6 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax
  • Intel Killer 1675i Wi-Fi 6E
  • Intel Killer 1690i Wi-Fi 6E
BluetoothBluetooth 5.2Bluetooth 5.2
Ethernet-2.5 Gigabit Ethernet Controller

Battery

Dell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
Size
  • 56 Wh
    3-cell "smart" lithium-ion.
  • 86 Wh
    6-cell "smart" lithium-ion.
97 WHr, 6-cell smart lithium-ion battery
Battery Life
  • 13 hours 20 minutes
    On a FHD+ with 86Wh model.
  • 9 hours 13 minutes
    On a OLED 3.5K with 86Wh model.
  • 8 hours 42 minutes
    On a 4K UHD+ with 86Wh model.
-
Power Supply
  • 90 W USB Type-C power adapter
    Power rated at 5VDC/3A, 9VDc/3A, 15VDC/3A, 20VDC/4.5A.
  • 130 W USB Type-C power adapter
    Power rated at 5VDC/1A, 20VDC/6.5A.
330W
power adapter.

Software

Dell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
OSWindows 11
Home Pro
Windows 11
Home Pro
Built-in Apps
  • Microsoft Office 30-days trial
  • McAfee LiveSafe™ 12 Month Subscription
  • Alienware Command Center
    • Brand new architecture with redesigned UI/UX
    • The intuitive dashboard navigates all features, including thermals, system performance, overclocking, and themes
    • Game Library to manage titles from multiple services
    • AlienFX supports full RGB values up to 16.8 million colors, keybinds, and calibration settings on peripherals
    • Power Management pre-sets or manual controls
    • Overclocking controls system performance and overclocking profiles

Camera & Audio

Dell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
Camera
  • Front-facing camera
    Top-mount front camera with fixed focus lens, 0.92 Megapixels (1280 x 720 HD) at 30 fps.
  • Infrared camera
    576 x 360 (VGA) at 30 fps for Windows Hello Facial Recognition.
  • Front-facing camera.
    Alienware FHD (1920 x 1080 resolution) camera.
  • Windows Hello IR support.
Audio
  • Realtek ALC3281-CG
  • Studio quality tuning with Waves MaxxAudio® Pro and Waves Nx® 3D audio
  • Quad-speaker design with 2.5W x2 woofers and 1.5W x2 tweeters = 8W total peak output
  • Dual microphone array optimized with Waves MaxxVoice supporting VoIP - Microsoft Cortana capable
  • Speakers:
    • stereo speakers
  • Microphone:
    • Dual-array microphones

Misc

Dell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
Sensors
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Windows Hello compliant fingerprint reader in the power button
  • IR Camera
Windows Hello IR Camera
Security
  • Windows Hello with Fingerprint Sign in
  • Enterprise-grade protection with Windows Hello face sign-in
  • Wedge-shaped lock
-
Warranty1 Year ProSupport with Next Business Day Onsite Service1 Year Premium Support

Key Features

Dell XPS 15 9520Alienware M18 R1
At Glance
Released in Early
2022
16:10 3.5K
15.6”
2160p OLED
Weight
4.06 lb
1.84 kg
Up to
Intel Core i9-12900HK
14C/20T, 2.50 → 5.00 GHz
Geekbench 5
1,798
Single Core
Geekbench 5
13,006
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® Iris® Xe Graphics
96 Execution Units, 400 → 1450 MHz
Upgradable up to
64GB
4800 MHz DDR5
Dell XPS 15 9520 Ports
Nvidia GeForce
RTX 3050Ti
4GB GDDR6 45W TGP
Starting at
$1,439
i5-12500H, 8GB, 512GB
Up to
13 Hours
Battery Life
Built-in
Facial Recognition
Built-in
Fingerprint Reader
Featuring
Waves Nx® 3D
2 Woofers + 2 Tweeters
Supports
Dell Power Manager
Controls fan, battery life, & performance
Released in Early
2023
16:10 QHD+
18”
1600p 165Hz
Weight
7 lb
3.18 kg
Up to
Intel Core i9-13900HX
24C/32T, 1.80 → 5.40 GHz
Geekbench 5
2,000
Single Core
Geekbench 5
20,000
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® UHD Graphics
32 Execution Units, 300 → 1650 MHz
Upgradable up to
64GB
4800 MHz DDR5
Alienware M18 R1 Ports
Nvidia GeForce
RTX 4090
16GB GDDR6 175W Max

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