Acer Veriton M6660g vs. Alienware Aurora R9
Comparison and Differences
Differences between Acer Veriton M6660g and Alienware Aurora R9
Both computers, the Alienware Aurora R9 and the Acer Veriton M6660g, were released during the same year - 2018.
If you are looking for the smaller form factor the Alienware Aurora R9 is the right one for you. It is smaller than the Acer Veriton M6660g and will fit more easily under your desk.
Processor
The two models have the same generation of Intel processors. We think that the 9 generation of Intel Processors have enough power to execute all of the home and office tasks that most people will care to do.
Memory
Both models have have equal amount of ram slots (4 RAM). Usually two RAM slots are more than enough for most cases. However, the count should be taken into account when planning how much and what combination of RAM you are going to need for your system.
The Alienware Aurora R9 is using the faster 3000 MT/s RAM. The Acer Veriton M6660g is slower by supporting RAM speeds of up to 2666 MT/s. In addition, you will be able to install the same amount of RAM in both models, and most probably 64 GB of RAM will be enough for most people. However, if you will be needing more RAM, make sure to check other desktop models too.
Ports
In total the Alienware Aurora R9 has 14 USB ports. The Acer Veriton M6660g is inferior in this regard and packs 10 USB ports. In any case, if you miss USB ports, you can always purchase a USB hub. It's great that both of the models have USB 3.1 ports which will allow you to exchange data with your peripherals at up to 10Gb/s. But if you need maximum connectivity, go with the Alienware Aurora R9 as it has 2 USB3.1 ports (the Acer Veriton M6660g has 1).
DisplayPort is crucial for any desktop machine. It is good to see that both models are featuring DisplayPorts. However, the Acer Veriton M6660g comes with 2 ports, while the Alienware Aurora R9 has only 1. If you are planning to use multiple monitors, the Acer Veriton M6660g is the better choice.
The Acer Veriton M6660g comes with an HDMI port, while the Alienware Aurora R9 does not support the interface. Of course missing HDMI port is something that can be easily fixed with a good adapter (e.g. DisplayPort to HDMI).
SATA ports are placed on the system board and it is where you connect your HDD, SSD and Optical Disk Drives. More SATA slots will allow you to have more drives running at the same time. In this regard the Acer Veriton M6660g is better equipped as it comes with 5 SATA slot(s), while the Alienware Aurora R9 has 4 slot(s).
When your goal is to have the fastest SSD transfer speeds, an M.2 interface is crucial. Thus, it is good that both models have M.2 SSD slots. Today M.2 SSDs are not much more expensive than the average SATA drives, so it really does not make sense to invest in SATA drives anymore.
Make sure that the available M.2 slot supports the PCIe (also called NVMe) interface. This is important as there are M.2 slots which support only the inferior SATA III interface. For comparison, the SATA III interface has max speeds of 6Gb/s, while the PCIe 3.0 x4 will support speeds up to 32Gb/s!
Power Supply
Having a Power Supply Unit with high power rating is important, if you are going to use components which require extra power. The Acer Veriton M6660g comes with a decent 500 Watt PSU, but the Alienware Aurora R9 has a more powerful one rated at 850 Watts. Choosing either one depends on your specific requirements and use case. Also don't forget that some models might have more than one PSU option - try to always get the most powerful one, especially if you plan to upgrade to a powerful GPU.
Motherboard
