Dell computer gaming

Dell’s Gaming Workhorse

WMANUFACTURER: Dell URL: www.dell.com PRICE: $3.699 (E-Value code 6V411-XPS3REK)

When Dell burst onto the gaming scene with its original XPS gaming system, we welcomed its arrival with tempered optimism. We love Dell’s reputation for shipping stable systems and we’ve never had any problems with its tech support. That said, we worried that its use of proprietary parts and commitment to Intel would hamper performance. We were right. The XPS systems are plenty solid, but they aren’t the speed demons we’ve seen from Voodoo, Falcon, Alienware, or Gateway. Dell has recently released its Gen 3 XPS. And while it’s faster than its predecessors, when it comes to performance, it’s still slower than the competition.

New technology

The big news in PC hardware is the introduction of PCI Express and Intel’s latest chipset. Dell’s Gen 3 XPS doesn’t necessarily take advantage of all that this technology has to offer—we didn’t expect it to. While the Generation 3 XPS ships with ATI’s 256MB Radeon X800 XT PCI Express graphics card, Dell passed on using the chipset’s integrated High Definition Audio, going with Creative Lab’s Audigy 2 add-in PCI card instead. But this is a double-edged sword that exemplifies the so-called Dell experience. We’ve spoken to a few people who have had trouble with Intel’s High Definition Audio, and because Dell went with Creative’s proven product, customers who buy the Gen 3 XPS won’t be calling Dell’s tech support about the sound. Then again, gamers who want the hottest technology currently available won’t be pleased. Also, while the two cards are pretty close when it comes to performance, ATI’s Radeon X800 XT is slower than Nvidia’s GeForce 6800 GT.

Nevertheless, the Gen 3 XPS does come with some cool goodies: dual 250GB Western Digital hard drives in a 500GB RAID 0 configuration, 1GB of DDR2 memory, Intel’s 3.6GHz Pentium 4 processor, a DVD multidrive and a standard CD-RW, Logitech’s Z680 5.1 speakers, and, oh yeah, Dell’s awesome 20.1-inch 2001FP LCD monitor. The XPS also has tons of USB ports and multiple FireWire ports.

Take me to the numbers

Like we mentioned earlier, the XPS’ weakest link is in the performance department. We benchmarked it at 1280x1024 and 1600x1200 with 4x AA and 8x AF turned on. With that in mind, its 3DMark2003 score of 4,908 at 1280x1024 is fewer than 200 points less than the 5,087 that our Nvidia GeForce 6800 GT–equipped Killer Rig achieved. Actual game tests are where its shortcomings really showed up. Its 3D GameGauge 3.5 score of 58fps at 1280x1024 is about 40fps less than the Killer Rig’s score! That’s significant.

Of course, numbers only tell part of a system’s story. The fact remains that this machine is fast enough to handle any games you can throw at it. Furthermore, you get the assurance of knowing that if anything goes wrong with it, you’ve got a major corporation backing it up. That said, Dell is still using a proprietary motherboard, meaning it’s not the most upgradeable system around. But hey, Dell knows this. If you’re a hardcore gamer who doesn’t have plans on upgrading anytime soon, you’ll no doubt be pleased with the Gen 3 XPS. That 20.1-inch LCD is supersexy, those Logitech speakers are the bomb, and you know that when you order it, it’ll show up.