ALIENWARE m18 R1 Gaming Laptop Owner’s Manual

ALIENWARE m18 R1 Gaming Laptop Owner’s Manual

Notes, cautions, and warnings

NOTE: A NOTE indicates important information that helps you make better use of your product.
CAUTION: A CAUTION indicates either potential damage to hardware or loss of data and tells you how to avoid the problem.
WARNING: A WARNING indicates a potential for property damage, personal injury, or death.

Set up your Alienware m18 R1

NOTE: The images in this document may differ from your computer depending on the configuration you ordered.

Connect the power adapter and press the power button.

Views of Alienware m18 R1

Display

1. Left microphone
   Provides digital sound input for audio recording and voice calls.

2. Infrared emitter
   Emits infrared light, which enables the infrared camera to sense and track motion.

3. Infrared camera
   Enhances security when paired with Windows Hello face authentication.

4. Camera
   Enables you to video chat, capture photos, and record videos.

5. Camera-status light
   Turns on when the camera is in use.

6. Right microphone
   Provides digital sound input for audio recording and voice calls.

Right

1. USB 3.2 Gen 1 (Type-C) port
   Connect to external storage devices. Provides data transfer speeds up to 5 Gbps.
   NOTE: This port does not support video/audio streaming.

Left

1. Network port
   Connect an Ethernet (RJ-45) cable from a router or a broadband modem for network or Internet access.

2. USB 3.2 Gen 1 port with PowerShare
   Connect devices such as external storage devices and printers.
   Provides data transfer speeds up to 5 Gbps. PowerShare enables you to charge your USB devices even when your computer is turned off.
   NOTE: If your computer is turned off or in hibernate state, you must connect the power adapter to charge your devices using the PowerShare port. You must enable this feature in the BIOS setup program.
   NOTE: Certain USB devices may not charge when the computer is turned off or in sleep state. In such cases, turn on the computer to charge the device.

3. USB 3.2 Gen 1 port
   Connect devices such as external storage devices and printers. Provides data transfer speeds up to 5 Gbps.

4. Universal audio jack
   Connect headphones or a headset (headphone and microphone combo).

Top

1. Touchpad
   Move your finger on the touchpad to move the mouse pointer. Tap to left-click and two fingers tap to right-click.

2. Left-click area
   Press to left-click.

3. Right-click area
   Press to right-click.

4. Power button (Alien head)
   Press to turn on the computer if it is turned off, in sleep state, or in hibernate state.
   Press to put the computer into sleep state if it is turned on.
   When the computer is turned on, press and hold the power button for four seconds to force shut-down the computer.
   NOTE: You can customize power-button behavior in Windows. For more information, see Me and My Dell at www.dell.com/support/manuals.

Back

1. Thunderbolt 4.0 ports (2)
   Supports USB4, DisplayPort 1.4, Thunderbolt 4 and also enables you to connect to an external display using a display adapter.
   Provides data transfer rates of up to 40 Gbps for USB4 and Thunderbolt 4.
   NOTE: A USB Type-C to DisplayPort adapter (sold separately) is required to connect a DisplayPort device.
   NOTE: USB4 is backward compatible with USB 3.2, USB 2.0, and Thunderbolt

2. NOTE: Thunderbolt 4 supports two 4K displays or one 8K display.

3. USB 3.2 Gen 1 port
   Connect devices such as external storage devices and printers. Provides data transfer speeds up to 5 Gbps.

4. HDMI 2.1 port
   Connect to a TV, external display or another HDMI-in enabled device. Provides video and audio output.

5. Mini-DisplayPort
   Connect to a TV or another DisplayPort-in enabled device. Mini DisplayPort provides video and audio output.

6. SD-card slot
   Reads from and writes to the SD card.

7. Power-adapter port
   Connect a power adapter to provide power to your computer.

Bottom

1. Left speaker
   Provides audio output.

2. Service Tag label
   The Service Tag is a unique alphanumeric identifier that enables Dell service technicians to identify the hardware components in your computer and access warranty information.

3. Right speaker
   Provides audio output.

Specifications of Alienware m18 R1

Dimensions and weight

The following table lists the height, width, depth, and weight of your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 1. Dimensions and weight

Height:
| Front height| 24.10 mm (0.95 in.)
| Rear height| 25.10 mm (0.99 in.)
Width| 410.30 mm (16.15 in.)
Depth| 319.90 mm (11.41 in.)
Weight   NOTE: The weight of your computer depends on the configuration ordered and manufacturing variability.| 4.23 kg (9.32 lb)

Processor

The following table lists the details of the processors supported by your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 2. Processor

Description| Option one| Option two| Option three| Option four
---|---|---|---|---
Processor type| 13th Generation Intel Core i9-13980HX| 13th Generation Intel Core i9-13900HX| 13th Generation Intel Core i7-13700HX| 13th Generation Intel Core i7-13650HX
Processor wattage| 55 W| 55 W| 55 W| 55 W
Processor total core count| 24| 24| 16| 14
Performance-cores| 8| 8| 8| 6
Efficient-cores| 16| 16| 8| 8
Processor total thread counts
**NOTE:** Intel® Hyper- Threading Technology is only available on Performance-cores.| 32| 32| 24| 20
Processor speed| Up to 5.50 GHz| Up to 5.40 GHz| Up to 5 GHz| Up to 4.90 GHz
Performance-cores frequency
| Processor base frequency| 2.20 GHz| 2.20 GHz| 2.10 GHz| 2.60 GHz
| Maximum turbo frequency| 5.60 GHz| 5.40 GHz| 5 GHz| 4.90 GHz
| Processor base frequency| 1.60 GHz| 1.60 GHz| 1.50 GHz| 1.90 GHz
| Maximum turbo frequency| 4 GHz| 3.90 GHz| 3.70 GHz| 3.60 GHz
Processor cache| 36 MB| 36 MB| 30 MB| 24 MB
Integrated graphics| Intel UHD Graphics| Intel UHD Graphics| Intel UHD Graphics| Intel UHD Graphics

Chipset

The following table lists the details of the chipset supported by your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 3. Chipset

Operating system

Your Alienware m18 R1 supports the following operating systems:

• Windows 11 Home (64-bit)
• Windows 11 Professional (64-bit)

Memory

The following table lists the memory specifications of your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 4. Memory specifications

• 4800 MHz
• 5600 MHz, XMP
• 5800 MHz, XMP

Maximum memory configuration| 64 GB
Minimum memory configuration| 16 GB
Memory size per slot| 8 GB, 16 GB and 32 GB
Memory configurations supported|

• 16 GB, 2 x 8 GB, DDR5, 4800 MHz, dual-channel
• 32 GB, 2 x 16 GB, DDR5, 4800 MHz, dual-channel
• 64 GB, 2 x 32 GB, DDR5, 4800 MHz, dual-channel
• 32 GB, 2 x 16 GB, DDR5, 5800 MHz, dual-channel, XMP
• 64 GB, 2 x 32 GB, DDR5, 5600 MHz, dual-channel, XMP

External ports

The following table lists the external ports of your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 5. External ports

• Two USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports
• One USB 3.2 Gen 1 port with PowerShare
• One USB3.2 Gen 1 Type-C port
• Two Thunderbolt 4 ports

Audio port| One universal audio jack (RCA, 3.5 mm)
Video port|

• One HDMI 2.1 port
• One mini-DisplayPort

Media-card reader| One SD-card slot
Power-adapter port| One 7.40 mm x 5.10 mm DC-in
Security-cable slot| Not supported

Internal slots

The following table lists the internal slots of your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 6. Internal slots

• Two M.2 2230 and two M.2 2280 solid-state drive slots, for computers shipped with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080/4090 graphics card
• Two M.2 2280 solid-state drive slots, for computers shipped with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050/4060/4070 graphics card  

NOTE: To learn more about the features of different types of M.2 cards, search in the Knowledge Base Resource at www.dell.com/support.

Ethernet

The following table lists the wired Ethernet Local Area Network (LAN) specifications of your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 7. Ethernet specifications

• Killer E3100 integrated Ethernet controller, for computers shipped with a NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050/4060/4070/4080/4090 graphics card
• Realtek RTL8111 Gigabit integrated Ethernet controller, for computers shipped with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 graphics card

Transfer rate|

• 2500 Mbps for Killer E3100 Ethernet controller
• 1000 Mbps for Realtek RTL8111 Gigabit Ethernet controller

Wireless module

The following table lists the Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) modules supported on your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 8. Wireless module specifications

• WiFi 802.11a/b/g
• Wi-Fi 4 (WiFi 802.11n)
• Wi-Fi 5 (WiFi 802.11ac)
• Wi-Fi 6E (WiFi 802.11ax)

|

• WiFi 802.11a/b/g
• Wi-Fi 4 (WiFi 802.11n)
• Wi-Fi 5 (WiFi 802.11ac)
• Wi-Fi 6E (WiFi 802.11ax)

Encryption|

• 64-bit/128-bit WEP
• AES-CCMP
• TKIP

|

• 64-bit/128-bit WEP
• AES-CCMP
• TKIP

Bluetooth| Bluetooth 5.3| Bluetooth 5.3

Audio

The following table lists the audio specifications of your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 9. Audio specifications

• One universal audio jack (RCA, 3.5 mm)
• One HDMI 2.1 port

Number of speakers| 2
Internal-speaker amplifier| Supported
External volume controls| Keyboard shortcut controls
Speaker output:|
| Average speaker output| 2 W
| Peak speaker output| 4 W
Subwoofer output| Not supported
Microphone| Digital-array microphones in camera assembly

Storage

This section lists the storage options on your Alienware m18 R1.

Your Alienware m18 R1 supports the following storage configuration:

• Two M.2 2230 and two M.2 2280 solid-state drive slots, for computers shipped with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080/4090 graphics card
• Two M.2 2280 solid-state drive slots, for computers shipped with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050/4060/4070 graphics card

The primary drive of your Alienware m18 R1 varies with the storage configuration. The primary drive of your computer is the M.2 2280 drive where the operating system is installed.

Table 10. Storage specifications

RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks)

For optimal performance when configuring drives as a RAID volume, Dell recommends drive models that are identical.

NOTE: RAID is not supported on Intel Optane configurations.

RAID 0 (Striped, Performance) volumes benefit from higher performance when drives are matched because the data is split across multiple drives: any IO operations with block sizes larger than the stripe size will split the IO and become constrained by the slowest of the drives. For RAID 0 IO operations where block sizes are smaller than the stripe size, whichever drive the IO operation targets will determine the performance, which increases variability and results in inconsistent latencies. This variability is particularly pronounced for write operations and it can be problematic for applications that are latency sensitive. One such example of this is any application that performs thousands of random writes per second in very small block sizes.

RAID 1 (Mirrored, Data Protection) volumes benefit from higher performance when drives are matched because the data is mirrored across multiple drives: all IO operations must be performed identically to both drives, thus variations in drive performance when the models are different, results in the IO operations completing only as fast as the slowest drive. While this does not suffer the variable latency issue in small random IO operations as with RAID 0 across heterogeneous drives, the impact is nonetheless large because the higher performing drive becomes limited in all IO types. One of the worst examples of constrained performance here is when using unbuffered IO. To ensure writes are fully committed to non-volatile regions of the RAID volume, unbuffered IO bypasses cache (for example by using the Force Unit Access bit in the NVMe protocol) and the IO operation will not complete until all the drives in the RAID volume have completed the request to commit the data. This kind of IO operation completely negates any advantage of a higher performing drive in the volume.

Care must be taken to match not only the drive vendor, capacity, and class, but also the specific model. Drives from the same vendor, with the same capacity, and even within the same class, can have very different performance characteristics for certain types of IO operations. Thus, matching by model ensures that the RAID volumes is comprised of an homogeneous array of drives that will deliver all the benefits of a RAID volume without incurring the additional penalties when one or more drives in the volume are lower performing.

Alienware m18 R1 supports RAID 0/1/5 with more than one SSD configuration, for computers shipped with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080/4090 graphics card.

Alienware m18 R1 supports RAID 0/1 with more than one SSD configuration, for computers shipped with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050/4060/4070 graphics card.

Media-card reader

The following table lists the media cards supported by your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 11. Media-card reader specifications

• Secure Digital (SD)
• Secure Digital High Capacity (SDHC)
• Secure Digital Extended Capacity (SDXC)

**NOTE:** The maximum capacity supported by the media-card reader varies depending on the standard of the media card installed in your computer.

Keyboard

The following table lists the keyboard specifications of your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 12. Keyboard specifications

• RGB per key
• RGB per key, backlit Cherry mechanical keyboard

Keyboard layout| QWERTY
Number of key|

• United States and Canada: 102 keys
• United Kingdom: 103 keys
• Japan: 106 keys

Keyboard size| X=19.05 mm key pitch Y=19.05 mm key pitch
Keyboard shortcuts| Some keys on your keyboard have two symbols on them. These keys can be used to type alternate characters or to perform secondary functions. To type the alternate character, press Shift and the desired key. To perform secondary functions, press Fn and the desired key.
| **NOTE:** You can define the primary behavior of the function keys (F1–F12) changing Function Key Behavior in BIOS setup program.For more information, see Keyboard shortcuts.

Camera

The following table lists the camera specifications of your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 13. Camera specifications

Touchpad

The following table lists the touchpad specifications of your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 14. Touchpad specifications

Windows, see the Microsoft knowledge base article at support.microsoft.com.

Power adapter

The following table lists the power adapter specifications of your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 15. Power adapter specifications

Power-adapter dimensions:
| Height| 43 mm (1.69 in.)| 25.40 mm (1 in.)
| Width| 100 mm (3.94 in.)| 86 mm (3.39 in.)
| Depth| 200 mm (7.87 in.)| 184 mm (7.24 in.)
Input voltage| 100 VAC–240 VAC| 100 VAC–240VAC
Input frequency| 50 Hz–60 Hz| 50 Hz–60 Hz
Input current (maximum)| 4.40 A| 4.40 A
Output current (continuous)| 16.92 A| 16.92 A
Rated output voltage| 19.50 VDC| 19.50 VDC
Temperature range:| |
| Operating| 0°C to 40°C (32°F to 104°F)| 0°C to 40°C (32°F to 104°F)
| Storage| -40°C to 70°C (-40°F to 158°F)| -40°C to 70°C (-40°F to 158°F)
CAUTION: Operating and storage temperature ranges may differ among components, so operating or storing the device outside these ranges may impact the performance of specific components.

Battery

The following table lists the battery specifications of your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 16. Battery specifications

Battery dimensions:
| Height| 7.90 mm (0.31 in.)
| Width| 336 mm (13.23 in.)
| Depth| 81.40 mm (3.20 in.)
Temperature range:
| Operating|

• Charging: 0°C to 50°C (32°F to 122°F)
• Discharging: 0°C to 60°C (32°F to 140°F)

| Storage| -20°C to 65°C (-4°F to 149°F)
Battery operating time| Varies depending on operating conditions and can significantly reduce under certain power-intensive conditions.
Battery charging time (approximate)   NOTE: Control the charging time, duration, start and end time, and so on using the Dell Power Manager application. For more information about Dell Power Manager, search in the Knowledge Base Resource at www.dell.com/support.|

• Standard charging: 3 hours, when computer is turned off
• ExpressCharge: 2 hours, when computer is turned off
• ExpressChargeBoost: 20 minutes, from 0% up to 35% when computer is turned off

Coin-cell battery| None
CAUTION: Operating and storage temperature ranges may differ among components, so operating or storing the device outside these ranges may impact the performance of specific components.
CAUTION: Dell recommends that you charge the battery regularly for optimal power consumption. If your battery charge is completely depleted, connect the power adapter, turn on your computer, and then restart your computer to reduce the power consumption.

Display

The following table lists the display specifications of your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 17. Display specifications

Definition plus (FHD+)
Touch options| Not supported| Not supported
Display-panel technology| Wide Viewing Angle (WVA)| Wide Viewing Angle (WVA)
Display-panel dimensions (active area):| |
| Height| 387.76 mm (15.27 in.)| 387.76 mm (15.27 in.)
| Width| 242.35 mm (9.54 in.)| 242.35 mm (9.54 in.)
| Diagonal| 457.27 mm (18 in.)| 457.27 mm (18 in.)
Display-panel native resolution| 2560 x 1600| 1920 x 1200
Luminance (typical)| 300 nits| 300 nits
Megapixels| 4.10| 2.3
Color gamut (typical)| DCI-P3 100%| DCI-P3 100%
Pixels Per Inch (PPI)| 168| 126
Contrast ratio (typical)| 1000:1| 1000:1
Response time (typical)|

• With Overdrive: 3 ms
• Without Overdrive: 7 ms

|

• With Overdrive: 3 ms
• Without Overdrive: 7 ms

Refresh rate| 165 Hz| 480 Hz
Horizontal view angle (typical)| +/- 85 degrees| +/- 85 degrees
Vertical view angle (typical)| +/- 85 degrees| +/- 85 degrees
Pixel pitch| 0.15 mm| 0.20 mm
Power consumption (maximum)| 8.72 W| 8.30 W
Anti-glare vs glossy finish| Anti-glare| Anti-glare
Adaptive sync support| G-SYNC, AdaptiveSync| G-SYNC, AdaptiveSync

GPU—Integrated

The following table lists the specifications of the integrated Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) supported by your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 18. GPU—Integrated

GPU—Discrete

The following table lists the specifications of the discrete Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) supported by your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 19. GPU—Discrete

External display support

The following table lists the external display support for your Alienware m18 R1.

Table 20. External display support

Graphics card| Supported external displays with laptop display enabled| Supported external displays with laptop display disabled
---|---|---

• Intel UHD Graphics
• NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050
• NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060
• NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070
• NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080
• NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090

|

• 2
• 2
• 2
• 2
• 2
• 2

|

• 2
• 2
• 2
• 2
• 2
• 2

Operating and storage environment

This table lists the operating and storage specifications of your Alienware m18 R1.

Airborne contaminant level: G1 as defined by ISA-S71.04-1985

Table 21. Computer environment

condensing)
Vibration (maximum)*| 0.66 GRMS| Not applicable
Shock (maximum)| 140 G†| Not applicable
Altitude range| -15.2 m to 3048 m (-49.87 ft to 10000ft)| -15.2 m to 10668 m (-49.87 ft to 35000ft)
**CAUTION:** Operating and storage temperature ranges may differ among components, so operating or storing the device outside these ranges may impact the performance of specific components.

*** Measured using a random vibration spectrum that simulates user environment.
†** Measured using a 2 ms half-sine pulse.

Keyboard shortcuts

NOTE: Keyboard characters may differ depending on the keyboard language configuration. Keys that are used for shortcuts remain the same across all language configurations.

Some keys on your keyboard have two symbols on them. These keys can be used to type alternate characters or to perform secondary functions. The symbol shown on the lower part of the key refers to the character that is typed out when the key is pressed. If you press shift and the key, the symbol shown on the upper part of the key is typed out. For example, if you press 2, 2 is typed out; if you press Shift + 2, @ is typed out.

The keys F1-F12 at the top row of the keyboard are function keys for multi- media control, as indicated by the icon at the bottom of the key. Press the function key to invoke the task represented by the icon. For example, pressing F1 disables/enables performance boost (refer to the table below).

However, if the function keys F1-F12 are needed for specific software applications, multi-media functionality can be disabled by pressing fn + Esc. Subsequently, multi-media control can be invoked by pressing fn and the respective function key. For example, disable/enable performance boost by pressing fn + F1.

NOTE: You can also define the primary behavior of the function keys (F1–F12) by changing Function Key Behavior in BIOS setup program.

Table 22. List of keyboard shortcuts

Your computer comes with pre-programmable macro keys that enable you to perform multiple actions with a single key press.

Table 23. List of Macro keys

NOTE: You can configure modes and assign multiple tasks for the macro keys on the keyboard.

Your computer comes with dedicated keys that enable you to control audio features of the computer with a single key press.

Table 24. List of keys to control audio features

Low blue light

WARNING: Prolonged exposure to blue light from the display may lead to long-term effects such as eye strain, eye fatigue, or damage to the eyes.

Blue light is a color in the light spectrum which has a short wavelength and high energy. Chronic exposure to blue light, particularly from digital sources, may disrupt sleep patterns and cause long-term effects such as eye strain, eye fatigue, or damage to the eyes.

The display on this computer is designed to minimize blue light and complies with TÜV Rheinland’s requirement for low blue light displays.

Low blue light mode is enabled at the factory, so no further configuration is necessary.

To reduce the risk of eye strain, it is also recommended that you:

• Position the display at a comfortable viewing distance between 20 and 28 inches (50 and 70 cm) from your eyes.
• Blink frequently to moisten your eyes, wet your eyes with water, or apply suitable eye drops.
• Look away from your display, and gaze at a distant object at 20 ft (609.60 cm) away for at least 20 seconds during each break.
• Take an extended break for 20 minutes every two hours.

Alienware Command Center

,Alienware Command Center (AWCC) provides a single interface to customize and enhance the gaming experience. The AWCC dashboard displays most recently played or added games, and provides game-specific information, themes, profiles, and access to computer settings. You can quickly access settings such as game-specific profiles and themes, lighting, macros, and audio that are critical to the gaming experience.

AWCC also supports AlienFX 2.0. AlienFX enables you to create, assign, and share game-specific lighting maps to enhance the gaming experience. It also enables you to create your own individual lighting effects and apply them to the computer or attached peripherals. AWCC embeds Peripheral Controls to ensure a unified experience and the ability to link these settings to your computer or game.

This computer features the following AlienFX lighting zones:

• keyboard
• stadium
• AlienHead power button
• AlienHead LED on the back of the display

NOTE: Information about the location of AlienFX lighting zones on your computer is available in AWCC.

AWCC supports the following features:

• FX: Create and manage the AlienFX zones.
• Fusion: Includes the ability to adjust game-specific Power Management, Sound Management, and Thermal Management features.
• Peripheral Management: Enables peripherals to appear in and be managed in Alienware Command Center. Supports key peripheral settings and associates with other functions such as profiles, macros, AlienFX, and game library.

AWCC also supports Sound Management, Thermal Controls, CPU, GPU, Memory (RAM) monitoring. For more information about
AWCC, see the Alienware Command Center Online Help or search in the Knowledge Base Resource at www.dell.com/support.

Getting help and contacting Alienware

Self-help resources

You can get information and help on Alienware products and services using these online self-help resources:

Table 25. Alienware products and online self-help resources

www.alienware.com
My Dell app|
Tips| **
Contact Support| In Windows search, type Contact Support , and press Enter**.
Online help for operating system| www.dell.com/support/windows
Access top solutions, diagnostics, drivers and downloads, and learn more about your computer through videos, manuals and documents.| Your Alienware computer is uniquely identified by a Service Tag or Express Service Code. To view relevant support resources for your Dell computer, enter the Service Tag or Express Service Code at www.dell.com/support.For more information on how to find the Service Tag for your computer, see Locate the Service Tag on your computer.
Videos providing step-by-step instructions to service your computer| www.youtube.com/alienwareservices

Contacting Alienware

To contact Alienware for sales, technical support, or customer service issues, see www.alienware.com.

NOTE: Availability varies by country/region and product, and some services may not be available in your country/region.
NOTE: If you do not have an active Internet connection, you can find contact information about your purchase invoice, packing slip, bill, or Dell product catalog.

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