Is it worth it?

Alienware? Shall I buy the cheapest £999? Or does anyone here have any advise on anything better/more suitable! Thanks all angles accepted!

no, you're paying for a brand name. buy the parts and build it yourself, it isnt all that hard

This man speaks the truth.
I suggest starting with some online articles about building a pc followed by a trip to newegg.com to look for deals. Check the diy bundle section and then pick one that needs a graphics card. The experience can be very educational and fun. Not to mention much cheaper than a cool grand.

Sure if you want to pay 2-3 times what the computer is worth. Alienware is just a name brand. All of the parts are so much cheaper on specialized sites like newegg.

What everyone else has said. I've heard Alienwares are just overpriced Dells.

If you're looking to build your own computer I believe PC Wiz Kid has something on his site on how to build one.

As a Laptop? The MSI's pack a lot of punch (for a laptop) for cheaper. Look up the MSI 660R.

Note that a laptop would not be a match, by a long way, for a desktop. You could spec a tasty desktop for a grand. Probably around a i5 Sandybridge and a GTX560 / HD 6950.

If you are thinking of building a desktop, head to OcUK and they'll spec you one and guide you through the process.

It is cheaper to build your own but its worth considering that building your own you get zero support.

It may be easy "i have done it so it must be really easy" but if it doesn't work do you think you would be able to discover what is wrong ?

Also unless you have the operating system already your going to have to buy that.
Branded computers at least come with an operating system practically for free.

Just something to consider

True. I've had my fair share of frustrations building my own. In the end, I still recon it's worth it.

In my case, I ended up swapping obsolete components after a while, so that a nice step towards self-build. Started from a Mesh Athlon with a Matrox card (that dates a fair bit), and then started building from scratch after the whole thing was upgraded to a point where it was just more convenient to ditch the thing completely. From there, I've done 3 full systems, and upgraded various components here and there, starting from blank once in a while.

But consider this...

pre-built :



self-built :



This particular one is over your budget, but I've included higher spec components (24'' screen, gaming keyboard and mouse, SSD, expensive hard drive).

Everytime you buy pre-built, you compromise heavily on component quality and performance.

It's a trade of. If you feel you are confident enough, you will get plenty of help from forums, and from the seller, you also get online step-by-step guides to building your own computer, and solving installation issues (not booting, partial boots, getting around the bios, ...). Broken parts can be RMA'd, build problems can be ironed out through seller support (if it's any good).

So in summary, pre-build you get a i5-2500K, 4 gigs, a H67 (no overclock, no SLI) / P67 (overclock + SLI), a 1TB hard drive (also more expensive than Seagate and Samsung, but you want a reliable HD), a GTX560, a £30 cooler if you go with P67 overclocking build), a stable 600W+ PSU (even though I'd prefer to have a Corsair / Antec in there), good case, and Win 7 OEM.

Or a older generation system. If you scout the net, you may find a pre-built sandybridge system, but you'll have to compromise somewhere.

EDIT : I always spec a SSD for system / programs, once you try it, you don't go back.

EDIT 2 : I've actually made a mistake, as the mobo should be a P67, since it's supposedly an overclocking build. So either you could get a P67 with third party cooler and OEM unlocked processor (i5-2500K), or just a standard H67 board with a locked processor (i5-2400, which is a few quids cheaper). But I still recon a 2500K is well worth the price. Which adds to around £150 when you consider the mobo upgrade, cooler, PSU upgrade, and CPU price difference compared to a i5-2400 system.

One thing to consider is that when building your own you generally get a 3 yr warranty (on avg) on your more expensive components. If you get a Dell or HP etc. you are lucky to get a 1 yr warranty and you still have to ship the whole thing to them which can take weeks. True you have to troubleshoot things yourself, but that's the best part of being a geek imo. Another thing that the avg person is unaware of is that prebuilt generally means zero or very limited upgrade pat, due to propriety parts, special cases, and other tomfoolery. With a well planned custom built pc you can have it designed to take a couple minor upgrades after a few years and you will still have an "up to snuff" computer for the avg user for a good 5-6 years. That's something you can't get from the big name companies.

Alienwares are to computers as BMWs are to cars. If you want the higher quality, extra service and brand recognition, go for it. It will cost more, but not that much more (in Alienware's case). I don't think there's any great performance or parts quality difference from a equivalent Dell - perhaps sturdier construction. Going back to cars, it's like Acura vs Honda.
The problem I have with it though, is that 10 years from now you may still be driving that Acura, but even 5 years from now, that extra cost Alienware is going to be a dinosaur.

As far as building it yourself goes, unlike most people on here, I'm not going to try to tell you that you'll save a whole lot of money. If you are talking machines with similar quality components the price difference is small.
I will tell you that building your own is the best way to get exactly what you want. And, of course, there's that sense of accomplishment.
If you do decide to build one, don't get rid of your old one until the new one is up and running.

Fair enough.

I've specced a Mesh computer for £1000.

So really, nothing to be sniffed out. Even the options are relatively good value (2500K processor, memory upgrade, graphics).

My first system was a Mesh, which I really liked. Served me as a base for years, as I upgraded various bits in it. I'm glad to see they are still in business, but they must be cutting their margins awefuly short. Evesham is going under, it's really hard for these builders to compete with DYI, since it's so easy nowadays.

I've done a copycat self-build, around the £900 mark.

It's not the DIY'ers that make it hard for those builders. It's the places like Wal-Mart and Best Buy.

Do Yourself It'ers?

Sheesh...

Do Yourself In

This wins the thread....hands down!!

If you're looking for a gaming desktop, building it yourself is cheaper in the long run. Plus it's easier to upgrade in the future when that time comes. However, if you lack the confidence and the knowledge, it may be better to buy one. That way if something goes wrong you have some sort of tech support to help you and you don't have to search the internet for answers.

So as everyone else has said, it comes down to your confidence in your ability. If you know your way inside a computer, then definitely build it yourself. Otherwise, shop around for what you need out of the computer and find the best price.


That's the case now that Dell bought them.

thanks for the advice guys!

keep your old computer around for about six months id suggest just in case if you end up building your own. i actually keep a second computer for backup for when i decide to do my upgrade which is about once a year

Either I missed that bit or you added it in an edit. Evesham were my favourite PC supplier for years - I can even go back as far as buying all my Amiga parts from them! Sadly, they went bust in early 2008...

If you aren't comfortable building it yourself you might ask a local PC repair shop what they want to build it for you. It will most likely be in the $150-$200 dollar range.
Most parts sellers like Tiger Direct have a phone number you can call to get advice on what parts are a good fit.

best of luck