Good Deal or Not?

I've always been one buy laptops at a good value, but while I was contemplating pulling the trigger on the HP Omen 17" w/ GTX 1070 & 4k Gync for $1500 deal, I kept reading how poor the build quality the HP Omen has.

So I researched around and saw the Alienware 15 r3 had a deal going on as well (not as good tho). So I called and got this 15 specced: i7 6700, GTX 1070, 16gb ram, 1080p screen (base screen), & 256 gb PCIe SSD & 1TB HHD. I got the Customer Sales guy to agree to $1587 (before tax) for this unit.

Is this a good deal?

Also, I hate that it has a regular HHD, what do you guys recommend? Swap it out for a M2. SSD?

Any other modifications I should be prepared to do for this laptop?

Also, the HP omen had 3 usb 3.0 ports (although no Thunderbolt, which is why I choose the Alienware), which is necessary to play the Oculus Rift (which is the main point of me buying this computer). I'll need to get a type-C to type-A adapter right? Anyone else use theirs for VR?

Thanks everyone!

 

A good deal in comparison to the Omen or other Alienware deals we've seen? I'd say it's better than the Omen, but this is subjective.

Watch this for a bit more detail:

 

Thanks for the video. I like his reviews.

A good deal in comparison to the Omen and any other laptop out there (not to other Alienware deals--because I'm looking to get a VR ready laptop before the holidays and timing is important).

I tried researching a bunch of other computers, couldn't figure out a better deal for a 1070 laptop.

 

The AW 15 has had a lot of cheap deals because of the rampant heating issues. I wouldn't recommend it unless you are prepared to rma or repaste yourself. It has a heatsink flaw still as far as I know.

 

I'm not very handy, so not sure how prepared I would be to repaste myself. What would you recommend instead then? Need a system to run my new Oculus for the holidays to demo.

 

I'd still recommend the AW, and pay fro someone to fix it for you if you have heat issues. People do that here on the forums for a fee.

Other than that, the only good systems are MSI or Clevo socketed laptops. Which are kind of ugly and thick, but get the job done really well.

 

The heat issue is mostly with the 6820HK. I wouldn't worry too much about it. They do offer a 1-year warranty. I recommend getting accidental, too. Read more about the heat issue here: http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...ven-core-temps-due-to-uneven-heatsink.797477/

Note: The return period with Alienware is 30 days from the date of shipment, not delivery. So, get "Next Business Day" delivery. This will give you more "hands on" time to test the system.

 

Ive never been a warranty guy, because I dont keep things long enough for them to be not effective--and actually mostly because I've been too lazy to go through the hassle of dealing with Dell to fix my computer.

Is it actually worth it? How many of you actually utilize it?

 

I literally just disassembled the 15R3 about half an hour ago to see the paste and the tension arms are REALLY pliable and not sturdy. Can see why there's an unevenness.

 

It's also the 3 screw design provides uneven pressure.

 

For those not technically inclined (well... i built my own computer like 5 years ago), do you recommend making the fix myself (with youtube help?)? Or should I take it to a pro to do it (and if so, where is that?)?

Thanks!

 

There's not a lot of 'technical' know how required. The most computer specific part is probably the thermal paste application which, you can only screw up if you don't use enough. Unless you just don't know how to use "the google" you can't reasonably get that wrong either.

The most important part is probably making sure the right length screws go in the right places so you don't accidentally drill a hole into your palm rest.

If you know how to use a screw driver, know that you shouldn't pull or yank hard on plastic parts and, have a pair of tweezers for the (very) small connectors, you'll be fine.



Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

I am in the same boat. I change computers so often I usually don't mess with the warranty. With Alienware its a different story though. They have a dedicated support line with higher level techs, so calling is much better. They will also send a tech to your home or business to fix the problem, which is nice. Last but not least, they will on occassion replace your unit with a newer version... ie R3 for an R4 if there is a serious flaw or problem and that is the only option. Sure, tech support is not always fun, but I have had good luck with Alienware and the warranty was the reason I choose to do business with them again and again.

As for the Omen 15... I saw that deal and almost jumped on it. People on slickdeals are reporting all sorts of issues with the ones that were sent out. Some not working day 1, others getting so hot that they smelled like burning plastic. The fit and finish of the omen is really really bad and if I am going to spend over 1500 on something, I want it to at least look nice. There is no doubt that when you pull out the Alienware, people (tech people or not) notice and think its cool.