I’m not a stranger to PC gaming, as I’ve been building and customizing my rigs for years now. I’ve owned Alienware R8 in the past, but overheating issues and constant driver updates led me to switch to the latest Alienware Aurora R13.
The CPU performance was very smooth, and the graphics didn’t disappoint. I was able to play Fortnite, League of Legends, and Valorant at maximum settings with a great FPS rate. The heat was also very well controlled during my gameplay sessions.
The new Alder Lake processor and RTX 3060 graphics cards make this machine a powerhouse for gaming.
Alienware R13 Overview
| Price | $2,199.99 |
| Processor | 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-12700F processor |
| RAM | 16GB Dual Channel DDR5 at 4400MHz; up to 128GB |
| Hard Drive | 512GB NVMe M.2 PCIe SSD |
| GPU | NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 3060 Ti 8GB GDDR6 LHR |
| Operating System | Windows 11 Home |
With Intel Core i7-12700F processors that feature 12 cores and 20 threads and impressive boost clock speeds up to 5 GHz, the GPU has a lot of room to perform at its peak.
The GPU in this PC is RTX 3060 Ti which performs well in 1440p resolution. Games like PUBG run at a smooth 140+ fps, and League of Legends is at 350+ fps when maxed out.
Moreover, this PC is VR Ready and can support most VR games on high settings with no noticeable lag.
R13 has an Intel Z690 chipset motherboard to support the high-power hardware, including the latest Alder Lake processor and DDR5 RAM. The motherboard also has a lot of slots for expansion in the future.
On the memory front, this Alienware PC offers 16 GB DDR5 RAM with promising speeds at 4400MHz. There are four available RAM slots if you want to upgrade the RAM in the future because R13 supports up to 128 GB RAM.
And when it comes to storage, this unit comes with a 512GB NVMe solid state drive, which provides sufficient space to store all my games without running out of memory.
Given these stellar specs, this PC is more likely to overheat, but Dell has an efficient cooling system installed to ensure that this doesn’t happen even during long hours of gaming. I did not purchase the Cryo-Tech Liquid Cooling upgrade, and my PC is still very quiet and cool.
R13 has a 750 Watt 80-Plus Platinum Power Supply which is more than enough to run all components of my system.
Additionally, this PC comes with the latest Windows 11 Home operating system preinstalled.
What The Alienware R13 Is Like
The Alienware R13 gaming PC looks very sleek and professional. It has a nice matte finish that doesn’t show fingerprints. It measures 20.1″ x 8.86″ x 20.8″ and weighs a lot at 27 pounds.
The front and back of the R13 are both very busy with sports. The front has a headphone jack, microphone jack, three USB 3.1 ports, and one USB Type-C port. The back has an Ethernet port, HDMI port, DisplayPort port, four USB 2.0 ports, two USB 3.1 ports, audio lines, and the power connector.
On the left panel, there’s a transparent window that shows off the internals of the PC. There are two colors available for this case: the dark side of the moon and lunar light. For a more classic look, I chose the dark side of the moon variant.
Games such as Fortnite, League of Legends, and Valorant ran smoothly on the machine with outstanding graphics performance. I also tried other graphically taxing tasks such as video editing, and it’s still as fast as ever.
Alienware R13 Pros & Cons
Alienware R13 Pros
Thanks to the new Alder Lake processors, the R13 can handle multiple tasks simultaneously and doesn’t have any problem running games like Fortnite or Valiant. Coupled with NVIDIA RTX 3060 graphics, tasking is a breeze.
The airflow system is another excellent thing about R13, as I didn’t notice any overheating issues during my gameplay sessions. With the new thermal design, heat management is outstanding on this machine.
The new case has also been redesigned for better airflow. The expressive curves add to the gaming aesthetic, and the ports are placed on the front and rear for a cleaner look.
Alienware R13 Cons
The downside is that it supports only one SSD and Hard Drive. So, if you’re looking to upgrade or add more storage, you’ll have to replace the existing ones with an even larger capacity.
Although R13 showcases a sleek design, the build is made of plastic. I would have preferred an all-metal build for a premium look and feel.
Alienware R13 vs Alienware R12
This may be attributable to the built-in 1 TB SATA Hard Drive in addition to its 512GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD in R12. On the other hand, the R13 features only one 512GB M.22 PCIe NVMe M.2 PCIe SSD.
| Alienware Aurora R13 | Alienware Aurora R12 | |
| Price | $2,199.99 | $2,669.00 |
| Processor | 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-12700F processor | 11th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-11700F processor |
| RAM | 16GB Dual Channel DDR5 at 4400MHz; up to 128GB | 16GB DDR4 XMP at 3200MHz |
| Hard Drive | 512GB NVMe M.2 PCIe SSD | 512GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD (Boot) + 1TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s (Storage) |
| GPU | NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 3060 Ti 8GB GDDR6 LHR | NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 3080 10GB GDDR6X |
| Operating System | Windows 11 Home | Windows 10 Home 64bit |
In terms of price, the R12 is a little more expensive than the newer R13.
The processor is the most notable difference between these two desktop computers. The Alienware R13 features the new Intel 12th gen Alder Lake processor that boosts performance across all tasks, while the R12 uses the 11th gen Tiger Lake series.
The graphics cards on both machines are also different, with R13 using RTX 3060 Ti, while R12 features GTX 3080.
R13 already uses the new DDR5 RAM with higher bandwidth and is more power-efficient than the DDR4 RAM of R12.
The heat dissipation on the R13 is also much better with its restructured thermal design, which improves airflow and helps keep the machine cool. In fact, there is an option to purchase an Alienware Cryo-Tech™ liquid cooler for an even better cooling experience.
Alienware R13 vs MSI Trident 3
MSI Trident 3 is around $400 cheaper than the Alienware 13, although it does not have the same build quality.
| Alienware Aurora R13 | MSI Trident 3 | |
| Price | $2,199.99 | $1,774.99 |
| Processor | 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-12700F processor | 11th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-11700F processor |
| RAM | 16GB Dual Channel DDR5 at 4400MHz; up to 128GB | 16GB DDR4 at 3200MHz |
| Hard Drive | 512GB NVMe M.2 PCIe SSD | 512GB SSD |
| GPU | NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 3060 Ti 8GB GDDR6 LHR | NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 3060 AERO ITX |
| Operating System | Windows 11 Home | Windows 10 Home 64bit |
The Trident uses a plastic chassis with an aluminum finish that gives it a premium look and the feel. It measures 9.9 x 3.8 x 13.9 inches and weighs only 7 pounds which is much lighter than the Alienware R13.
However, the R13 already uses the latest DDR5 RAM and Intel 12th gen processors, while the Trident 3 uses DDR4 and 11th gen processors.
Both machines use the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 graphics card, but R13 uses the Ti variant, which is considerably more powerful than non-Ti GPUs.
R13 runs on the latest Windows 11 OS, while the Trident 3 runs on Windows 10.
Main Reasons Why People Buy Alienware R13
Many unique features make this gaming desktop stand out from the rest. These are just some reasons why the Alienware R13 is an excellent buy for gamers and enthusiasts.
Latest Specs
The Alienware R13 uses the latest hardware with its 12th gen Intel Alder Lake Processor, DDR5 RAM, and RTX 3060 Ti Graphics card. Moreover, the PC runs on Windows 11, the latest OS from Microsoft.
Cooling Performance
R13 is an upgrade over the R12 to prioritize cooling performance. It features a new thermal design with vents, fans, and blades to provide better airflow throughout the system, improving heat dissipation.
Sleek Design
It features a unique and neat design with a transparent window on the left panel showing its internals. The downside to this machine is that it’s heavy at 27 pounds due to its large form factor.
Is The Alienware R13 Worth It?
The Alienware R13 is a powerful machine for those looking to upgrade their gaming desktop with the latest hardware and design elements, although it comes at quite a price.
This is especially great for avid gamers and enthusiasts who need the best performance and cooling for their machines.
However, it may not be the best option for those on budget, although there are many alternatives like MSI Trident 3. It may not feature the latest hardware and design elements like the Alienware R13, but it is still an effective machine at a slightly lower price.
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