Dell OptiPlex 990 MT vs. Dell Vostro 260
Comparison and Differences
Differences between Dell OptiPlex 990 MT and Dell Vostro 260
If you are looking for a more modern desktop, then you should go with the Dell OptiPlex 990 MT which was released in 2011. The Dell Vostro 260 is older and entered production in 2010.
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 2 generation of Intel Processors have enough power to execute all of the home and office tasks that most people will care to do.
Memory
The Dell OptiPlex 990 MT has 4 RAM slots while the Dell Vostro 260 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.
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 1333. Additionally, if you will be needing a lot of RAM, better go for the Dell OptiPlex 990 MT as it has the ability to run 16 GB of RAM. The Dell Vostro 260 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 990 MT has 10 USB ports. The Dell Vostro 260 is inferior in this regard and packs 8 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.
Unfortunately, only the Dell OptiPlex 990 MT has a DisplayPort. The Dell Vostro 260 does not have one? Don't worry though, nowadays video adapters are cheap and you can get almost any combination of conversion types.
The Dell Vostro 260 comes with an HDMI port, while the Dell OptiPlex 990 MT 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 slots are located on the motherboard and it is where SSD, HDD and Optical Disk Drives are connected. Each of the two models being compared have 4 SATA slot(s). Keep in mind that having too few SATA slots might limit your options for connecting additional memory drives.
M.2 SSD interface allows you to transfer data with higher speeds compared to the old SATA interface. Unfortunately, neither the Dell OptiPlex 990 MT, nor the Dell Vostro 260 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 Dell OptiPlex 990 MT comes with a decent 265 Watt PSU, but the Dell Vostro 260 has a more powerful one rated at 300 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
