People are probably going to see this as a bad thing but think of it like this. This is the first time AMD has had this much interest in their product, to the point where they are only allowing one OEM to sell it.

Or, let's say that AMD got an offer from Dell that it coudn't be refused 🙂

Workstation will use them, I dont see any reason we dont see workstation with them.. ( or the professionall version... 16 to 32 cores )... Probably workstation CPUs will be called a bit differently anyway and the "eco system" willl be slighty different. (along that motherboard ). Outside DELL Alienware, is HP and Lenovo still have high end "gaming" desktop PC ? ( meaning outside workstation for HP, not "standard on gaming pc", mostly done for office and internet ) i admit that i have never buy a pre build desktop PC so i have not much follow them ..

That's the thing though Dell is business primarily. I'm pretty sure HP and Leveno still make prebuilt "gaming" PC not sure about them using HEDT parts though.

http://www.guru3d.com/news-story/computex-2017-rog-strix-gl702zc-houses-the-latest-ryzen-processors-with-radeon-rx-580-graphics.htmlBut that's exactly why I find this suspicious - AMD would want to take the route that gets them the widest audience and most sales. I could totally be wrong, but I don't think going with strictly Dell is the best way to go about that.

The way i see it TR is not a system seller. It´s going to sell some units and make some cash for AMD but that´s it. Most people don´t care and don´t need something like TR or X299 systems and i don´t think most OEMs are worried about the fact they can´t sell them. What they want from AMD is their tasty APUs. So if TR is going to sell poorly anyway, why not cash in with some exclusivity deal??? And in case it sells well, something i really doubt, then in the next year every OEM can sell them. My opinion of course.

@kevnb Show me 5 rigs that are i5/i based, that i cant build cheaper on pc part picker.. Any intel based dell/alienware i fixed in the past, could have been build cheaper and/or better parts (board/psu).

It could be TR is expected to be really good and AMD knows they can't meet that demand if all the OEM's jumped in day one along with the demand from custom/enthusiast built systems. If they are simply delaying other OEM's one quarter to keep demand down I don't see an issue with it as its better than a world wide shortage with higher prices.

Alienhype is gettin' a toaster, how cute.

Title is a little misleading. Alienware are the only big boys that will be selling Threadripper versions. That only leaves out Lenovo and HP really. Small boutique shops are not affected. http://www.pcworld.com/article/3197759/computers/amd-threadripper-exclusive-only-alienwares-area-51-will-have-it-in-2017.html https://arstechnica.co.uk/gadgets/2017/06/alienware-e3-threadripper-area-51/

Title is a little misleading. Alienware are the only big boys that will be selling Threadripper versions. That only leaves out Lenovo and HP really. Small boutique shops are not affected. http://www.pcworld.com/article/3197759/computers/amd-threadripper-exclusive-only-alienwares-area-51-will-have-it-in-2017.html https://arstechnica.co.uk/gadgets/2017/06/alienware-e3-threadripper-area-51/

Yup, Origin PC, Maingear, iBuypower, and Cyberpower are all unaffected. Or you just build your own... and I really doubt anyone who casts an eye on Threadripper will be the type of person to try to get a pre-built :roll: In addition to that it's concerning PC only. Server hardware is not affected.

Yup, Origin PC, Maingear, iBuypower, and Cyberpower are all unaffected. Or you just build your own... and I really doubt anyone who casts an eye on Threadripper will be the type of person to try to get a pre-built :roll: In addition to that it's concerning PC only. Server hardware is not affected.

Exactly, AMD just keeping volumes down a bit for a quarter. They are restricting some of the high volume guys for three to four months nothing really to write home about on this one.

Exactly, AMD just keeping volumes down a bit for a quarter. They are restricting some of the high volume guys for three to four months nothing really to write home about on this one.

Alienware are known for their margins thin as razorblades... 🤓 There is actually no logical reason to believe AMD would pass on profits with this one... AW offers a minimum buy-off ... as the "go to" brand for enthusiast pre-builts... pretty simple decision. AW PCs sell that way or the other... so rather sell xxx,000 units to dell/alienware by framework contract than to try and get HP, Dell and Lenovo to buy as much Threadrippers as possible on a more unsteady basis. If those AW rigs blow away ... that surely will have a even bigger demand following by HP and Lenovo once the first months are over... There would be no other reason for AMD to do this. Else they logically just WOULDN'T do it. So I can't understand how some are trying hard to depict this as negative.

I find this situation very suspicious... it almost seems like Dell is blackmailing AMD, because why wouldn't AMD encourage other OEMs to support TR? I understand Dell is worth more than AMD (really kind of weird to think about) but they shouldn't have that much power over AMD. If Dell had some ultimatum like "we don't sell any PCs with your CPUs if you offer TR to our competitors", not only does that sound like a lawsuit but AMD could likely make more money from all the other competitors combined. EDIT: In another perspective, perhaps TR is just really bad and nobody else wants it. Alienware is kind of the brand for "wannabee enthusiasts" but most legitimate enthusiasts seem to steer clear. If TR ends up underwhelming, I could see why Dell wouldn't want it in any of their high-end workstations, but would gladly stick it in their product lineup full of overpriced products that are mostly marketing gimmicks. To a typical wealthy teen who wants to get into PC gaming, they'll hear "o kewl 16 corez! So many jigahurts!" and Dell will still return a profit. The only reason I thought of this situation was because of the leaks about TR earlier this week. I don't think TR will be that crappy, but, we don't yet know what it's like.

Heh...;) Dell will be paying for the privilege of having the exclusive deal on TR for the entire year...! This isn't a matter of "we only allow Dell to sell this", etc. Lol...;) As HH mentioned, anyone who wants TR to put together his own TR system will be able to do so when it ships--the Dell deal has nothing to do with that. No, this is strictly among OEMs--heck I haven't bought an OEM box since 1995. Anyway, the exclusive deal is a two-way street: 1) Dell wants a specific deal on the TR price 2) AMD wants Dell to guarantee it will buy a certain amount of TR processors this year 3) Agreeing on those terms cements the exclusive OEM deal for Dell Dell gets an exclusive and a good price, because Dell guarantees a certain purchase volume to AMD. Good deal for both. Also, no one knows what the yields this year will be for TR, but I'll be willing to bet they are not as good as regular Ryzen (of course!) So that enters the equation as well. But if you want to buy a TR this year and build your own system you can certainly do that, according to the info here.

Alienhype is gettin' a toaster, how cute.

I hope that you realize that one day, maybe, you say something meaningful. But by then people will no longer see your posts or consider you opinion even remotely relevant.