CES 2013: iBUYPOWER Introduces Striking Revolt Gaming PC

Years ago, among the rising popularity of mobile computing, I began to wonder what the future would be like for boutique builders like MAINGEAR, CyberPowerPC, Puget, iBUYPOWER and others. After all, it seems that many are anxious to get away from the desktop, so what would these companies do to keep things interesting, and our interests piqued? Well, over the years, there has been quite a bit of innovation, or at least systems that are far from standard fare. The latest to catch my eye was just unveiled at CES, by iBUYPOWER. It’s called Revolt, and you’ve probably seen nothing like it.

In designing the Revolt, the folks at iBUYPOWER said that they didn’t look to the market for ideas, but rather sat down and pictured what kind of PC they’d want to see sitting next to their desks. The result is something pretty striking, and almost artsy. The chassis is mid-tower in size, and features a white and black color scheme. Triangular holes are arranged on the side in a specific pattern that not only allows some air to escape, but the internal lighting as well.

It’s the lighting that could help Revolt stand out of the crowd. The company emphasizes that the lighting used here can add atmosphere to any room, and because it’s totally configurable – even in color – it’s likely that owners will find themselves spending a fair amount of time tweaking and playing around with it.

In terms of performance, just how fast Revolt is, is left up to you. The base system starts out at $499 and includes an Intel Core i3-3220 CPU and 4GB of memory. This system relies on Intel’s internal HD 4000 to do the graphics work. At the top-end, the base system is $899 and includes an Intel Core i5-3570K CPU, 4GB of memory and an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660. In a system I configured, you can score a Revolt with an Intel Core i7-3770K, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 Ti, 16GB of memory and water-cooling for $1338.

Those interested in Revolt can pre-order now, with systems shipping in February.