Alienware has always had a reputation as a brand that makes some of the more aesthetically interesting choices in gaming hardware design, but the new Alienware x16 R2 gaming laptop unveiled at CES 2024 may just be right up there. The chassis design may look familiar, but beneath the per-key backlit keyboard on the higher-spec model is an RGB multi-touch trackpad.

Light-up trackpads on Alienware notebooks are nothing new, but this one is much easier to control thanks to an array of 100 micro-LEDs. Additionally, the x16 R2 has an RGB ring around the rear exhaust port and the Alienware logo on the lid glows with "AlienFX" lighting.

Slightly removed from the flashy design, its specs, which Alienware says are the most premium gaming laptops available, are also quite impressive: Intel's new Meteor Lake Core Ultra 7 or 9 processors, QHD 240Hz refresh rate screen, a choice of Nvidia 40 series GPUs from RTX 4060 to RTX 4090, Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos support (including six speakers for 3D stereoscopic sound).

When it comes to cooling, the x16 R2 uses Alienware's Element 31 thermal interface material made of "Gallium Silicon Matrix," combined with a vapor chamber cooling solution and a substantial rear end to keep all high-end hardware is expected to be kept cool.

This is a shiny, flashy machine, and if you're going to build one like this, you might as well tilt it a bit. Opinions may differ, of course, but for me it feels strangely right. I've never been a fan of laptops with a protruding back design, but the combination of those smooth sci-fi lines and the glowing pad fits the overall aesthetic very well.

Alienware laptops are supposed to be a little (sometimes more than a little) over-the-top, but here they seem to strike the right balance between sublime and ridiculous.

The light-up RGB touchpad is limited to the more expensive RTX 4080 and RTX 4090 configurations. If you ask me, this is a bit of a selling point for the top-of-the-line models, but still not enough to make me want an RTX 4090 in my laptop chassis. Still, it's a machine that looks impressive on paper, has adequate specs, and is one that is likely to shift a lot of units due to Alienware's popularity among gaming laptop buyers.

Alienware has not yet revealed a release date for the x16 R2, but pricing is expected to start at about $2,100 for the low-end version.

_____________________________________ PC Gamer's CES 2024 coverage is courtesy of Asus Republic of Gamers.