3. Conclusions

I would say that the Alienware Area-51 m5550i is a great buy, but if I were to do it again, I would change to a higher processor speed because it would help increase system speed at this point more than a memory upgrade. The biggest downside is a dead pixel in the lower left of the screen that Alienware will not replace. The dead pixel according to an email I received from them is not in the center of the screen and therefore not repairable. See below:

Response (Alien 4) 10/11/2006 03:42 PM

Dear Mr. DeJarnette,

Thank you for contacting Alienware.

After checking our dead pixel policy, unfortunately, we need to inform you that we cannot replace your LCD screen. As per our dead pixel policy, there should be a bright or dark spot in the center of the screen (quadrant # 5), or a bright or dark spot in the red line surrounding the center quadrant (it counts as being part of the center quadrant).

For further assistance regarding this matter, please contact our 24/7 Technical Support Department at 1-866-287-6727, option 2.

If you need further information, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Thank you for corresponding with us.

Other than that, this is the best performance/dollar buy I could find anywhere and I am not sorry I went with Alienware. I like the fact that most of the components can be upgraded. I can switch to an 802.11/n standard when that becomes available on a miniPci card for notebooks. I can change my hard drive, and can also upgrade memory from 1 GB to 2 GB. The computer's card reader also makes something like a PDA seem a lot more attractive, because I can move files to and from a device very easily. In fact, that is how I got some of the photos I took onto the computer.

Vivé le Aliénwaré!

Editor's Note: You can find the m5550i and other Alienware computers at alienware.com.

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