Alienware is gunning for the mid-range with its Aurora gaming laptops, and I’ve come away impressed

Alienware is typically known for its high-end, expensive computers, but in 2025, they’re trying something new with the Alienware 16 Aurora. It starts at a little over $1,000, and is often available for less during sales.

I’ve been testing both the Aurora 16 and the newer Aurora 16X, and I’m impressed. While Alienware isn’t necessarily the best value for your money, I definitely recommend either of these laptops if you’re looking for a good gaming machine without spending a fortune.

The Alienware 16 and 16X offer excellent performance and maintain the recognizable Alienware look. They’re available in a variety of configurations and price points, making them a strong contender that HP and Lenovo need to be aware of.

We received a review sample from Dell, but neither Dell nor Alienware had any influence on the content of this review before it was published.

My Alienware 16X Aurora (AC16251) review

Design ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Both Alienware Aurora laptops share a sleek, deep blue color called “Interstellar Indigo,” which I find particularly appealing. They also have a similar rounded design, featuring vents and ports on the rear and sides, a raised thermal base on the bottom, and Alienware’s signature shimmering logo on the aluminum lid.

From a quick look, the entry-level Alienware 16 and its more expensive counterpart appear very similar, and that’s actually a good thing. However, upon closer inspection, the premium model boasts a sleeker, all-aluminum build. You’ll also notice a difference in the keyboard – it features single-zone RGB lighting, while the standard 16 Aurora has a white backlight.

Both laptops have two USB-A ports, an Ethernet port (placed on the side), an HDMI 2.1 port, and one USB-C port supporting DisplayPort 1.4. However, the Alienware 16X Aurora improves on this by offering a second, more versatile USB-C port with Thunderbolt 4 capabilities.

These differences all add up to a clear improvement. While the Alienware 16 Aurora remains a solid and well-built laptop, the 16X Aurora offers noticeable upgrades that give it a more high-end feel. My only complaint is that both laptops are a bit bulky, particularly the thick screen cover.

Display ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Alienware 16 and 16X have very similar screens, but the 16X model offers a few key improvements.

Both laptops have excellent 16-inch displays with vibrant colors and quick response times. However, the 16X Aurora offers a smoother experience with a faster 240Hz refresh rate (compared to the 120Hz rate on the 16 Aurora). It also displays a wider range of colors more accurately, covering 100% of both the DCI-P3 and sRGB color spaces, and is significantly brighter at 500 nits compared to the 300 nits of the standard 16 Aurora.

Both screens look good, but the Alienware 16X Aurora is noticeably better. The main drawback is that the contrast isn’t great, even for this type of screen. You might notice this when playing games with a lot of dark areas or a wide range of colors, like horror games.

Performance ⭐⭐⭐⭐½

When it comes to gaming laptops, performance is key, and the Alienware Aurora delivers. I primarily tested a model – the 16X Aurora – equipped with an Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX processor, 32GB of RAM, a 1TB solid-state drive, and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 graphics card. This configuration is available at Dell.com for around $1,999.99.

This laptop performs reliably, but it truly excels in processing power and keeping cool. The Alienware 16X Aurora, in particular, gets a lot out of its powerful processors and consistently maintains high performance without slowing down, even when pushed to its limits in ‘Overdrive’ mode.

The fans can get quite noisy when the system is working hard, but the Alienware Aurora maintains a steady fan speed instead of constantly changing it. It produces a consistent humming sound. You might occasionally hear the fans kick into high gear even when the laptop is off and in sleep mode, but that’s fairly typical for Windows computers.

Forza Horizon 5 — 113 FPS (Extreme preset, 1600p resolution, NVIDIA DLSS Super Resolution/Frame Generation/Reflex Low Latency disabled)
Gears 5 — 105 FPS (Ultra preset, 1600p resolution)
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 — 94 FPS (Extreme preset, 1600p resolution, NVIDIA DLSS Super Resolution set to Performance, NVIDIA DLSS Frame Generation disabled, NVIDIA Reflex Low Latency enabled)
Cyberpunk 2077 — 57 FPS (Ray Tracing: Ultra preset, 1600p resolution, NVIDIA DLSS Super Resolution Transformer Model set to Auto, NVIDIA DLSS Frame Generation disabled, NVIDIA Reflex Low Latency enabled)

You’ll really see the difference a powerful CPU makes in games like Gears 5. While you don’t *need* to spend this much to get similar performance, the Alienware 16X Aurora delivers consistently strong results, which is a major benefit. The only downside is that, due to limitations with NVIDIA graphics cards, it’s not possible to configure this laptop with more than 8GB of VRAM – this isn’t a fault of Alienware itself.

Battery life ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Gaming laptops aren’t usually known for their long battery life, but the Alienware 16X Aurora did a bit better than I expected. It’s not a laptop you could rely on for a full workday, but it lasts longer than many others. In my tests, it lost 16% of its battery running typical office programs for an hour, and 20% while playing a standard HD video.

Turning on “Stealth Mode” with a single button on Alienware Aurora laptops minimizes distractions by turning off keyboard lights and quieting the fans. This smart feature can significantly extend battery life – we got a full day of use even with the most powerful processor and graphics card combination. Laptops with less powerful components should last even longer.

If you really stress this hardware, such as when playing demanding games, you’ll likely only get one or two hours of use before the battery runs out, and you can expect a performance drop of about 25 to 33%.

Keyboard & touchpad ⭐⭐⭐½

Alienware Aurora laptops include a number pad, which is a rare feature these days. While some users will appreciate having it, the keys themselves are smaller, making the keyboard feel a bit crowded.

The keyboard’s keys don’t travel very far when pressed and don’t feel substantial. While it’s not a *bad* keyboard, it’s definitely the least enjoyable one I’ve used on a laptop recently – it’s just okay. I do appreciate the keyboard’s layout, particularly the three programmable macro keys along the top row.

The touchpad is well-built and feels good to use. It’s smooth, responds quickly to your touch, and works with Microsoft’s standard gesture controls. It doesn’t feel flimsy, which is great – I didn’t expect a high-end touchpad on a gaming laptop anyway.

Software & AI ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Alienware Aurora laptops come with Windows 11 already installed, but they don’t have the powerful hardware needed to fully take advantage of Microsoft’s newest features, like Copilot+. Whether that’s a good thing or not depends on your preference – some people might see it as avoiding unnecessary software.

While these Alienware Aurora laptops come with a few pre-installed Dell programs and some extra, unnecessary software, they generally feel clean and ready to use. I found them to be very stable, which hasn’t always been the case with older Alienware models. A lot of this improvement is thanks to the Alienware Command Center software – it’s become much more dependable, user-friendly, and offers a lot of useful features.

Everything else ⭐⭐⭐½

Beyond that, Alienware did a solid job overall. All Aurora desktops include Wi-Fi 7, and I consistently experienced fast and reliable wireless connections.

The speakers on both models are simple, but work well enough. While the base 16 Aurora has a 720p front camera, the 16X Aurora upgrades to 1080p – both are adequate for video calls. The 16X Aurora also includes Windows Hello facial recognition, a feature the standard 16 Aurora doesn’t have.

I’d like to see the Alienware 16X Aurora have better speakers, but overall, both laptops offer what you’d expect for their price.

Alienware 16X Aurora review: My final thoughts

✅You should buy this if …

You want a capable, reliable gaming laptop without breaking the bank.
You like having a clear upgrade path if you want to spend more.
You want a powerful gaming laptop with better than average endurance.

❌You should not buy this if …

You want the absolute best performance-per-dollar possible.
You need a great keyboard and don’t care about the tenkey number pad.

The Alienware 16 and 16X Aurora laptops are both solid choices for gamers, falling in the mid-to-high price range. What stands out most is how clearly differentiated the two models are from each other.

The Alienware 16X Aurora offers noticeable improvements over the standard 16 Aurora, including a more solid build, better connectivity with more ports, a faster and more vibrant screen, a more powerful processor, and expanded storage and memory choices. It also features an upgraded camera with Windows Hello facial recognition, all at a price point that builds upon the standard model’s cost.

In short, I suggest either of these laptops. The Alienware 16 is a great choice if you’re looking for something affordable. If you can spend about $1,600 or more, the 16X is a significant improvement. Alienware has really stepped up to compete with the Lenovo Legion 5 16 and HP OMEN 16.

I noticed the Alienware 16 Aurora (AC16250) starts around $1,099.99 at Dell.com, and the Alienware 16X Aurora (AC16251) is available from $1,649.99 there. It’s worth keeping an eye out for deals, though – I’ve seen the 16 go for under $1,000 and the 16X for less than $1,500 before.

2025-11-09 17:12