Alienware Aurora Gaming Desktop $2,399
Hi fellow OzBargainer..
what do you guy think about this deal??
Yea??? Nah????
Is This Alienware Aurora Gaming Desktop a Good Deal?
johndoe89 on 23/12/2019 - 13:35
Last edited 23/12/2019 - 13:59 by 1 other user
Last edited 23/12/2019 - 13:59 by 1 other user
Comments
No.
Hell no
Equivalent spec if you DIY. It comes to slightly under $2k without use of discount coupons, Samsung SSD cashback etc. Build includes water cooling for the CPU. Not including OS.
https://au.pcpartpicker.com/list/br9sp8So you're paying $400 extra for
- convenience of getting PC shipped in whole to you with simplified Out-of-box experience
- dell tech support
- warranty service
- basic freebies like mouse and non-mech. keyboard.
- nice looking logo on your case and RGB bling.
If someone doesn't know what they are doing I'd rather them buy an OEM PC and get the extra support and not pester me for help anytime something goes wrong.
When a RAM stick died on my non OEM PC it took at least a month to warranty the memory and get my replacement. Imagine that happening to a random person who doesn't know anything about troubleshooting hardware issues.
For sure, yeah. Whenever a family member buys a computer, I avoid touching it at all costs because I don't want to be their free tech support guy. I'll let Dell handle it.
Enter the specs into https://au.pcpartpicker.com/ and determine for yourself. Most people will instinctively say pre-built machines are not good value but that's not always the case. There's also some added value in the other stuff they include as well as warranty service without having to worry or juggle each part supplier etc.
While on paper they can occaisonally seem cheaper, they often aren't as they use no name PSU , random mobo , bad cas latency ram etc. This may seem snobbish for a newcomer that I'm attacking these parts but they really are essential for a long term investment. If you want to upgrade these parts within their own service, the cost comes up significantly.
They don't include these details on purpose, or say could be any one of these 4 brands, where they spout some reputable names to get your hopes up. I'm talking about ebay prebuilts, dell prebuilt is usually decent if they have genuine sale on.
The main problem with many of these is the proprietary parts. Eg. If the PSU or mobo dies can you buy one from any computer store or is it a Dell only part? It's often hard to tell from their product pages.
Also it's a RRP $3000 computer with a 256gb SSD? They most be joking. Games take a lot of space.
I don't install games on my C:\
I install them on my secondary 4TB HDD
Once games load, you don't need a fast drive to run games,
fast drives only load games faster and levels faster.
I have a 256GB SSD as my C:\ drive & I have used 67GB of it,
while I have installed nearly 1TB on my secondary HDD.
So a big C:\ is not necessary, anyway, they cost too much :)
I mainly play FPS
I wouldn't say so, it looks like an ok deal until you realize where they scrimp. Only 256GB NVME, only 460W PSU, only 16GB of RAM.
You could make an equivalent AMD build (R9-3700x 5700-xt) with 32GB of RAM, a much better PSU, 1TB NVME and Windows Pro (or save $100 by going the unofficial route) for $400 less. Could save another few $100 by buying parts incrementally from deals as well.
If you don't feel like building it yourself, wait for another deal like this: https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/499823
Unless you really like the alienware design, I'd 100% look somewhere else.
Alienware is 99.9% never a good deal.
It is when you are buying it second hand after a year for half the price :P
I recently purchased an AW 17" laptop off Gumtree for $1600 that has GTX1080, 512GB SSD, i7 7820HK CPU, 16GB RAM, QHD 2K monitor G-Sync and comes with the original JB hifi receipt purchased last year for $4999.
But then you have to be patient and look around for a good deal.
CheersJust because you found an idiot who was willing to pay 5k for something, then sell it for $1600 a year later doesnt make alienware a good deal, just means you found an idiot.
Not really. They're plenty of them on Gumtree for sale practically nearly half price from RRP.
Possibly they're all idiots or electronic items massively depreciate over time.
Have you ever bought/sold second hand items to realise you get peanuts compared to new?
Buying brand name items isn't all bad, the resale value is quite good on Apple products, Alienware desktops/laptops, and higher end Samsung phones etc.
Buying an Alienware new isn't a good deal unless you are buying it for peace of mind ie: warranty onsite repairs.
Here is a little tip for you.
I purposefully looked for a machine that was purchased @ JB Hifi with a receipt.
Why?
https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0024/9803/5810/files/YourR…
If you look at the coloured graph that titles "Minimum Voluntary Warranty Policy Guide", you will see that the machine I have purchased second hand with a JB hifi receipt still gives me an opportunity for recourse if something goes wrong.
For a purchase over $4K (in my case), I have 2 years (not the 1 year that people get with Dell) to claim for any issues (obviously with conditions) I get with this machine.
JB Hifi has a better standards for warranty recourse than the manufacturer.
Cheers
No,that graphics card is shit.
All my desktop since 2014 were Alienware and Asus.
Yes DIY is cheaper, but branded PC give you better after sale services and resale value. Especially Alienware' s after sale services! Can't fault them!I can't tell you this PC is good or bad,it's s up to your circumstances, but I can tell you it will save you lots time and hassle. Just search how to build water cool system for CPU on YouTube, see if you are capable to build that system, not even mentioning water-cooled graphic card. If you get your local shop to build for you, they gonna charge you some money as well, then why not spend just bit more to get better service.
Also image one of your component stopped working after say 9 month.
Alienware will send a technician to your home normally within 24 business hours with parts and fix it for you with no charge at all. If them can't fix the machine after 3 times they are required to provide you with a brand new replacement or full refund, I have been through this process and Dell is very good at this! And dont forget Dell is bounded by Australian's 2 years statutory obligation to provide you with 2 year manufacturer warranty.However if you diy your machine, then you either have to take the machine back to the shop ask them to replace the part, or you have to dismantling the machine and get the part out, get a replacement from the shop and put back in again. Not even mentioning some shop will denial your warranty claim after 12 month.
So yeah, for me I would not diy machine any more. Not worth the effort.
Usually it's a 3 repairs and you're out scenario. A few years ago Dell decided to send a tech out to fix an almost out of warranty Alienware laptop 5 times and then had to replace it anyway because it still wasn't fixed (the broken part was an obscure part without a sticker on it so the people ordering parts for repair kept sending the wrong parts out)
Generally though they are pretty good unless they have a shortage of parts which puts a delay on repairs.
google the cost of the parts and make it yourself, save some $$