I got the opportunity to interview/ask some questions to Daniel Charbit, one of the main driving forces behind the Dell and Alienware brand in the UK; the UK consumer brand & category merchandising manager to be exact. Daniel who is no stranger to the industry having a previous stint with Nintendo UK under his belt, Dell/Alienware felt he was the right man to charge the brand into the new era.
So here we go…
Question 1: With Dell acquiring the Alienware brand in 2006, how has it affected brand awareness in the public eye in relation to both brands?
Dell has become deeply involved in the gaming community and Alienware is more than just a premium line of gaming desktops and laptops, it’s an exclusive community you can join as an Alienware customer, so we have been sure to not only maintain the brand’s identity and the user experience, but also to enhance them. Combine that with the deep understanding Dell has of PC gaming and the combination is a brand that is number one in PC gaming worldwide.
Question 2: With gaming notebooks/laptops over the last couple of years emerging to the forefront of PC gaming, how has Dell/Alienware reacted to the increased competition from brands such as MSI, ASUS and Gigabyte?
Competition is great for the gaming – and broader technology – industry. It is often competition that drives innovation and can lead to the creation of incredible products. At Dell we are committed to fulfilling the needs of our customers, and strive to bring the best and most innovative products to market. For example, the new Alienware 13, 15 and 17 gaming laptops deliver an immersive gaming experience that no other gaming notebook can – including VR capabilities and the best implementation of Tobii Eye Tracking software – wrapped in a slim, iconic design. Meanwhile, the Inspiron 15 gaming laptop boasts a 4K UHD display, 7th Generation Intel processors and NVIDIA’s much-awaited Pascal graphics, an overall package tailored to the needs of gamers on a budget.
Question 3: Both Dell XPS and Alienware are globally known as top gaming brands, how do each of them compare and what is the targeted user group for both types/brands?
XPS, Inspiron gaming and Alienware are all capable of playing PC games. However, Inspiron gaming and Alienware systems have unique features built for gamers. Alienware goes above and beyond with the latest advancements in components and build material to offer premium PC gaming and VR.
Alienware caters to the high-end, premium gamer looking for the latest display technology, graphic cards, processor speeds, and memory and VR capabilities. The new Inspiron line prioritises what PC gamers care most about such as processor and graphic card units to push the latest PC games, dual-fan cooling for extended play, a high quality visual/audio experience – all at a modest price.
The XPS range, whilst beautifully designed and visually striking, wasn’t designed with gamers specifically in mind, despite the superior graphics capabilities of the XPS 15. However, it is an excellent range for more casual gamers who want beautiful, elegantly designed technology around their home or business.
Question 4: What about the lower end market of notebooks/laptops, what do Dell currently have on offer to compete with the likes of Lenovo and Acer?
We are leveraging more than two decades of PC gaming market expertise to increase our investments and presence in the PC gaming market, and recently launched the new Inspiron gaming line.
With the Inspiron 15 7000 gaming laptop, we wanted to offer a choice for the unmet need among the growing demographic who loves to game and wants to game well, but is more conservative in the total price they are willing to invest. Starting at £799, it brings AAA games to a mass audience in a powerful and accessible form factor.
Question 5: In regards to the Dell Inspiron gaming notebook range, can you give me the reasoning behind this range and what it means for consumers?
The rise in the popularity of gaming, combined with the advancements in PC gaming components and technology, make this the right time to invest in growing the Dell gaming business. The new Inspiron Gaming laptops are tailored to the needs of gaming enthusiasts featuring many gamer-centric options across screen resolution, audio performance and memory capacity, at an accessible price point.
The sub-1” Inspiron 15 is game-ready right off the shelf and delivers the most aggressive performance design and components offered within the Inspiron notebook family. Equipped with 7th Gen Intel i5 and i7 Quad-Core processors and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050Ti graphic card that bring environments of top PC games to life. A redesigned chassis that comes in black complete with rear-exiting cooling vents and dual cooling fans to keep heat and noise away from the user, plus deep-reserve battery life to game for up to 13 hours for uninterrupted weekend tournaments, ultra-high definition displays, and rich, immersive audio with Waves MaxxAudio Pro for additional sensory overload.
Question 6: Do you have any spoilers for 2017 and what’s Dell/Alienware’s primary focus going forward into the future?
We’re really excited about the future of Dell gaming systems. Our focus is on continued innovation and continuing to provide the best products on the market as gamers and game developers find new ways to push the boundaries of PCs to deliver an immersive gaming experience. Stay tuned – you won’t be disappointed!
So there we have it, Dell/Alienware obviously have a lot planned for the rest of 2017 and I for one am personally looking forward to seeing how the brand develops over the next couple of years. Watch out MSI, ASUS, GIGABYTE and anyone else, Dell/Alienware are coming for your market share and this can only mean good things for the consumer!
Huge thanks to Daniel Charbitt for taking the time to answer my questions 🙂
