Alienware Area 51 R2 vs. HP EliteDesk 800 G1 SFF

Comparison and Differences

Alienware_Area_51_R2.jpg case front and back pannelHP_EliteDesk_800_G1_SFF.jpg case front and back pannel
Model
Form factorMid TowerSmall
CPU optionsIntel Gen5&6 i7 Extreme/K; Xeon E5-v3/v4Intel Gen4 i3/i5/i7; Celeron; Pentium;
ChipsetX99 ExpressQ87
Dedicated GPU *GeForce RTX 2080 TiGeForce GTX 1650 Low Profile
RAMDIMM DDR4-2133/2667DIMM DDR3-1600
RAM slots44
RAM speed2667 MT/s1600 MT/s
RAM max64 GB32 GB
USB ports(6x) USB 3.0 Type A; (4x) USB-A 2.0;(4x)USB-A 3.0; (6x)USB-A 2.0;
Video portsN/A(2x) DisplayPort 1.2; VGA;
Other portsRJ45; Headset; Line-Out; Line-In; S/PDFI optical/analog; Card Reader;Serial; (2x) PS2; RJ45; Hdph; Mic; Line-Out; Line-In;
Optional portsN.A.Media card reader (USB 3.0); Serial; Parallel;
SATA ports63
PCI slots(x2) PCIe 3.0 x16; (x2) PCIe 3.0 x4;PCIe 3.0 x16; (2x) PCIe 2.0 x1; PCIe 2.0 x16 (wired x4);
M.2 slotsM.2 2230 (WiFi/BT);N.A.
Drive bays(2x) 2.5in; (x3) 3.25in; 5.25in;2.5in; (2x) 3.5in; 5.25in; 5.25in (slim)
PSU850/1500 W320 W
Weight28 kg (61.73 lbs)7.6 kg (16.75 lb)
Released20182013
Manuallinklink
Price**Check PriceCheck Price

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* 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 Alienware Area 51 R2 and HP EliteDesk 800 G1 SFF

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 HP EliteDesk 800 G1 SFF is older and entered production in 2013.

If you are looking for the smaller form factor the HP EliteDesk 800 G1 SFF is the right one for you. It is smaller than the Alienware Area 51 R2 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 HP EliteDesk 800 G1 SFF is bad - it can still run some powerful CPUs, albeit being an older generation.

Memory

Both models have have equal amount of ram slots (4 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.

The Alienware Area 51 R2 is using the faster 2667 MT/s RAM. The HP EliteDesk 800 G1 SFF is slower by supporting RAM speeds of up to 1600 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 HP EliteDesk 800 G1 SFF 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 HP EliteDesk 800 G1 SFF 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 HP EliteDesk 800 G1 SFF 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 HP EliteDesk 800 G1 SFF 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 HP EliteDesk 800 G1 SFF comes with a decent 320 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

Alienware_Area_51_R2_motherboard.jpg motherboard layoutHP_EliteDesk_800_G1_SFF_motherboard.jpg motherboard layout