Dell OptiPlex 5050M vs. Fujitsu Esprimo Q958
Comparison and Differences
Differences between Dell OptiPlex 5050M and Fujitsu Esprimo Q958
If you are looking for a more modern desktop, then you should go with the Fujitsu Esprimo Q958 which was released in 2018. The Dell OptiPlex 5050M is older and entered production in 2017.
Both models have the same form factor, meaning reoughtly they have the same phiysical size and form.
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 Fujitsu Esprimo Q958 as it is running a newer generation CPU. This is not to say that Dell OptiPlex 5050M is bad - it can still run some powerful CPUs, albeit being an older generation.
Memory
The Fujitsu Esprimo Q958 has 4 RAM slots while the Dell OptiPlex 5050M 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 Fujitsu Esprimo Q958 is using the faster 2666 MT/s RAM. The Dell OptiPlex 5050M is slower by supporting RAM speeds of up to 2400 MT/s. In addition, you will be able to install the same amount of RAM in both models, and most probably 32 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 Fujitsu Esprimo Q958 has 9 USB ports. The Dell OptiPlex 5050M 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. What is nice about the Fujitsu Esprimo Q958, is that it has 5 USB 3.1 port(s) which allows transfer of up to 10Gb/s. Unfortunately, the Dell OptiPlex 5050M has no such port, thus restricting your transfer speeds significantly. For people who want to use external drives on regular basis, this might be an issue.
DisplayPort is crucial for any desktop machine. It is good to see that both models are featuring DisplayPorts. However, the Fujitsu Esprimo Q958 comes with 2 ports, while the Dell OptiPlex 5050M has only 1. If you are planning to use multiple monitors, the Fujitsu Esprimo Q958 is the better choice.
The Dell OptiPlex 5050M comes with an HDMI port, while the Fujitsu Esprimo Q958 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 Fujitsu Esprimo Q958 is better equipped as it comes with 2 SATA slot(s), while the Dell OptiPlex 5050M has 1 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
Looking at the Power Supply Unit (PSU) of the two models we don't see any differences. For either of them you get a maximum power of 65 Watts. However be careful, many models have more than one power supply option. When buying your computer, it is a good idea to get a version with the most powerful PSU. This will potentially allow you to upgrade to a more powerful GPU for example.
Motherboard
