The Dell Alienware x14 R1 is more portable and has a higher storage capacity, making it a solid choice for those who prioritize mobility and storage on-the-go. However, the Lenovo Legion 5 17" has a larger screen, which may be more suitable for immersive gaming and productivity tasks that benefit from a bigger display. Both laptops are similarly priced and carry the same GPU and equal amounts of RAM, so performance in gaming, 3D rendering, and machine learning should be comparable. Choose the Alienware for its compactness and storage, or the Legion for its spacious screen. 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 Dell Alienware x14 R1
Very good for engineering and design
Very good overall build quality
Very good portability
Good battery life
Advantages of the Lenovo Legion 5 17"
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has no clear advantages over the Dell Alienware x14 R1.
Key differences
General Use
7.8/10
7.2/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
411.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
305.0 nits
9.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
4.5 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
8.0/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
5.8/10
The Dell Alienware x14 R1 and Lenovo Legion 5 17" are both good for general use, though the Dell Alienware x14 R1 is somewhat better.
The Dell Alienware x14 R1 offers strong performance with its high-end CPU, sufficient RAM, and a quality IPS screen, favoring portability and longer battery life, making it ideal for general use on the go. Conversely, the Lenovo Legion 5 17" also provides a robust CPU and comparable RAM, but with a larger screen for an enhanced viewing experience, at the expense of being less portable and offering shorter battery life, which may still suit stationary general use better.
Engineering and Design
8.2/10
7.6/10
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
7.0/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.5/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Dell Alienware x14 R1 is very good for engineering and design, while the Lenovo Legion 5 17" is good.
The Dell Alienware x14 R1 is very good for engineering and design due to its powerful Intel i7 CPU, substantial 16GB of RAM, high-quality Nvidia RTX 3060 GPU, and a bright, color-accurate IPS screen which are crucial for performance-oriented tasks.
Content Creation
7.9/10
7.2/10
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Dell Alienware x14 R1 and Lenovo Legion 5 17" are both good for content creation, though the Dell Alienware x14 R1 is somewhat better.
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
7.0/10
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Dell Alienware x14 R1 and Lenovo Legion 5 17" are both good for software development, though the Dell Alienware x14 R1 is somewhat better.
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
7.9/10
7.3/10
14.0in
SIZE
17.3in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
411.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
305.0 nits
The Dell Alienware x14 R1 has a better screen than the Lenovo Legion 5 17" for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Dell Alienware x14 R1 and Lenovo Legion 5 17" both offer panels with decent resolution and brightness, making them suitable for everyday tasks like browsing the web, watching videos, and working with text. However, they fall short in color coverage for professional engineering and design work, with less than ideal DCI-P3 and Adobe RGB gamut representation, which are crucial for color-accurate work. When it comes to gaming and 3D applications, both laptops suffer from lower refresh rates, making them less optimal for fast-paced action and rendering where smoother motion and quicker response times are essential.
Battery
9.0 Hours
4.5 Hours
The Dell Alienware x14 R1 has 9 hours of battery life. The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has 4.5 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
Very Good
Poor
14.0in
SIZE
17.3in
4.0 lbs
WEIGHT
6.5 lbs
0.5in
THICKNESS
1.0in
The Dell Alienware x14 R1 has very good portability, while the Lenovo Legion 5 17" has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
8.5/10
7.4/10
The Dell Alienware x14 R1 has very good build quality, while the Lenovo Legion 5 17" has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
The Dell Alienware x14 R1 and Lenovo Legion 5 17" are both good for gaming and AI.
The Dell Alienware x14 R1 and the Lenovo Legion 5 17" are good for gaming and 3D applications because they both feature the Nvidia RTX 3060 GPU which provides high-quality graphics performance and a screen refresh rate of 144Hz for smooth visuals. While both laptops offer similar CPUs vital for gaming and screen quality with IPS panels, the larger screen size on the Legion may appeal to those preferring a bigger display for an immersive experience.
Cost
$1,201
$1,200
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
$1,800
The Dell Alienware x14 R1 has a price of $1,201 and the Lenovo Legion 5 17" costs $1,200.
Give feedback
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How the Dell Alienware x14 R1 and the Lenovo Legion 5 17" compare to other laptops
"The Alienware X14 series is thinner, but also slower than the competition. With the X series, you get plenty of modern technology: Intel Alder Lake CPUs, GeForce RTX 3000 GPUs, Thunderbolt 4, PCIe 4.0, Wi-Fi 6E, G-Sync, and Advanced Optimus. However, the slim design has some drawbacks, just like its larger siblings. The shifted hinge position results in a very deep device with a large footprint compared to the competition."
"The Lenovo Legion 5 17 is a current-gen 17-inch gaming laptop and equipped with the latest AMD CPU and a powerful GPU, that manages to reach its full potential. The AMD Ryzen 5 5600H is a very good choice for this laptop and able to maintain its performance level for long periods of time. Our test model only falls behind consistently in a direct comparison with its competitors that are often equipped with eight cores and 16 threads. Despite this, the Legion 5 17 leaves an excellent impression and is almost able to keep up with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 mobile GPU in synthetic benchmarks."
Get a great deal on the Dell Alienware x14 R1 or the Lenovo Legion 5 17"
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.
About Lenovo
Lenovo is a Chinese technology company, and one of the largest personal computer vendor. They are well known for a variety of technology products, including laptops. Their consumer series include their entry level IdeaPad and LOQ series and mid-to-high-end Yoga and Legion series. On the business-oriented side, their series include their entry-level ThinkBook series and mid-to-high-end ThinkPad series. Lenovo laptops offer strong performance for reasonable prices, and are often on sale.
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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