8.4 / 10
SCORE Alienware Area-51 Desktop Pros Strong 4K performance
Filtered air intakes
Reasonably priced configuration options
No more proprietary madness Cons Absolutely huge
Leaves performance on the table at 1080p
Still expensive
The Alienware Area-51 (AAT2250) is quite something. Its monstrous size and weight may make it a lot to deal with, but it also moves away from some of the chaotic proprietary componentry that made earlier Alienware products harder to recommend.
Once you get past its enormity, you'll find a serious gaming and content-creation machine that readily handles most of what you might throw at it. While its CPU is fast, it still bottlenecks the RTX 5080 at 1080p, leaving a lot of performance on the table. At 4K, you'll end up making the most of the system, even if some of the gains are marginal over previous-generation hardware.
The Alienware Area-51 doesn't quite get the edge over the similarly priced Velocity Micro SX3 Raptor Z95A in gaming, as that system's CPU helps it stay ahead. Alienware may have the edge in productivity, though, with better multicore performance. It also definitely wins for style. Still, with an as-tested price of $4,328, it's a premium machine that pushes into that "diminishing-returns" area of performance, especially compared to prior-gen machines like the $2,549 Dell XPS 8960 (now called the Dell Tower Plus). However, if you're after every scrap of performance and don't want to fuss with a DIY build, the Alienware Area-51 doesn't disappoint.
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