Topping off the usability push Alienware was clearly going for is a built in 2 megapixel web cam, microphone and even an unobtrusive infra red port on the front of the casing – the perfect position for setting up the m15x for use with a remote control when closing the lid and running it as a media centre.

The overall design is remarkable sleek and clean, though it’s not going to appeal to everyone. Certainly the awful, gaudy ‘Skull Cap’ moulded casing will only find a fan base among boy racers and the bling-bling brigade (for example, if you think Pimp My Ride is intellectual programming, or the pinnacle of sophistication is an illuminated drinks cabinet inside a large, rotating globe, you’ll love the Skull Cap casing). The designer clearly anticipated the polarising nature of such a style, however, and a far more elegant, smooth surfaced option is also available.

The touch pad is of rather a unique design, too, being perfectly flush with the silver sheen of the m15x. And while this does wonders for the overall panache, it can cause mild aggravation as your finger inadvertently strays from the pad and onto the inactive casing without you realising. It’s extra size compensates for this quite admirably, however, so it’s most definitely not a deal breaker.

Again, some will like the illuminated features of the m15x, while others might wince as the showiness of it all. By illuminated features, we’re referring to the veritable lightshow that the m15x has on option – from a fully illuminated keyboard to the delineated touch pad and glowing eyes of the Alienware logo, this laptop burns with multicoloured fluorescence. It’s all controlled from an Alienware proprietary application, allowing you to change the colour of each individual aspect from a variety of options. While the illuminated keyboard could be useful when playing at night, the rest of it feels rather superfluous and appears to serve more for running the battery down than providing any functional purpose.

That said, the battery performs pretty well, considering the unstoppable nature of the machine’s sheer weight of silicon. Without sacrificing any particular performance, we measured a very decent two and a half hours from full charge, while the built in throttle controls and steal mode conspired to wring an impressive extra hour and a quarter from reduced lighting and performance. And this is a system with performance to spare, so backing off a little on the graphics processing (the system can switch between its two graphics systems to save power) still leaves you with an indomitable gaming warhorse.