Dell OptiPlex 3010 MT vs. Lenovo ThinkCentre Edge 72 Tower

Differences between Dell OptiPlex 3010 MT and Lenovo ThinkCentre Edge 72 Tower

Both computers, the Dell OptiPlex 3010 MT and the Lenovo ThinkCentre Edge 72 Tower, were released during the same year - 2012.

Both models have the same form factor, meaning reoughtly they have the same phiysical size and form.

Processor

The two models have the same generation of Intel processors. We think that the 3 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 (2 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.

None of the desktops has an advantage when it comes to the speed of the RAM being used. Both models support RAM speeds of up to 1600. Additionally, if you will be needing a lot of RAM, better go for the Lenovo ThinkCentre Edge 72 Tower as it has the ability to run 16 GB of RAM. The Dell OptiPlex 3010 MT can do a bit less at max 8 GB. Most of the times, this should be sufficient for the majority of users.

Ports

In total the Dell OptiPlex 3010 MT has 8 USB ports. The Lenovo ThinkCentre Edge 72 Tower is inferior in this regard and packs 6 USB ports. In any case, if you miss USB ports, you can always purchase a USB hub. 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.

Nowadays, almost every new computer comes equipped with a DisplayPort. However, none of the devices being compared here has one. Don't worry though, DisplayPort adapters are very cheap and you can get virtually any combination of conversion types.

The Dell OptiPlex 3010 MT comes with an HDMI port, while the Lenovo ThinkCentre Edge 72 Tower 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 Dell OptiPlex 3010 MT is better equipped as it comes with 4 SATA slot(s), while the Lenovo ThinkCentre Edge 72 Tower 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 Dell OptiPlex 3010 MT, nor the Lenovo ThinkCentre Edge 72 Tower 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 Lenovo ThinkCentre Edge 72 Tower comes with a decent 180 Watt PSU, but the Dell OptiPlex 3010 MT has a more powerful one rated at 265 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