HP ProDesk 400 G4 Microtower vs. HP ProDesk 480 G5 Microtower
Comparison and Differences
Differences between HP ProDesk 400 G4 Microtower and HP ProDesk 480 G5 Microtower
If you are looking for a more modern desktop, then you should go with the HP ProDesk 480 G5 Microtower which was released in 2018. The HP ProDesk 400 G4 Microtower 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 HP ProDesk 480 G5 Microtower as it is running a newer generation CPU. This is not to say that HP ProDesk 400 G4 Microtower is bad - it can still run some powerful CPUs, albeit being an older generation.
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.
The HP ProDesk 480 G5 Microtower is using the faster 2666 MT/s RAM. The HP ProDesk 400 G4 Microtower is slower by supporting RAM speeds of up to 2400 MT/s. Additionally, if you will be needing a lot of RAM, better go for the HP ProDesk 400 G4 Microtower as it has the ability to run 64 GB of RAM. The HP ProDesk 480 G5 Microtower 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 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.
The DisplayPort is usually the more popular video port used with desktops and laptops, while the HDMI is used predominantly in consumer electronics. That's why, it is good to see that both of the models come with a DisplayPort.
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 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 3 SATA slot(s). Keep in mind that having too few SATA slots might limit your options for connecting additional memory drives.
If you want the fastest transfer speeds for your SSD, an M.2 interface is crucial. Thus, if the M.2 SSD slot is a mandatory requirement for you, go with the HP ProDesk 480 G5 Microtower. Sadly, the HP ProDesk 400 G4 Microtower has no such slot, and you will be forced to use the SATA interface instead.
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 310 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
