The Acer Swift X is a more budget-friendly and portable option with sufficient power for everyday tasks and light content creation, making it suitable for mobile professionals or students. However, if you require top-notch performance for gaming, 3D modeling, or intensive computational tasks and don't mind a heavier and pricier laptop, the Dell Alienware m16 R2 provides high-end hardware but with a compromise on battery life and ease of transport. Choose the Swift X for cost-efficiency and mobility or the Alienware for advanced capabilities at a higher cost and less portability. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the Acer Swift X (2022)
Very good portability
Very good battery life
Advantages of the Dell Alienware m16 R2
Very good for engineering and design
Good for gaming and AI
Very good overall display quality
Very good overall build quality
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.6/10
7.9/10
4.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.5/10
2240 x 1400
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
8.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.0/10
The Dell Alienware m16 R2 is good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Swift X (2022) is only fair.
The Acer Swift X offers modest gaming capabilities with a less powerful GPU and a standard screen refresh rate, making it suitable for casual gaming, while the Dell Alienware m16 R2 is equipped with a high-end GPU and a higher screen refresh rate, catering to more serious gamers and professionals working with 3D applications who require smoother visuals and faster performance. Though both have capable CPUs and good screen quality, the Alienware's superior GPU and refresh rate give it an edge for demanding gaming and 3D tasks.
Engineering and Design
7.5/10
8.4/10
7.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.8/10
4.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.5/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Dell Alienware m16 R2 is very good for engineering and design, while the Acer Swift X (2022) is good.
The Acer Swift X offers a balance of CPU, RAM, and GPU capabilities suitable for engineering tasks while being more portable and less cumbersome for daily carry than the Dell Alienware m16 R2, which delivers top-tier performance with a stronger GPU and higher quality screen but sacrifices portability and is typically noisier, particularly during intense operations.
Screen Quality
7.0/10
8.2/10
14.0in
SIZE
16.0in
2240 x 1400
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
330.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
302.0 nits
The Dell Alienware m16 R2 has a better screen than the Acer Swift X for general use, gaming and AI, and engineering and design.
The Acer Swift X's display offers vibrant colors and sharpness suitable for everyday tasks and professional design work, but its lower refresh rate may not be ideal for the smooth visuals that gamers and 3D designers crave. The Dell Alienware m16 R2, with superior brightness and resolution, enhances general and engineering use, providing wide color coverage essential for accurate design work, yet its screen may not meet the high refresh rate preferences for gaming and 3D rendering. While both laptops have qualities appealing to general and engineering users, neither is optimized for the high-refresh-rate- demanding gaming and 3D environments.
Battery
10.0 Hours
6.0 Hours
The Acer Swift X has 10 hours of battery life. The Dell Alienware m16 R2 has 6 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
Portability
Very Good
Fair
14.0in
SIZE
16.0in
3.0 lbs
WEIGHT
5.7 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Acer Swift X (2022) has very good portability, while the Dell Alienware m16 R2 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.6/10
8.5/10
The Dell Alienware m16 R2 has very good build quality, while the Acer Swift X (2022) has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,313
$1,650
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The Acer Swift X (2022) has a price of $1,313 and the Dell Alienware m16 R2 costs $1,650.
The Dell Alienware m16 R2 and Acer Swift X (2022) are both good for general use.
The Acer Swift X offers a balance of CPU power, RAM, and high screen quality suitable for everyday tasks, with the added benefits of portability and longer battery life making it ideal for users on the go. Meanwhile, the Dell Alienware m16 R2 delivers higher CPU and RAM performance, and superior screen quality for demanding applications, but trades off with less portability and reduced battery life, catering to users who need a powerful workstation for intensive tasks.
Content Creation
7.8/10
7.9/10
7.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.8/10
2240 x 1400
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Dell Alienware m16 R2 and Acer Swift X (2022) are both good for content creation.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Software Development
7.7/10
7.6/10
7.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.8/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2240 x 1400
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Acer Swift X (2022) and Dell Alienware m16 R2 are both good for software development.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
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How the Acer Swift X (2022) and the Dell Alienware m16 R2 compare to other laptops
"The Swift X is an Acer for entry-level gaming. With the entry-level graphics chip, our Acer not only beats every single current AMD and Intel iGPU, but also Intel's dGPU Iris Xe Max. However, despite being a GDDR6 version, the GTX does not match the expectations set by its own counterparts from our database. This may be a result of the single fan, which only produces moderate noise levels under load. The performance level of the thin and light 1.4 kg (~3.09 lbs) 14-inch laptop is impressive nonetheless."
"Alienware’s m16 R2 is a solid gaming laptop that leaves much to be desired, particularly in its quest to fulfill your needs as a product for productivity. Battery life under eight hours and a dim display are both vital issues for something that will accompany you through school projects or a workday. However, the Alienware m16 R2 is an exceedingly powerful gaming laptop, consistently being one of the best in our performance tests when compared against similar products. Even then, its display is lacking color, its fans get pretty darn loud, and its speakers aren’t punchy enough to rise above that noise."
Get a great deal on the Acer Swift X (2022) or the Dell Alienware m16 R2
About Acer
Acer is a prominent Taiwanese electronics brand which makes a wide range of laptops, with multiple product lines catering to personal use, gaming, and business use. They are renowned for having exceptional value for money, as they frequently offer good specifications at a lower price than other manufacturers.
About Dell
Dell is a highly recognizable American technology company, and is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. Their laptops are very popular for both personal and professional use, and they also own the Alienware brand which makes mid to high end gaming laptops. Their premium XPS range of laptops offer great build quality and portability, while Latitude and Precision laptops are known for reliability, repairability and performance for business users.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
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Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
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Staff Expert & Software Engineer
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