Can't afford to build your PC? This Alienware Aurora with an RTX 5080 is just $1,849 today

The official Dell Store is holding a massive holiday sale, and it's yielding some real hidden gems like this Alienware Aurora gaming PC with an RTX 5080 for just $1,849 (was $2,479).

Right now, it's rare to see a pre-built gaming PC with an RTX 5080 for less than $2,200, let alone $2,000, so you're comparatively paying a rock-bottom price here - thanks in no small part to today's massive $630 price cut.

With RAM prices being so high, I could see this one being a great option if you just want to get a decent machine that will last a few good years down the line without having to build one yourself. In terms of "plug and play", the RTX 5080 and Ultra 7 chipset in this machine should give you plenty of performance right out of the box.

If there's one weakness with this configuration, it's that it only features 16GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD - both middling for a machine of this calibre. You can, however, use the provided configurator to get a full 32GB of RAM for $150 more, which, looking at DDR5 prices right now, is an absolute bargain.

Cheap RTX 5080 Alienware gaming PC at Dell

Alienware Aurora gaming PC: was $2,479 now $1,849.99 at Dell

Graphics card: RTX 5080
Processor: Intel Core Ultra 7-265F
Storage: 1TB

A massive $630 discount makes this RTX 5080-equipped Alienware Aurora one of the cheapest machines of its class ever. While you only get 16GB of RAM here, the combination of an Ultra 7 chipset and RTX 5080 for under $2,000 is definitely noteworthy. If you're looking for a pre-built gaming PC for high-end gaming, then this is definitely a good place to start.

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If I were buying this machine for myself, I'd probably take full advantage of the configurator to get at least 32GB of RAM. With prices still massively inflated, it makes sense to take full advantage of the configurator here for sure.

I'd also potentially look at coughing up the $300 extra to get the Ultra 9 that's also offered in the configurator. At $2,200, you're still coming in at well under budget compared to most RTX 5080 machines - although admittedly, it's definitely not a cheap purchase by any stretch of the imagination.