By offering solid desktop computers at a good price, Alienware has been branching out in recent months. Rather than just resting on their laurels as makers of some of the best gaming systems in the universe, the company has expanded to provide traditional home PCs as well as business systems.

The Alienware MJ-12 desktop computers are stable, powerful, and well configured. Their entry-level 3300 series starts out cheap, yet still features excellent systems for small and medium businesses.

The desktop's silver and black mini-tower that provides the chassis for the series offers complete tool-less access to the interior, letting you swap out drives and expansion cards without having to search for your screwdriver. That's not to say that it's easy for miscreants to find their way inside--a single key locks down all the internal components of the computer, protecting them and your data.

A door at the base of the front of the computer flips open to reveal two USB 2.0 ports and a Firewire port, letting you connect high-speed peripherals such as digital camcorders without crawling behind the desktop. Alienware also provides ports for hooking up headphones and a microphone for teleconferencing or listening to music at work.

The optional 10-in-1 media card reader (only about $18 over baseline, replacing the floppy drive) lets you pop in the flash memory card from your PDA or other digital devices and easily transfer data to and from your desktop. It supports almost every format on the market, from common ones such as CompactFlash and IBM's MicroDrive to more obscure formats such as xD-Picture CardT.

The interior of the computer has the potential to impress as well, though the components at baseline aren't that impressive. The desktop's starting processor is a pretty powerful 2.8GHz Intel Pentium 4 520 with Hyper Threading technology. You can step up to the 3.0GHz P4 530J for about $18 or upgrade all the way to the 3.6GHz 560J at about $302 over baseline.

Baseline RAM is only 256MB of 400MHz DDR memory, so consider the cost-effective upgrade to 512MB of RAM for about $25. You can max out the system at a gig of memory for about $117. With the 3.0GHz P4 and 512MB of RAM you'll get excellent performance for less than $60 over the starting price.

The default graphics on the Alienware 3300 is integrated Intel graphics. While this will work fine for the majority of office applications, you'll want to upgrade if you're planning on doing any graphics design (or maybe some lunch-time gaming). The desktop features a PCI Express slot, so you can add some of the latest high-speed graphics boards to the line. An ATI Radeon X300 with 128MB of dedicated video memory is $84, while an NVIDIA Quadro NVS 280 professional board with 64MB of memory and dual-monitor support is $129.

On the optical drive side of the computer, the Alienware 3300 has only a plain DVD-ROM drive that will read CD media and play DVD movies, but isn't capable of any media writing. You can make it a combination DVD-ROM drive and high-speed 52X/36X/52X CD-RW drive desktop, able to burn audio and data CDs at the fastest speeds, for only around $15. Another inexpensive option is a $44 or so upgrade to a 16X Dual Layer DVD+/-RW drive that will burn to both DVD-R and DVD+R media, as well as handle the new high-capacity Dual Layer media that can store up to 8.5GB of data on a single disk.

Hard drive capacity starts at a respectable 80GB in a Serial ATA 7,200rpm drive, providing ample room for file storage and application installation. For offices that need more room, you can double the space to 160GB for $33, take it to 250GB for $91, or max it out at 400GB for a heftier $317.

There isn't a monitor included with the computer at the starting price, although Alienware offers some good deals on displays to pair with your 3300 desktop. The 17-inch LCD from NEC comes in a nice matching black for only $345. If you'd rather have a bigger CRT monitor, the monstrous and beautiful 22-inch display from NEC will set you back $555.

Alienware includes a basic black keyboard and optical mouse from Microsoft with your computer. You can upgrade the input devices, but it's a costly move. Stepping up to the Microsoft Multimedia Keyboard is $24 while opting for the MS IntelliMouse Explorer is $30. If you already have input devices of your own, you can forgo the keyboard and mouse and knock $12 and $10 off the price tag, respectively.

Like the starting graphics, audio is integrated in this desktop as well. It's decent 5.1 channel sound that will work for most businesses, but if you need higher quality audio, you can upgrade to a Creative SoundBlaster Audigy 2 ZS card for only $67, giving you 7.1 channels of sound and adds another Firewire port.

There's a one-year limited warranty on the Alienware 3300 desktop computer line including 24/7 toll-free tech support and on-site service if needed. If you need a longer coverage period, two years is $195 while three years is $265.

Alienware's MJ-12 3300 desktop computer is a respectable workstation that starts out at a great price and can stay there with some restraint while performing a few necessary upgrades.

Pro: Good price, inexpensive upgrades
Con: No monitor included

FOR MORE INFORMATION
Alienware
12400 Southwest 134th Court, Bay 8
Miami, Florida 33186
800-494-3382
http://www.alienware.com

Warranty
1-year limited