Myth Busters: Alienware Overpriced

Myth: Alienware is overpriced!

Every time I talk with someone about Alienware the conversation inevitably turns to how overpriced their laptops are. I've gotten tired of hearing this so I decided to look up the pricing on parts and see what it actually costs. This list is based off of what I've ordered. Prices are the average I could find either on eBay or online resellers for an M18x laptop build.

1400 680m x2
250 3610QM
100 16GB 4x4 DDR3 1600
300 500GB x2
120 Windows 7 Home
100 Backlit Keyboard
20 Side Keys
20 Keyboard frame
350 Screen
70 Blueray Reader
50 Killer NIC 1103
500 m18x chassis
100 Speakers
100 Battery
400 Motherboard
100 Power converter
100 Lighting
---------------
4095

This does not include the cost of preinstalled software, warranty, nameplate, setup, assembly, shipping and handling, or anything else not listed.

My cost from Alienware was 3195.

So:
4095 parts
3195 my cost
------
900 saved
160 5% card
200 Dell gift card
------
1260 total benefit for ordering from Dell

So based on this I'd say Alienware is not overpriced at all but actually a really good deal. It's a top of the line laptop offered at a cost you couldn't even come close to if you built it yourself. Also, building it yourself would incur significant shipping charges, whereas I was able to get next day shipping from Dell for free.

Result: Busted!

 

Cool coming of age story bro. One problem though, Not everyone is able to buy from Dell.com (USA). Many other countries have significantly higher taxes and luxury items like that will have higher prices to begin with which is the reason many resellers and Ebay systems sell.

So are those even "overpriced?" Depends on:
1. where you live
2. Your definition of overpriced.

3200 for a computer is "overpriced" to 99.99% of the population and that is with a Cronbach alpha coefficient of .05. True Story.
In b4 "it's a gaming laptop." - That leads to check out Asus G series at best buy.

 

My point is its one thing to claim that a Ferarri is out of your price range, but it's a completely different story to claim that such and such a dealership is charging you a massive and overpriced markup for that Ferarri.

Not everyone wants a Ferrari. Most people are quite happy with a Ford Escort.
But if you want a Ferrari and nothing else will do, Alienware is a great choice at a fair price.

 

If you make over 34,000 USD a year, you are one of the top 1% richest people on the whole PLANET. Now that's a true story.

EDIT: Added emphasis.

 

I don't think the overpriced thing comes from their laptops. Very few people want to or do make their own laptops from the ground up.
Its more from their desktops. WHICH ARE overpriced. But to be fair to AW, most pre built desktops are over priced, which is why a lot of gamers build their own/buy the parts and have someone build for them for 50 bucks.

 

Now that I couldn't agree with more.

 

^^^ And then they start having issues with their systems because of the chipset / processor / motherboard / memory / graphic card incompatibility and many other issues. That is why Dell is asking for more, they have to spend alot of money in testing those machines and making sure are way above the 'average' of paying $50.00 to someone for building those machines...

 

My opinion is Alienware laptops are reasonably priced and their desktops not so much, but the their cases are nice specially the alx area 51! I get it "i can build my own" this is what everybody says even if the subject is about an Alienware laptop. I would definitely build my own if i was in the market for a desktop but for a laptop? Lol lets see someone build their own laptop haha, i know its possible but its gonna be a sh** load of money and pain in the . Haters gonna hate.

I am US customer so perspective about prices might be different.

 

There are plenty of guides all over the internet by professional builders that show/tell you step by step what parts are best and how to build a flawless system. And if you are not comfortable building yourself, just have any half decent shop put it together. Most stuff literally fits together like lego's. and for about 1200 dollars you can build yourself a system that would cost 2000+ dollars from AW.

If I was going to spent over a grand more than a machine is worth I would at least get it from a company like FNW or digital storm. 2 companies with legendary build quality and golden customer support.

 

its over priced if you purchase in AUS which adds at least $1000 to the price!

 

Everything is over priced in Australia because you guys literally have the most draconian tariffs of any country on the planet lol. a game that costs 60$ in america usually costs 100-120 dollars in Australia XD.

 

you cant really compare the price that way,
I mean go and try to buy all you need to build a car from the part department of a car dealership instead of buying a new car and I can assure you that it'll cost a lot more to buy it in part(2-3x)!

If you need/want a gaming laptop alienware is among the best you can get an as such command a premium price but its still reasonable for what you get.
In the desktop department they are way overpriced and I'd never buy one. I've always built my desktop for myself and most of my friend/family too and it always end up way better for less cash. But you gotta know what you're doing though ...

 

This ^^^.

Really the only time building your own desktop isn't better is if you just need a machine for basic tasks like microsoft word and web browsing. In which case you can just buy a 200 dollar tower from dell.

 

This is just my opinion but do you know how much it costs Dell to make an m18x with 7970m crossfire in it?

They buy their components in bulk from manufacturers and pay cheap labour to assemble it. I don't think it costs them more than 1k to make a 3920xm + 7970m crossfire m18x.

Untill you know how much they are gouging you you really can't say one way or the other.

And of course it is ALWAYS going to be more expensive to buy the individual parts. They are charging the full RRP for them.

 

A 3920XM by itself would most likely fill up that entire budget, even for Dell. The total cost for that would be way more than 1k but below the retail price.

 

Even if that was accurate it would not matter. It's a business, not a charity, and their purpose is to make money. That doesn't qualify as price gouging. These things have a way of working themselves out without any need for external influence. They are entitled to charge whatever they feel like charging and they will get as much as the market will bear. If their charges were too far out of line they would not be competitive and they would lose sales to their competitors. That's actually very healthy and I wouldn't want it to be any different even for personal gain. When big companies like Dell and Microsoft are profitable, they give back to society in charitable ways. Not only does it provide employees with decent wages and benefits, but they also contribute to humanitarian causes. If they were selling products at too small of a profit margin, those things would not be possible. Gaming laptops (actually almost all electronics) are luxury items, which tends to negate the notion of such a thing as price gouging.

 

1 dollar is to much for french fries at mcdonalds, but i still buy them...haha

bottom line....if you have to question ALL pricing, then you cant afford it. simple.

 

I recommend you watch the documentary called 'The Corporation' it's quiet the reveal all on corporate ethics and I think you will be suprised just how disgusting the corporate culture really is.
There's a reason why those chinese commit suicide in the Apple/ Sony/ Samsung/ Dell manufacturing plants in China and it's not because Apple, Sony and Dell and giving them fair wages.

As so the pricing on individual components I think the markup on electronics is like jewlery, it's astronomical compared to how much they get back in profits.

Intel prices the 3920xm as around 1k for consumers but you can bet Dell is buying those chips for no more than $500 each from the manufacturers. That is how they make their money.

Like you said, it's not a charity case.

 

yes, but they are also buying 100 to 1000 of them at a time to get those prices....

 

I would spent much more then that betting you are from Dell.
everyone knowns alienwares are extremely overpriced. with some models you could even make a direct comparasion. for example the M17, exactly the same model as flextronics W840DI sold for half price.

alienware M17
intel i7-3820QM
nvidia 680M
32Gb DDR3
2x256GB SSD
win7 pro
killer 1103 wifi
4164$

same specs.
Clevo P170EM
intel i7-3820QM
nvidia 680M
32Gb DDR3
2x256GB SSD
win7 pro
killer 1103 wifi
3611$

and don't tell me it's about a maxed configuration.
again:

M17x
intel i7-3610QM
nvidia 680M
8Gb DDR3
2x500gb 7200rpm
win7 home
killer 1103 wifi
2769$

same config
Clevo P170EM
intel i7-3610QM
nvidia 680M
8Gb DDR3
2x500gb 7200rpm
win7 home
killer 1103 wifi
2337$

your bs theory vs real life
busted

 

very true AW is far to pricey at first glance...but for all those that upgrade for little or nothing over the years...caused by "user error" kind of makes up for that. sorry, but you break that shinny new clevo and they aint replacing anything for free. and yes i owned a clevo.

 

First off, I do not work for Dell. I work at a Police Department on the east coast. Second, most days I WISH I worked for Dell as it would be a lot less stressful and pay a lot better. And lastly, the price I paid was after haggling with Dell which saved me hundreds of dollars. The point of the post was that Dell is not charging a totally outrageous price for the parts I ordered. Then on top of that they lowered their asking price and threw in some gift cards. If you can find an 18" laptop with the parts I listed for a cheaper price I'd encourage you to post it. We'd all love to see it. Otherwise my original claim stands that my system was fairly priced.

 

First off, nothing wrong with Clevo as a brand. If Alienware were to go out of business, I would own the dual-GPU beast because it's the next best thing to an M18x, even though it is a nondescript plastic box.

Is Alienware sometimes a little bit more expensive? Yes, sure it is. Especially so if you do not take advantage of the opportunity to negotiate the price with a sales rep. Is there something to be gained by owning an Alienware? Yes, there is. To sum it up in two words, "warranty" and "service" and those alone are justification as Brother John has pointed out.

Plus, the joy over money saved can quickly fade if problems arise and you have to send a machine away and wait for a while to get it back, then hope it's fixed when you get it back again. Paying a little extra to have someone sit at your dining room table to fix the machine the next business day, or sending you the parts by FedEx overnight to do it yourself is worth it, too. Being able to do whatever you want to the machine without voiding the warranty, as long as what you do does not break it, is also worth the extra cost.

And then there is the amazing appearance... "Wow, an Alienware" versus "Meh" and the "What's a Clevo?" factor. Some folks don't value that, but I do. And, I'm willing to pay for it.

 

Alienware M17x-R4 / Windows 7 Home Premium / 3720QM / 8GB 1600Mhz / 1920x1080 / 7970M / 750GB 7200 RPM / Killer Wireless-N 1103 + 4 Year Advanced Warranty/Taxes = $2700.
Sager/Clevo NP9170 / Windows 7 Home Premium / 3720QM / 8GB 1600Mhz / 1920x1080 72% Gamut or 90% Gamut / 7970M / 750GB 7200 RPM / Killer Wireless-N 1103 = $1832.33 or $2011.78. (XoticPC)

Not absolutely sure of pricing on that Sager because I'm unsure of the M17x-R4's screen color gamut but I do believe it is 90% so we'll run with the $2012 price. Also unsure if Sagers with Killer Wireless-N 1103 have bluetooth support but since its mostly unimportant I'll ignore it. Brace yourself, math is coming.

Don't look at website pricing, that's not what most of us have paid recently thanks to the sales assistance thread. My M17x-R4 in sig was $2600 and change with taxes, just going to round that out to $2700 including free shipping and 3% discount through Dell Preferred account. $628 of that is the advanced warranty and another 8.875% is New York State taxes. Subtract $628 from the total price since Sager has no equivalent warranty to the Alienware's and subtract 8.875% in taxes ($55.74) on that $628 and you get $2014.26. Then because I'm a student I was given a $200 Dell promo e-gift card and another promo e-gift card for 5% for purchase through a Dell Preferred account of my laptop's purchase price minus shipping/taxes that can be spent on the warranty and merchandise (computers excluded) from Dell. $2014.26 - 8.875% (178.765575) = $1835.49 and then 5% of $1835.49 = $91.50. $91.50 + $200 = $291.50 cash back on promo e-gift card. Total on the M17x-R4 is $2014.26 + $291.50 cash back on the gift card versus $1832.33/$2011.78 on the NP9170.

As you can see, pricing really isn't all that different and my Alienware was a much better deal which is why I have one. M17x commands a premium but has many advantages over the NP9170 such as its 9 cell battery as opposed to the Sagers 8 cell, an unlockable bios, an integrated graphics/dedicated graphics hardware switch, a much better backlit keyboard, and I could go on but the point is the two are nearly even in pricing when I'm paying taxes on the Alienware which is better. Depending on that screen situation the Sager is equivalent in price but inferior in more than a few ways. If you count the discounts, Sager loses too badly to be ignored. I'm a college student, I couldn't afford to buy the pricier of the two but I did my homework and it was a no brainer when the two were equivalent in price that I bought my M17x over the NP9170 and I'll be using it happily for the next four years.

P.S. - You also don't buy hard drives and RAM through Dell/Alienware because we know that's where they have ridiculous markups and we generally avoid them to save money.

EDIT : M17x screen is 72% so equivalent NP9170 is only $1832.33, so yes the Sager is cheaper by a small bit.

 

IMO, you do pay a little extra for the lights and flashy design, but it is not TOO ridiculous as long as you don't buy HDD/RAM through Dell, and call in to haggle a little.

 

AW laptops are usually a little more expensive than the competition, even after haggling. But part of that is because they custom design their cases and that costs money. Especially when they have the aestetics of an AW. Clevo/sager design their own cases to. But they have much less detail and effort put into them. They are also produced in massive quantities. This drives down the price.

When you buy an aw you are not just buying a laptop. Your buying an instantly recognizable and unique brand.

 

So true. Many more people know "Alienware" compared to "Clevo" or "Sager" or "Origin".

 

And dell/alienwares Cases/Components aren't? how many alienware laptops/desktops are sold in comparison to a clevo based shell? Even with the large number of clevo sellers under various names?

If you take a look at the alienware website, without knowing what you know about calling and haggling etc.. then you go and price a Sager, what is your initial reaction?

I know mine, for a long time has been, man why are these things so expensive?!?!

or... Im spending $3000 on an m18x, and they cant even extend the warranty or give me a discount on it?

hell for a long time asus had 2 year warranties with 1 year accidental included with their gaming laptops... Don't know anything about their service though, my laptop ran like a top for 2 years and a couple months.

This was my opinion even 6 months ago when I was pricing a new laptop. I didn't know about the alienware sales thread, etc...

Has my opinion of this changed? Not really. It drives me mental that I have to call and haggle to get a discount, and depending on the rep, and other seemingly random variables you get either a good discount or a bad one...

Now I see a lot of claims of amazing customer service, mixed in with threads like "My dell repair HORROR". Its the same for all brands... You never know what you're actually buying, because everyone's experience, and idea of "value" is different. And all you really have to go on, is a bunch of people on a forum, whom you don't know, and very well could be leaving out important details in their tales of Woe, or praise.

A lot of comments so far in this thread have also included phrases such as:

"P.S. - You also don't buy hard drives and RAM through Dell/Alienware because we know that's where they have ridiculous markups and we generally avoid them to save money."

you don't see anything wrong with this?

I don't mean to come in here and pick anyone out, but come on. at face value, you have to see where people who say they are overpriced are coming from...

**Edit**

I should add this, as well... Until very recently I never really considered an alienware. I always RESPECTED the brand, But not until I began reading the Clevo "EM" series GPU Upgrade concerns, where several members began to realize early on, that 7970ms were not directly compatible, and needed a modded vbios to get them running. Then I wander over to the alienware forum to see people have dropped 7970ms into their 3 gen old M17x-R2 and got them running relatively easily, I can't say without trouble thanks to the driver issue.

But I also see things about being able to completely disable enduro, and plenty of new replacements for warranty repairs for sale in the Marketplace, that made me really consider an alienware. Even the sheer number of parts for sale in the Marketplace drove me to them.

I tried to purchase one new, but just could not justify the price of the m18x for my needs, and the m17x doesnt really impress me compared to a clevo. If it had the aluminum chassis still, it would be different. I ended up purchasing a used M18x-R1 from another member on here, and I can't wait to own my first, and if it treats me well, it won't be my last...

 

no. you are buying product, a notebook. you don't buy brands sorry. actually alienware doesn't even make any notebooks. they are not an OEM.


some people here say it's "a little bit more" because they known it costs more. The "little" is just to making you feel better for an overprice purchase.
Try a test with wines. if you have wines A and B and the A costs like $500 a bottle and B one that costs $50. if you say to someone to try it and switch the prices almost everyone will preffer the cheap wine because they think it's the most expensive.

It's the same with alienware "it's better". sorry benchmarks and prices say the oposite. and don't give me the bs excuse of discounts. discounts are not a pricetag sorry. you can have discounts everywhere for every product.

 

YAWN at richboys whining about $3k+ luxury laptops.

I've always wanted an Alienware, and bought the M11x R3 in my sig BRAND NEW from DELL for $600 after discounts & rebates. That's affordable to almost anyone.

As for the "why is Alienware more expensive?" argument - Because most parts are exclusively made just for that model, they aren't shared or re-used in any other laptop with any other brand. Hence, the manufacturing process costs a little more and the niche market it targets just automatically demands a slightly higher price. that being said though, like i said at the beginning of this post, Alienware can be at times EXTREMELY affordable. For M11x and M14x's, for their cost they are more cost-efficient than most laptops in their price range.

 

So you are saying you bought an m11x for $600, out of pocket? or are you saying you paid, say $900 and managed $300 in gift cards back?

because if you paid $900, you paid $900, not $600. Yeah you got that money back to spend again at dells website... but it still forced you to spend the money with them.

it is a great incentive, especially since I am in the market for a new router, when I was considering a new m17x, I had one already picked out to use my giftcard on... but if I didn't need it or anything else dell had to offer, then whats the point? I still SPENT $900 even if I got a few extra things with the laptop...

 

Just because something doesn't seem believable to you, don't automatically assume that person doesn't know what they're talking about.

That is a $1,050 laptop with $450 worth of rebates refunded back into my bank account from Dell with a total out of pocket expense of $600. Including the aftermarket 8GB Kingston Hyper-X & 128Gb Crucial M4 upgrades, the exact spec in my sig cost me $800 (with the stock RAM & HDD spare) which even second hand is worth at least $1,000.

 

Believe me, I am NOT questioning whether or not you know what you're talking about.

I am merely asking... A lot of people when listing the deal they got from dell consider the Gift cards Redeemable only on dells website as coming off of the total price of the laptop.

I did not mean to offend you, or anyone else, I am merely asking you to clarify.

 

Ah none taken, i probably could have worded that with less hostility

I got my R2, had issues so returned it and got my R3 and fell in love with them so i got 2 R1's. I've outgrown gaming so the M11x is more than enough for my light gaming, but it's portable as hell and it's an Alienware which is a brand i idolized all my nerdy high-school years.

I've been buying and repairing and reselling broken M11x's (all revisions) for a few months now and the regional price difference between US and AU has really helped me make a few bucks to save for my wedding. They really are the best value laptops you can get IMO, and with the low price all kinds of people are enticed by the Alienware brand, not just hardcore gamers.

 

Haha, ok. I don't mean to upset anyone, just a bit bored at work and figured I would chime in, as this topic is something I have gone on with friends about many times over. LOL

 

I'm not entirely sure why this thread brought out some of the, for lack of a better term, "haters". IronLeaf wanted to show that the M18x is a hell of a deal compared to buying the parts and assembling the system yourself. He was successful in doing so. The car comparison is flawed because, unlike a car, A LOT of people debate between buying a name brand (like Dell/Alienware, Asus, Origin, etc.) versus build-it-yourself. I don't know anyone who has ever built their own car. Is Dell the cheapest on the market? No. Should they be? With their warranty? Hell no. I've purchased a low-cost alternative in the past and you know what? It was a DOG. Horrible warranty support, malfunctioning parts, etc. And this was from a company who heavily advertises in PC magazines.

And, with all due respect, the idea that, just because someone's excited about a product automatically means they MUST work for that company is ridiculous, particularly since NBR makes it pretty clear when someone is a company rep.

IronLeaf's a new member to NBR. He's STOKED about his new toy and wants to share his research with others. He shouldn't be slammed for it by random members of the forum. Also, he's a cop, so be nice or he'll write you a ticket ;-) (and no, I do not know him IRL...I just prefer we continue to practice a little ettiquete on this excellent forum)

Thanks!

 

You guys are geniuses let me tell you uber genius. Just because you have a $200 gift card you received does not mean you have to spend it on dell. Few select individuals who have brain cells will tell you to buy dell gift cards at 20% off and then take the free gift cards and flip them for 90% value. I can guarantee most of you that I have spent a lot less than you have and guess what I have never received a gift card. I did receive a couple 256gb ssd as a oops we messed up here you go to make up for it. So yeah stop whipping out and trying to compare your E_peen. It is pretty simple if you have more money than brains than you just buy alienware. if you have more brains than money you can get an alienware for half off.

Edit: I would never send a penny or even a fraction of a penny of my money to Clevo/Sager/Origin/ or any boutique company. Dell/Alienware hands down has the best warranty support and I actually prefer the pricing of alienware. Much cheaper for me in the long run not only in monetary value $$$ but in quality of product and service. Clevo/Sager are for folks who can't negotiate on price or unable to find deals available to a select few people with common knowledge.

Edit Edit: Just got to thinking about it and realized what about resale value. Just like people brag about mac being able to retain resale value in the gaming sector Alienware will retain value for a lot longer. Also I can't seem to recall if I ever bought an aliewnare and sold it at a loss. I typically find amazing uber good deals and then after 6months - 1.5yr worth of use I flip for profit or break even. Try doing that with an HP, Clevo, Sager, Sony or any other brand.

 

oh my, I really cannot believe you think Alienware buys those parts for those prices. They get them for a reasonable price where they can make a profit in the end.

A business is a business in the end.

 

Just because they pay that much, doesn't mean that's what they're worth. What, you think the engineering and designing that went into it was done for free? You're not just paying for the raw hardware, plus you are buying a single unit while they are manufacturing them i the millions so of course they will get the parts cheaper.

 

I like the positive attitude. I guess maybe I should have looked at Ironleafs history. I didn't mean to come across as mean, I just think a lot people see the price tag and don't know that the prices are negotiable. Most of the time they aren't.

I just purchased a used M18x for myself, its my 1st Alienware, and I can't wait. My Np8130 has treated me well for the past 6 months, and it will be used for travel. I needed a desktop replacement, and I can't wait to see how the m18x is. I really do hope this alienware treats me well, from the sounds of it, it will. We will see!

 

"Overpriced" is usually a vague word used by people who either have very little idea of what something is actually worth, or someone who can't afford something, or just chooses not to.
Alienware vs. Other is pretty much the same as Apple vs. PC, Apple vs. Android, etc. etc. comments. The comparisons are generally lame and embarrassing for everyone involved.

On top of that, you can't really outright compare any two products to one another, even like the m17x r3 and r4. They're different. There are way too many variables to compare when looking at these things.

Say between AW and Clevo, you look at identically specced models, and you notice a few things:
Same specs, but AW is more expensive. Sure. Now you compare the keyboards, maybe AW beats Clevo. Screen. Touchpad. Speakers. Build Quality. Etc. Etc. And then each of these companies takes turns winning in each of the categories that you compare. Maybe the touchpad of the Clevo is better, but you don't plan to ever use the touchpad.

Then this continues for a while and ultimately you pick a machine because it suited YOUR particular needs the best. And past that point, it doesn't really matter because it was something that you felt comfortable buying, and to hell with everyone else.

Though on a more personalized note, for my choice with the Alienware, it was the little things that did it. I have an m14x and for me, the Clevo 15.6 was just a bit too big, a bit too heavy, and a few little other things.
Do I know that they have an equally powerful system in an 11.6" form factor?
Yes.
But ultimately it was my choice to get this machine, along with the fact that, probably more than anything else, the warranty was what made me go for it, along with some of the upgrading options.

Plus on a final note of price, with Dell's frequent discounts and the ability to talk to reps over the phone, you're getting like 200-400 off, so realistically they're about the same price.

 

I feel like we are having three differenta arguments in one thread.

My first post was just showing that the parts, at the price points they were available at for me to purchase on my own, along with the gift cards and such were an equal or greater value than what I was paying to Dell for an 18 inch well known brand name gaming laptop.

Perhaps it's my fault for making the title overly broad.
Perhaps I've brought up a sensitive topic.
Or perhaps some people just like a good argument.

No matter. It was a great exercise for me as I had started to feel like maybe I HAD payed too much. Now I don't feel that way at all. YMMV.

 

That's what is important. Honestly if you're happy that's all that matters. I hope I didn't sound like I was picking on you necessarily. I just can see how they are construed as overpriced based on the pricetag.

I had just ordered an M17x last thursday evening, and after reading through some new posts on the alienware deal thread, cancelled because someone beat me by a good $150 discount. Thats sort of what bother's me about the way in which you have to order them. Then Alienware/dell wouldn't let me re-order with a different rep right away, so I had to wait until after the weekend before I could, and it cost them a new sale... Because over the weekend I found myself an M18x with CF 6990s. Saved myself a lot of money buying a barely used M18x... and I'm happy. Gotta say I am jealous of SLi 680s in yours though!

good luck with it, I'm sure it will tear apart every game you throw at it for quite a while.

 

1) When people say overpriced, they are talking about 'compared to another laptop with similar specs', not individual parts.

2) I think the whole "Alienware is overpriced" was from a long time ago when Alienware was a stand alone company. They were in fact very overpriced but in the past 4-5 years they have become very affordable and compare greatly to other laptops with simliar specs.

3) No other competitors really offer the style you get from Alienware. You pay a slight premium to have that and to have the Alienware name on it. Just like buying a BMW, you pay a premium, same applies here.

 

nope. this is common.... as mentioned a few post above...
more money/less money
apple/android
mac/pc
nvidia/amd
alienware/clevo-sager

 

people can argue all the time about this. but facts are facts and math doesn't lie. numbers aren't abstract. 1+1=2.
3000 is bigger then 2000. there's nothing to do about it sorry if that disapoints some fanboys around here.

a good thing alienware could do it was to sell barebones. but that will never happen. just like more and cheaper gpu upgrades.

 

Again, the "aw is soooooo over priced" thing mainly comes from their desktops. Most people can live with a couple hundred dollars difference between parts and the finished product when buying from a store. A couple thousand is a whole different ball game.

 

Again, too many variables in play for your math to actually be valid.

1 apple + 1 orange =/= 2 apples.

x+y=/= 2x

Nice try at math, though.

Even if you were comparing between two otherwise identical laptops, one with a single 7970m, and one with a dual 7970m, with the latter being cheaper, that doesn't nessesarily constitute a "better" product.
Dual gpu = more heat, more power draw, need for a bigger power brick, and theoretically double the chance of having a gpu fail.
Someone who is looking at performance alone will say well heck yes you should get the dual gpu for cheaper (and admittedly I am one of those people), but other people will say well that power brick is just too huge, and the battery life isn't as good, so I am still fine with maxing out every game at 1080p for the next 3 years at 60fps.

So, in reality, these numbers are pretty abstract, because you're not just looking at price vs. price, but what all is included within that price tag, so stop being a "fanboy" and actually think about this for a second.

Not trying to be rude, just honest.

 

Um so pretty much you're calling everyone a "fanboy" who has a legitimate reason for supporting a product?

Discounts-> make them the same price
Premium quality -> matters even without the discount, because then your cheap plastic won't break after a few months
Support -> Even if it's not "the best" (which if it's not, I couldn't tell you whose is) in the event that there is a problem, which by reading the above (premium quality) means is less likely to happen, you will be spending fewer days without a system, (and by days I mean, based on sager's records, months) and, will have it completely replaced for you.

The only bs I'm seeing is coming out of your posts, because you can't come up with a single solid knock against the brand, and yet are still hating on it and saying fanboy ever two words in the Alienware subsection. Go fight this in Clevo, you'll find more fanboy friends over there.

Shame how this started out as a legitimate thread until you started dragging it through the mud.

 

I would like to awnser that and other questions but unfortunatelly some people here are a very sensitive throwaards alienware and I got reported for no reason and got an infraction. So now I'm unable to express my ideas and opinions that are contrary to some expressed here.
but in the end all the best alienware owners and alienware is great and has great value and it's not overprice. in fact they are even cheaper then any notebook brand. I agree with everyone that says that. It's a great brand and you do buy brands of course since AW doesn't even produces notebooks. or maybe they produce if someone here it says they do. I won't contradict that or anything. I agree with everyone.


Truth is AW are in average at least $500 more expensive then other notebook models with exactly the same specifications. mathematics prove it. But that just doesn't matter.
"but it does move"
Galileo