Dell or - AlienWare? Which do you think is better?

[Dundain]

Well...Ive had experiences with both. Dell builds systems ok I guess with alot of OEM parts but has pretty good support; not bad for a large computer company. Alienware generally uses better parts and you have alot more options when ordering the system but their support SUCKEd when I delt with it. Generally though, if your going to spend the money to get a good system from Alienware...get a Falcon Northwest. They haven't strayed from their top-tier gaming echelon and still have that elite status...great parts, great service, great people. Just greatly larger price

 

[Maggotry]

I can't really bring anything new to the discussion except that the only reason I can see to buy instead of build is if you just don't have the knowledge to build. I think just about anyone could put together the components and install an OS, but if you run into problems, who do you call?

 

[Swanny]

Alienware, but building your own is best.

 

[Belegost]

Just for the hell of it I decided to see how much cheaper I could get than alienware... I was surprised.

To start with I customized an Alienware - Aurora DDR
All black peripherals and case
Athlon XP 1800
Asus A7N-266
512MB DDR
100GB WD special edition 8mb cache.
GF4 Ti4400 128MB
Soundblaster Audigy (I wanted a Turtle Beach Santa Cruz but they don't carry them.)
16x DVD-ROM w/ software decoder
40/12/40 Plextor CD-RW
Klipsch 5.1 THX (nice set of speakers they are.)
Intel Pro 100/S NIC (They only offer intel nics, I'm sure a netgear or linksys would have been cheaper for the same thing)
Decided to ditch the automated support, saved $37
Standard 1 year warranty
Windows XP Pro
Total cost - $2416 + tax & shipping

Then I started looking for a better deal on the same or equivalent components:

First the case, had to be a match for the cool looking alienware model, found here. - $65 + tax & shipping for the black.

I decided that the exact same motherboard wasn't necessary, merely a comparable one. Outpost always has good Mobo CPU combos, I liked the IWill XP333-R & XP 1800+ - $247+ tax & shipping

Memory is critical, I always go with a top quality brand, and crucial has yet to let me down. 512MB PC2100 - $140 + tax and free shipping

Black keyboard from Directron Note on the page says it's the same one used by Alienware - $18 + tax & shipping

I like newegg.com a lot, they've got good prices and I've never had a problem with their service, so a number of parts were priced from there, I'll just list them and the total:

WD 100GB Special Edition - $169
Lite-On LTD-163 16x DVD-ROM - $41
PLEXTOR PX-W4012TA/SW 40x12x40 CD-RW - $135 ( I could probably get this cheaper if I looked hard enough)
Intel PRO/100 S Network Adapter - $24
CREATIVE LABS SOUND BLASTER AUDIGY - $60
Klipsch ProMedia 5.1 THX - $375 (I have seen these in the Hot Deals for much less)
Abit Siluro Geforce 4 128mb Ti4400 with TV-Out - RETAIL BOX - $225 (retail box no less)
Microsoft Windows XP Professional - OEM - $139
Microsoft Intelli-Mouse Explorer - $31
Sub-total - $1,199 + tax and estimated $25 shipping to CA

For a Grand Total of -- $1,669 + tax and shipping

This is a whopping $747 cheaper than the equivalent alienware machine! A whole 31% less money spent. With the money I saved building myself I could buy a new NEC 17" LCD. Plus, I can change any of those components to ones I want. I would ditch the Soundblaster, and either use the perfectly good on-board sound on the XP333, or buy a less expensive, nicer sounding (IMESHO) Santa Cruz. Probably upgrade to PC-2700 too.

I would price something against Dell, but it's time consuming. Just wanted everyone to know that building it can save the cash.