Ok, so I am looking to buy a new desktop to deal with just about everything between school work (photoshop, illustrator, java coding, c++ coding studies) and gaming. I heard that Alienware is a good choice, but want to get different opinions. Just looking for a computer with a good processor and a good graphics card
Alienware x51
- Thread starter GeeksUtopia
- Start date
Recommended Videos
Nah alien ware is terribly over priced and not worth the money. I'd just have someone build you one it would save you a lot of money.
Captcha: Stay tuned
lol good I already know I'm gonna get some hate for this.
And we'eve both joined on the 26th in the same year lol.
Captcha: Stay tuned
lol good I already know I'm gonna get some hate for this.
And we'eve both joined on the 26th in the same year lol.
While I have not personally dealt with Alienware, all the research I've done while shopping for my gaming laptop has told me it's just not the way to go. Too pricy for the hardware, shoddy quality control, customer service is lacking, and just trying to put together the hardware you want is a bit of a chore.
Also, I found a website call resellerratings.com with all user reviews, meaning no bought opinions, just actual people and their experiences with these businesses. Resellerratings gives them a 2.67/10 from 1,640 reviews. Ouch.
In my research (again, for a laptop, so take this with a grain of salt) I narrowed my choices down to three: Puget Systems, Origin PC, and Maingear.
Puget has legendary build quality and customer service, but hardware choice is limited compared to the other two and it's going to run you more, overall. Mind you, hardware choice is limited because virtually every part is tested and approved to work with everything else, meaning no matter what you end up choosing, it's guaranteed to work flawlessly.
Puget also has a live chat system with highly knowledgeable experts who can answer any and every question you might have. I had no clue what "hyper-threading" was until they explained it to me. Also, I know Puget has the live chat function, because while looking at a possible build, the chat window popped up with a guy asking if I had questions, much like a real flesh-and-blood person might do if you were physically in a store.
Resellerratings.com gives them a perfect 10/10 from 1,219 reviews.
Maingear is the least expensive of the three, with loads and loads of options... that you'll have to research yourself. They have the live chat function, but I didn't use it, and there was no pop-up chat window with a guy asking me if I had questions, so take that how you may. If you want to save some money, Maingear is a great way to go without getting something shoddy. One caveat is that, according to user reviews, customer service once you get your product might not be great.
Resellerratings.com gives them an 8.6/10 from 174 reviews.
Origin PC is the company I ended up getting my laptop from. It strikes a great balance between Puget and Maingear. The build quality is superb, even if I didn't get the hand-holding I expected from Puget, the price ended up almost exactly between Maingear and Puget if I'd gotten all identical components, it was simple to determine which parts I wanted. I'm almost certain I would've been perfectly happy with a product from any of these three businesses, but I have the Origin laptop, and I can say that I'm completely satisfied.
Also, you should know that I've had this laptop for 2 years now, and for 8 months out it, I was in Afghanistan. This machine has worked far better, longer, than anything I've had my entire life.
Resllerratings.com gives Origin PC an 8.17/10 from 47 reviews.
OP, I think I managed to answer your question with the first sentence, and I hope I gave you an idea where you can go to get the product you want/need for your purposes. I think all three of these options are viable for different reasons.
Also, I found a website call resellerratings.com with all user reviews, meaning no bought opinions, just actual people and their experiences with these businesses. Resellerratings gives them a 2.67/10 from 1,640 reviews. Ouch.
In my research (again, for a laptop, so take this with a grain of salt) I narrowed my choices down to three: Puget Systems, Origin PC, and Maingear.
Puget has legendary build quality and customer service, but hardware choice is limited compared to the other two and it's going to run you more, overall. Mind you, hardware choice is limited because virtually every part is tested and approved to work with everything else, meaning no matter what you end up choosing, it's guaranteed to work flawlessly.
Puget also has a live chat system with highly knowledgeable experts who can answer any and every question you might have. I had no clue what "hyper-threading" was until they explained it to me. Also, I know Puget has the live chat function, because while looking at a possible build, the chat window popped up with a guy asking if I had questions, much like a real flesh-and-blood person might do if you were physically in a store.
Resellerratings.com gives them a perfect 10/10 from 1,219 reviews.
Maingear is the least expensive of the three, with loads and loads of options... that you'll have to research yourself. They have the live chat function, but I didn't use it, and there was no pop-up chat window with a guy asking me if I had questions, so take that how you may. If you want to save some money, Maingear is a great way to go without getting something shoddy. One caveat is that, according to user reviews, customer service once you get your product might not be great.
Resellerratings.com gives them an 8.6/10 from 174 reviews.
Origin PC is the company I ended up getting my laptop from. It strikes a great balance between Puget and Maingear. The build quality is superb, even if I didn't get the hand-holding I expected from Puget, the price ended up almost exactly between Maingear and Puget if I'd gotten all identical components, it was simple to determine which parts I wanted. I'm almost certain I would've been perfectly happy with a product from any of these three businesses, but I have the Origin laptop, and I can say that I'm completely satisfied.
Also, you should know that I've had this laptop for 2 years now, and for 8 months out it, I was in Afghanistan. This machine has worked far better, longer, than anything I've had my entire life.
Resllerratings.com gives Origin PC an 8.17/10 from 47 reviews.
OP, I think I managed to answer your question with the first sentence, and I hope I gave you an idea where you can go to get the product you want/need for your purposes. I think all three of these options are viable for different reasons.
While I dislike Alienware as much as any self-build enthusiast, the X51 is the exception.
The X51 can get away with being a bit pricy because it is impossible to build something similar with off the shelf parts. It is the only PC of that form-factor that has any power whatsoever.
If you want an extremely compact desktop PC that can handle almost anything you chuck at it then the X51 is pretty much the best you can get. If you don't care for compactness or you would be willing to get something a little bigger, you would be better off building your own or getting something from some other source.
The X51 can get away with being a bit pricy because it is impossible to build something similar with off the shelf parts. It is the only PC of that form-factor that has any power whatsoever.
If you want an extremely compact desktop PC that can handle almost anything you chuck at it then the X51 is pretty much the best you can get. If you don't care for compactness or you would be willing to get something a little bigger, you would be better off building your own or getting something from some other source.
My friend got one and he uses it for gaming and for his digital art stuff. He loves it. Alienware actually messed up his order at first but upgraded his processor as an apology. If I were in the market for a desktop, it's what I would buy because the price is decent and its nice and compact (I don't have room for a huge easy to use custom case). Sure, you could build one cheaper but honestly who gives a shit? A copy of Windows will drive the price of a custom pc up almost the same price a pre-build. You might as have it built for a few hundred more and get something smaller and with a warrenty. I myself have had an alienware laptop for 4 years and its survived being tossed around from time to time so I can say they make reliable stuff (though someone who's bought from them before they were owned by Dell will tell you otherwise). If I were you, I'd look up reviews from more professional sources before deciding though
-slaps you- Listen to me! Don't do it man, I bought an Alienware and, like those who invested in Enron, have been fucked ever since. It blew out ram sticks, motherboards, a fricken graphics card because they didn't apply enough thermal paste, a power supply, hard drive.GeeksUtopia said:
Thanks to Alienware I now know how to take a notebook completely apart. They are a fowl nasty company that uses re manufactured parts and don't forget Alienware is Dell.
The Desktops are a bit more stable, but good luck taking out something such as a power supply. They snake it into the glued crevices of the aluminium case itself.
Do yourself a favor and go to new egg. It will tell you if the components your buying will work together. Then find a friend or one of the 10 PC shops in your town and have them build it.
DON'T GET ALIENWARE. It is a LIE! If you must get a desktop go with Asus, they are built well.
-slaps back- I am going to use ibuypower. They are full customization and if i slip up somewhere they notify me in the process.Zack Alklazaris said:
In short, Alienware is ugly and massively overpriced but if money and respect of anyone who can tell a good computer from bad isn't a thing for you than go ahead.
And if you are going to university just say no. People will tolerate Apple computers but with Alienware you gonna hear chuckles behind your back every time you bring it out in lecture hall.
And if you are going to university just say no. People will tolerate Apple computers but with Alienware you gonna hear chuckles behind your back every time you bring it out in lecture hall.
