Brand loyalty is an odd thing. Brave the comments down below just about any gaming or hardware-related article in the world and you’ll find a torrent of braying proponents for any given piece of hardware, and an equally vociferous bunch spewing vitriol. Something about brand loyalty can get us all feeling like this at some point or another, jumping to the defence of a beloved graphics card or sticking the knife into the latest hardware failure.
The first thing which should be pointed out here is that all brand loyalty is built from passion. The very reason we feel strongly about brands and products is because we have an interest about that particular thing, whether it be gaming hardware, surfboards, or even types of knitwear. Without passion we wouldn’t feel the need to defend or berate, although there is a fine line to tread between passion and rampant fanboyism. I think we can all admit we’ve fell into the latter camp at some point or other.
We read about CPUs, we use them for high-end gaming, we mess around with overclocking them. We quickly build an attachment to the things which work for us, and shun those that don’t. Take graphics cards for example. If you spend $800 on a Gigabyte GTX 1080 and it does everything you ever wanted it to, you will be naturally be predisposed to prefer Gigabyte and Nvidia from that point onwards, at least until they do something to discourage your custom. From there it’s only a short mental leap to begin thinking of other manufacturers as worse, or, in a further step on, think anyone who buys into them is making a grave mistake. People will always support their existing beliefs and find a way to fit this into it.
We all do it occasionally, it’s pretty natural, although I do think there’s a big difference between those who feel passionately about a product and those who actively hate on something.
From my perspective I’m about as neutral as it gets into terms of gaming hardware. I used to prefer Nvidia over ATI back in the day, in truth, but I’ve since seen the light. All I care about now is getting the best performance for the money I put in, regardless of the brand. I certainly have brand loyalty when it comes to my favourite gaming franchises, publishers and developers, but hardware manufacturers is now very much a level playing field.
So this Up For Debate is twofold - are you brand loyal to any specific gaming hardware manufacturers and, perhaps more importantly, why are you loyal to them?
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I have been brand loyal ever since my 3dfx days! Today it is:
Intel for CPU
ASUS for motherboards
ASUS/NVIDIA for VGA cards
Corsair for memory
Antec for PSU's
Samsung for home TV!
Now it doesn't matter to me if in the case of a motherboard I can find a cheaper brand. I will spend the extra to get the brand I trust. For the record, and this isn't a lie. I have never, not one single time ever had to RMA a single major hardware part. And I have been building computers since around 1995...
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I would like to be. But the main reason is to satisfy my OCD. This is only with accessories. Spec-wise i recently changed to Intel CPU. Best decision ever. And I've been loyal to Nvidia for years now.
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I'm loyal to those who give me the best deal for my money.
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I would say I'm loyal as I've owned 3 EVGA graphics cards so far and intend to go to back to EVGA for a new graphics card when the time comes and also have an EVGA power supply for my system.
The rest is all about price to performance.
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If they make good, reliable products then I will keep buying from them until they stop doing so.
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The Joker: [pulls out a knife] Freak? Why don't we cut you up into little pieces and feed you to your pooches, hmm? And then we'll see just how loyal a hungry dog REALLY is!
The Joker: [half to himself] It's not about money... its about sending a message.
The Joker: [dialing on a cell phone while a mountain of money burns behind him] Everything burns!
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I may have some brand loyalty for parts like hdd or psu where price-performance doesnt really have a big factor but longterm reliability would. That may extend to other hardware but only to a certain degree. I definitely dont have an ounce of brand fanboyism and will not hesitate to drop any of them if they disappoint.
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What I have is an affection for my rig and all the hardware in there. Dont go spewing fanboyism/hatred (especially if untrue) against my hardware. Otherwise there will be war.
Believe me, if my hardware is trash, I will be the first one to call it as such as retribution against the company that made me waste my cash.
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If the brand provides me with consistently well performing products, then Yes.
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For motherboards I just stay with ASUS they never failed me unlike MSI. For Graphics cards I really don't bother as long as they work well and well reviewed and tested. Everthing else I am also fining with any company as long as they work as intended
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Option 3. Kudos to whoever thought that up. XD
Seriously, I can't think of a single brand I'd describe myself as "loyal" to. If AMD's Vega 10 GPU's are a game-changer, or atleast better than the Pascals, I'll gladly go Team Red for my next upgrade.
CPU wise, Intel basically own the market. Nothing to do with loyalty.
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HDD,PSU,RAM,Peripherals..... It ain't the brand but the quality of the product in question. Brands like Corsair have built up a good reputation thanks to the quality of their products, nothing else.
There are some brands I'd never go near though: Alienware for laptops, is one example.
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I agree. Upthumbed :)
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In the past yes but now... nope except for ram memory (kingston) i guess!
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as far as processor manufacturers, yes, and that is entirely towards AMD for me, for all other parts, I tend to gravitate towards Kingston for memory (bought Patriot memory for my girlfriend's desktop out of necessity once) but for everything else I have no loyalty, my desktop has a Seagate hybrid boot drive, a WD mass archival, Kingston SSD, all because they fit the performance and dollar amount I was looking for, same thing for my motherboard and the SSD in my laptop
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I do have exceptions to the no loyalty rules, I don't plan on ever buying an EVGA power supply, no computer store in my area stocks their PSU's and I don't buy Intel SSD's or any of their other parts, because I have issues with Intel's corporate culture (long story)
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Well said Eng Im the same way. I seriously gravitate towards AMD, My last 3 processors were Anyhow. AMD Phenom X2, then Phenom X3, now FX 8350... Same with GFX cards... All were AMD, and additionally they were XFX specifically. had the XFX HD 7750, then the R9 270x, now the R9 390, all XFX. It just works out like that
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As far has other parts, im not so "loyal" its been a mish mash... Nice rig by the way.
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thank you!
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to some yes, not most
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I feel loyalty strongly towards AMD, that is becuase AMD was in my first 3 computers for both CPU and GPU. suffice to say it makes them feel like an old distant friend I will reunite with soon!
AMD also seems to have better video alteration for my video rendering projects, I only got this machine because I paid bottom dollar for it! "pawnshops rule I mean like 400$ cad" cpu, mobo, gpu, ssd : )
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You paid 400 for that... Well done sir, I'd of jumped ship as well.
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intel for CPU , Nvidia for GPU and will research what best performance/price for others parts
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nope...except cpus, my first computer had an amd cpu in it, kinda made amd close to my heart you know? i've been rocking amd ever since that..
i don't think that will ever change either..
except that i am where the power/value lies...
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I'll buy whoever has the best value. But if there isn't much of a difference or if performance is a mixed bag between the companies, then i go with the company with the best practices, in other words, AMD.
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Manufacturers: Gigabyte (Mobo and GPU), Crucial (RAM), Coolermaster (Cooling), Thermaletake (PSU), Intel (As always CPU)
GPU: Nvidia
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MSI and Corsair
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DUDE! YES!
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GPU: Nvidia
CPU: Intel