Power (An Extra 1800 RPM) to the People

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From the suffragettes of the ‘20s to the hippies of the ‘60s to activists of every stripe today, citizens have risen up to make the world better. Social media is the modern megaphone, and the collective voice of the people – known since ancient times as the vox populi – can now be better heard by politicians and product makers alike.

But do they listen?

At Alienware we pride ourselves on a customer-first approach. Even after our products are at market, we’re always open to suggestions and improvement.

The Alienware Alpha, launched in November 2014, was met with positive reviews and generally high customer satisfaction. But even great things can be better, and customers told us the one thing they would change about the Alpha system was the hard drive. At launch, we went with a 5400 RPM drive due to a few factors – cost, current technology, availability of parts. But in the last year you’ve told us that it was slower than expected and didn’t fully meet the expectations of performance that Alienware products are known for.

Alienware Alpha

Our commitment to our customers isn’t just lip service. Outside of some older inventory with 5400 RPM drives already in market, I’m happy to report that all Alienware Alpha and Alienware Steam Machine units will feature 7200 RPM hard drives, with absolutely no increase in price. These new drives represent up to 53 percent faster boot up speeds compared to the previous 5400 RPM drives, and we hope this boost makes your gameplay all that much more enjoyable.*

We’ve heard the vox populi and responded with an extra 1800 RPM. Power to the People.

*Based on Dell Labs testing in September 2015 using the Boot Racer 4.9 benchmark. Actual performance will vary based on configuration, usage and manufacturing variability.

About the Author: Joe Olmsted

Joe Olmsted serves as the director of product management for Alienware products at Dell. In this role, Joe leads a team of people who define all products that carry the Alienware brand. Joe first joined Alienware in 2003 while Alienware was still a small business operated in Miami, FL. Joe first left his mark on the brand by bringing a series of living room focused PCs to market under the DHS moniker. Over eight of the next eleven years, Joe has been defining and developing nearly every type of product from Alienware including peripherals, desktops and notebooks. Prior to joining Alienware / Dell, Joe held various product marketing positions at Intel, NEC and was a co-founder in an online music startup. Joe now resides in Austin, Texas with his wife and daughter.
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