The GeForce RTX 4090 is a generation older than the new Blackwell 50 series GPUs, but this doesn’t change the fact that it’s still one of the most powerful cards out there, eclipsing the GeForce RTX 5080 or RTX 4080 Super or the Radeon RX 9070 XT or RX 7900 XTX. Only one GPU performs better – the RTX 5090 – and you’ll need to use up a lifetime of luck to find one that isn’t marked up by hundreds, even thousands of dollars.
Because the RTX 4090 has been discontinued, it’s getting harder to source as well. Fortunately, Dell has two prebuilt gaming PC models that can be equipped with a 4090 GPU, and at reasonable prices. The base model costs $2,999.99. The upgraded model with a more powerful processor, more RAM, and more storage costs $3,599.99. These are currently the best prices we see for an RTX 4090 equipped gaming PC, and many other manufacturers – including Lenovo and HP – no longer carry RTX 4090 prebuilt gaming PCs at all.
Alienware Aurora R16 RTX 4090 Gaming PC for $2,999.99
Alienware Aurora R16 Intel Core Ultra 7 265F RTX 4090 Gaming PC
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This Alienware Aurora R16 gaming PC is equipped with an Intel Core Ultra 7 265F CPU, GeForce RTX 4090 GPU, 16GB of DDR5-5200MHz RAM, and a 1TB NVMe SSD. The processor can also be upgraded up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 285K. If you’re getting system with a focus on gaming, then the upgrade is unnecessary. Gaming at higher resolutions is almost always GPU bound, and besides, the default Intel Core Ultra 7 265F is a solid processor with a max turbo frequency of 5.3GHz and a total of 20 cores. It’s cooled by a robust 240mm all-in-one liquid cooler and the entire system is powered by an 1,000W 80PLUS Platinum power supply.
Get an Upgraded Model for $3,599.99
Alienware Aurora R16 Intel Core i9-14900KF RTX 4090 Gaming PC (64GB/2TB)
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Dell just dropped the price on this upgraded RTX 4090 model to $3,599.99 after a $400 instant discount. It’s $600 more than the base model Alienware 4090 gaming PC, but that’s because the processor has been upgraded to a much more powerful Intel Core i9-14900KF CPU. You also get quadruple the RAM and double the storage.
How does the RTX 4090 stack up against current cards?
The RTX 4090 is the most powerful RTX 40 series GPU on the market. Compared to the new Blackwell cards, only the $2,000 MSRP RTX 5090 is superior in performance. This card will run every game comfortably at 4K resolution; you should be hitting 60+fps even with all settings turned to the max and ray tracing enabled, doubly so if DLSS is supported. The only setting that the 4090 (as well as every other GPU) struggles with is path tracing, but no one really ever turns this on except during benchmark tests or social media flexing. The RTX 5090 might be faster, but for the vast majority of people out there, it’s just wasted power since the 4090 already excels at pretty much all things gaming.
Alternative: Alienware RTX 5080 Gaming PC for $2,500
Alienware Aurora R16 Intel Core Ultra 7 265F RTX 5080 Gaming PC
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Dell is offering an Alienware Aurora R16 gaming PC equipped with the new GeForce RTX 5080 GPU for $2,499.99 shipped. The RTX 5080 is one of three new Blackwell graphics cards that are out (and impossible to find). In our Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 FE review, Jackie writes that “If you already have a high-end graphics card from the last couple of years, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 doesn’t make a lot of sense – it just doesn’t have much of a performance lead over the RTX 4080, though the extra frames from DLSS 4 Multi-Frame Generation do make things look better in games that support it. However, for gamers with an older graphics card who want a significant performance boost, the RTX 5080 absolutely provides – doubly so if you’re comfortable with Nvidia’s AI goodies.”
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Eric Song is the IGN commerce manager in charge of finding the best gaming and tech deals every day. When Eric isn’t hunting for deals for other people at work, he’s hunting for deals for himself during his free time.
