Alienware Information
Alienware is a United States computer hardware subsidiary of Dell, Inc.[2] It mainly assembles third party components into desktops and laptops with custom enclosures. Alienware also offers for sale rebadged computer peripherals, such as headsets, computer mice, monitors and keyboards. Their hardware has a distinctive "sci-fi" style, typically including decorative lighting. Alienware was founded in 1996 by Nelson Gonzalez and Alex Aguila. Alienware's corporate headquarters is located in The Hammocks, unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, near Miami.[3][4]
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History
Alienware headquarters in The Hammocks, FloridaEstablished in 1996 through Nelson Gonzalez and Alex Aguila, Alienware assembles desktops, notebooks, and workstations. According to employees, the Alienware name was chosen because of the founders' fondness for the hit television series The X-Files, hence the theme to their products, with names such as Area-51, Hangar18 and Aurora.[5]
Acquisition and current status
Starting in 2002, Dell considered buying Alienware, but did not take any action until March 22, 2006, when it agreed to purchase the company.[6] The new subsidiary maintained its autonomy in terms of design and marketing. However, Alienware's access to Dell's supply chain, purchasing power, and economies of scale would lower its operating costs.[7]
Initially, Dell maintained its competing XPS line of gaming PCs, often selling computers with the same specifications. The XPS line may have hurt Alienware's market share within its market segment. Due to corporate restructuring in the spring of 2008, the XPS brand was scaled down. Product development of gaming PCs was consolidated with Dell's gaming division, with Alienware becoming Dell's premier gaming brand.[8] On June 2, 2009, The M17x was introduced as the First Alienware/Dell branded system. Alienware now represents the premium performance space in Dell’s consumer family of products.[9] This launch also expands Alienware’s global reach from six to 45 countries.
On March 25, 2009, Alienware stated that it was considering closing its manufacturing bases in Athlone, County Westmeath, Ireland, and in Miami, Florida.[10]
Post-Dell Computer Models
Laptops
18 Inch
- M18x - Introduced in 2011, it is considered a replacement for the original M17x design, but with a bigger chassis and screen up to 18 inches, and special keyboard macros. It features Dual-GPU Support, and up to 32 GB of RAM.
17 Inch
- M17x (Discontinued) - Introduced in 2009, it is the first laptop released by Alienware after the company was bought by Dell. The name and some of the design is based on the Alienware 17 inch laptop, the Alienware M17.
- M17x-R2 (Discontinued) - 2010 Revision of the M17x, adding support for Intel i5 and i7 processors.
- M17x-R3 (Discontinued) - 2011 Revision of the M17x, changes from aluminium chassis to a simplified plastic design, 3D Ready through a 120 Hz screen. Removes Dual-GPU capability.
15 Inch
- M15x (Discontinued) - Introduced in 2009
- M15x-R2 (Discontinued) - 2010 Revision of the M15x, adding support for Intel i5 and i7 processors.
14 Inch
- M14x (Discontinued) - Introduced in 2011 as a replacement for the M15x, with single GPU and support for Intel i5 and i7 processors.
- M14x-R2- 2012 revision of the M14x,updated with Intel Ivybridge Processors and Nvidia 6 Series GPUs
11.6 Inch (Discontinued)[11]
- M11x (Discontinued) - First introduced in early 2010, it is the smallest-size gaming laptop from Alienware. It came equipped with two Penryn-core processors, a Pentium SU4100 at the entry-level and a Core 2 Duo SU7200 at the high-end. Driving the 11.6 inch screen are two video processors, a GMA 4500MHD integrated and NVIDIA's discrete GeForce GT 335M with it's own 1GB of DDR3 RAM.
- M11x-R2 (Discontinued) - Late 2010 revision of the M11x; the first to use Intel's ultra-low-voltage Arrandale Core i5 and i7 processors. The revision also added a rubberized "soft-touch" exterior to the design. The same GT 335M is used for video; however, NVIDIA's Optimus technology has been added to automatically switch between it and the still-used GMA 4500MHD.
- M11x-R3 (Discontinued) - 2011 revision of the M11x; added support for the second generation of Intel's Core i5 and i7 processors and was the first to include an i3 in its lineup. It also received a standardized 500GB 7200rpm hard drive as well as the standard-for-M11x-line dual-GPU setup combining NVIDIA's discrete GeForce GT 540M for higher-end gaming and Intel's integrated HD Graphics 3000 for older gaming and application use.
Desktops
- Aurora
- Aurora ALX
- Area-51(Discontinued)
- Area-51 ALX(Discontinued)
- X51
Monitors
- Alienware OptX™ AW2310
See also
| Miami portal | |
| Companies portal |
References
- ^ Hoovers (retrieved on 3/24/11)
- ^ Has Alienware been acquired by Dell?
- ^ "Empire: Total War Online Contest." Alienware. Retrieved on January 9, 2010.
- ^ "The Hammocks CDP, Florida." U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on January 9, 2010.
- ^ Pain, John (March 13, 2006). "Alienware racks up gamers, and millions". The Associated Press (USA Today). http://www.usatoday.com/tech/gaming/2006-03-13-alienware_x.htm. Retrieved 2008-05-27.
- ^ Dell Press Release
- ^ Kirkpatrick, David (March 24, 2006). "Michael Dell on Alienware, growth, and AMD". Fortune Magazine. http://money.cnn.com/2006/03/24/technology/fastforward_fortune/index.htm. Retrieved 2010-05-25.
- ^ Dell Tries to Revive Its Game PCs
- ^ Dell Desktop Computers and PCs, Dell.com
- ^ Fears for jobs at Dell subsidiary
- ^ M11x Discontinued
External links
- Official Alienware Website
- Alienware Europe
- Alienware Arena
- Alienware Merchandise
- Alien Technology at HowStuffWorks
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Categories:
- Computer hardware companies
- Computer companies of the United States
- Companies based in Miami-Dade County, Florida
- Computer companies
- Companies established in 1996
- Dell
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