New PC Maker, Origin, Debuts Desktop and Mobile Computers

It has not been a good time for makers of custom PCs, as the economy makes all but the most mundane of purchases look extravagant. Also, there hasn’t been lots of talk about the cottage industry of high performance computers since the purchase of Alienware by Dell. Though Alienware still survives (barely), Dell seems to be much more interested in pushing out interesting choices with the Dell XPS moniker.

Other manufacturers, like Falcon Northwest are also around, but they are not putting out splashy double page ads with pictures of glossy custom paint jobs right now.

So imagine how odd it is for there to be a new manufacturer springing up, while we are not out of the recession/depression/bad situation as yet. The people at Origin computers have a better than average chance of survival, as they are not rookies at this sort of thing. TechConnect tells about some of the new offerings -

Confident that there’s still a place for high-end, custom, pricey PCs, ex-Alienware execs Kevin Wasielewski, Hector Penton and Richard Cary, have set up a new gaming PC company, Origin PC Corporation. After some months of work, Origin has now come out with its first products, the Genesis desktop and EON 18 notebook, both of which are claimed to feature “levels of customization, aggressive design, personalized support and performance, the likes of which the PC gaming industry has never seen.”

“Many boutique computer makers have lost their way, forgetting what’s important to gamers and becoming just another corporate entity,” says Kevin Wasielewski, CEO/Co-Founder of ORIGIN PC. “ORIGIN is the return of the real gaming PC giving gamers exactly what they want with the most customizable, best performing, hand painted and hand built gaming PCs available.”

To bling up Genesis and EON 18, Origin has enlisted Killer Paint, who’s team will airbrush each chassis by hand with standard colors, metallic colors, or artistic designs. In addition to the ’standard’ options, customers are also able to send in their own design or work with a design specialist who will build the system as they desire.

Showing both Intel and AMD love, Genesis can be equipped with either Phenom II X4 or Core i5/i7 processors, and will also boast up to 12GB of RAM, two GeForce GTX 295 or two Radeon HD 5870 graphics cards, a maximum of 2TB of storage (up to 512GB SSDs), and a 1.2kW power supply.

As for EON 18, the 18.4-inch (1920×1080) laptop, is available with a Core 2 Duo/Quad/Extreme CPU, 8GB of RAM, two 500GB HDDs or two 256GB SSDs, and one or two GeForce GTX 280M graphics cards.

Both of Origin’s gaming systems are now available in the US and can be viewed/purchased via originpc.com.

The company is certainly correct about the boutique brands losing their way. If you don’t offer something above the level of what an enthusiast can produce, you aren’t going to be producing in volume.

One of the things that differentiates the rank and file from the superior is a great paint scheme on a case not easily identified as being available from HP or Dell. The pictured systems are very nice looking, and will certainly make you stand out as the owner of one of a better breed.

Check them out. If you think you can do better, perhaps you can start your own company too.

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Arguments are to be avoided; they are always vulgar and often convincing.

- Oscar Wilde

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