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It's Official Dell Acquired Alienware
robyn217 writes "Dell just confirmed today that it had acquired boutique PC vendor Alienware. Alienware's Nelson Gonzalez said that his company will continue on with its own brand, design, sales and marketing, and support, though, so Alienware isn't going anywhere just yet. Gonzalez also said that Alienware PCs would not carry a Dell logo, and that he would report directly to Jim Schneider, Dell's chief financial officer. "I think that you'll find it very hard to find the Dell name on the [Alienware] web site," he said." The rumor is now fact.
"Nobody builds their own Ferrari." I wouldn't really trust Honda to build my Ferrari...
Please, for the good of Humanity, vote Obama.
I wonder whether Alienware machines will continue to use AMD chips, or whether pressure on Dell from Intel will lead to their gradual phasing out. If the latter, then I can't see Alienware hanging on to the bleeding-edge gaming market...
Tubal-Cain smokes the white owl.
Err, I mean $9930 PC.
UK Alienware PCs: Firefox?
"Everything worth innovating today will go to court tomorrow."
And they won't even mention eachother on their web pages?
Ok then, Nokia just bought Xerox using the same strategy, prove me wrong.
Look at the Dell DJ. It hasn't gotten anywhere at all because Dell is just not a brand that normal people associate with cool gadgets and computers. Well that and Apple has the holy trinity of music distribution, but anyway...
Dell stands to reap a lot of benefits by letting Alienware be Alienware. It sends money their way and is a brand that helps them fight Apple. Switching them to Dell would dull the appeal of the product line if for no other reason than Dell is seen as the functional, not fast and gamer machine, makers.
...who build their own notebooks and brand them with the Ferrari logo.
Tubal-Cain smokes the white owl.
Perhaps while Dell is at it, they can acquire a colon?
Oh, you communicate directly to the CFO. Well then, they couldn't just make you put there name on it anyways.
Unless you have a contract that states dells name won't appear, and thatm hey won't influence the various aspects of Alienware, they will.
The IT world is littered with the dried up husks of good companies that were bought and told nothing would change.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
Dude you're getting an alien?
I don't get it.
With Dell's backing, hardware costs will go down and translate into even higher profit margins!
"'I think that you'll find it very hard to find the Dell name on the [Alienware] web site,' he said."
Google says: Results 1 - 91 of about 209 from alienware.com for dell. (0.29 seconds)
Not so hard.
...is the sound of millions of fanboys drawing in breath to yell "SELLOUTS!"
In my opinion Alienware sells overpriced hardware that simply looks cooler because of their case mods. I think the typical Alienware buyer thinks that this makes them oh-so-much better than someone who buys a Dell, I mean they don't even come standard with neon lights. I am going to enjoy asking Alienware customers how their Dell is doing. Lets see them try and brag about a Dell computer, with a straight face.
Philosophy.
Dell is known for using custom, (aka propietary) parts, which makes me wonder, will Alienware begin to use them to? I hope not.
Purple, because ice cream has no bones.
Alienware sells computers with AMD processors. By extension, Dell is selling AMD-based machines!
Although Dell's acquisition was widely anticipated, Alienware chief executive Nelson Gonzalez said that his company will remain a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dell, continuing its own brand, design, sales and marketing, and support.
Shucks, and I wanted to drop $4,000 on a new Alienware and talk to "Roger" from "Ohio" who was so nice to me when I owned my last Dell. While we rebooted the machine for the third time he asked me how the Packers were doing in the world series.
Nice fellows, those Dell support people... ye'sir.
"I think that you'll find it very hard to find the Dell name on the [Alienware] web site," he said.
Too Easy
Think about the joke before you mod me down.
How in the world would they have a contract? Alienware is Dell now, it would be a contract between Dell and itself. Dell could cancel the contract at any point it liked.
"It is our blasphemy which has made us great, and will sustain us, and which the gods secretly admire in us." - Zelazny
Hard to find the word Dell on their site?
It's there over 130 times!
Just check Google
Specialist Mac support for creative pros, Melbourne
Um... http://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Aalienware.c
Semper Fi
Whoa!! finally we get to dissect and run experiments on the aliens now ? Better barcode them first.
[all generalizations are untrue except this one]
People do build their own ferraris - thats what kit cars are!
Lets see, I called Dell about a laptop sent in for depot repair a week ago: 2 hrs on the phone in two calls that got dropped twice. (Boring detail: The first accented voice dropped the call after 1/2 hr (on hold). The second stated I needed to speak to Customer Support (xfer, 1/2 hr #2). The Next person said: No record of that machine showing up: Lets see if we can find the waybill number from Delayed or Hellishly Late (DHL), call droped after another 45 minutes.)
Now we can get our calls outsourced to Aliens. But Dell allready does that: How about Aliens on Mars? (Yes, mmm, mY NaMe is Marvin. How may I help you?)
On the other hand, Since Dell moves support workers as soon as they get a clue - it can't get any worse.
Now, Dell can have a niche brand that uses AMD processors for anyone who demands them, while Dell can continue to sell Intel-only systems and keep Intel happy.
Oh, and Dell... I don't believe that selling bare AMD processors on your website that cannot be put in any motherboards you sell is a convincing way to prove that you're not an exclusively Intel shop.
The Alienware website now looks and feels like the Dell website. Alienware is known for their customed, personalized computers geared towards the gamer or the high-end computer enthusiast with extra cash to throw around. Making the site look like Dell's has cheapened the experience, made me feel as if their product is no more better than a common Dell (while this could be arguably true) and will drive away their core market to companies like Voodoo and others. Change it back!
"Dude, your getting abducted!"
Requiem
Both company's support sucks. Dell needs to rectify that before going out and buying another customer service nightmare.
"I might have made a tactical error in not going to a physician for 20 years." -- Warren Zevon
Interesting choice. Honda actually builds the Acura NSX, which can give a Ferrari a run for it's money:
h tml
http://philip.greenspun.com/materialism/cars/nsx.
My amazing wife - Artist, Author, Philosopher - Laurie M
Dell's been getting killed in the enthusiasts niche for a while. I should kow I own an xps laptop. However they buy AW anf the next day start marketing the renegade. Take a look at their site. In a year alienware will have gone the way of 3Dfx and dell will have a new head of their gaming division.
If Alienware is going to be a wholly owned subsiderary of Dell and no Dell logos or associations will be seen with Alienware products or services, then what is the point?
Is dell just looking to send engineers over to Alienware to learn how to make gaming PCs?
Dellianware Alienellware Dalienware
firestream.net
It's not even among the press releases. Nice going Dellienware...
Dell is suddenly a large AMD customer, with all the experience of working with AMD at a volume level. This is just a beginning of better price/performance ratios from Dell, I hope.
Horns are really just a broken halo.
I still remember when EA bought Origin. Garriot was quoted saying that Origin will still have control over their games and EA will just allow them to make bigger and better games with a wider distribution. I remember this because I remember it happened around the time Ultima 7 came out, and it worried me. While I never bought an Alienware box, these statements seem similar. As mentioned by others, Dell's hand will be there pushing in one direction or another. Maybe I am just jaded because my programming job at Dell was outsourced to a $5/hour Brazilian, but Dell is evil. No body smiled at work, and was always worried about loosing their jobs. Evil biz practices, like the Printer fiasco, and all of that makes me avoid Dell products.
Maybe not in the gas mileage dept. For that try the s2000.
Dude! You're getting a Alien!
This is my opinion. To make sure you don't steal it, it's covered by the DMCA.
The joke of course, is that you could shout at them "admit it dammit, your name is Sanjay Kumar, not Roger."
ELOI, ELOI, LAMA SABACHTHANI!?
Yes, but the only reason why Intel moved forward with designing new, better, and faster chips is because of AMD. If not for AMD, we would still be stuck with that POS 31-stage pipeline Prescot.
Alienware is just a brand. They sell commodity hardware in a fancy case to people who play games but aren't savvy enough to see through the marketing. Dell can continue to make Dells, put them in an Alienware case, fire all of Alienware's staff and own the "gaming poser" market.
rooooar
According to Consumer Reports, Apple has the best support in the industry.
"Her idea of wit is nothing more than an incisive observation humorously phrased and delivered with impeccable timing."
Dell gets to leverage Alienware's upstream distribution partners (Tyan, Antec, Arima, etc.). This allows them to easily pursue alternate server and workstation designs than the existing Quanta/Foxconn stuff and also get with other memory/HD vendors, etc.
They also get their customer portfolio (think: upgrades). It also gets a "high-end" brand to associate with its high-margin products (to compete with Apple).
THIS THING CAN TURN ON A DIME, MACROSSZERO STYLE ALSO FUCK BETA, ~NYORON
Yes, a new chip from a new family that is due out (if it makes it as scheduled) in 6-8 months outperforms the last chip from a family that's being phased out and which was released around 3 months ago.
*yawn*
Wake me when you have benchmarks comparing the Conroe to the new AM2 based AMD systems. I'm not going to speculate whose is going to be faster by what tiny, insignificant amount, but at least be fair about it and compare chips of the same generation. Otherwise you might as well say "Dood! AMD pwnz Intel because the FX-60 is faster than the P4 660 Prescott!" It's literally true, but it's also a biased comparison.
I built my own ferarri with my own two bare hands, it looks just as cool as I wanted it to and for the price compared to what I would've payed Alienware I've got 2x more RAM and 2x more HD space. Screw brand names. Only trust your own handy work. If you don't know what your doing, learn or find a close trusted friend/family member to help you put together a pc. You can save a TON if you shop around and buy the individual components. I saved over $700 on what I got last year in my AMD 64 3200 and thats compared to DELL!
Alienware Computers: Unreliable, and rife with design flaws
My deparment bought five Alineware Area51m 766 laptops in 2004. All of them have had to be returned, all with unique hardware issues. Three of them have gone back twice. Their tunraround for returns approaches three weeks.
Yes they are fast (very fast), but not worth it in the least. I've read similar horror stories about their desktops.
I don't always use unix-like operating systems; but when I do, I prefer FreeBSD.
why...? they just launched a bunch of new XPS systems and have an expensive marketting plan for them -- why while doing that do they buy a product line that cannibalizes it?
As far as the prestige of aleinware line being lost -- most tech savvy users are aware you can build the same for half the price. They dont have much prestige except among those less technical semi-geeks and im guessing they arnt the ones reading slashdot and so would never know about this sale. But who knows.
Mike
I heart the RIAA & MPAA, im sure its mutual...
Alienware's founders decided it was time to cash out. Smart move.
"Nelson Gonzalez said that his company will continue on with its own brand, design, sales and marketing, and support, though, so Alienware isn't going anywhere just yet. Gonzalez also said that Alienware PCs would not carry a Dell logo"
Then what the heck is dell in charge of? Profit taking?
"he would report directly to Jim Schneider, Dell's chief financial officer."
Oh.
-1 disagree is not a modifier for a reason. -1 troll, flaimbait, redundant, overrated are NOT acceptable substitutes.
Maybe Dell wants to be in a position to leverage it's sales base such that they can start to ease the Intel pressure on them?
Well, I'm supposing that Dell WON'T remove AlienWare's name and look and feel.
BTW, didn't some high-level guy from Dell disavow or say there was no substantiation to the rumor? I love it when these people, thinking they can manipulate stock prices, public sentiment, and control the rumor mill just flat out LIE as if that will improve their image, too... It's ONE thing to say, "we're in an NDA situation; yes there ARE discussions, obviously because I just said we're in an NDA situation. Why don't you just wait for any new developments?"
I think I'll start paying MORE attention to these rumors that turn out true when they lie about them.
SlashAdmins, a new idea: Keep track of the rumors. The more the rumors turn out true when in opposite of the corporate gatekeepers of information, then the more negative karma they get. IOW, if they lie, then call them on it.
This way, we don't just CALL them on the carpet, we DRAG them and give them rug burn over it. Make'em be "good corporate citizens...".
Previously: "Linux... Toward the Sunrise..." Now: "Linux... Toward the-- No, now, part of Every Sunrise"
Dell is buying Alienware. And so what ?
;)
Well a big company is buying a smaller one.
Dell are saling XPS computers, and they want to go further.
Nothing new. Business stuff.
Any clue about AlienWare running Linux or BSD or anything OSS ?
No. The only thing different now is that we now know it is a fact, and not just a rumour.
Just because we didn't know it was a fact before, doesn't make it not a fact...else, well, facts would vary depending on each individual...and that's just silly.
Max.
We all know this will happen eventually, in two years nobody will remember Alienware. There is another rumor about Yahoo acquiring the company that makes "realityball", I won't be surprised at all.
Great, now they sell $6000 laptops to people who don't need them
You could add 4 T221's and watch all those widescreen dvd's in a window all their own after figuring out where the nearly inexistent play button is on the 3840x2400 display. Or to literally stretch it to the next level, do one fullscreen spread over the four monitors for a nice, torturous benchmark.
To reproduce results: just fork over $29000-42000 for the displays, please.
Twitter supports and protects racists - by smearing their critics with the "Hate Speech" label.
If I had a quarter for everytime I heard "There will be no change in what we will be doing etc." when one company buys another I could BUY alienware corporation myself. I just bought a alienware laptop about 9 months ago. I am not pleased about the buyout but it happens... goodbye ALIENWARE..was nice having you while you lasted. :(
We don't care.
I give you three seconds to see why this statement is a load of crap that could only be uttered by a complete and utter moron.
1
2
3
What about Enzo Ferrari?
Why do think it is called a Ferrari anyway? Named after its maker. Oh sure you could argue that since he didn't personally fasten all the nuts and bolts he didn't build it but that is just petty.
I don't 'build' my own PC's anyway. Nobody does if you want to be pedantic because no matter how detailed you go there is always a supplier. A supplier of components, of chips, of metal, of ore, or labor to mine the ore, of food to power the laborers.
So I stick with the definition that Enzo Ferrari made his own cars called Ferraries.
Making the statement "Nobody builds their own Ferrari." 100% false.
It is even an odd statement to use for a company that seems to claim they make the ferrari of computers. They are building their own ferraris aren't they? (well no, the laptops at least are just badged with their logo)
Am I being pedantic? Yup. Sue me.
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
I've seen a number of comments questioning what Dell or Alienware gets out of this deal, if the two 'brands' remain effectively distinct. They both get a number of things out of it:
1) They get an existing, well-known high-end brand. Rather than trying to make a new high-end brand, which would require major expenses as well as a large change in public opinion. Would you want to buy a $4.00 coffee if it was sold under the, say, Maxwell House brand name? No offense to Maxwell House, but people don't necessarily see them as a high-end brand of coffee. They could try to start their own premium brand, and advertise it as such, but it still would bear the name of Maxwell House. If they would buy Starbucks and kept it mostly separate, they would be able to have an instant presence in the high-end market without having to carve out a niche from the existing brands.
2) They get to consolidate portions of the infrastructure. If a company prides itself on its products, it still has other, less glamorous departments, such as distribution. Though the existing distribution may need to expand to handle the additional load, it still would be smaller than the two individual networks. Note that distribution is used here as an example; since they ship using carrier companies, they probably don't have their own distribution networks. The concept may still hold true for certain other departments, though.
3) Alienware gets the benefit of Dell and their extensive advertising network. Where did you first hear about Alienware? Was it from an ad in a newspaper? A commercial on TV? What's more likely is that you heard about them from more specialized advertising, or from other techno-geeks. However, if Dell can convince the general public that "Hey! You're upgrading to the finer things in life - a faster car, a bigger TV - why not get a high-end computer too?" As a result, the Alienware brand gets more commonly known as a high-end computer brand, and sells more units.
4) Alienware gets the benefit of being able to expand more and eliminate bottlenecks in service. If they're waiting until there's money in the budget to expand the repair center, there are probably three or four other departments that can also use the increased budget. But if Dell is willing to put some money into Alienware, and let them smooth out the wrinkles in service, then they'll be able to expand the repair center, upgrade the assembly line, and train more workers all at once.
So as long as Dell keeps their promise to let Alienware continue on with its own brand, design, sales and marketing, and support, it looks like the beginning of a highly profitable relationship.
My $200 Lindows machine from WalMart completely blows that system away.
Dude, you're getting abducted.
Very smart for Dell, they have been trying to break into the high end(high profit) gaming system market for a while. They will run it under alien's name because dell is synomimis(sp!) with cheap computers. They will try to make some changes(under the guise of efficiency)
But Dell is a smart company, they didnt get where they are for no reason. Dell will help them develop new stuff with their much bigger r&d resources and make sure that it remains the cutting edge without affecting dells cheap/stable image. We'll probably see some sort of dell tagline in the ads/computers. But thats about it.
The only question I see is is the AMD processor, we all know dell is intels bitch...
If Alienware is just going to be doing whatever they were doing before, why bother selling out to Dell?
Somebody is telling a lie.
Slashdot social media options: AIM, ICQ, Yahoo, Jabber and Mobile Text. Why no MySpace?
aliens get abducted?
HA HAH HA HAH HA HAH HA HAH HA HAH HA omgzzzzz SUCH A 31337 funnnyyyyy!!!11!1
Well, good for the original owners, but Boooo! for the rest of us>
I just don't believe Alienware is going to stay as inovative.
Yeah, Right....
Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent - Salvor Hardin
Get ready for a profound decrease in quality, Indian tech support (if any tech support at all), and all kinds of other headaches.
I work in a large office and we use Dell for all of our PCs, and let me say that these are the WORST PCs I have ever used. The flat panels are the shittiest I've ever seen. If you just put up a gray screen, there is this wash of crap in all of them - looks like black clouds against a gray background - ALL of them are like that. We have HUNDREDS.
Their LCD panels also suffer from Burn-In, which is not supposed to happen on LCD panels. Thank GOD I didn't buy that Dell flat panel TV they were pushing at the mall kiosk the other week.
Run... fast...
The key is that this validates the ENTIRE MARKET that Alienware participates in. Monarch Computer, Alienware, Falcon...this is going to bring all these companies into the mindset as computers that are viable, because they're alternatives to Dell's high-priced Alienware machines.
Duuuude yer getting a dellienware! Might drive alien wareprices down I would hope, and hopefully see AMD processors in Dell machines. One can only hope.
-- Josh
"Whoopie! Man, that may have been a small one for Neil, but that's a long one for me!" - Pete Conrad
And this is why we don't want EITHER company to thoroughly beat the other. Competition is virtually always good for the customer.
Gonzalez says its all about performance, and that they'll continue to go with what's best.
Racist
Since Dell gets a lot of their hardware for next to nothing prices (Which is how they can manage to sell their machines for so cheap) Perhaps the acquisition of Alienware will allow them to begin getting deals on high-end hardware pieces and throw those into the AlienWare machines, of course with AlienWares approval since they are still handling everything themselves, and when AlienWare profits nearly double, Dell will be there cackling as they reap the benefits. I think it's an excellent business strategy, however Dell will screw it up within the first few months.
For a second, I thought the title was It's Official, Dell Acquired by Alienware.
Then, I came back my sad to reality.
Alienware products are awful. Don't take my word for it - http://www.resellerratings.com/seller1650.html
I bought a system from them and all of the following failed within three months:
- Microsoft gaming mouse
- IBM hard drive (these are notorious for failing, why did they use them?)
- Motherboard or CPU (don't know which, replaced both at once)
In addition, I got my choice of case colors. Turns out it's just spraypainted on. The slightest scratch of your fingernail on the keyboard and the paint comes off, with black plastic underneath. The warranty for the broken parts is worthless, they always assume the customer did something wrong and give you a total runaround until you're discouraged enough to quit calling.
Alienware customer service is abysmal, they told me over and over I'd be receiving my system in a week and it took them close to two months for me to get it.
The best thing Dell could do to save its brand name is beat all the Alienware employees with a rubber hose and then close the doors.
...still no free printer.
I'll only believe this if Netcraft confirms it.
Here's my witty comment about a signature. Ha. Ha.
>The problem with building your own PC is that it's expensive.
...at least in the Alienware context. I can build an Alienware spec'ed PC for about the same price or a few hundred cheaper (note that the video card isn't a 7900 though and there is no watercooling):
No its not!
Asus A8N32-SLI ($252)
A64 FX-60 Dual Core ($1,139)
Western Digital 150GB/16MB Raptor ($300)
Western Digital 400GB/16MB WD4000KD ($204)
2GB OCZ Gold XTC PC4000 ($219.50 after $25 MIR)
NEC 3550a DL DVD/CD Burner (x2) ($90)
BFG Geforce 7800GTX 512MB (x2) ($1,400)
PC Power & Cooling 850w SLI PSU ($427)
Silverstone Temjin TJ07 ($385)
Windows XP Professional OEM w/SP2 ($145)
TOTAL = $4,517.50 shipped
(Thanks One4yu2c!)
Check out my $300 computer too!
AMD Sempron 2800+ $75
$80 Motherboard
512MB PC3200 $38
80GB Seagate Barracuda 7200 SATA $45
Lite On 16x Double Layer $42
Generic ATX Case $30
Ubuntu Linux $0
Total: $310
(thanks maximumpc!)
(Thanks to maximumpc and One4yu2c for these specs!)
Keep in mind that its gonna take a few hours to build your system too...so, figure...$120 an hour is the opportunity cost...but still...its easy and cheap to build your own!
i.e. Dell will (or atleast intends to) buy (but not has already bought) Alienware.
Alienware could leverage DELL's volume to squeez vendors.
Until your post, I didn't know that "vendors" was a synonym for "boobs."
It's Official slashdot don't check headline for grammar
I don't know what you talking about. My grammar don't read Slashdot. Duh!
Does this mean that Alienware customers will get the same great *cough* support as Dell customers?
http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=15 6621
http://www.m-techlaptops.com/alienware_vs.vodoo.ht m
Dell is known for using custom parts
I think you misspelled 'cheap'.
But seriously, they buy up cheap stuff and re-name it. This makes it harder to check out the hardware when you first have to look up who really made it. Man, have I struggled with getting "Dell" network cards to work with my workplace's network architecture. Some software (like Cisco VPN) simply doesn't work with "Dell" hardware.
Defining Statistics and Social Research
I'd rather Honda built my Ferrari rather than Fiat, and Fiat actually do.
They just put systems together and nothing they do hasn't been done by pc enthusiasts before them. Alienware has always overpriced their systems for an ultra high margin and their are more cost effective alternatives (gaming machines) by the likes of falcon and a few others.
Hmmm... Pie...
The same comment was posted way later and was modded +4 Funny. If this had been my post, I'd be pretty ticked at the mods here.
Great, now Dell rules on games as well as Porno
:)
Defining Statistics and Social Research
Just try to get your Ferrari fixed by Boob Johnsoon. "I am just helping you to support"
Telecommuting! What about socialization?
If Alienware gets their hardware from Sager Notebooks, and Dell gets their Gaming machines from Alienware.
Why don't we all boycott both Dell and Alienware and buy direct from Sager Notebook... that's what I did and got a better laptop (minus the stupid green head).
As a former owner of a 91 Honda Civic I think the brand name is overated.
I had nothing but problems when it aged compared to Ford's and other less reliable cars with similiar mileage.
Sure the problems showed after 100k miles but when you put in more money than the car is worth its time to give it a funeral and trash it.
My Honda hit that point at only 133k miles while my friends' Nissans and Fords didnt hit that point till 260k and 190k respectively. I kept my Civic thinking it would be the last repair until I became $3000 in debt and sold it for $200 when it only had 170k miles. It needed $1100 worth of work and had a bluebook value of $650.
I do not think I trust the brand name of any vehicle regardless of hype after that.
http://saveie6.com/
It's a closer analogy than you think. "Ferrari is owned by the Fiat Group, but is run autonomously." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiat
There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.
Dude, in case you did not know, Ferrari is owned by Fiat who also own Alpha Romeo.
Fiat have a reputation for cheap functonal, but unexciting cars, with a tendency to go wrong. Not unlike Dell.
*Alfa* Romeo.
MrCreosote Meow!Thump!Meow!Thump!Meow!Thump! "You're right! There isn't enough room to swing a cat in here!"
Alienware do not build notebooks, they buy them from ODM's and maybe install some of the components. Buy a Dell, HP, Apple, IBM, and Alienware etc. and in reality all you are buying is a Compal or the equivalent, the other thing your are paying for is service and support. So if your local psuedo manafacturer provides bad service and support the reality is you paid for nothing so you should just save your money and try to buy direct from the ODM.
Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
Great, now I have this image of a facehugger alien lurking inside every new Dell....
~REZ~ #43301. Who'd fake being me anyway?