Acer Veriton X2680g vs. Alienware Aurora R12

Comparison and Differences

Acer_Veriton_X2680g.jpg case front and back pannelAlienware_Aurora_R12.jpg case front and back pannel
Model
Form factorSmallMid Tower
CPU optionsIntel Gen11 i3/i5/i7; Pentium; CeleronIntel Gen11 i3/i5/i7/i9;
ChipsetB560Z490
Dedicated GPU *Radeon RX 6400 Low ProfileGeForce RTX 3090
RAMUDIMM DDR4-2933DIMM DDR4-3200/3400
RAM slots44
RAM speed2933 MT/s3400 MT/s
RAM max64 GB128 GB
USB ports(2x) USB-A 3.0; (4x) USB-A 2.0; (2x) USB-A 3.1(6x) USB 3.0 Type A; USB 3.0 Type C; (6x) USB-A 2.0; USB 3.1 Type C; USB 3.1 Type A;
Video portsDisplayPort 1.4; HDMI 2.0; VGAN/A
Other portsRJ45; (2x) Mic, Speaker; Line in; Line out; PS/2 ports; SerialRJ45; Headset; Line-Out; Line-In; S/PDFI optical/analog; Front, side, center, rare outputs;
Optional portsSerial; Parallel; Card readerDisplayPort
SATA ports44
PCI slotsPCIe 4.0 x16; (2x) PCIe 3.0 x1(x2) PCIe 3.0 x16; (x2) PCIe 3.0 x4;
M.2 slotsM.2 2280/2230 M-key (PCIe 4.0 x4, NVMe); M.2 2230 (WiFi/BT)M.2 2280/2230 M-key (PCIe 4.0 x4, NVMe); M.2 2230 (WiFi/BT);
Drive bays3.5in; 5.25 inch slim(2x) 2.5in; 3.25in;
PSU180/300 W550/1000 W
Weight5.00 kg (11.02 lb)17.80 kg (39.24 lb)
Released20212021
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 Acer Veriton X2680g and Alienware Aurora R12

Both computers, the Alienware Aurora R12 and the Acer Veriton X2680g, were released during the same year - 2021.

If you are looking for the smaller form factor the Acer Veriton X2680g is the right one for you. It is smaller than the Alienware Aurora R12 and will fit more easily under your desk.

Processor

The two models have the same generation of Intel processors. We think that the 11 generation of Intel Processors have enough power to execute all of the home and office tasks that most people will care to do.

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 Aurora R12 is using the faster 3400 MT/s RAM. The Acer Veriton X2680g is slower by supporting RAM speeds of up to 2933 MT/s. Additionally, if you will be needing a lot of RAM, better go for the Alienware Aurora R12 as it has the ability to run 128 GB of RAM. The Acer Veriton X2680g can do a bit less at max 64 GB. Most of the times, this should be sufficient for the majority of users.

Ports

In total the Alienware Aurora R12 has 15 USB ports. The Acer Veriton X2680g is inferior in this regard and packs 10 USB ports. In any case, if you miss USB ports, you can always purchase a USB hub. It's great that both of the models have USB 3.1 ports which will allow you to exchange data with your peripherals at up to 10Gb/s. But if you need maximum connectivity, go with the Alienware Aurora R12 as it has 3 USB3.1 ports (the Acer Veriton X2680g has 2).

Unfortunately, only the Acer Veriton X2680g has a DisplayPort. The Alienware Aurora R12 does not have one? Don't worry though, nowadays video adapters are cheap and you can get almost any combination of conversion types.

The Acer Veriton X2680g comes with an HDMI port, while the Alienware Aurora R12 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.

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

Having a Power Supply Unit with high power rating is important, if you are going to use components which require extra power. The Acer Veriton X2680g comes with a decent 300 Watt PSU, but the Alienware Aurora R12 has a more powerful one rated at 1000 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

Acer_Veriton_X2680g_motherboard.jpg motherboard layoutAlienware_Aurora_R12_motherboard.jpg motherboard layout