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Dell's Alienware gaming laptops are some of the best that we've tested and reviewed here at Windows Central, and the flagship models were recently updated to include Intel's Arrow Lake-HX Refresh processors.
These "Plus" chips, including the Core Ultra 7 270HX Plus and Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus, give the Alienware 18 Area-51, Alienware 16 Area-51, and Alienware 16X Aurora a respectable power boost not only for gaming, but also for creators and professionals who work and play on the same PC.
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Intel clocks the Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus as delivering roughly an 8% gaming boost at 1080p compared to the Core Ultra 9 285HX. If you're coming from an older PC, say with a Core i9-12900HX chip, Intel says you can expect roughly 62% better performance.
These "Plus" chips also bring support for Intel's Binary Optimization Tool (IBOT), which essentially increases performance by reordering unnecessary steps of compiled machine code. Windows Central Senior Editor Ben Wilson has a deeper explanation (and some testing) of IBOT in his Core Ultra 7 270K Plus review.
It's also well worth noting that the 16X Aurora is now available with an NVIDIA RTX 5070 Ti Laptop GPU; it was previously locked to the RTX 5060 and RTX 5070 mobile cards.
It's not just performance hardware that got an upgrade, either. Alienware's 16-inch laptops now have the anti-glare OLED display option that was teased at CES 2026.
Windows Central readers and writers are fans of Alienware laptops
The Alienware brand has been around for a long time, and it's a name that many associate directly with PC gaming. We asked if our readers were interested in these new PCs for 2026 when they were announced, and the response was very positive.
Former Windows Central reviewer Zachary Boddy is also a fan of the Alienware 16X Aurora after testing and reviewing the last-gen model. Boddy remarked:
"The Alienware Aurora laptops target the mid-range with great all-around performance and a practical design, and the more powerful 16X makes some smart upgrades to justify its added cost. For the budget-conscious PC gamers that still want a quality device, the Alienware 16X Aurora is absolutely worth consideration — just don't expect perfection in every category, like the keyboard or speakers."
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