Metabox Alpha-X

Good all-purpose laptop that should suit almost anyone with options to future-proof it for a bit – Metabox is exactly what Dell and Alienware used to be -- a quality machine where almost anything can be customized with superior customer service. I had a previous Metabox that needed replacing as its speed and graphic capabilities just couldn't keep up with my video editing requirements. So I went online and checked out a few other laptops before heading back to Metabox.

I found the Alpha X range at https://www.metabox.com.au/store/Alpha-X-Range and haven't looked back.

Their site allowed me a choice of nVidia video cards, multiple drive bays (where I have some mSata's, SSDs, and a mechanical for storage), multiple USB ports, multiple display outputs, and could select up to 64GB ddr4 ram at 3200 Mhz. I personally purchased a lot of ram so I could install a "ram disk" to work on file in memory instead of on a drive for ultimate speed. I chose to forego having Windows 10 installed because I have my own license for it which saved me over $200. I took some of that savings and purchased their 3 year platinum care plan for $75.

It's a 17.3" laptop, and is quite thin. People are surprised by how easily it fits in my backpack. The laptop itself isn't heavy, and neither is the new power brick that came with this model. Besides the power brick, they did the right thing and gave this model a removable battery for easy replacement if needed.

The other thing I like about this laptop over the previous model I had from them is there are a lot more vents on the underside. And I mean a lot. The majority of the vents too are around the cooling pipes. So if you have a laptop cooler pad blowing cool air up from the underside, you can be sure the cool air is getting right into the machine and doing its due diligence.

While the Alpha-X was advertised as a gaming laptop, I don't game. My primary usage is for graphic/video editing, running virtual machines (I.T. development on the side), and trading the markets (eg, Forex, stocks, funds, etc).

The build quality is solid with a brushed metal look by default.

Opening up the laptop was easy and most anything the regular user would want to change/upgrade in the laptop is easily accessible -- memory slots and drive bays. Since purchasing this laptop, I've since added another 16GB ram, a second SSD drive, and a 2TB hybrid-mechanical (the latter scavenged from my previous Metabox I had). A picture is attached to this review showing the internals as when I first received it.

What also hasn't changed is the absolute, unbeatable customer service.

Now for the faults, which aren't show stoppers, but enough to knock it from receiving 5 stars.

First, this model (and many others as I look at the Metabox site now in May 2022) all still seem to come with at least 1 USB 2.0 port. USB 2 debuted in the year 2000. 2000! Why Metabox is still using USB port technology from over 20 years ago is beyond belief. There is no excuse for still including USB 2.0 ports on today's laptops.

Second, there's only 1 USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 port, which doubles as a display port. So if you use that for an external display, you're USB-C ports are gone. I have no idea why they couldn't replace the USB 2.0 port with another USB-C port.

Third, there's no option to upgrade the display to anything other than FHD 1920 x 1080 even though you can choose if you want a display at 144Hz or 240Hz. Again, I'm not a gamer, so I don't care about refresh rates that most human eyes can't detect anyway. I would have preferred an option for a 2K resolution screen.

Fourth, there's no "privacy" option for the front facing camera. Several laptops have a thin sliding latch of sorts that allow you to close it so if the camera is on for some reason (or if you're not even aware), with the latch closed it'll see nothing but blackness.

I would definitely recommend this model for anyone, especially if you need a good performing laptop with a little bit of room for future expansion in case your needs change. It should be suitable for anyone from University students to casual users to those above-average users who require a bit more power for whatever reason (gaming, video editing, and so on).