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Updated January 10, 2024·
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED is more affordable and offers excellent color accuracy and brightness suitable for everyday use and multimedia, with good battery life and a portable design. However, the Dell Alienware X17 R2, while more expensive, is tailored for high-end gaming, 3D work, and machine learning with substantially better performance, an advanced graphics card, and additional RAM, but it sacrifices battery life and portability due to its size and power demands. Consider the ASUS for general use and portability or the Dell for demanding tasks and less concern about price and 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 ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED
- Good portability
- Good battery life
Advantages of the Dell Alienware X17 R2
- Very good for general use
- Excellent for engineering and design
- Very good for gaming and AI
- Very good overall build quality
- Best in class speakers
- Very good keyboard
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.7
8.9
3.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.3/10
2880 x 1620
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
480Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
7.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.0/10
The Dell Alienware X17 R2 is very good for gaming and AI, while the ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED is only fair.
The Dell Alienware X17 R2 offers superior performance in gaming and 3D tasks over the ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED due to its high-end Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti graphics card and a higher screen refresh rate, which provides smoother visuals and better handling of fast-paced games.
Engineering and Design
8.2
9.1
9.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
3.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.3/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The Dell Alienware X17 R2 is excellent for engineering and design, while the ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED is very good.
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED has an efficient CPU and a high-quality OLED screen but with integrated graphics, it may not handle intensive 3D tasks as well as the Dell Alienware X17 R2, which has more RAM, a more powerful dedicated GPU and exceptional heat management, making it better suited for demanding engineering applications, despite being less portable and noisier due to its larger size and cooling requirements.
Screen Quality
8.9
8.5
15.6in
SIZE
17.3in
2880 x 1620
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
480Hz
600.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
367.0 nits
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED has a better screen than the Dell Alienware X17 R2 for general use, and engineering and design, while the Dell Alienware X17 R2 has a better screen for gaming and AI.
For general use, the ASUS Vivobook’s OLED panel provides rich colors and deep blacks with high resolution and brightness, making it excellent for everyday tasks like browsing and watching videos. Engineering and design professionals benefit from the Vivobook’s wide color gamuts ensuring accurate color representation for tasks like photo editing and CAD work. However, gaming and 3D applications require a high refresh rate for smooth visuals, which the Vivobook lacks, and despite the Dell Alienware’s very good display features, its refresh rate is also not optimal for these uses.
Battery
7.0 Hours
2.0 Hours
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED has 7 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.
Portability
Good
Fair
15.6in
SIZE
17.3in
3.7 lbs
WEIGHT
6.8 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.8in
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED has good portability, while the Dell Alienware X17 R2 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.2
8.5
The Dell Alienware X17 R2 has very good build quality, while the ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$990
$2,000
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED has a price of $990 and the Dell Alienware X17 R2 costs $2,000.
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Key similarities
General Use
7.9
8.2
2880 x 1620
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
600.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
367.0 nits
7.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
2.0 Hours
6.7/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
7.8/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.0/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Dell Alienware X17 R2 to be very good for general use, while the ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED is good.
PerfectRec’s General Use Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for general productivity, web browsing, streaming, video calls, and running a wide variety of apps and programs.
Content Creation
8.2
8.3
9.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
2880 x 1620
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Dell Alienware X17 R2 and ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED are both very 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
7.9
7.8
9.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
2880 x 1620
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
6.7/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED and Dell Alienware X17 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 ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED and the Dell Alienware X17 R2 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED | Dell Alienware X17 R2 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$990 | $2,000 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | March 1, 2023 | December 1, 2021 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 14.2'' x 9'' x 0.7'' | 15.7'' x 11.8'' x 0.82'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 3.75 lbs | 6.82 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 14.15" | 15.72" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 9.03" | 11.79" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i9-13900H | Intel i9-12900HK | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 32 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 1 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 1024 GB | 1024 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 7 Hours | 2 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 75 Wh | 87 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 15.6" | 17.3" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | OLED | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 2880 x 1620 | 1920 x 1080 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 120Hz | 480Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 600 nits | 367 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.2/10 | 8.5/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 7.9/10 | 6.1/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | Yes | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 7/10 | 7/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 6.8/10 | 8.5/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 7/10 | 9.5/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 1080p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | Yes | No | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 2 | 2 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 2 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 2 | 4 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | 4 | |
Shopping
ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED
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Dig into reviews and images
LaptopMag
Darragh Murphy | November 2022
"The Asus Vivobook S 15 OLED excels as a capable work machine at an affordable price. It offers commendable performance, thanks to its 12th Gen Intel chip, delivers quality on-screen entertainment with its 15.6-inch OLED display, and can (kind of) get you through a full day of work. Oh, and its special Asus Antibacterial Guard is a nice touch for those who like a clean laptop."
Dell Alienware X17 R2
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Allen Ngo | May 2022
"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 Vivobook S 15 OLED 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.
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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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About the laptop team
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CEO and Laptops Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Jason Lew
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
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Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
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