Alienware Area 51 R2 vs. Fujitsu Esprimo P556
Comparison and Differences
Differences between Alienware Area 51 R2 and Fujitsu Esprimo P556
If you are looking for a more modern desktop, then you should go with the Alienware Area 51 R2 which was released in 2018. The Fujitsu Esprimo P556 is older and entered production in 2015.
If you are looking for the smaller form factor the Alienware Area 51 R2 is the right one for you. It is smaller than the Fujitsu Esprimo P556 and will fit more easily under your desk.
Processor
Usually the newer the generation of the CPU, the better the performance and efficiency is. If your budget allows it, you should go with the Alienware Area 51 R2 as it is running a newer generation CPU. This is not to say that Fujitsu Esprimo P556 is bad - it can still run some powerful CPUs, albeit being an older generation.
Memory
The Alienware Area 51 R2 has 4 RAM slots while the Fujitsu Esprimo P556 has only 2 slot(s). This is not something to worry about. Just make sure you take it into consideration when planning how much RAM you are going to use.
The Alienware Area 51 R2 is using the faster 2667 MT/s RAM. The Fujitsu Esprimo P556 is slower by supporting RAM speeds of up to 2133 MT/s. Additionally, if you will be needing a lot of RAM, better go for the Alienware Area 51 R2 as it has the ability to run 64 GB of RAM. The Fujitsu Esprimo P556 can do a bit less at max 32 GB. Most of the times, this should be sufficient for the majority of users.
Ports
Both models have the same amount of USB ports for total count of 10. If this is not enough, using a USB hub is always a viable option. None of the desktop models has a USB 3.1 port (10Gb/s), so if you need a fast connection to your peripherals, like external Solid State Drive, you will need to look elsewhere.
Unfortunately, only the Fujitsu Esprimo P556 has a DisplayPort. The Alienware Area 51 R2 does not have one? Don't worry though, nowadays video adapters are cheap and you can get almost any combination of conversion types.
None of the models has an HDMI port. If your monitor supports only the HDMI interface, you will need to buy an adapter. Such adapters are cheap so nothing to worry about.
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 Alienware Area 51 R2 is better equipped as it comes with 6 SATA slot(s), while the Fujitsu Esprimo P556 has 3 slot(s).
M.2 SSD interface allows you to transfer data with higher speeds compared to the old SATA interface. Unfortunately, neither the Alienware Area 51 R2, nor the Fujitsu Esprimo P556 has one. However, you can still use a SATA SSD drive which should give you satisfactory performance.
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 Fujitsu Esprimo P556 comes with a decent 280 Watt PSU, but the Alienware Area 51 R2 has a more powerful one rated at 1500 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
