Dell Alienware X14, m15 R7 launch: Anand Subramanya talks about the gaming hardware market, innovations, covid, and more
As part of the Dell Alienware X14 and m15 R7 launch, we got a chance to speak to Mr. Anand Subramanya, the Director of Product Marketing at Consumer & Small Business in the company. Here is everything we discussed with Anand during the interaction.
Dell Technologies India has just launched the latest Alienware lineup of products in the Indian market. This launch comes just weeks after the company brought Alienware X15 and X17 R2 to the country. As with most hardware releases, the India launch for the products comes weeks after the first wave of global launches. Dell showcased its entire 2022 lineup at its CES keynote back in January. As part of the launch, India Today Gaming got a chance to speak to Mr. Anand Subramanya, the Director of Product Marketing in the Consumer & Small Business division at Dell Technologies India.
The conversation covered several topics including the changes in the sales patterns, consumer preferences, and more. We also discussed the work Alienware is doing for the Indian gaming audience along with the evolving situation of the pandemic. It concluded with the highlights of the Alienware X14, and m15 R7, new product form factors, and the esports-related plans. Here is everything we discussed with Anand Subramanya at the launch of Dell Alienware X14, and m15 R7.
Dell Alienware X14, m15 R7 launch interview with Anand Subramanya
Anand started the interaction with some stats to outline how things have changed in the last year for Dell. The gaming hardware space has seen a growth of about 67 percent in the notebook space marking “a huge jump”. This 67 percent is striking when compared with the rest of the hardware industry with a growth of about 20 percent. Anand reaffirmed that Dell did “pretty well” experiencing a growth of around 100-115 percent while not sharing the exact numbers.
It is worth noting that Dell used the stats shared by GfK to outline its’ growth instead of any internal numbers. Dell also saw growth from the premium segment of the gaming notebook market by 50-58 percent year on year. Digging into the numbers, this growth indicates increasing interest and demand from the gaming enthusiast segment. Anand concluded the response by claiming, “All-in-all, it was a fantastic year” for the company.
Dell also tracks listening forums, community websites, and social media channels to gauge consumer demands and feedback. Like many companies in the product development space, Dell also relies on customer focus groups to guide its gaming hardware development effort. Talking about the highlights, the company has ensured that the X14 “is the thinnest Alienware ever and the thinnest 14-inch gaming laptop in the world”. Dell has offered the latest features like RTX-graphics and X-Series processor along with “almost 7–8-hour battery life”. All these features will allow Alienware X series products to offer all-around performance to their buyers. Anand clarified that there were no specific demands that were limited to the Indian gaming audience. Unlike other product categories, the gaming hardware requirements “transcend beyond the geographical boundaries”.
COVID, availability of Alienware X14, m15 R7, esports, and more
Talking about the availability of the new Dell Alienware products, Anand highlighted how the industry managed to grow by 20 percent despite the supply chain issues in 2021. He emphasized that Dell has a “very strong, flexible supply chain system” to meet the needs of the customer. Anand was confident that Dell would be able to meet the needs of its customers this year.
Going back to the innovations coming in the latest Dell Alienware products, Anand spoke about the Cryo-Tech cooling technologies to offer five power states to gamers. He also shared more details about how the technology works with the CPU vapor chamber and the “Element 31” thermal interface made from Gallium and Silicon. Finally, it is the first gaming laptop to feature the Nvidia Advanced Optimus and G-Sync technologies for a better battery backup.
Moving to the m15 R7, it features RTX 3080 Ti, the most powerful GPU on any Alienware laptop ever with 170W TDP. In the past, Dell Alienware has stated that the m series laptops are made for peak performance even if that means less ideal system thermals. Talking about the r7, the company has worked on improving the thermals of the m series. This work has resulted in 1.3x more internal airflow for “much better cooling” to handle the heat from the 170W TDP system.
Dell revealed that it keeps working on prototypes with new form factors for its customers. However, looking at the surveys and customer preferences, the company will stick with the mainstream gaming laptops and notebooks. Anand believes that PCs are more relevant than any ultra-portable designs like the Valve Steam Deck for first-time PC users. In concluding the conversation, Anand revisited the Dell Futurist program outlining how it has helped “a lot of youngsters” from the target audience in the esports space.