For a balance of performance and portability with a stunning OLED display, the ASUS Vivobook S 15 is an excellent choice, especially if you're mindful of budget. It offers a sharp resolution, vibrant colors, and a high refresh rate, making it suitable for general use and casual creative work. Its compact design and longer battery life enhance its portability, though it may not excel in intensive gaming or heavy engineering tasks.
On the other hand, if you're looking for a powerhouse that can handle the most demanding games and engineering software, the Dell Alienware m18 R1 is the way to go. Its high-end processor and top-tier Nvidia GPU, combined with ample RAM and storage, ensure exceptional performance. However, this comes at the cost of portability due to its larger size, heavier weight, and shorter battery life. It's also significantly more expensive, but if performance is your priority and portability is not a concern, it's a compelling option. 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
Very good overall display quality
Very good portability
Good battery life
Advantages of the Dell Alienware m18 R1
Very good for general use
Excellent for engineering and design
Excellent for gaming and AI
Very good for software development
Very good overall build quality
Very good keyboard
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.7/10
9.1/10
4.2/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.8/10
2880 x 1620
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
8.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.0/10
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 is excellent for gaming and AI, while the ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED is only fair.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
Engineering and Design
8.0/10
9.1/10
8.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
4.2/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.8/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 is excellent for engineering and design, while the ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED is very good.
PerfectRec’s Engineering and Design Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for graphic design and 3D rendering work.
Screen Quality
8.8/10
7.8/10
15.6in
SIZE
17.3in
2880 x 1620
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
600.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
281.0 nits
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED has a better screen than the Dell Alienware m18 R1 for general use, gaming and AI, and engineering and design, while the Dell Alienware m18 R1 has a better screen for content creation, and software development.
PerfectRec’s screen quality scores take into account various important factors that are relevant for different use cases.
Battery
9.0 Hours
4.0 Hours
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED has 9 hours of battery life. The Dell Alienware m18 R1 has 4 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
Poor
15.6in
SIZE
17.3in
3.3 lbs
WEIGHT
8.9 lbs
0.5in
THICKNESS
1.0in
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED has very good portability, while the Dell Alienware m18 R1 has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.4/10
8.5/10
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 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
$1,249
$2,600
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
$4,000
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED has a price of $1,249 and the Dell Alienware m18 R1 costs $2,600.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Dell Alienware m18 R1 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
8.0/10
8.4/10
8.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
2880 x 1620
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Dell Alienware m18 R1 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
7.8/10
8.0/10
8.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
2880 x 1620
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Dell Alienware m18 R1 to be very good for software development, while the ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED 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.
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How the ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED and the Dell Alienware m18 R1 compare to other laptops
"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's Alienware m18 delivers on its promises: This is a large, powerful gaming laptop with the premium flair and feel you expect from an expensive purchase. The drawbacks are really the price and battery life, which in context are reasonable. (We'd also like to see more ports on the laptop's sides.) This price tier exists for deep-pocketed enthusiasts, and if you’re considering anything in this range, the m18 isn’t an outlier. For the majority of shoppers, of course, all of these mighty 18-inch systems are likely too expensive."
Get a great deal on the ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED or the Dell Alienware m18 R1
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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Joe Golden, Ph.D
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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
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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