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New 2014 Fang BattleBox Cyberpowerpc, "mobile" desktop? Requesting input...
ChawenBaeorn
Member UncommonPosts: 9
I am moving away from gaming laptops as they can not be upgraded (even professionals in that industry state laptops are difficult if not impossible to upgrade or build yourself). However, I really need a truly "mobile" gaming desktop that can be upgraded in the future. I could build one, but I personally don't mind a minor cost increase to have a professional configure, build, test, burn-in, etc a PC. I have also leveraged PC warranties in years past, which saved significant $$ and headaches. Please don't hijack this thread and turn it into a 'build your own pc' flame.
Has anyone bought, or received feedback about, about the new 2014 Fang BattleBox from Cyberpowerpc? A link is http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/landingpages/FangBattleBox
Cyberpowerpc claim they use generic parts, so this could possibly be upgraded in the future (but I don't know this for certain); if it can not be upgraded then this is a no-go decision point. I am also aware of the Falcon Northwest Fragbox, and the Alienware X51, but Cyberpowerpc offers the Fang BattleBox for less $$ and I have read very good reviews about their warranties at various forums. Any thoughts would be much appreciated!
Comments
How mobile do you need it? There's a big difference between a computer that you need to move once per month versus once per week versus once per day versus several times per day. There's also a big deal between needing to move a computer frequently and merely wanting a case to be small so as not to take up desk space or because you think it looks cute.
If the idea is that you want something small so that it's easy to move, then Silverstone makes some nice cases for that. For example:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811163237
That's substantially smaller, and also offers Micro ATX motherboard support, so you'd have vastly more motherboard options. If you're capable of upgrading a rig later, then you're capable of building your own now.
If warranty support is the issue, individual components come with warranties, too--and without having to ship away the entire rig, which can be expensive. Laptops often aren't repairable on your own, but desktops are, and sometimes if a part fails, you're better off just buying a replacement. In some cases, that's cheaper than paying to ship the whole desktop in for warranty replacement, and also lets you avoid a period of weeks without a computer.
The Alienware X51 is much smaller, but they also do some custom stuff, so you'd be beholden to Dell for upgrade options. It sounds like that's exactly what you're trying to avoid.
Falcon Northwest claims CrossFire/SLI support and Haswell-E, so it's probably not especially small. I couldn't find dimensions on it in a cursory check, though.
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If it's a question of whether people have actually bought that particular model, I'd like to submit that very few of the people who are knowledgeable enough about computers to offer useful advice will buy a pre-built desktop for gaming use.
This "mobile" desktop would replace my laptop, which travels with me a minimum of about 4 round trips ( 8 trips one-way) per month. The gaming laptop has served me well, but after a few years though I have to run new games on ever lower & lower settings.
I can make my own desktop, and there are cases such as the one linked by Quizzical and others such as Bitfenix http://www.bitfenix.com/global/en/products/chassis/survivor/
Like I said though, for a reasonable markup I think the tradeoff for technical customer service, warranty repairs, etc is worthwhile...especially for companies that do not have a huge markup, or whose component costs are almost equivalent to buying the individual components separately. There is only so much time --- especially when working >60 hours / week --- and I often outsource lots of tasks to vendors such as computers, car repairs, complete updates of bathrooms, etc.
If there are other "mobile" options besides a laptop I am all ears, but I am not a console player or a notebook player.
Ah, so you're in the "more money than time" boat: have plenty of money but not enough time, and are willing to exchange some money for time by paying "too much" if it saves you time.
It sounds like you're expecting to do a round trip per week or so. That's little enough for a mobile desktop to be a viable alternative to a laptop, but enough that mobility does matter and you reasonably don't want a full tower. You had already figured that out, of course, but some people come in here asking for things that make no sense for their personal situation, which is why I ask.
What sort of travel is this? Is it stick it in the trunk of a car where you're not especially cramped for space? Taking it on planes? Carry it up and down stairs without leaving your home?
If you are going to get a Fang BattleBox, you might as well at least configure it right. Most importantly, don't get the "standard" power supply of some wattage. From their list, the Cooler Master V650 probably makes the most sense for you. You also definitely want a good SSD, likely of about 240 GB or so.
If you're willing to spend a lot, the Core i7-4790K makes sense for you. You don't want power consumption run amok in a small form factor, and the 4790K is cherry-picked dies on Intel's part for an efficient "overclock" at stock speeds: nearly as fast as you'd get by buying a random K-series part and overclocking it yourself, but with vastly lower power consumption.
Between the Radeon R9 290, R9 290X, GeForce GTX 780, and GTX 780 Ti, they offer plenty of high end video cards for you. Just don't buy a stupidly overpriced Titan, as for gaming purposes, that's no better than a GTX 780 Ti.
Thanks! This is just the type of feedback I was seeking :-) If I wasn't a single-player and MMO junkie then I would not have these challenges! ;-)
I am currently playing TSW, and looking forward to EQ Next, The Repopulation, and Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor.
The travel is via car, and the laptop bag goes in the back seat cushioned by blankets. ~4 hour trip, one way. I had thought about Steam machines, but even when I am on my cable modem and using a regular desktop at home, Steam seems to be a major resource hog. When I travel to the wild wilderness, I have to use my smartphone hotspot and Steam just hasn't worked for me on my laptop when I tried. My local cell phone provider is currently only 3G, but I am going to switch to another competitor who is now offering 4G service.
Thanks for the power supply, video card, and drive recommendations. I have to 're-educate' myself every time I upgrade or buy new, and the technology changes so fast. I still have to do my homework about the two drive options, i.e. a SSD plus a regular hard drive combo (such as SATA for the HDD). I also plan on limiting this new rig to just gaming, so I don't think I will need huge storage space. I wish Microsoft offered a "Windows Gaming" option (maybe they do), that would be scaled down to only the bare Windows necessities + malware / virus protection.
Thanks again for the input! I am not set on the Fang BattleBox, and the holidays may bring some new options. I am set on getting something I can upgrade later.
Somebody, somewhere has better skills as you have, more experience as you have, is smarter than you, has more friends as you do and can stay online longer. Just pray he's not out to get you.
Cooling isn't a problem for a box like that. It has a lot of surface area for ventilation holes. Laptops are limited to the bottom and very thin edges for air vent ports, which is why they are more prone to overheating under gaming loads.
That case looks cool.