Surface Laptop 2 vs. Alienware M15 R1: Which is better?
Here is a side by side comparison between Surface Laptop 2 and Alienware M15 R1 specs including CPU, RAM, storage, battery, display, and more.
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Surface Laptop 2 Pros
Reasons that Surface Laptop 2 is better than Alienware M15 R1.
Surface Laptop 2 weighed 2.76 pounds, 44% lighter than the 4.85 pounds Alienware M15 R1.
Weight | Surface Laptop 2 | Alienware M15 R1 |
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Pound | 2.76 lbs. | 4.85 lbs. |
Kilogram | 1.25 kg | 2.20 kg |
Alienware M15 R1 Pros
Reasons that Alienware M15 R1 is better than Surface Laptop 2.
Intel Core i7-9750H inside Alienware M15 R1 has a 25% better multi-core CPU performance score than the Intel Core i7-8650U inside Surface Laptop 2.
Alienware M15 R1 supports a larger memory capacity than the Surface Laptop 2. It supports up to 32GB versus 16GB of system memory on the Surface Laptop 2.
Alienware M15 R1 supports a faster memory speed than the Surface Laptop 2. It supports up to 2666MHz versus 1866MHz of system memory on the Surface Laptop 2.
Alienware M15 R1 comes with two SODIMM slots that allow you to replace or upgrade when needed. On the flip side, you can't upgrade RAM on the Surface Laptop 2 since it has onboard memory.
Memory | Surface Laptop 2 | Alienware M15 R1 |
---|---|---|
Slots | Onboard | x2 |
Type | LPDDR3 | DDR4 |
Configurable up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER 8GB GDDR6 with Max-Q vs. integrated
Alienware M15 R1 has a 15.6-inch screen size 15% larger than the 13.5-inch Surface Laptop 2.
Prices
Here are the latest price updates and offers for both devices.
Availability | Surface Laptop 2 | Alienware M15 R1 |
Released | 2018 | 2019 |
Release Date |
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Pricing | Starting at 999$ | Starting at $1,379.99 |
Generations |
Exterior | Surface Laptop 2 | Alienware M15 R1 |
Dimensions | 12.13” x 8.79” x 0.39-0.57” (308.02 mm x 223.2 mm x 9.93 mm-14.47 mm) Width: 12.13” (308.02 mm) Depth: 8.79” (223.2 mm) Height: 0.39 - 0.57” (9.93 - 14.47 mm) | 14.27 x 10.85 x 0.70 - 0.78 in (362 x 275 x 17.90 - 19.99 mm) Width: 14.27 in. (362 mm) Depth: 10.85 in. (275 mm) Height: 0.70 - 0.78 in. (17.90 - 19.99 mm) |
Weight |
| Starting at 4.85 lbs (2.20 kg) |
Colors | Black Platinum Burgundy Cobalt Blue |
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Keyboard and Trackpad |
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Display | Surface Laptop 2 | Alienware M15 R1 |
Size | 13.5 Inches | 15.6 Inches |
Info |
| Full HD with 60Hz refresh rate
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Ports | Surface Laptop 2 | Alienware M15 R1 |
| Left (4)
Right (2)
Back (5)
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Internal Specs | Surface Laptop 2 | Alienware M15 R1 |
Processor |
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Integrated Graphics |
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Memory | 8GB 16GB 1866 MHz LPDDR3 RAM | 8 GB 16 GB 32 GB 2666 MHz Dual-channel DDR4 RAM.2 x SODIMM slots |
Discrete Graphics | - |
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Storage | 128 GB 256 GB 512 GB 1 TB Soldered BGA PCIe SSD | Single Storage Configurations
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Connectivity | Surface Laptop 2 | Alienware M15 R1 |
Wi-Fi |
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Bluetooth |
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Ethernet | - |
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Battery | Surface Laptop 2 | Alienware M15 R1 |
Size | 45.2 Wh |
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Battery Life | Up to 14.5 hours of typical device usage |
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Power Supply |
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Software | Surface Laptop 2 | Alienware M15 R1 |
OS |
| Windows 10 Home Windows 10 Pro Upgradable to Windows 11 |
Built-in Apps | Microsoft Office 365 30-days trial |
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Camera & Audio | Surface Laptop 2 | Alienware M15 R1 |
Camera |
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Audio |
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Misc | Surface Laptop 2 | Alienware M15 R1 |
Inking | Supports Surface Pen 4096 levels of pressure Tilt sensing Best in class latency | - |
Sensors |
| - |
Security |
| - |
In the box |
| - |
Warranty |
| - |
More | Supports Surface Dial Supports off-screen interaction only | CHASIS
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Key Features | Surface Laptop 2 | Alienware M15 R1 |
At Glance |
Comparison Summary
Microsoft has released the Surface Laptop 2, a 13.5-inch machine, in late-2018. It is powered by up to a quad-core Intel Core i7-8650U with a boost clock speed up to 4.20 GHz. The laptop has an integrated graphics option up to Intel® UHD Graphics 620 (24 Execution Units, 300 → 1150 MHz).
On the other hand, we have the 15.6-inch Alienware M15 R1 was introduced by Dell about a year later in early-2019. It comes with up to a hexa-core Intel Core i7-9750H with a boost clock speed up to 4.50 GHz. It has a dedicated GPU option up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER with 8GB GDDR6 with Max-Q.
Geekbench 5 Single Core
Geekbench 5 Multi Core
The Surface Laptop 2 has a 13.5-inch display which is considerably smaller than the 15.6-inch Alienware M15 R1. In addition, The Surface Laptop 2 weighs 2.76 lbs. about 75% lighter than the 4.85 lbs. Alienware M15 R1. Moreover, measured at 12.13” x 8.79” x 0.57”, the Surface Laptop 2 is much more portable than the Alienware M15 R1 at 14.27” x 10.85” x 0.78”.
Moving over to upgradability, Microsoft claims that the Surface Laptop 2 supports up to 16GB 1866 MHz LPDDR3 memory. However, it has an onboard memory module that is not upgradable by the users.
For Alienware M15 R1, it supports up to 32GB 2666 MHz DDR4 memory that you can upgrade with two memory module slots on the motherboard. It also has two M.2 slots that users can easily swap or add an extra SSD to get extra space when needed. Besides that, it also comes with a SATA slot where you can install an additional 2.5-inch SATA-based SSD, SSHD, or a hard disk drive.
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