Dell Vostro 3900 vs. Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Tower

Comparison and Differences

Dell_Vostro_3900.jpg case front and back pannel

Lenovo_ThinkCentre_M82_Tower.jpg case front and back pannel

Model
Form factor	Mini Tower	Mini Tower
CPU options	Intel Gen4 i3/i5/i7; Pentium; Celeron;	Intel Gen2&3 i3/i5/i7; Celeron; Pentium;
Chipset	H81	Q75
Dedicated GPU *	GeForce GTX 1660 Super	GeForce GTX 1660 Super
RAM	DIMM DDR3-1600	DIMM DDR3-1600
RAM slots	2	4
RAM speed	1600 MT/s	1600 MT/s
RAM max	16 GB	32 GB
USB ports	(6x)USB-A 2.0; (2x)USB-A 3.0;	(4x)USB-A 3.0; (4x)USB-A 2.0;
Video ports	HDMI 1.2; VGA;	DisplayPort; VGA;
Other ports	RJ45; Hdph; (2x) Mic; Line-Out; Line-In; PS2	RJ45; Hdph; (2x) Mic; Line-Out; Line-In; Serial;
Optional ports	N/A	DisplayPort; (2x) PS2; Serial; Media card reader (USB 2.0);
SATA ports	4	4
PCI slots	PCIe 2.0 x16; (2x) PCIe 2.0 x1; PCI	PCIe 2.0 x16; PCIe 2.0 x1; (2x) PCI;
M.2 slots	N.A.	N.A.
Drive bays	3.5in; 5.25in;	(2x) 2.5/3.5in; (2x) 5.25in;
PSU	300 W	ATX 280/450 W
Weight	8.50 kg (18.73 lbs)	11 kg (24.25 lb)
Released	2014	2012
Manual	link	link
Price**	Check Price	Check Price

** As an Amazon associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
* Dedicated GPU warning: Check if your particular power supply model has enough power. Additionally some PSUs don't come with an auxiliary PCIe power connector and you may need to buy a SATA to PCIe power adapter.

Differences between Dell Vostro 3900 and Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Tower

If you are looking for a more modern desktop, then you should go with the Dell Vostro 3900 which was released in 2014. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Tower is older and entered production in 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

The Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Tower has 4 RAM slots while the Dell Vostro 3900 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 1600. Additionally, if you will be needing a lot of RAM, better go for the Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Tower as it has the ability to run 32 GB of RAM. The Dell Vostro 3900 can do a bit less at max 16 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 8. 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 Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Tower has a DisplayPort. The Dell Vostro 3900 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 3900 comes with an HDMI port, while the Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 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 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 Vostro 3900, nor the Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 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 Dell Vostro 3900 comes with a decent 300 Watt PSU, but the Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Tower has a more powerful one rated at 450 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.