\\EXTREMELY LATE REPLY BUT I NEEDA SAY THIS
Please for the love of god and all that is holy
DO NOT GET AN ALIENWARE
I have one, and it is by far one of the worst decisions I've made in my life. I have the Alienware X51 (I think). I'll tell you why.
I got this PC out of stress, I was just about to move, and I was promised by my parents that I would get a decent Gaming PC of my choice. I had already known at that point a bit about the stigma behind Alienware. They're overpriced, especially for what they are worth, and NOT high end computer for their price. Yet there I was, looking at this Mini PC for $699 on the walmart site.
That was my first mistake, if Alienware wasn't enough for you. In buying a Mini PC, I essentially forced myself into a hole I couldn't get out of. Mini PCs are designed to compact all the parts into a tiny space, which sounds nice, BUT when it comes time to upgrade your parts, you now have to look at parts that fit the physical space of what's inside, rather than just buying the best part you can. Because now I'm stuck with a 4-5 generation old graphics card, that was also made for LAPTOPS (GTX 645). Yeah not great.
Second mistake was the fact that it was Alienware, like I said before. Because literally months after buying it, did I discover that I can EASILY BUILD my own high end, best GAMING PC, That normally goes for probably like $2000, FOR THE SAME PRICE ($600). The problem with buying Pre-Built PCs, is that you're not only paying for the machine itself, but also for the labour of the person who is BUILDING your PC. That's why PCs, Especially gaming ones, cost much more than if you were to simply build one yourself.
Third Mistake, I didn't do my research, I'll be perfectly honest. Because literally months after buying this PC, A newer version of the same PC (for the same price) came out. Thus meaning, newer, and also thus BETTER, parts than the one I currently have. So take my advice, even if you need a PC soon/now, DO NOT BUY ONE WITHOUT RESEARCH. And if you're one of those people who says:
"Oh but I'm not good with computers! I don't know what I'm looking for!"
Then ASK someone. Ask a friend, ask someone online, or even ask your parents even if they are just as clueless as you are about computers. Because people with experience or a general knowledge about computers will be able to guide out away from something like the hell hole I'm stuck with now.
Please just don't go for Alienware. There's better PCs out there for the same price that can do just the same or probably even significantly BETTER than what they offer.
