Hi there, reddit. I am in the market for a small-ish footprint replacement for my decrepit eeepc 701. It looks like Dell is clearing out the stock on their original M11x laptops. They have the base model with the original Core2 Duo on sale for $600. I also have a coupon code that brings it down to a grand total of $550. I know that the general consensus on Alienware is something along the lines of *overpriced garbage*, but compared to the specifications of other laptops in that price range it does not seem outrageous at all.

The model I am looking at comes with the first-generation Core2 Duo SU7300, a Geforce GT335M, 2gb of RAM, and a 160gb HDD. I have the option of doubling the RAM to 4gb for $50 which is tempting, but I can take that same money and buy the same amount of RAM from newegg and then have leftover/spare RAM. The prices to upgrade the HDD through dell is outrageous and out of the question so I am not going to bother there, as that is what newegg is for.

To give you an idea of what I am looking for, I play quite a few different games, and I have a relatively powerful desktop for scratching that itch most of the time. In addition to wanting a laptop portable enough for easy everyday use (4 pounds or less and absolutely no bigger than 14"), it would also be nice to have the ability to bring it to LAN parties. The graphics card does not have to be all that powerful, just enough to play Guild Wars and L4D2 without it looking like a slideshow. My budget is best summed up as "as low as possible." I see no point in spending $1,000 on something that I can't easily service myself that will be considered junk two years down the road.

So to
user
Dell is offering a great deal on the Alienware M11x starting at $550.
assistant
Hi there, reddit. I am in the market for a small-ish footprint replacement for my decrepit eeepc 701. It looks like Dell is clearing out the stock on their original M11x laptops. They have the base model with the original Core2 Duo on sale for $600. I also have a coupon code that brings it down to a grand total of $550. I know that the general consensus on Alienware is something along the lines of *overpriced garbage*, but compared to the specifications of other laptops in that price range it does not seem outrageous at all.

The model I am looking at comes with the first-generation Core2 Duo SU7300, a Geforce GT335M, 2gb of RAM, and a 160gb HDD. I have the option of doubling the RAM to 4gb for $50 which is tempting, but I can take that same money and buy the same amount of RAM from newegg and then have leftover/spare RAM. The prices to upgrade the HDD through dell is outrageous and out of the question so I am not going to bother there, as that is what newegg is for.

To give you an idea of what I am looking for, I play quite a few different games, and I have a relatively powerful desktop for scratching that itch most of the time. In addition to wanting a laptop portable enough for easy everyday use (4 pounds or less and absolutely no bigger than 14"), it would also be nice to have the ability to bring it to LAN parties. The graphics card does not have to be all that powerful, just enough to play Guild Wars and L4D2 without it looking like a slideshow. My budget is best summed up as "as low as possible." I see no point in spending $1,000 on something that I can't easily service myself that will be considered junk two years down the road.

So to
user
is the Alienware M11x an attractive option and is it a good deal
assistant