Alienware Alpha R2 or a build a PC?

[AK47]

(Had no idea where to post this so I'm posting it here, feel free to move it to the correct board.)

So as my Asus RoG is getting old I've decided that I need a new PC and I was wondering if this is worth buying?
The model I'm aiming at is the one from $799,99 which is not that bad in SEK (swedish)

Processor
6th Generation Intel® Core™ i5 6400T (6MB Cache, up to 2.8 GHz)

Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64bit English

Video Card (Can be upgraded with the help of the Alienware Amplifier)
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX960 GPU 4GB GDDR5


Memory (Can be upgraded if needed)
8GB DDR4 at 2133MHz - 1 DIMM

Hard Drive (Can be upgraded or I can add another one if needed)
500 GB (64MB Cache) 7200 RPM SATA 6Gb/s


Here is a review from JackFrags;



(PS. I'm not a fan of building PCs, that's why I've been using gaminglaptop for the last years)

[TrotlDebilni]

Nahh, the cooling problems will be too much on that tiny thing. Build a PC. Seriously.

[Mark]

Honestly i would wait for a laptop with a pascal GPU since MSI has already launched some and new laptops are coming (HP has announced the new HP Omen 17, other brands such as Asus should announce something soon imo) you will have a better performing rig even with a GTX 1060.
I'm also looking for a new laptop and at moment i decided to wait for the new ones, hopefully you will be able to get a decent one with GTX 1060 at decent price.

[taseen11]

Build a PC. I'd recommend https://www.chillblast.com/ , they build it and send it all to you.
Going for a laptop, especially dell will only make you spend more money than you need, where as you could get a better performance PC for around the same cash.

[DarkPower202]

Laptop isn't build for gaming remember that.

Worst part: Ran out of battery & those Heats under em.

[AK47]

Well my problem is the budget at the moment, being unemployed and soon moving to a new city the budget is not the best ..

Laptop isn't build for gaming remember that.

Worst part: Ran out of battery & those Heats under em.

Bruh these fans don't directly make my laptop warm :p

[CharlieKasper]

Honestly i would wait for a laptop with a pascal GPU since MSI has already launched some and new laptops are coming (HP has announced the new HP Omen 17, other brands such as Asus should announce something soon imo) you will have a better performing rig even with a GTX 1060.
I'm also looking for a new laptop and at moment i decided to wait for the new ones, hopefully you will be able to get a decent one with GTX 1060 at decent price.

You seem to be forgetting that the Pascal mobile GPUs are not really mobile. They are full fledged desktop GPUs with negligibly lower memory clock. They will almost give the same performance as a desktop PC with the same GPU. They won't come cheap. GTX 1060 is as powerful as GTX 980 so expect the GTX 1060 laptop to be priced for no less than $1299.

On topic: You are better off building your own PC.

[Luke]

See being a computer fanatic and building all of my PC's in previous times, I would jump in two footed and tell you to build one yourself... BUT as I have seen you are planning on move around and as well as you tend to prefer to have laptops and smaller computers which is well suited if your moving around alot, so in seriousness it don't seem to be a bad idea just depends if you want to pay that type of cash. Although I would recommend to get a high end gaming laptop with a decent end 9 or 10 series card rather then spend on a Alienware Product.

[Mark]

You seem to be forgetting that the Pascal mobile GPUs are not really mobile. They are full fledged desktop GPUs with negligibly lower memory clock. They will almost give the same performance as a desktop PC with the same GPU. They won't come cheap. GTX 1060 is as powerful as GTX 980 so expect the GTX 1060 laptop to be priced for no less than $1299.

On topic: You are better off building your own PC.

I do know that lol. The price for laptops with a GTX 1060 is still unknown (basically it's just speculation yours), so i wouldn't be so sure about that. They might release cheaper rigs with that card, who knows? And btw, the GTX 1060 is going to replace the GTX 970M with perfomances of a GTX 980M, probably even above that.

If he doesn't really want to build a PC or can't (like me) then waiting for Pascal GPUs on notebooks is a better choice than wasting money on that alienware. Fuck all that "it's a laptop, it will overheat", gaming laptops are supposed to handle high temperatures with almost no issues (unless you run over 90-95 degrees under stress, that's not good) plus a little bit of maintenance won't hurt when you feel your rig is getting too hot. I have been playing on a HP with shitty cooling system for years and this thing is still working. I do believe nowdays materials got even better even if they still use cheap plastic on "cheap gaming laptops", overall this generation should/must last more with new GPUs.

A PC is going to be much more powerful of course but it will also give you zero portability, so unless you really need to move it, it's still a good idea to build one considering it will cost you less than a proper gaming laptop or a prebuilt PC. That's really up to you.

[CharlieKasper]

I do know that lol. The price for laptops with a GTX 1060 is still unknown (basically it's just speculation yours), so i wouldn't be so sure about that. They might release cheaper rigs with that card, who knows? And btw, the GTX 1060 is going to replace the GTX 970M with perfomances of a GTX 980M, probably even above that.

GTX 1060 is more powerful than a GTX 980, and the underclocked GTX 1060 (read: the 1060 for laptops) will provide roughly 90% of the desktop 1060. So the new pascal laptop GPU are a whole new level.


Emmet, if you need portability, wait for some new laptops, maybe from Lenovo. They sell some of the best gaming laptops on a budget.

[FARQ3X]

Just build one, I bet the laptops will be pricy as fuck. also a mini ITX PC can be just as portable in most situations

[James]

Yo is that small thing like ps4 a PC? Damn....