The way you worded it - is w10 subscription based?
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Alienware Steam Machine will start from $450. Twitch Q&A today.
- Thread starter ashecitism
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The way you worded it - is w10 subscription based?
ThoseDeafMutes
Member
They've already got a name they can use, "Alienware Omega". It's like a larger chassis (but sitll console sized; the Alpha is smaller than ps4 or xbo so there's room to grow) with more juice, and comes with a beefier GPU. Maybe the top model has an SSD instead of HDD as well. 970m is surprisingly close to its desktop counterpart, and has 3 or 6gb Variants. 980m might be too expensive to really be feasible though. The top range steam-boxes already have 970m listed, although I'm unsure of their dimensions.
No. There is a 12 month window where they will allow you to upgrade, but if you do, it is yours, free, indefinitely. Windows 10 is not using a subscription model, although Office is available as a sub.
Sunnington
Banned
Am I the only one who's going to call them out for being super overpriced? You can build PCs that are roughly twice as powerful for the same price.
The last few threads had a lot of this, so it's not new. We know that Steam Machines/prebuilts are going to cost more than building it on your own. I would be interested in seeing someone build a machine that's the size of the alpha though. Not many cases that fit that profile.
Sunnington
Banned
Why is that important when the steam link exists?
If you don't have a gaming pc and don't want a tower.
Not at this size you can't.
Sunnington
Banned
My point is you could build a computer twice as strong for the same price, put it anywhere, and only have a steam link in your entertainment center. Why wouldn't you do that?
D
Deleted member 518153
Unconfirmed Member
I really like the formfactor. That said it is also the only aspect that would make me buy one of these.
ThoseDeafMutes
Member
Latency? Not everyone already has a pc. Not everyone wants to build one custom. Also not sure if double the power for 450 is actually as possible as you think either
Yeah, it's strange to have a premium version of a game machine which is so lopsided in terms of GPU/CPU performance.
That's the beauty of PC - Choice. Also agreed on "twice as powerful" for the price. I somehow doubt that. Happy to be proved wrong if you can price it up.
FWIW I did price do price comparison of building up when I bought an Alienware x51 for the lounge and it only worked out $80AUD more which was worth it for me for the form factor.
Because once again you may not want a computer with the form factor of a tower. That should be an option that consumers can choose.
As for your statement. having a dedicated system is going to be better than your PC + Link. Is it going to cost more? Sure but if you have the money who cares? And perhaps you want something you can put under the TV that someone can use while you're using your PC in the office. Or perhaps you want a small machine that you can bring over to a friends to lan. My Antec full tower 1200 case is terrible for lanning. There are a ton of reasons you could come up with for wanting SFF over traditional desktop sizes. And that's what pc gaming is about. Having options. You want to go the cheaper route and get traditional stuff? Go for it. If you want something more specialized you can do that too.
Please post your build in the PC Build thread. It would be an amazing machine to recommend to people.
Steam Link isn't going to be perfect.
Steam streaming is pretty great with an adequate connection. Hard wired or with an 802.11ac router, it works really well. I've streamed backwards - from my TV to my desktop - to play games with a mouse online and done well.
Sunnington
Banned
Here's a build for roughly $450 that's roughly twice as good as the alpha.
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/8PDvQ7
Twice as much ram, twice as much hard drive space, two or more times stronger gpu(if it's a 860m or 750ti like you said it is), and comparable if not better CPU. So yeah, the CPU isn't twice as strong.
You get basically twice the performance in exchange for a bigger box and taking an hour to put it together.
If money is no object I don't see why you would buy an alpha at all since you could buy a super expensive laptop that could do everything a steam box could and much more. As far as having a LAN machine goes, here's a 500 dollar laptop that has twice as much ram, a much better processor, and a comparable, if not, slightly worse graphics card. On top of that, you get a laptop! You can can use it for all sorts of things like school work, lectures, writing novels at cafes, and it's easy to take to lans! I like how PCs have a ton of options. I just think Steam machines are terrible options and are completely overpriced.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834318576
I swapped my hulking deaktop machine for an x51 earlier on in the year, dropped a 970 in it and could not be happier. The era of big build PC's is truly dead for me
I'm still not sure from a customer level why there is a preference of SteamOS over Windows for these though. I understand why valve want to remove them self from the windows cage but why does anyone else care. Licensing is cheaper then ever, you get a full OS with the promise it will play all games, not just rewritten to another OS. With DX11&12 we are getting more performance than ever out of our hardware and using windows as an overhead these days is an invalid complaint.
I have no preference to which OS, after all it's just a delivery method of the thing I do want. If one is providing my content with more options then it's the one ill choose. Can someone provide some objective reasons to go with SteamOS over Windows ?
I'm still not sure from a customer level why there is a preference of SteamOS over Windows for these though. I understand why valve want to remove them self from the windows cage but why does anyone else care. Licensing is cheaper then ever, you get a full OS with the promise it will play all games, not just rewritten to another OS. With DX11&12 we are getting more performance than ever out of our hardware and using windows as an overhead these days is an invalid complaint.
I have no preference to which OS, after all it's just a delivery method of the thing I do want. If one is providing my content with more options then it's the one ill choose. Can someone provide some objective reasons to go with SteamOS over Windows ?
Zotac has a Steam Machine with a 970m, but it is $999.
http://store.steampowered.com/app/353530/?l=danish
dragonfart28
Banned
The form factor of the Alpha is worth the hit in performance.
You can get rid of the Alpha UI if you want and make it the couch friendly PC you've always wanted.
You can get rid of the Alpha UI if you want and make it the couch friendly PC you've always wanted.
A 280 isn't twice as strong as 260/750 Ti. Not even close.
Your build is still lacking a controller and is already $50 more expensive.
When it comes to CPUs one core does most of the work in DirectX 11 so the i3 is better than anything AMD can offer.
The Alpha is already good value for the money.
People on reddit already did a more accurate comparison of all Steam machines vs DIY when they were announced last year.
http://www.reddit.com/r/pcmasterrace/comments/2y8093/steamboxes_compared_in_price_to_pc_builds/
As is "an hour".
Plus you need to add $100 to his build as it's based around "using a Steamlink" and the Alpha's price includes a controller.
It says $510 for me. It might be a little difficult to make something "decent" and much stronger than the Alpha for $450 (and the form factor cannot be beat at that price). For simply upping the GPU power at about the Alpha price mark, how about this Frankenstein ~$440-$450 build with a GTX 960 + i3 4130T?:
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/hqPrsY
Really depends on whether you'd want to use molex connectors for the 960 though, and the thing still lacks a controller and maybe an extra part or two that the Alpha may have. The Alpha really isn't too badly priced, at least when you can get a good deal on it, like the Windows version for $330 a few weeks ago.
Iriscomeback
Member
I am kind of interested in this. But the fact that you can build a more powerful PC for the same price is a bit wierd to me.
I am also a complete noob when it comes to PC gaming. Are there a lot of (RPG) exclusives for PC? Does the RTS genre still exist? Will the graphics be much better on a steam machine?
I am also a complete noob when it comes to PC gaming. Are there a lot of (RPG) exclusives for PC? Does the RTS genre still exist? Will the graphics be much better on a steam machine?
You can't. Click the reddit link.
SprachBrooks
Member
I'm not a PC gamer and I'm really considering getting into it. Console gaming is too expensive nowadays and I wanna be able to run my games at a consistent frame rate on my TV. The thing is I'm not interested in building my own PC but I'd love to buy a pre-built one or would this Alienware be sufficient for multi-platform gaming at 1080p60?
Iriscomeback
Member
I see, well that takes care of one problem
zotac sn970 looks like something promising, it's just that it's like $300 too expensive. They've got the right idea. I'm sure it will be discounted to hell and back this time next year. Some people have managed to turn zotac PCs to hackintoshes too, it's a great replacement for the massively overpriced and underspeced mac mini. Alienware Alpha is locked down though, it's not been possible so far.
Alienware Alpha has limited usability, they just really cheapened out on ports, there is not even a headphone jack, just like a console! and it only has one display out. Other steam machines are better for multi purpose use cases.
Alienware Alpha has limited usability, they just really cheapened out on ports, there is not even a headphone jack, just like a console! and it only has one display out. Other steam machines are better for multi purpose use cases.
Pretty much, would be a perfect little dev machine for me if it wasn't so overpriced.
Current gen AAA games? No. You might get close if something is really well optimised like Alien Isolation, but mostly expect this to deliever performance comparable to current gen consoles.
SprachBrooks
Member
Heh thanksguess i'll have to build my own.
wanderjahr
Banned
No windows?
Don't really see this taking off in a meaningful way.
Don't really see this taking off in a meaningful way.
wanderjahr
Banned
To answer your question, this rig will not really give you a good experience (for a PC). In fact, it will mostly be on par with your console, but do far less insofar as other entertainment options.
To comment, I'd say if you aren't going to build your own rig, you are kind of missing out on a large benefit of gaming on a PC i.e. putting the rig together tailored for your needs and upgrading it accordingly.
Mihos
Gold Member
It doesn't have to be, the customer can decide if it meets their needs (where I am going to use it, it does)
outunderthestars
Banned
This exact model? Incredibly poorly as GTA V is not available on linux. Neither is Day Z or Euro Truck based on a quick search of the store.
I really don't think consumers are aware of how many games they would want to play aren't available on Steam OS.
You can install Kodi/XBMC on this, and it will do waaaaaay more than either console can do in terms of other entertainment options.
You'll have to install Windows to run GTA or get the Alienware Alpha, which is almost the same as the Alienware Steam Machine, except for a difference in harddrive, controller and OS.
This is the Alienware Alpha i3 model with 8GB of RAM running GTA V:
https://youtu.be/MUB516LPhIE
outunderthestars
Banned
That is better than I thought it would do.
I keep being surprised by how capable the little box is. Cap it at 30fps and you have something very comparable to the console version.
Yup, looking at it more as a console replacement rather than a desktop, I've been very pleased with mine. The fact that it isn't butt-ugly like most of the other consolized prebuilts is a nice bonus.
)CitizenCope
Member
This is where I am at. Well almost. Funds are a little tight now so might have to wait until after the new year. I have no desire to build my own but I'm sure most suggestions will be to build, build, build.
I'm just tired of getting 30fps for multiplats on consoles. I need my 60. If I have to pay an extra $400 or so to buy instead of build then so be it.
SprachBrooks
Member
Yeah I wish people could recommend pre-built rigsI really don't want to build my own but if there are pre-built rigs that also enable me to change the graphics card then i'm okay with paying a little bit more.
I'm the same as you, i'll consider a PC in the next year and see how these Steam Machines pan out.
dragonfart28
Banned
Don't expect every game to run at 60fps under the exact same graphics settings.
That said, the one thing I will always preach about Alpha over consoles is the ability to customize graphics options to suit your personal tastes.
Even Project Cars - which was supposed to have graphics options on consoles - is still very limited.
TW3 is the prime example of how console owners have to accept a developer's configuration of how the graphics should look and that's why you do not see the same complaining about frame rates from Alpha owners.