Alienware Steam Machines Can't Be Upgraded

[Quellist]

Sure i'll buy a new Steambox every year....if they cost £50 or less, otherwise Alienware can take a flying fuck...honestly im having trouble not laughing, i would soo like to have been listening in to the meeting where this rabidly insane idea somehow won purchase with the board...

 

[Elberik]

There is no "need" for the Steam machine. The Steam machine is just another PC or a Linux-exclusive console.

If you're a PC gamer: you already have a custom rig that you've poured hundreds or thousands of dollars into.

If you are a console gamer: you already have a console that is NOT Linux-exclusive.

The only people I see buying Steam Machines are Valve fanboys.

 

[DJ_Bunce]

Well my reaction to this was pretty much a chortle, followed by the words "cheeky" and "f******"... Oh Alienware, you are you silly.

 

[Zagzag]

The more and more I hear about these STEAM machines, the more and more useless they sound. So not only are they more expensive then a PC of similar power, they also can't be upgraded?

I agree with what TotalHalibut said on his content patch a while ago. Valve should just wait a few years until the hardware is more powerful and cheaper and THEN release a Steam machine that is at least as powerful as the consoles but cheaper.

You do know what a Steam machine is, right? ANYBODY can make one, this just happens to be an Alienware branded one that's likely not worth the money. (Valve didn't tell Alienware to make it, they chose to, so blaming Valve for it is completely nonsensical.

If you are a console gamer: you already have a console that is NOT Linux-exclusive.

You're completely free to install any other operating system or software you like on a Steam machine, this is not true of current gen consoles, so at least you get that amount of freedom, though I admit core PC gamers don't really need one. It does seem like a viable alternative for console gamers though.

 

[Dire Trout]

Good thing I wasn't getting this. Has anyone heard whether or not the iBuyPower box can be upgraded? It looks like the only one of the two dozen or so Steam Machines that does what they ought to do--that is, let people who don't know shit about PCs play PC games easily, at a decent price, without having to get a degree in electronics--and if there's a simplified way to swap parts in and out, that'd be even better.

 

[Spud of Doom]

I'm really confused by this. Surely it would still be possible to somehow crack the thing open and replace the internals of it?

 

[silasbufu]

I'm speechless. So much wow

 

[AndrewC]

Why would a sane person even buy something from Alienware anyway?

 

[truckspond]

As someone who actually likes Alienware... What the what, Alienware?!

Uhm. Good luck selling those.

(But seriously, what's stopping me from unscrewing the box and moving pieces around?)

They'll probably take pages from the Macbook pro playbook and have no space for additional components with the existing ones soldered into the motherboard

 

[Brian Tams]

Alienware missed the point of the Steam Machine in the worst way possible. Way to go, guys.

*sigh* I wish Valve would at least have SOME standards by which the third party manufacturers had to follow with their Steam Machines, to prevent this kind of bullshit from happenening.

 

[laggyteabag]

I always thought of the Steambox as being a pre-built PC which runs the Steam OS and is priced to compete with the PS4 and the XbOne, this however is little more than a console which runs the Steam OS.

 

[SonOfVoorhees]

Are they using the Apple hand book for making people want to buy a new iPhone every year? lol. Thing i dont get is how they will do it. What will get people to buy one each year. Im not a PC nerd but if they are using Steam, then they can play all the games that all the other steam boxes can play. So what special thing will they use to encourage people to buy the upgrade? Not like they will have Alienware only exclusives or games only a Steambox 2 can play that a Steambox 1 cant. Because all the others would be able to access and play that game without an upgrade.

I dont get it at all, it hurts my brain.

 

[sXeth]

Ya think at some point Valve is gonna regret handing out their branding to a bunch of (apparently) morons?

Right now, if I blank out my actual knowledge to become the "entry consumer", a Steam Machine is a (possibly) slightly more game optimized system, but probably costs more, uses this wacky new interface I'm completely unfamiliar with, and has a drastically reduced library of games because of that. Unless I'm staunchly trying to avoid Microsoft (not really something an entry user is likely to have a firm opinion on), what on earth is the incentive to buy one of these things?

Its hard to tell if Valve has misstepped here (it does seem they've failed to regulate what their branding is at all), or they actually just got incredibly borked by all these hardware guys going "Eh, well just slap the OS and name on one of our random configs and have at it".

 

[BrownGaijin]

"Lifecycle-wise, consoles update every fix, six, seven years, we will be updating our Steam Machines every year."

Let's talk about cars. I myself I understand that car companies come out with a new model every year that has some sort of improvement, and that there's lease programs which make it easier to let go, so some people might not care much about how long the care might last. As for myself, I like a car that has a has a long life cycle and won't break down on me after only a year, because I don't have the money to continually fork over cash to the dealership - no matter how well the cup holder keeps my soda cold.

Getting to the point, if Alienware is planning on releasing a console that has a lifespan of a year, they better have one heck of a lease program.

 

[unstabLized]

...NAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Buying an uncustomizable PC? Then I rather buy a gaming laptop. At least that's portable.

What the fuck Alienware? I knew you guys were greedy, but I didn't think you were THIS greedy. You might as well just turn around and say you made a souped up console. Another reason not to give a dime to Alienware. Overpriced systems, and now they're turning PCs into Consoles. No thank you.

 

[Auron]

Yea I also find it rather silly, but really what's the big deal? You don't have to buy a new one every year, decent-spec'd one will be fine for 5 or so years just like a regular computer.

But in fact you don't have to buy one at all so what's the big deal? And really, this is FAR from the first PC which is not possible to upgrade. Or who replaces a videocard in their laptop? I'm sure you'll be able to change the hard drive.

Also I wonder how many of the people complaining about this buy a new iPhone every year.

First, laptops are not generally for gaming and the ones that are cost a fortune. Obviously this makes Alienware's plan even more stupid when they're charging a fortune for their version that does less stuff as well.

Secondly, Android for the win and while yes Samsung has dropped into the yearly cycle shit there's little reason to upgrade for one or two features they offer while "being able to play that new game." is a major reason for a gamer to get a new GPU.

 

[Do4600]

It's the iphone of computers. Technically an iphone can last several generations but people who don't upgrade are seen as embarrassments. This is the same marketing. They want you to upgrade every year but the computer will probably last for about four years. Of course that doesn't take away the soul-wrenching burden of having bought a Dell computer with a fancy plastic molding with LEDs glued on it.

 

[sumanoskae]

The only reason I would even consider buying something like this instead of a PC would be a lack of funds. If by "New Model" you mean I would have to buy the damn thing over again every year for the same price (Which I presume ain't cheap), then you can fucking forget that shit.

Let's estimate the price of one these machines is $400; getting the latest model every year for 4 years would cost $1600. Alienware has said they want to compete with the Xbox One, which is $500.

Assuming the XBone doesn't take after it's predecessor and break every 20 minutes, the only other costs for it would be the Xbox Live subscription.

On what planet are these considered "competitive" prices?

I do not own nor desire an Xbox One, I think the next generation consoles are load of bullshit; a huge sum of money for something that might be good at some point in the future(At which point it will also be cheaper). But I would rather get an XBone than set fire to all my spare money every year.

It is true that Steam's game library is vastly superior to the XBone's at the time of writing, but the library will likely grow, and include most future major releases. Steam only has the advantage of carrying older games and strategy games.

This is essentially a current gen console with backwards compatibility, but at an astronomically higher price; you'd be better off just buying (Or keeping) a previous generation console.

Or you could just build a damn PC that does the same thing at a reduced price.

The only advantage this fucking thing would have over a PC is it's price, but now that you have to buy it every year that's out the fucking window.

Who in the name of God thought this was a good idea?

 

[Something Amyss]

The more and more I hear about these STEAM machines, the more and more useless they sound. So not only are they more expensive then a PC of similar power, they also can't be upgraded?

Keep in mind this applies specifically to Alienware Steam Machines. Other manufacturers have insisted you can, in fact, update the hardware. That still seems kind of useless, since this is supposed to be the kind of "for dummies" machine that doesn't require you to know about all that big bag scary hardware, so I'm still missing the point.

 

[Amir Kondori]

The idea that ALL Steam machines will not be user upgradeable based on these statements by Dell is a faulty assumption. Also, just because Dell says you can't upgrade this box does not make it true.