My usual responses to prebuilds can be found below, if you don't like what I'm about to say then stop reading here.

What I find hilarious is that the Amazon page doesn't even list what GPU this has or what actual i3 model is used, that might actually tell you something about the sort of company Alienware/Dell are. I had to search the internet for details, when doing so I find they refer to the CPU this machine has (a i3-4170T) as "quad core" when it bloody isn't.

I will try and demonstrate the poor value of this machine, yes it's cheap for the parts but for gaming you'll be disappointed. Firstly starting with my version of this type of setup for comparison:

PCPartPicker part list: https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/xKhWJV
Price breakdown by merchant: https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/xKhWJV/by_merchant/

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 845 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor (£56.00 @ CCL Computers)
Motherboard: ASRock A68M-ITX Mini ITX FM2+ Motherboard (£56.20 @ More Computers)
Memory: G.Skill NS Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory (£33.68 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Toshiba 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£35.94 @ Aria PC)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB GAMING X 4G Video Card (£87.99 @ Ebuyer)
Case: Silverstone Sugo SG13WB Mini ITX Tower Case (£39.95 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Power Supply: EVGA 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply (£34.79 @ Aria PC)
Total: £344.55
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-12-23 08:09 GMT+0000

Okay, so it's £44.55 more. But what do you get for your extra cash?

1) More powerful CPU

Around 22% increase in performance there.
2) Upgradable
Unlike the Alienware system, this build can be upgraded. Want a more powerful GPU or CPU in a couple of years? No problem. Want to rebuild the whole system? You can keep the case and PSU and save some money when upgrading. With this Alienware system you have to throw the whole thing away. You can also add more hard drives/SSDs if you wish down the line.
3) More powerful GPU
The GPU in this system is based on a mobile part designed for laptops, not only does that mean it's not as powerful but it also means it cannot be replaced. It is around the performance of the old GTX 750 Ti. Performance is very low compared to the GTX 1050 Ti spec'd in my build. In some cases the 1050 Ti is more than twice as fast.

So for 15% more cash you have a machine that is around 50% faster for gaming.


If you want help specing and building a PC please PM me, I will help you. As I've helped many other HUKD members.

You're not going to get much out of that and it won't be particularly future proof at this point either.

It's a great deal, let down only for lack of an SSD. Windows 10 keys can be picked up quite cheaply

You're not going to get much out of that and it won't be particularly future proof at this point either.

And a repost too

heh. A "powerful gaming machine" will have a GFX card that costs more than this whole machine.

Anyone know if these run rocksmith smooth?

Graphics card might be low, but dont forget that this is streamlined to work with steam on the steamOS so its very efficient, unlike a standard windows pc.

I'd say this is a great machine for people who want respectable PC gaming (roughly PS4 performance, depending on how well the title is optimised) at a decent price, in a quiet small form design.

Big question I had to ask myself was whether or not I was planning to upgrade to a GTX1070 or equivalent in the next year and as the answer was "Yes" I didn't buy this unit in the end.

a pity the don't have normal audio out.

also why no USB 3 on the front and so few in general considering there is plenty of space