Hi, 

We did not validate those video cards for the M17X R4. Therefore, we cannot confirm if they will fit and function properly. I found this thread which may be useful. 

Hi,

I am also looking to upgrade my GPU for my Alienware M17 R4. It currently has an AMD Radeon HD 7970M.

I am pretty happy with the AMD.

Can you give me the GPUs that HAVE been tested for this AW system by Dell, that are more powerful than the one I currently have?  

Also, What options are there for CPU upgrades? I currently have Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-3630QM CPU @ 2.40GHz (8 CPUs), ~2.4GHz.

Cheers.

The HD 7970m is the best AMD GPU Alienware tested for the m17xR4. If you want better, you could get the R9 m290x / HD 8970m, but both are rebranded versions of the HD 7970m. There's also the r9 m295x, but it hasn't been tested by anybody in the community and is only available through one seller. As for Nvidia, the best tested is the GTX 680m. Any other Nvidia GPU (like the GTX 970m) upgrades require some extra software effort. Head over to notebookreview's forum for better details.

As for the CPU, read below.

• i7-3720QM
• i7-3740QM
• i7-3820QM
• i7-3840QM
• i7-3920XM
• i7-3940XM

Don't get an XM CPU if you don't plan on overclocking.