Alienware Aurora R5 Impressions: Dual GPUs, 12K Gaming, and Thousands of Build Combos

The Alienware Area 51 can be seen as the company’s dedication to giving gamers everything they’d want in a gaming desktop, kitchen sink not included. On the other side of the desktop spectrum, its X51 line features a small form factor that’s quite versatile, allowing users to prop it up anywhere they like on, under, or next to their computer desk. Today, Alienware has announced it’s resurrecting its mid-tower desktop, the Alienware Aurora, allowing it to better round out its lineup of gaming desktops.

The Alienware Aurora takes everything the company has learned from its Area 51 and reduced its size to a point where it won’t require a team of strongmen to pick it up. It still by no means is a small desktop as it weighs a little over 30 lbs and measures in at 18.60in x 8.34in x 14.10in. The PC is capable of performing beyond the specifications required for VR gaming, can support 4K gaming, and even up to 12K gaming with its highest-end graphics options.

The amount of options customers have when building an Aurora are staggering as Alienware has an option for all budgets. And if you go for the base Aurora, the PC is a breeze to upgrade as its chassis is completely tool-less. I was able to open the Aurora myself during a press event in New York City back in April, and I was impressed just how effortless the experience was as all I needed to do was unlock the chassis, swing it open, and I was able to access all of its innards to upgrade whatever I need to.

The Aurora is capable of supporting two 300W GPUs, has factory-overclocked CPUs that are combined with Advanced CPU Liquid Cooling, overclockable HyperX FURY DDR4 RAM, options for either a 460W or 850W power supplies, and PCIe SSDs and 7200 RPM hard drive options, although an additional five drives can be installed directly within the Aurora. It also has a total of ten USB 3.0 ports, as well as a USB 3.1 Type-C and Type-A port. In other words, you should no longer complain you don’t have enough USB ports if you’re considering the Aurora.

With all of this power under the hood, Alienware has used what it learned from the Area 51 to provide proper airflow throughout the chassis,which maximizes both cooling and performance. During the press event, I was impressed by just how quiet the Aurora was while in operation, although I’d like to judge just how quiet it can be while I’m playing a 12K game in Ultra settings. I was able to change the fans from automatic to manual, ramping up its speed to 100%, and it was quite loud, although it’ll probably be a bit more quiet with the chassis closed. If you spend the majority of your time on your computer browsing the Internet and watching YouTube videos, you can expect a quiet experience with the Aurora.

The Alienware Aurora R5 appears to be a nice option for those looking for something like the Area 51, but don’t need to jump into a triple GPU setup right away. There are thousands of combinations users can create when building their Aurora, and its tool-less chassis makes it easy to get into the PC to provide your own upgrades.