• Hey Guest. Check out your NeoGAF Wrapped 2025 results here!

Alienware Alpha first impressions and benchmarks

With the exception of the faster hard drive those specs sound identical to last years model except it's $50 cheaper without Windows. I hope they put in a better GPU at the very least.
 
Tainted Giraffe said:
With the exception of the faster hard drive those specs sound identical to last years model except it's $50 cheaper without Windows. I hope they put in a better GPU at the very least.
Click to expand...

I hear ya but taking a note from the console paradigm, they need to keep stamping out the alpha as-is to achieve economies of scale. They could still be selling it this time next year if it's 299usd by then.
 
walltowall said:
It's louder than either of those two consoles. Not unbearable, but it definietly lets you know when it's working hard.
Click to expand...

Hmm, well the only time I hear mine is when I'm rendering or compiling video because that puts the Alpha to more work than any video game. And even then - I'm in a small room that I can sleep in while the fan is going at full blast and I don't even notice it. Basically, you can hear it if you're listening for it but it doesn't cause any unnecessary attention.
 
reSpec Gaming said:
Hmm, well the only time I hear mine is when I'm rendering or compiling video because that puts the Alpha to more work than any video game. And even then - I'm in a small room that I can sleep in while the fan is going at full blast and I don't even notice it. Basically, you can hear it if you're listening for it but it doesn't cause any unnecessary attention.
Click to expand...

I don't hear my Xbox One unless the disk is spinning, I do hear my PS4, but it is only noticible because the Xbox One is so quiet. My Alpha has been very audible when playing Dishonored and Tomb Raider for example. Not PS3 running the Last of Us loud, but certainly louder than the other systems.
 
walltowall said:
I don't hear my Xbox One unless the disk is spinning, I do hear my PS4, but it is only noticible because the Xbox One is so quiet. My Alpha has been very audible when playing Dishonored and Tomb Raider for example. Not PS3 running the Last of Us loud, but certainly louder than the other systems.
Click to expand...

Fair enough. It's funny. I'm only starting to hear my Alpha more because I'm thinking about it now, haha. Wasn't thinking about it before and I never seemed to notice.
 
Has anyone tried/know how to add the windows 10 Xbox app to big picture mode??

I'm thinking it would be really cool to have it be able to act as a second Xbox One via streaming and just activating it with the controller alone
 
Huh. Seems like they finally added desktop capture to nvidia shadowplay for the Alpha.

Wasn't there 2 weeks ago when I last recorded at least.
 
Has anyone upgraded their Alpha to Windows 10?

I've installed it, and, can't get the Xbox App to work for the life of me. I've done all the fixes I could find out there. Rolled back to 8.1 and reinstalled 10 and it still doesn't work. Can't even sign into the app. Anyone have any tricks?
 
Xer0 said:
Has anyone upgraded their Alpha to Windows 10?

I've installed it, and, can't get the Xbox App to work for the life of me. I've done all the fixes I could find out there. Rolled back to 8.1 and reinstalled 10 and it still doesn't work. Can't even sign into the app. Anyone have any tricks?
Click to expand...

Upgraded to Windows 10 but don't use the Xbox App so not sure. Did you create an Alienware Respawn disc/flash drive?
 
Figured I'd drop this in here as well:

FS: Alienware Alpha i5/8GB Ram/1TB HDD. Comes with custom case, four wireless xbox 360 controllers, and charging stations for the controllers.

Still have the original box as well!


2014-12-23-image-12_story.jpg


A7888952mv1.jpg


New price on the lot would run about $1000. I'm asking $600. :)
 
outunderthestars said:
Figured I'd drop this in here as well:

FS: Alienware Alpha i5/8GB Ram/1TB HDD. Comes with custom case, four wireless xbox 360 controllers, and charging stations for the controllers.

Still have the original box as well!


2014-12-23-image-12_story.jpg


A7888952mv1.jpg


New price on the lot would run about $1000. I'm asking $600. :)
Click to expand...

Whoa whoa, what gives? Why you sellin'?
 
kodecraft said:
Whoa whoa, what gives? Why you sellin'?
Click to expand...

I just don't seem to have the time to ever play the thing. I love the system, but due to some life changes (running a business, starting a family) I only play games for about an hour a week and mostly on portables.

That said, someone give this thing a good home. It kicks too much ass to sit unused in my entertainment center. :)
 
outunderthestars said:
Figured I'd drop this in here as well:

FS: Alienware Alpha i5/8GB Ram/1TB HDD. Comes with custom case, four wireless xbox 360 controllers, and charging stations for the controllers.

Still have the original box as well!


2014-12-23-image-12_story.jpg


A7888952mv1.jpg


New price on the lot would run about $1000. I'm asking $600. :)
Click to expand...
I wish I had the money right now. Though I don't even need one controller really. Hopefully it gets a good home.
 
outunderthestars said:
I just don't seem to have the time to ever play the thing. I love the system, but due to some life changes (running a business, starting a family) I only play games for about an hour a week and mostly on portables.

That said, someone give this thing a good home. It kicks too much ass to sit unused in my entertainment center. :)
Click to expand...

Any chance you'd be willing to sell the bundle without the controllers and controller chargers? If so, please PM me. Thanks!
 
I just joined the club, waiting for fedex to get here any minute now with my Alpha. I only got the base model because of my lack of money and its still a huge upgrade from my current pc which is a E8400,4gb ram, AMD 6750HD that struggles with FFXIV on 1080p lowest graphic settings. I did buy an extra 4gb stick to upgrade it to 8gb right away. I just hope it plays FFXIV as well as my ps4, if not better. I hope I'm not expecting too much. =\
 
Mine finally just came about 90 minutes ago, upgraded to 8gb of ram before even turning it on. I let it do its windows 8.1 setup then upgraded to windows 10 right away. I guess I need to buy a usb sound card or something, I didn't notice it only has optical out, which is fine for my speakers but I have no way to use my headset mic now.

I also LOLed a little bit when I saw the dvd that came in the box even though it has no disc drive. Installing\DLing games now. =]
 
I know this topic is dead but I wanted to post this incase anyone is lurking for info. I found this thing to be even better than I thought it would be for only $399 on Amazon. I did pay an extra $20 for a 4gb stick of kingston ram to upgrade the machine to 8gb but besides that its the stock lowest model. In FFXIV I'm getting 45+ FPS at all times with a mix of high and ultra settings at 1080p which I find amazing. In diablo 3 I've been getting 150 or so fps with some dips to 95 fps in 4 player games on my Wizard.. This machine is a freaking beast for $400. H1Z1 I was only getting about 30 fps in Battle Royal but it is also a beta and I didn't mess around with settings at all, just used the defaults. Loading times in all games are actually very fast even though the HDD is only 5400 RPM or whatever.

The ONLY things I'm sad about is that the stock HDD is only 500GB but I'll update that never year when I can afford it... or just actually uninstall games I don't play for once. I'm used to my 8 year old pos pc having 3tb =\ The other thing I don't understand is why the sound out is through HDMI and Opitcal only, all because they're trying to push this as a console not a pc. I actually uninstalled the Alienware UI stuff since I bought this to use as a pc not a steam\console machine. It also has NO sound input jack for a headset so I'll have to waste money on a USB sound card eventually.. Thank god I have social anxiety so I don't really chat on voice chat much lmao. I installed my extra stick of ram before even turning it on. After installing the ram I turned on the unit to do the windows 8.1 setup then IMMEDIATELY put in my usb stick with windows 10 on it and was down upgrading to windows 10 with no problems within 45 minutes.

Sorry if this post\review is a mess I'm a tad drunk enjoying a fucked up Friday night off on FFXIV waiting for a dungeon to pop. I was a little sad after ordering this stuff for $450 after tax\extra ram but now I'm pissed I didn't order it sooner after using it :D I can't believe how strong this is for only $400. Oh and not to mention it came with 6 or 8 free Steam games, can't remember which ones besides Pay Day 2... a Xbox 360 Controller with USB reciever... Amazing value.
 
Liferebooted said:
I know this topic is dead but I wanted to post this incase anyone is lurking for info. I found this thing to be even better than I thought it would be for only $399 on Amazon. I did pay an extra $20 for a 4gb stick of kingston ram to upgrade the machine to 8gb but besides that its the stock lowest model. In FFXIV I'm getting 45+ FPS at all times with a mix of high and ultra settings at 1080p which I find amazing. In diablo 3 I've been getting 150 or so fps with some dips to 95 fps in 4 player games on my Wizard.. This machine is a freaking beast for $400. H1Z1 I was only getting about 30 fps in Battle Royal but it is also a beta and I didn't mess around with settings at all, just used the defaults. Loading times in all games are actually very fast even though the HDD is only 5400 RPM or whatever.

The ONLY things I'm sad about is that the stock HDD is only 500GB but I'll update that never year when I can afford it... or just actually uninstall games I don't play for once. I'm used to my 8 year old pos pc having 3tb =\ The other thing I don't understand is why the sound out is through HDMI and Opitcal only, all because they're trying to push this as a console not a pc. I actually uninstalled the Alienware UI stuff since I bought this to use as a pc not a steam\console machine. It also has NO sound input jack for a headset so I'll have to waste money on a USB sound card eventually.. Thank god I have social anxiety so I don't really chat on voice chat much lmao. I installed my extra stick of ram before even turning it on. After installing the ram I turned on the unit to do the windows 8.1 setup then IMMEDIATELY put in my usb stick with windows 10 on it and was down upgrading to windows 10 with no problems within 45 minutes.

Sorry if this post\review is a mess I'm a tad drunk enjoying a fucked up Friday night off on FFXIV waiting for a dungeon to pop. I was a little sad after ordering this stuff for $450 after tax\extra ram but now I'm pissed I didn't order it sooner after using it :D I can't believe how strong this is for only $400. Oh and not to mention it came with 6 or 8 free Steam games, can't remember which ones besides Pay Day 2... a Xbox 360 Controller with USB reciever... Amazing value.
Click to expand...


Why a sound card? Why not just get a USB headset like this:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CQ35C1Q/?tag=neogaf0e-20

Or a USB to 3.5mm jack on the cheap like this:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IRVQ0F8/?tag=neogaf0e-20
 
I'll probably get the jack instead. I have a cheap mic but a really really nice headphones audio technica which I DO NOT want to replace :P I love them so much.

edit: stereo\mic jack ordered. A different one than above though since it isn't available using amazon prime >.> Now that I have a pc that runs h1z1 I really need my mic working fast lol, this gaming is amazing now that I can actually move/
 
belmonkey said:
When did the Alpha get down to $410 on Amazon? Wonder how long that's gonna last?
Click to expand...

Looks like they refreshed the base model a bit on the Dell site so this might just be clearing out old stock. Seems to have gone from a i3-4130T > i3-4170T, 500GB (5400 rpm) > 500GB (7200 rpm).
 
I kinda need some help, can't find anything that actually works on google. I got this to completely replace my 8 year old desktop. I only use it in desktop mode and as a real pc. Every time I try to use the controller to game the game and windows gets fucked up because it thinks the controller is a mouse. I've tried going into task manager and killing everything that says alienware in the name of the process but it is still acting like a mouse instead of a controller. Anyone know how to fix this ? I want it to work like a controller on a normal windows pc =\
 
Liferebooted said:
I kinda need some help, can't find anything that actually works on google. I got this to completely replace my 8 year old desktop. I only use it in desktop mode and as a real pc. Every time I try to use the controller to game the game and windows gets fucked up because it thinks the controller is a mouse. I've tried going into task manager and killing everything that says alienware in the name of the process but it is still acting like a mouse instead of a controller. Anyone know how to fix this ? I want it to work like a controller on a normal windows pc =
Click to expand...
Uninstall the Alpha UI from the Control panel if you have no intention of using it
 
StaticJam said:
Uninstall the Alpha UI from the Control panel if you have no intention of using it
Click to expand...

Ok will do. I also had no idea this thing came with free games. When I signed into steam on it for the first time I suddenly had games it said I just bought...yet I didn't. After some research I found out that the games came with the console, the only one I really care about is Payday 2 though.. I didn't have to put in any codes in but it seems my steam account must have detected the system >.>
 
Liferebooted said:
Ok will do. I also had no idea this thing came with free games. When I signed into steam on it for the first time I suddenly had games it said I just bought...yet I didn't. After some research I found out that the games came with the console, the only one I really care about is Payday 2 though.. I didn't have to put in any codes in but it seems my steam account must have detected the system >.>
Click to expand...

Yeah, kind of neat that it's automatic. Not even sure how that works. Unfortunately, I already owned all the relevant games that came with it.
 
Man, one of the rare times with computer stuff that I'm glad I adopted early. For Canadians anyway (because of our dollar) Alpha's are ridiculously high in price. I got my i7 Alpha for $899 CAD and it's now $1149 CAD. At $899 it was a good deal as a built computer at the same specs was roughly the same. Still seems like there are lots of good deals for everyone in the US though.

Edit: Another note to Canadian would be buyers, if you're looking for a console - there's very little that would convince me of getting the base Alpha at the $699.99 starting price. If I was looking at this time, PS4/Xbox One would be an easy choice. So either our dollar needs to improve or this needs to go back down in price again to be viable! If you're looking for a pre-built PC, at this point I'd start at the X51 or even have your local store build a computer for you in your price range.
 
dLMN8R said:
I'm having a weird problem with the Xbox 360 controller attached to it though. I haven't changed any settings yet for some reason in Steam games pressing Up on the D-Pad launches the Steam overlay (??)
Click to expand...

I forgot to update this thread. The Alpha was confused. It thought I was in TV mode when I was actually in Desktop mode. I re-set it to Desktop mode and it fixed this issue.
 
Anyone with the Alpha planning on picking up Fallout 4?

I'm not sure whether or not to go with PC or PS4. Do we have any indication on how well Fallout 4 might run on the i7 config based on the recommended specs?
 
Xer0 said:
Anyone with the Alpha planning on picking up Fallout 4?

I'm not sure whether or not to go with PC or PS4. Do we have any indication on how well Fallout 4 might run on the i7 config based on the recommended specs?
Click to expand...

I will be. Like with everything, probably look slightly better or perform slightly better than PS4 with tweaking.
 
Xer0 said:
Anyone with the Alpha planning on picking up Fallout 4?

I'm not sure whether or not to go with PC or PS4. Do we have any indication on how well Fallout 4 might run on the i7 config based on the recommended specs?
Click to expand...

Yo.

I was fence sitting, but then I saw dlgamer.us has Steam Keys for Fallout 4 and the season pass for 15% off MSRP.

If it runs like shit on my Alpha, I'll fall back to my gaming PC in my home office.
 
Someone who (unlike me) isn't illiterate about this stuff, how do you think Street Fighter V will run on the Alpha?

Capcom said:
Minimum: Nvidia GTX 480 (or higher)
Nvidia GTX 570 (or higher)
Nvidia GTX 670 (or higher)
Recommended: GTX 960
Click to expand...

We'll be fine CPU and memory-wise, but I have no idea about the GPU.

Frustrated_me said:
Love my Alpha :)
Click to expand...
Same <3 If there were more PCs like it, people would be more willing to give PC gaming a chance, really.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

FYI: Monitor time! $349.99 each 27" OLED Alienware or PlayStation IPS.
15
344
crackajack replied
Hardware Unboxed - Forza Horizon 6 GPU benchmarks
Hardware 
1
205
realcool replied
Marathon Alpha Impressions
19 20 21 22 23
1K
18K
Arsic replied
Avowed first impressions 'really long post': I'm having a blast.
Opinion Spoilers 
40
934
seb85 replied
Crimson Desert - Final Preview and Impressions
7 8 9 10 11
517
6K
Orionsangel replied
Top Bottom