The ASUS Zenbook S 13 offers a more portable and lightweight experience with high storage and RAM, making it suitable for general use and mobile productivity with a good battery life. The Dell Alienware m15 R7, on the other hand, has a powerful processor and high-end graphics card suited for intensive gaming, 3D rendering, and machine learning, but it is heavier and has a shorter battery life, making it less portable. The Zenbook has an OLED screen which is great for colors, while the Alienware has a high refresh rate screen beneficial for fast motion like gaming. Choose the Zenbook if portability and screen quality for everyday tasks are priorities, or opt for the Alienware if you need top-tier performance for gaming or specialized tasks despite the added weight and cost. 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 ASUS Zenbook S 13
Very good for general use
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Best in class portability
Very good battery life
Very good speakers
Advantages of the Dell Alienware m15 R7
Good for gaming and AI
Very good overall build quality
Key differences
General Use
8.6/10
7.5/10
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
365.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
300.0 nits
11.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.0 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
9.5/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.4/10
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is very good for general use, while the Dell Alienware m15 R7 is good.
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 stands out for general use with its higher RAM and OLED screen, offering smooth multitasking and vibrant visuals; it's also more portable with a lighter build and longer battery life, making it well-suited for on-the-go tasks.
Gaming and AI
6.5/10
7.8/10
3.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.7/10
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.0/10
The Dell Alienware m15 R7 is good for gaming and AI, while the ASUS Zenbook S 13 is only fair.
The ASUS Zenbook S 13, with its integrated Iris Xe graphics, is suitable for lighter gaming and 3D tasks and can benefit from its OLED screen's high color accuracy and contrast, but it has a standard refresh rate of 60Hz which is less ideal for fast-paced gaming.
Content Creation
8.5/10
7.5/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is very good for content creation, while the Dell Alienware m15 R7 is good.
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
8.3/10
7.3/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is very good for software development, while the Dell Alienware m15 R7 is good.
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.
Screen Quality
8.1/10
8.2/10
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
365.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
300.0 nits
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has a better screen than the Dell Alienware m15 R7 for general use, engineering and design, software development, and content creation, while the Dell Alienware m15 R7 has a better screen for gaming and AI.
If you prioritize a vibrant display for everyday tasks, the ASUS Zenbook S 13 offers a bright and clear picture that enhances general use like browsing and multimedia. For engineering and design professionals, both laptops have displays with wide color coverage, ensuring detailed and accurate color representation for projects. However, due to lower refresh rates, neither is ideal for gaming or 3D applications where smooth motion and quick screen updates are critical.
Battery
11.0 Hours
5.0 Hours
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has 11 hours of battery life. The Dell Alienware m15 R7 has 5 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
Best in Class
Fair
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
2.2 lbs
WEIGHT
5.9 lbs
0.4in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has best in class portability, while the Dell Alienware m15 R7 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.6/10
8.5/10
The Dell Alienware m15 R7 has very good build quality, while the ASUS Zenbook S 13 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,400
$2,200
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has a price of $1,400 and the Dell Alienware m15 R7 costs $2,200.
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 and Dell Alienware m15 R7 are both very good for engineering and design.
The ASUS Zenbook S 13, with its OLED screen and ample RAM, excels in screen quality and multitasking capabilities, making it suitable for engineering and design tasks that demand color accuracy and several applications running simultaneously. On the other hand, the Dell Alienware m15 R7 is equipped with a high-performance CPU and a superior GPU, which offers exceptional computational and graphics processing power needed for the most demanding engineering simulations and design work.
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How the ASUS Zenbook S 13 and the Dell Alienware m15 R7 compare to other laptops
"The Asus Zenbook S 13 is the slimmest OLED ultrabook worldwide struggles with annoying fans. The new Zenbook S 13 leaves us with mixed feelings, particularly since last year's model was so good. Asus has completely reworked the device, making the laptop noticeably slimmer. The result also looks good and the case makes a great impression, particularly also in terms of the stability. The new plasma ceramic surface feels great, and there are no problems with fingerprints. In addition, it now includes some of the known connections such as an HDMI port and a regular USB-A connection, which is a good achievement in such a slim device."
"The Alienware M15 offers solid gaming and leading endurance. It makes the most of its CPU and GPU while delivering stellar battery life for a gaming laptop. Opening the lid presents a full-size keyboard with honeycomb cutouts above it on the deck. An oblong RBG lightning element surrounds the entire rear panel and can be color-synced with the other lights on the laptop. There’s not a lot to dislike about the M15 Its productivity performance lagged in some areas, particularly in the storage benchmark, and it’s a bit heavy. Alienware has a clear winner here with the M15 based on its strong overall performance and endurance."
Get a great deal on the ASUS Zenbook S 13 or the Dell Alienware m15 R7
About ASUS
ASUS, a Taiwanese electronics brand, is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. The majority of their laptops are targeted towards personal use or gaming. Their most popular product lines include the budget-friendly VivoBook, more premium ZenBook, and their TUF and ROG gaming laptops, the latter of which has a reputation for excellent gaming performance.
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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