• sparky1337@ttrpg.network
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    17 hours ago

    I had one of the Alienware Alphas with the 860m and desktop haswell 4130t. You could swap in a 4160 but your big enemy would be heat.

    I swapped the steam OS for windows and threw in some cheap 240gb adata ssd. Ran it for years.

    Only problem was the cmos battery would fail every now and again and I’d have to solder a new one in because Dell……

    Anyways, I was in it ~$400 and it was a great htpc. Only real problem was haswell couldn’t decode 4k YouTube.

    The steam controller I still have, and it’s quirky. But I like it for the mouse function.

    • vulgarcynic@sh.itjust.works
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      14 hours ago

      Was the soldered CMOS different than the removable one? I fought the battery (removable) in mine for a year or two and eventually just shelved it. Would love to get it running as a low energy emulation station if it’s salvageable

      • sparky1337@ttrpg.network
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        11 hours ago

        It was removable, but used Dells weird connection. I just had to solder the connections of the new battery on instead of paying Dell $20 for a watch battery haha.