Überclok Ion: Midrange Overclocking, with a Warranty
by Matt Campbell on February 12, 2008 4:10 AM EST- Posted in
- Systems
Pricing and Final Thoughts
We've already covered how much the Ion costs as configured: about $1780 shipped. What are you getting for this price? A custom overclocked system built-to-order, with a 3-year warranty, 30-day guarantee, and tech support. We're sure there are enthusiasts out there thinking, "Yeah, but I can buy the same stuff on Newegg and do it myself." That's certainly true, so let's look at that.
Since all of the parts are listed and available, it's a simple matter to put everything into a cart and check out. We matched everything in the system, including Windows XP Pro, with the exception of the video card. We used an EVGA Superclocked 8800 GT priced at $259, which Überclok noted is one of their standard choices. The tally with shipping comes to around $1,350.
As mentioned at the beginning of the review, it's up to the consumer to decide if that ~$400 is a reasonable price premium for what you're getting. Prebuilt systems are not for everyone, but a system of this nature is about as close as you can get to a quality midrange enthusiast's build without doing it yourself. Factor that together with labor, support, and warranty, and that's really what you're paying for. We think many will find that $400 for a good 3-year warranty plus the convenience of getting a prebuilt, overclocked system is definitely reasonable.
Overall, we are very impressed with the Überclok Ion. Every component is a quality item, and the selections make sense in this price range. The system is designed to be upgradeable: adding a new CPU, video card or hard drive is a breeze. The desktop install is very clean and includes some standard useful programs. It provides good performance and is rock-solid in terms of stability - we didn't encounter one issue in the course of testing. The one big unknown is simply that Überclok is a new company that hasn't proven itself. Warranty and tech support are two big areas where people buying gaming machines demand excellence and stability. If Überclok establishes themselves in these areas, we expect them to gain in popularity quickly, and we look forward to seeing what they can do in the future.
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Matt Campbell - Tuesday, February 12, 2008 - link
Apologies if it was confusing, I probably could have worded it better. Suffice it to say that there's plenty of power left over :)7Enigma - Wednesday, February 13, 2008 - link
Not a problem. As I mentioned in my OP, the review was excellent. You guys are just victims of your own high standards, we have little to nit-pick other than wording and occasional typo's! :)HotdogIT - Tuesday, February 12, 2008 - link
If only you guys could take it one step farther, and do like HardOCP did back in the day... love to see you guys review the customer service. That'd be a hoot. A hoot and a half.Then again, it clearly didn't work out too well for Kyle and team...
Syran - Tuesday, February 12, 2008 - link
They used to do Customer Service stuff on AT back in the day on motherboard reviews, and some system builds too. Would definitely like to see that if I'm to think about recommending the possibility of this company to friends; so that I can avoid long-distance support.Uberclok - Tuesday, February 12, 2008 - link
On the subject of long-distance support, I can assure you that we won't ever out-source our phones overseas. We know how quickly an aggravating customer support experience can lose customers for us, so we will always make sure our phone reps:A. know what they're talking about, and
B. can be easily understood.
Also, we C. feed them well - a happy rep is a helpful rep.
- Thomas Glen
Uberclok
(877) 211-4235
crimson117 - Tuesday, February 12, 2008 - link
I think by "long distance support" he meant he could recommend you guys as system builders for his friends, rather than him building and supporting custom systems for his friends. Kind of like how system builders will often recommend Dell or someone else for simple systems, purely so they don't have to support it themselves.But it's nice to know you guys do feed your reps :) Otherwise they start eating each other, and you often lose your best ones to less technically inclined - but hungrier - reps.
CyberHawk - Tuesday, February 12, 2008 - link
What a backround O_oWhere could I get one like that?
caliche - Tuesday, February 12, 2008 - link
That's a wallpaper from the PC game Hellgate London.http://www.hellgatelondon.com/media/wallpaper">http://www.hellgatelondon.com/media/wallpaper
I have not played the game so I can't vouch for it, but it does have some very nice "Techno Gothic" style artwork.