alienware:worth the price? [Archive]

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VAE VICTUS

11-25-2006, 00:29

OMGLAZERS

11-25-2006, 00:42

NO.

NO.

NO.

NONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONO

NONONONONONONONONO

NONONONONONO

So....

NO!!!!

I could build you a computer or find you a better laptop at the same power for nearly 1/2 or less the price.

I do it actually as a micro-business at my college. Modding and building pcs, xboxs, ps2s, etc. etc.

Alienware should be renamed 'Give us all your goddamn money, SUCKER'-ware.

(Note: If you really would like help, reply and let me know and i'd be glad to assist you)

VAE VICTUS

11-25-2006, 00:49

VAE VICTUS

11-25-2006, 00:49

sapi

11-25-2006, 00:55

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Alienware is a massive waste of money - you can get a custom built computer with the same parts for half the price ;)

maestro

11-25-2006, 00:57

:dizzy2: Complete rip-off... buld your own, man :dizzy2:

Big King Sanctaphrax

11-25-2006, 00:59

Either build your own, or source the parts and get someone in the know to put it together for you. It is always the best option.

sapi

11-25-2006, 01:04

Though, if you wish, you could just look at what alienware put in and use that as the basis of your build :P

BigTex

11-25-2006, 01:08

NOOOOOOOOO NO NO
Never buy from Allienware. They will rip you off so quickly and not even bat an eye. Honestly they had a article in PC magazine a couple months ago where they tryed to build a better computer then a top of the line allienware. They ended up paying less then 1/2 the price.

If you want a solid computer build/customize your own. Always check out any computer sales and parts sales also you can find some good deals.

Brighdaasa

11-25-2006, 01:13

Remind me again why you want a laptop to play mtw2? Gaming quality laptops are very expensive, and most mobile graphics chips are inferiour to the desktop models. So unless you plan on traveling a lot and mobility of your system is an issue, go for a desktop pc. For desktops it's also easier to get custom parts, to get the pc you want and need, and not be bound to whatever setup your dealer has to offer you.

I'd suggest asking gamers with some hardware knowledge for advice on compatible parts and general tips on putting together your custom pc (would the apothecary section be a more appropriate place?).

On the plus side, if you already have a desktop pc, there's usually no need to replace the monitor, keyboard, mouse, speakers,... and you can save a lot of money, or you can upgrade them when you have some more cash to spend.

Just my opinion.

Fookison

11-25-2006, 01:49

I agree with the previous note. Why a laptop for MTW2? I sometimes use my Dell XPS laptop fully loaded and cannot enjoy the same quality of game as my home built desktop built :yes: for a fraction of the price (for the same level of components). The Dell has a smaller screen, and does not have the same expandabiity as a desktop along with the cost to build (half the price). Go with a nice desktop and a big widescreen and enjoy the game the way it was intended to be played!!!!!

OMGLAZERS

11-25-2006, 02:30

that would be awesome, but i live in Dallas,Tx, how do i contact you? more so, if i pay alienware im pretty much guaranteed a computer, however with people i dont know, well you get the picture, how do i know i can trust you or anyone else for that matter?

Just PM me on the forums or AIM (OMGLAZERS) and i'll talk you through it and how to go about it.

I doubt you'd be willing to have some guy over the internet build your computer, so instead, I can walk you through it and such because it's difficult to start but easy to do if you have someone talking to you about the process of buying the parts onlne.

Shahed

11-25-2006, 06:54

gonn have to get a new PC for M2:TW, looking @ alienware laptops, are they worht the price? they are pretty steep from where im standing.
which model of laptop can i get and still keep the price around $1000?
this computer would be used everyonce and awhiel to write a paper, predominately MTW2 will be played.

the mj-12 model starts at 2000$:sweatdrop:

area 51 series starts at 999$

aurora m9700 starts at 1699:furious3:

just want a computer im not going to have to mess with, upgrades and all.

are alienwares products worht it?

In the price range you mentioned, they are not worth it because you can put that together yourself for much cheaper.

However if you have more than 3-4K USD or EURO to spend, Alienware offers you an out of the box solution (and I'm talking gaming laptops btw) with AWESOME style, OUTSTANDING firepower. Completely KNOCK OUT performance.

If you have 5K, the ALX is amazing. Now then again even if I had 5K to spend on a PC/laptop I would'nt but ALX laptops are incredible.

EDIT: If I'm talking laptops for gaming, that's obviously because that's what I need. I don't need a desktop, neither do I want one.

Katana

11-25-2006, 08:36

This is a useful thread. I'm going to get a new PC in the summer, and one of it's purposes will be (hopefully) to let me max out M2TW with impunity. I've been wondering about whether I should go pre-built (i.e. Alienware or something similar) or build my own. As I see it...

In favour of pre-built
- Convenient
- Usually comes w/ warranty
- May offer games packaged with system
- Comes with operating system (which I have no idea how to install on a 'blank' system) already installed.

Against pre-built
- Can be a bit of a rip-off compared to do-it-yourself (DIY).
- Depending on specific company, warranty service / technical support may be very shoddy or nonexistent.
- Still not a guarantee the system will work out of the box.
- You may be paying considerably more for brandname (as is the case with Alienware, I believe).

In favour of DIY
- Much more powerful for the same investment.
- Much more satisfying when you eventually get it working.
- As customizable as it gets.

Against DIY
- Requires all sorts of technical know-how (which components to buy, how to assemble them, make sure it doesn't overheat - especially if you plan to overclock - make sure it's upgradeable, make sure the OS can run on it, make sure you haven't forgotten anything else, etc.)
- Potentially could waste more money than you would spend on a pre-built system.
- Budgeting necessary, dollar-allocation-per-part may be tricky (i.e. do you emphasize CPU or VPU? How much RAM is enough? Which is the best mobo?).
- Spatial allocations (everything has to fit in the case) complicate matters.

That's all I can think of. I'm tremendously intimidated by some aspects of building my own computer, but I think it's what I'd like to do. Are there any rescources someone could point me towards to address some of my concerns? Keep in mind that I'm not going to buy any parts until this summer, so specifics aren't strictly necessary.

Zenicetus

11-25-2006, 11:16

Okay, this will go against the grain here, but I bought two... yes, two high-end Alienware gaming boxes (not laptops) a year and a half ago. They were were very expensive, compared to do-it-yourself (DIY) or have your geek friend built it (HYGFBI).

Here's the thing.... my S.O. and I love gaming together. We've both gone the DIY route and the HYGFBI route in the past, with mixed results. We're not beginners at this... we're the arrows-in-the-back pioneers from the days when computer gaming graphics had acronyms like "CGA" and "EGA".

DIY means spending time keeping up with the latest hot gear, and knowing what components will work with other components, and there is no fall-back if you screw up. You own the problem... and I have wasted too many hours of my life trying to debug hardware problems.

The HYGFBI approach is also a problem, at least potentially. Both my S.O. and I have been burned by people who built systems and then disappeared, for completely understandable reasons... like gettng a nice-paying job out of state. But when ONE person is your tech support and they're not there... well, then you might as well have built the thing yourself.

The reason we bought two Alienware boxes is that we were at a point in our lives were we just wanted to play the damn games, not deal with the hardware. Keeping the software environment healthy and debugged is enough of a challenge. I'm tired of fooling around with hardware. These days, hardware works fine if it works at all when you first plug it in, and that's what I'm happy to pay someone else to take care of. Both our Alienware comps booted up the games and home business apps we wanted to run, right out of the box, and they've been working without a glitch for the last year and a half.

Note: I have no experience at all with Alienware tech support, because we haven't needed it. I've heard very mixed reviews about that, which means I won't automatically buy another one when it's time to upgrade. Heck, if our money is tight when it's time to upgrade, I'll just build a comp myself. There is really no justification for this approach unless you have money to burn. But that's the point. If you can afford to let someone else do this, and not really care about the cost... an Alienware might be a good choice.

P.S. I wouldn't personally use a laptop for gaming, but my S.O.'s daughter bought a "Voodoo" brand laptop for gaming and school use last summer, and she likes it. Just another data point. Laptops are a special case because there is no DIY build option.

Raxxius

11-25-2006, 13:22

Nope!

Even in the prebuilt market there are similar specced PCs for less.

As for self-build. I was building PCs at the age of 12, back in the days of 386s/486s. Building a computer is not difficult. There are a few tricks to learn (like wire routing) but other than that it's really easy, will take you a few hours tops gives you the satisfaction of the knowledge that you built your rig, allows you to spec it to exactly what you want.

Against DIY
- Requires all sorts of technical know-how (which components to buy, how to assemble them, make sure it doesn't overheat - especially if you plan to overclock - make sure it's upgradeable, make sure the OS can run on it, make sure you haven't forgotten anything else, etc.)
- Potentially could waste more money than you would spend on a pre-built system.
- Budgeting necessary, dollar-allocation-per-part may be tricky (i.e. do you emphasize CPU or VPU? How much RAM is enough? Which is the best mobo?).
- Spatial allocations (everything has to fit in the case) complicate matters.

Most of these negatives aren't actually significant. As I said, assembly is easy.

Specing a computer, well if you're unsure this forum will be filled with people who will be able to offer advice.

Not sure how you would spend more money than a prebuild unless you're building a better rig.

Bugeting is dependent on specing, again asking can give you more advice (and experiance) than you can shake a stick at.

Spatial allocations? Again this is specing, and it's not complicated. 3 slots + 2 cards = enough space, 4 cards + 3 slots = not enough space.

So really you're negatives are based on fear of lack of knowledge and that you'll screw up. I'd say spend some time brushing up on what's what, afterall the money required to buy an Alienware is a big investment, you shouldn't be making that big an investment unless you're sure about what is in the computer and why anyway.

So my advice is to open up a computer have a look inside, get over the fear of the unknown/damn laziness.

And even if you still want a prebuilt I'd look around for other brands to gauge the situation.

VAE VICTUS

11-25-2006, 13:44

Daveybaby

11-25-2006, 15:38

Laptops are crap and overpriced for gaming.
Alienware are chronically overpriced on top of that.

A different option:

If you need something you can move around easily, but that you dont actually need to use while on the move, then instead of a laptop build a small form factor (SFF) PC. People use them for LAN parties all the time, so theres nothing stopping you from carrying one around in your car.

e.g. buy a Shuttle (http://www.shuttle.com) XPC barebones system, add cpu, ram, dvd, hdd and two of the beefiest graphics cards you can find in sli/crossfire - and you will have the best of both worlds. Add a carry case and a small monitor (still large by laptop standards) and youre sorted.

PROMETHEUS

11-25-2006, 15:49

No , make yourselfe it , assembling it ....

Shahed

11-25-2006, 16:03

When you are talking about laptops being crap. Remember that a lot of people DON'T WANT PCs or shuttles, they WANT laptops. Something you can put in your backpack and off you go. In that regard the ALX is the WTFPWN'edBBQ'ed. I bet most have'nt even seen one.

See a guy like me can take that to a business meeting and get noticed for being different but nobody really knows it's a gaming laptop. They'd think it's trendy, hip stuff and that's it. And while I'm sitting there in the middle of a boring meeting falling asleep I could be having a round of MTW2 :P

There's a good reason why MANY adults use laptops for gaming. Then there's the wife or girl, usually but not always nagging about gaming. A laptop you can just put in your backpack and drive to the pub, train station, cafe, WHATEVER! and play.

Space... is an issue. A huge moster PC when you're 35 years old sitting in your bedroom is just too uncool. Looks uncool, feels uncool. A laptop, you can stow away, neatly and convert the space into a myriad of things. The laptop also becomes invisible anytime you want it to.

Laptops get more and more attention by a more mature market. If you're 14 by all means a PC is where it's at, but the older you get the more a laptop, OFTEN BUT NOT ALWAYS, makes sense. Granted desktops are ofc much more powerful, but who cares when you got an ALX, it creams most desktops and comes back for more.

Zenicetus

11-25-2006, 21:36

No , make yourselfe it , assembling it ....

How is he going to assemble a laptop himself? A laptop isn't my personal choice for gaming, because I think laptops should be as small and lightweight as possible, which isn't really compatible with the power you need for games. But some people want or need a big gaming-capable laptop.

For example, as I mentioned above, my S.O.'s daughter got a Voodoo brand gaming laptop this summer. It doesn't fit my idea of a laptop at all... it's huge, it's heavy, it runs hot, and worst of all the case is colored PINK :dizzy2: . She got it because she's doing post-grad studies overseas, traveling back and forth frequently, and living in a tiny apartment. For her, and for others in a similar situation, it makes sense.

cfc_kev

11-25-2006, 22:15

Remember that a lot of people DON'T WANT PCs or shuttles, they WANT laptops.
Sadly most people want a laptop as some sort of status symbol and not for any practical purpose. Of course thats not necessarily the case here...

A friend of mine has an alienware laptop, he's otherwise quite bright, and he swears by them. Even though he's had some problems he says their support has been quite useful. which is probably just as well as supporting laptops can be a BIG pain when they go wrong.
And in the interests of making this post nice and ambivalent I just bined my laptop in favour of a new desktop and I wouldnt get another laptop, alienware or not.

Reapz

11-26-2006, 00:14

VAE VICTUS Alienware and other "high-end" gaming machine manufacturers don't make their own laptops. A company called Clevo makes many of them. From Tom's Hardware Forums (http://forumz.tomshardware.com/hardware/assemble-LAPTOP-ftopict209225.html):

Clevo, makes the Sager NP9750, Voodoo Envy u:709, Alienware Aurora m7700, Hypersonic Aviator FX7 and they are all the same laptops from Clevo, although the Sager version usually has the latest technology and best prices. Clevo also makes Sager NP9890, Falcon Northwest FragBook DR6800, Alienware MJ-12 m7700i, Voodoo Envy u:703, Hypersonic Aviator EX7 and are also all the same laptops from Clevo Two last example from Clevo would be the Sager NP5950 which is the same as the Alienware Aurora mALX 19" SLI and the Sager NP5760 which is the same as the Voodoo Envy u:734; which both are from Clevo. Some of these companies only change the exterior of the machine (custom painting and graphics) while the internal "guts" of the machine are identical from each company marketing the laptop.

Clevo makes many different models in addition to the prior mentioned models such as the Sager NP5750, Sager NP5460, Sager NP3880 and the Sager NP6630. Clevo is one of the world's most preferred ODM partners and markets their products in more than 50 countries, and have established service centers in the USA , Germany , Britain , China , and Taiwan. Sager is a well-respected boutique brand that offers high-performance laptop's for power users at reasonable prices since 1985. Sager has a sister company named Pro-Star that markets the same Clevo laptops.

I bought a Clevo laptop directly from Pro-Star. If I had bought the same machine from Alienware it would have cost me almost $1,000 more. Here is one of Pro-Star's more modest machines (http://www.pro-star.com/index.cfm?mainpage=productdetail&model=5714) that is close to your price range as an example:

I have had fun gaming with my machine on the road. Pro-star's customer service is not like Toshiba or one of the better laptop manufacturers - a lot of holding on the phone - but they sell powerful hardware a lot cheaper than Alienware or Falcon.

caravel

11-26-2006, 01:42

When you are talking about laptops being crap. Remember that a lot of people DON'T WANT PCs or shuttles, they WANT laptops. Something you can put in your backpack and off you go.

Laptop PCs are simply not up to the same hardware standard as Desktop PCs. Sad but true. If you're a hardcore gamer, a Laptop is potentially a bad move. Laptop onboard mobility graphics chips are never as good nor as cutting edge as a real graphics card. A desktop PC always gives you vastly more performance for you money, and is much more upgradeably and versatile.

USMCNJ

11-26-2006, 03:56

How is he going to assemble a laptop himself?
i'm making one right now.

asus makes barebone notebooks.
plenty of places sell mobile CPUs, Memory, Hardrives, Optical Drives.

The only downside to making a notebook is; that 90% of the times the video card is build in, so if later on you want to upgrade a video card you have to upgrade the barebone.

here's a good article.
http://consumer.hardocp.com/article.html?art=MTE2NSwxLCxoY29uc3VtZXI=

Gawain of Orkeny

11-26-2006, 03:57

Clevo makes many different models in addition

Do they make the desk tops for these companies as well?

What do you think of the kits from tiger.com?

Katana

11-26-2006, 05:52

Spatial allocations? Again this is specing, and it's not complicated. 3 slots + 2 cards = enough space, 4 cards + 3 slots = not enough space....

So really you're negatives are based on fear of lack of knowledge and that you'll screw up. I'd say spend some time brushing up on what's what, afterall the money required to buy an Alienware is a big investment, you shouldn't be making that big an investment unless you're sure about what is in the computer and why anyway....

So my advice is to open up a computer have a look inside, get over the fear of the unknown/damn laziness...

- I know how a basic computer is assembled. I've installed graphics cards, RAM, PSUs, fans, etc. on my last rig. I'm not a total ignoramus, so stop treating me like one.

- Depending on what case you select, fitting everything in can be an issue. Compact cases often don't have room for a large, cumbersome videocard, for example. My point is, it can be more complicated that making sure you have enought slots on your motherboard available. And then there's thermodynamics and such...

Lord Zimoa of Flanders

11-26-2006, 09:51

yes i will be traveling TONS the coming year, so its either M2TW on a laptop or none at all, unless theres a carrying case or something,even then i have limited space in my car.
where can i get custom made computers(i have no idea how to make one)? im just worried about getting ripped you know, if i have to cough up extra cash so i know what im getting, then fine, just bought custom computers before that werent what they claimed to be...

I understand, everybody talking about desktops, but in your situation a notebook is the best option, simple. I myself have an Alienware but it is two years old and technology goes fast. So I'm looking myself for a good mobile gaming rig again.

I'm seriously looking at Rock systems right now.

http://www.rockdirect.com/notebooks.php

Cheers,

LZoF

screwtype

11-27-2006, 01:43

I'm tremendously intimidated by some aspects of building my own computer, but I think it's what I'd like to do. Are there any rescources someone could point me towards to address some of my concerns? Keep in mind that I'm not going to buy any parts until this summer, so specifics aren't strictly necessary.

Building your own PC is easy. It's just a matter of screwing the mobo into the case and plugging all the different bits and pieces into the mobo. Just remember to ground yourself on the kitchen tap first and try to handle cards only on their sides.

Where it can get tricky is with the driver installation. But then, whether you have an off-the- shelf PC or a DIY box, you know what driver installation can be like...

BTW, no I don't know of any DIY resources but there must surely be some online DIY guides if you do a search for them.

Bob the Insane

11-27-2006, 15:05

One of the nice things about a DIY system is that you know for sure what all the bits are and who made them, thus it is easy to go find the the drivers and driver updates for everything...

And flashing the BIOS on the MB used to be terrifying, but now you can do it from the Windows desktop online... Easy as pie...

Seriously I have just built a home brew Core 2 Extreme, 2DB DDR2 RAM, 8800GTX machine from Newegg.com... Bought everything new (case, PSU, cables, MB, etc) except montior and mouse and the total was $3000, equivilent Alienware machine, $4500...

Sigurd

11-29-2006, 13:25

Sinan is on the spot here...

I am in your club M8. :2thumbsup:
Due to my job, I change laptops every 2 years. All though my last change was after only a year.

A large desktop is not practical in my world and I just have to make sure that my laptop can run my favourite games.
My latest Lp is a DELL Precision which is a great tool. Poweful enough to run several servers and software development tools AND can run BF2 on full settings. Too bad I ordered it a few months early and didn't get the Core 2 Duo version.

If you are looking for a laptop with gaming capabilities at around $1000.. forget it.
I don't really know what my LP costs as I just put forward my demands for components and get it delivered at my office a few weeks later.

Gawain of Orkeny

11-29-2006, 17:54

Will the alienware area 51 for 999 even play MTW2 at max settings?

Aurora 3500 advantage (http://www.alienware.com/Configurator_Pages/aurora_3500_r4.aspx?SysCode=PC-AURORA-3500-R4&SubCode=SKU-DEFAULT)