A gaming PC in the living room is a concept that countless companies have tried to execute in the past. Recently they said that they finally have an all-encompassing solution that will take all of your games from your steam library and bring them to your living room. Even though the Alienware alpha isn’t really the steam machine, it is a full-on Windows-based PC that comes with hardware that can definitely outpace all of the next generation consoles. Compact size and the shape of the console makes the Alienware alpha look awesome.
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One thing that I am really impressed with is how compact it is. Compare to the Xbox One and Play Station four it is really small, about 20 centimeters by 20 centimeters. Looks can be deceiving, this small console is the beast inside. The only thing that I didn’t like about the Alienware Alpha is that the console doesn’t come with a built-in power supply, you still have to deal with a massive brick that will add the overall kind of bulkiness. Not so classy.
But nice detail about the console is that on the front you have Alienware logo which also doubles as LED power light, and a nice detail is that you can change the color of the logo which is awesome.The great thing about the Alienware Alpha is that on it’s back you have a plethora of connections.This is one of the best things about this console compared to a conventional gaming console where you don’t have all this kind of connectivity.
We have one HDMI input as well as an HDMI output so you can feed in HDMI devices within the Alpha and play it through its menu system.Alpha comes with a standard core i3, you can get it upgraded to a core i5 or core i7 and those are quad-core CPUs. We have a dual core with hyperthreading enabled and it’s a pretty fast overall frequency at 2.9GHz. So there are no complaints in term of the speed of the actual CPU, and I think for most games out there, there are certain games that will definitely take advantage of higher core levels. The more threads you have the better overall frame per second scores you are going to have.
The graphics card that Alienware Alpha is using is Nvidia GeForce GTX GPU, and it is similar to the GTX 860m which is a laptop GPU that you would find in a medium to a high-performance gaming laptop, and it is powerful GPU. It has two gigabytes of GDDR5 and in most of your gaming applications, it definitely provides some pretty decent performances. In my opinion, it would be better if it was a GPU with the better performances because you are not really hitting properly playable framerates with some graphics intense games.
Best Monitors for Alienware Alpha
If you are looking for a monitor you can check out a few setups that work awesome with this console. You can get a dual monitor for wider picture and better gaming experience. Of course, it will not be cheap but the feeling will be awesome. To get Alienware alpha working with dual monitors you will need the mini HD USB 3.0 HDMI Dual monitor adapter, and it is simply going to turn your HDMI into the USB 3.0 so you could run dual monitors on you Alienware Alpha.Viewsonic VG2765 and Acer H277HU make a heck of a combination. You have two 27” monitors with great specifications, they both have 2560×1440 which means you get great wide and comfort picture. They also have the same aspect ratio which is 16:9, but their response times are a little bit lower standard for gaming and they are 4 milliseconds. Refresh rates are compatible for this kind of graphics card and they are 60Hz so frames per second will be great and picture on both monitors will be awesome. It is the great matching for your Alienware Alpha because you are going to have wide good gaming picture, and you will have good look on the situation while playing first-person games or combat games. The feeling is better with this 2 monitors and they bring the gaming experience to the whole new level.
LG 27UK600W
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You can, of course, buy a 4K monitor, and one of my best gaming experience was on LG 27UK600W monitor. It has great specifications and the picture is brilliant. You can use it for watching movies, it is 27” monitor with resolution 3840×2160 with 4K ultra HD specifications and outstanding details when the settings are maxed out. It has 60Hz refresh rate which is compatible with Alienware Alpha console. I tried playing GTA V on it through the Alienware Alpha console a two years ago and the gaming feeling, the action and gaming experience were great. When you drive you can see every single detail around you. That is the advantage of monitors with a lower refresh rate, and in my opinion, they are better for gaming if your machine can’t go with higher. Lg 27UK600W regardless of lower refresh rate specifications have a very clear picture. Motions and frames are great, if you match it with this console you can be sure that there will not be any lag or even block because you are sacrificing your refresh rate for better and clearer picture. Believe me, you can’t find a monitor with this kind of specifications and this price if you go for 144Hz. In my opinion better sacrifice refresh rate than picture clearness and motion gaming experience, you get from ultra HD monitors.
AOC e1659 FWUH
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Another option you should consider is a USB Powered monitor. You can find portable monitors for the very reasonable price, and those are monitors that are compatible with this console because they are small with good specifications and you can even bring them with you if you are going on a trip. AOC company is making awesome little fellas, AOC e1659 FWUH is a Pro 16” full HD monitor with USB power supply and it is portable. It has a higher transfer rate with a support of USB 3.0 technology. The monitor gives a full HD 1920×1080 resolution with a 300cd/m2 brightness. It comes with a foldable flexible-stand and makes you have a landscape or portrait view whatever you want and like, and it is awesome in my opinion if you want to look from a different angle. It is not the best kind of gaming monitor, but let’s face it, if you are looking for the gaming monitor, you can’t find the good portable monitor for a reasonable price and with this kind of specifications. It has a 60Hz refresh rate and with a small monitor like this, this kind of refresh rate is brilliant really. I was gaming in my friend’s house on this portable monitor, and gaming experience is not the best, I guess I am an old-fashioned gamer that likes the wide picture and clear motions. I don’t personally like small monitors, but this one is the best one I have ever tried.
Samsung C34F791
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And of course, if you are looking for a wide gaming experience like I do the best choice for you is the Samsung C34F791 monitor. It is the world’s first Quantum DOT ultrawide monitor with the 1500R curve. It is absolutely perfect for the Alienware Alpha specifications, and they match awesome if you ask me. Quantum DOT technology works with semiconductor nanocrystals which can produce monochromatic red, green and blue lights. It is good for your eyes and the brightness of the picture is better with them as I could see. If you are looking for the greatest specifications for Alienware alpha here they are, the ultrawide monitor of 34” is awesome. The gaming experience and motions will blow your mind, the screen size of 34” with this curve will make any graphics intense game look even more intense. The resolution of 3440×1440 is the great thing because you get a good situation view while playing the game and on 300cd/m2 it is the best. It has a perfect refresh rate for matching with Alienware Alpha and it is 100Hz with Adaptive-sync, and as I said quantum dot led technology is brilliant. You get the smoothest experience, of course, it is not the cheap one but if you want to take it I must say it will be worth.
