The ASUS TUF Gaming F17 is often significantly less expensive than the Dell Alienware X17 R2 and offers solid performance for general use, a battery life suitable for light tasks, and good heat management. It's equipped with a mid-range CPU and GPU, making it a suitable choice for casual gaming and everyday tasks. On the other hand, the Dell Alienware X17 R2 is pricier but comes with a higher-end CPU and GPU, more RAM, and greater storage, enhancing its capabilities for intensive gaming, 3D rendering, and machine learning tasks. It also has a higher build quality and better speakers but has a lower battery life, which impacts its portability. If you're looking for higher performance and can afford the cost, the Alienware may be your preference; if budget and longer battery life matter, the ASUS might be better for you. 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 TUF Gaming F17
The ASUS TUF Gaming F17 has no clear advantages over the Dell Alienware X17 R2.
Advantages of the Dell Alienware X17 R2
Very good for general use
Excellent for engineering and design
Very good for gaming and AI
Good for software development
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Very good overall build quality
Best in class speakers
Very good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
7.1/10
8.2/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
264.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
367.0 nits
4.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
2.0 Hours
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
6.4/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.0/10
The Dell Alienware X17 R2 is very good for general use, while the ASUS TUF Gaming F17 is good.
The ASUS TUF Gaming F17 has modest specifications with lesser RAM and a lower-tier CPU, which makes it adequate for everyday tasks but not as snappy for intensive processes; it also has a lower quality display and shorter battery life which can impact general use. In contrast, the Dell Alienware X17 R2, with its superior RAM, high-tier CPU, and significantly better screen quality, delivers a smoother and more vibrant user experience, though it is heavier and less portable, making it a powerhouse at the expense of ease of transportation and longer battery life.
Gaming and AI
6.6/10
8.9/10
5.2/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.3/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
480Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.0/10
The Dell Alienware X17 R2 is very good for gaming and AI, while the ASUS TUF Gaming F17 is only fair.
The Dell Alienware X17 R2 leads in gaming and 3D tasks due to its higher-end GPU, the Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti, and a screen that refreshes remarkably faster, while the ASUS TUF Gaming F17's performance is more modest, equipped with a lower tier Nvidia RTX 3050 Ti and a slower screen refresh rate.
Engineering and Design
6.9/10
9.1/10
6.2/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
5.2/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.3/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The Dell Alienware X17 R2 is excellent for engineering and design, while the ASUS TUF Gaming F17 is only fair.
The ASUS TUF Gaming F17 has a more modest CPU and GPU combination with an Intel i5 and Nvidia RTX 3050 Ti, making it suitable for engineering and design but with possible performance limitations for highly demanding tasks, while the Dell Alienware X17 R2 boasts a more powerful Intel i9 processor and Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti GPU that offers superior performance for intense engineering and design workloads, but with increased weight and less portability.
Content Creation
7.1/10
8.3/10
6.2/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Dell Alienware X17 R2 is very good for content creation, while the ASUS TUF Gaming F17 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
6.7/10
7.8/10
6.2/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Dell Alienware X17 R2 is good for software development, while the ASUS TUF Gaming F17 is only fair.
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
6.9/10
8.5/10
17.3in
SIZE
17.3in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
480Hz
264.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
367.0 nits
The Dell Alienware X17 R2 has a better screen than the ASUS TUF Gaming F17 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
If you prioritize a clear and vibrant display for everyday tasks like browsing the web or working with documents, the Dell Alienware X17 R2's high resolution and brightness offer crisp visuals. For professionals in engineering and design who need accurate color reproduction, the Dell's wide color gamuts ensure better precision compared to the ASUS TUF Gaming F17. However, for gaming and 3D applications where smooth motion is key, both laptops fall short due to lower refresh rates, which may lead to less fluid movement on-screen.
Battery
4.5 Hours
2.0 Hours
The ASUS TUF Gaming F17 has 4.5 hours of battery life. The Dell Alienware X17 R2 has 2 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.
Build Quality
7.2/10
8.5/10
The Dell Alienware X17 R2 has very good build quality, while the ASUS TUF Gaming F17 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,000
$2,000
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
The ASUS TUF Gaming F17 has a price of $1,000 and the Dell Alienware X17 R2 costs $2,000.
"One of the Asus TUF Gaming F17’s highlights is without a doubt its excellent gaming performance. The fact that Asus configured the RTX 3060 GPU for its specified maximum of 140 W is became immediately noticeable in our benchmarks. For a 17-inch notebook the F17 also offers a very long battery life, which makes it somewhat portable. On the flip side is the display. It may be saved by its good overall contrast ratio, but its overall brightness is simply too low, and its response times are too slow for a gaming device. The F17’s successor needs to improve upon this."
"The Alienware x17 R2 recognizes targets a significantly higher TGP of 175 W for a roughly 30 percent performance boost over laptops running on the ~100 W GeForce RTX 3080 Ti like the Razer Blade 15 or Gigabyte Aero YE5. Similar results can be found through the CPU as well. This single aspect of the Alienware is perhaps the biggest differentiating factor between it and other ultrathin gaming laptops. Of course, the "performance at all cost" approach comes with drawbacks. Power consumption in particular is through the roof and battery life suffers because of it even when on the lowest performance settings."
Get a great deal on the ASUS TUF Gaming F17 or the Dell Alienware X17 R2
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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