Alienware PC's

[Calindor]

Show him this thread...add a poll to this thread (or any hardware forums), and see how not 1 person will vote Alienware is worth it over custom building

Also tell him that Alienware uses mobo's with 3 PCI-E slots, you can also buy the same mobos (and better ones) from any computer retail store (or newegg). Any Alienware part except maybe their case is available from newegg for cheaper....Also 3 cards would be like ridiculous amounts of power....would need like 3 PSU's, or 2 that were insanely priced.

Here's a benchmark of these cards (from anandtech)...I doubt there is good driver support for 3xGTX280 (or 3 of any card) yet.


Note that All are somewhat similar, but the median for most games is: 2x4870's in CF > 4870X2 > 2xGTX280's in SLI > 2x4850's in CF > GT280 > 4870 > GT260 > 4850.

Some games 2xSLI'd GTX280's are faster than crossfired 4870's or X2's, but for most benchmarks 4870's in CF > 4870x2 > GTX280's in SLI...oddly enough 4850's in CF arent far behind.

For a triple card setup without a doubt 3x4870's (not x2) would be the fastest...Dont know where your buddy gets the idea of 3x280's are better than 2x4870x2's...since a single 4870x2 is beating two GTX280's in SLI in most games. Also when cranking the resolution past 1920x1200 AMD seems to be killing NVIDIA.

But multi GPU (or even single) GPU depends on the game. Some cards might whoop others in 1 game, but suck in the next. Sometimes SLI'd, x2, or crossfire cards are no better than a single card, sometimes even worse (usually not the case on resolutions like 1920x1200 and above.

Here are some more benchmarks I found that also include 4870x2 in crossfire, show these to your friend.

^^suprised by that

^^that one in specific. Crysis is a NVIDIA game, and 1 4870x2 is beating 2 GTX280's...so obviously 2 4870x2's will beat 3 GTX280's. But look at the top, thats $550 for a 2fps increase.


x2 cards in SLI/CF seems kind of stupid to me. If you want a sinngle card setup, go 4870x2, if you want a dual card setup, go 4870's in CF (although 4870x2 in CF is the best dual card setup too...Its probably the worst $550 performance gain you can buy). If you want a single GPU with 1 core, then go with the GTX280.

[Ariel]

I don't think the 280 fits in my case O.o

[Diablo]

Those benchs are a bit misleading 4870X2 in CF are 4 GPUs vs the 2 in a GTX280 SLI.

Both the 4870 and GTX280 are good cards and beat each other in different benchs but for Cost vs performance level they all are pretty close, with AMD winning due to price.

[Aelo]

Okay, im not going to read this whole post - It almost gives me a headache.

Simply put Alienware PCs are a rip off. You are paying for the name. There are several reasons that it is not economical to buy an Alienware and they have already been listed here. To anyone who is looking to buy a PC for 3rd Gen games I strongly suggest building one yourself. If you lack the ability to do so there are thousands of people that do it just for fun and would be happy to build one for you for free if you provide the parts. (I'm one of these people) Furthermore, Alienware PCs are difficult to customize. They have very few expansion slots and their cases tend to be crowded. Ask any PC technician and they will tell you exactly the same thing, Alienware is not worth the money.

Now that i have summed up the whole thread in one paragraph, how about some cheesecake?

[newpick]

Originally Posted by Aelo

how about some cheesecake?

yeah he wins, but the question is will you supply the cheesecake?

[Diablo]

I suggest an alienware cheescake.

[Ariel]

AW cheese cake is to expensive...
Everyone... to akirina's bakery!!!

[Aelo]

I'll supply the cheesecake if you supply the cash. ^_^

[Diablo]

Here is the money.



Where is the cake?