Welcome to the Team Dignitas Sponsor Spotlight, where we shed some light on the companies and organizations that help make Team Dignitas and e-sports possible. In this edition of the Sponsor Spotlight, we take another look at Alienware and their impending living room invasion. Working toward spreading PC gaming far and wide, this weeks spotlight is the Alienware Alpha.

Featured product

About 9 months ago, Valve announced that it would be working on a new operating system for living room based gaming PC's. Dubbed SteamOS, this would allow hardware makers to build gaming PC's that would feel right at home next to their console counterparts. Alienware was one of the very first companies on board with the project, setting out to design and manufacture their own Steam Machine to come out with the OS. Delays would strike Valve however, pushing SteamOS back another year from any official release. Alienware was ready to begin their charge into the living room however, and built an experience around Windows 8.1, Steam Big Picture, and their own custom UI. The result is Alienware's first entry into the console business, the Alienware Alpha.

The first thing you will notice about the Alpha is the size of the console. Shaping up at 7x7x2 inches, the Alpha makes its other console brethren look gigantic by comparison. Don't let the size fool you however, as Alienware intends for the Alpha to be able to run today's biggest games at 1080p, 60 FPS. Alienware's goal with the Alpha is to combine the freedom and power of PC gaming, with the ease and simplicity of consoles. Just plug in the HDMI cable to your TV, power up the box, and use whatever controller configuration you want. This is just the beginning for Alienware as well, as they plan to release a full SteamOS version of the console once Valve is ready to come out with their new OS.

One of the more interesting parts of the Alpha is that with the exception of the custom Nvidia Maxwell GPU, the console is fully upgradable by the customer. Want a bigger SSD hard drive, or more RAM? Pop open the console and easily install the hardware you want. It's this freedom that other consoles lack which sets the Alpha apart from the pack. The Alienware Alpha is expected to begin shipping this holiday season starting at $549.99.

Social connection

Alienware has itself quite a broad social network, from PC gaming to mixed martial arts. Alienware regularly posts event and giveaway news on their social networks, as well as its share of news from the world of e-sports and gaming. Be sure to give them a like and a follow to keep up to date with the latest Alienware news!

Social media:
Official Alienware Twitter account: @Alienware
Alienware MMA Twitter account: @AlienwareMMA
Alienware tech support Twitter account: @AlienwareTech
Alienware on Facebook: facebook.com/Alienware
Alienware on Youtube: youtube.com/user/AlienwareChannel