Alienware has launched its latest Area-51 desktop with AMD’s fastest new gaming processor.
The company announced the gaming desktop at CES earlier this month and now it’s shipping the machine to gamers.
Alienware said the Area-51 flagship desktop will use the AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D processor and the 3D V-Cache technology.
The machine is Alienware’s statement piece — an 80L full-tower chassis designed for enthusiasts who demand the utmost power and expandability for future upgrades. The company said its engineers went back to the drawing board, incorporating years of community feedback to create a platform that’s put to the test and built for the future with full ATX compatibility.
At the time of this writing, Alienware is charging $3,500 for the desktop. I think that’s a sign of one of the difficulties of our time: high-priced main memory. Because of high AI demand, memory chip prices rose 40% to 50% in Q4.
Alienware’s architects envisioned the Area-51 to be the purest representation of the Alienware brand and every decision has been made with deliberate intention and mindful consideration.
Area-51 serves a wide breadth of gamers spanning the most passionate PC gamers, technology enthusiasts, and even gamers who enjoy engaging in a DIY approach to
desktops.
This generation was built from the ground up and our engineers began with thermals and
performance in mind as a basis for the entire product’s design.
Positive Pressure Airflow means all fans point inward and heat exhausts through a passive
outlet in the rear. Our engineers have vetted this approach to maximize performance
while managing thermal activity and acoustic output.
The specific component layout combined with Positive Pressure Airflow make the Area-
51 run up to 13% cooler, 45% quieter, while driving 25% more airflow, and delivering up
to 50% more processing power than its predecessors over 5 years ago.
Area-51 provides scalable and accessible CPU liquid cooling options including 240mm
and 360mm heat exchangers with top side gaskets to support airflow as well as the
opportunity opt towards a 420mm heat off-the-shelf heat exchanger post –purchase.
On the inside, the team developed a standard ATX motherboard specifically for the Area-
51 supporting Intel Core Ultra processors, engineered with 10+2+2 phase CPU voltage regulation, and with several aluminum heatsinks protecting various components.
This motherboard also introduces support for PCIe Gen5 graphics and SSD storage. The
newly designed motherboard is completely black and includes various brand marks to
maintain the vibe inside and out. The chassis also supports the mATX motherboard form
factor as well.
Powering the Area-51 is an ATX12VO industry-standard power supply available in 850W 80 Plus Gold or 1500W 80 Plus Platinum, rated power supplies.
Each Area-51 also includes a graphics retention mechanism and holder that can be positioned to accommodate various-length GPUs.
Area-51 is engineered to support over 200W of processing power and up to 600W of graphics power headroom, thereby making it the most powerful desktop Alienware has
ever had.
Designed with tempered glass and a steel-reinforced door, gamers can revel in joy
when observing the 7 programmable AlienFX lighting zones and the elegance of the
component arrangement therein.
Chassis lighting, fan controls, front I/O, and power switch are controlled via the AlienFX
board, a separate daughter board kept in right side of the chassis along with additional
storage compartments. The AlienFX board can also be used with third-party motherboards via an available AlienFX Board conversion kit.
The right side of the chassis includes two 2.5” storage caddies and a 3.5” storage caddie
summing up to three added logical drives apart from the three available M.2 SSD slots
on the left side of the chassis. This creates support for up to six total drives in the event
that our customers want to bring over an old drive from a previous desktop to the Area-
51.
Top, bottom, and front faces include removable fan filters. Here’s more details:
- Networking is support with a 2.5G RJ45 port, Wi-Fi 7, and Bluetooth 5.4.
- High-Definition audio is supported with a rear optical SPDIF Digital Output as well as
traditional line-in and line-out ports, available on the front and rear I/O. - A very exciting first for Alienware and gaming PCs: Each Area-51 includes QR codes
throughout the chassis that lead users to online video reference guides that show them
how to perform various upgrades and maintain their system. - Physical Dimensions:
- Length: 610.5 mm. ( 24.04 in.)
- Width: 231.6 mm. ( 9.118 in.)
- Height: 569 mm. ( 22.4 in.)
- Volume: ~80.5 L
- Maximum weight: 34.5 Kgs. (76.1 Lbs.)