With a growing number of PC gamers using laptops (myself included now) there is a growing market for satisfying the needs of ‘mobile gamers’. The trouble is that gaming laptops tend to be big, chunky things that really push the definition of ‘portable’ but the new Alienware M11x looks set to change this.

Alienware M11x Gaming Laptop

The M11x is a small and (relatively) light laptop that packs a powerful punch. The 11.6-inch screen is powered by two graphics cards -a basic integrated card gives over six hours of battery life, while switching to ‘gaming mode’ powers up the separate NVIDIA GT335M card and allows for over two hours of gaming on the battery.

The processor is an Intel Core 2 ULV U7300, which has been seen in some of the more expensive netbooks, and with its low power requirements it helps to maintain that long battery life.

If you think the screen size is too small the M11x also offers HDMI and VGA sockets so that you can plug it into a larger television or monitor. Dell (Alienware’s parent company) are claiming that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 will run at over 30fps in full-HD mode with graphics set to high – if true, that’s impressive.

Retail for the Alienware M11x is expected to be under $1000, possibly even as low as $799. Sounds like a sure-fire hit to me, both for gamers and multimedia users.