Acer Veriton ES2740g vs. Dell OptiPlex 3040 SFF

Comparison and Differences

Acer_Veriton_ES2740g.jpg case front and back pannelDell_OptiPlex_3040_SFF.jpg case front and back pannel
Model
Form factorMini TowerSmall
CPU optionsIntel Gen10 i3/i5/i7Intel Gen6 i3/i5; Pentium; Celeron;
ChipsetH410H110
Dedicated GPU *GeForce GTX 1650 SuperGeForce GT 1030 Low Profile
RAMUDIMM DDR4-2666DIMM DDR3L-1600
RAM slots22
RAM speed2666 MT/s1600 MT/s
RAM max32 GB16 GB
USB ports(4x) USB-A 3.0; (4x) USB-A 2.0(4x) USB-A 3.0; (4x) USB-A 2.0;
Video portsHDMI 1.2; VGADisplay Port 1.2; HDMI 1.4;
Other portsRJ45; (2x) Mic, Speaker; Line in; Line outRJ45; Headset; Line-Out;
Optional portsSerialSerial+PS2; VGA; Media Card Reader;
SATA ports22
PCI slotsPCIe 3.0 x16PCIe 3.0 x16; PCIe 3.0 x1;
M.2 slotsM.2 2280/2230 M-key (PCIe 3.0 x4, NVMe); M.2 2230 (WiFi/BT)N.A.
Drive bays2.5/3.5in; 5.25 inch3.5in/2.5in; 5.25in (slim);
PSU180 W180 W
Weight8.00 kg (17.62 lb)6.1 kg (13.45 lb)
Released20192015
Manuallinklink
Price**Check PriceCheck 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 Acer Veriton ES2740g and Dell OptiPlex 3040 SFF

If you are looking for a more modern desktop, then you should go with the Acer Veriton ES2740g which was released in 2019. The Dell OptiPlex 3040 SFF is older and entered production in 2015.

If you are looking for the smaller form factor the Dell OptiPlex 3040 SFF is the right one for you. It is smaller than the Acer Veriton ES2740g 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 Acer Veriton ES2740g as it is running a newer generation CPU. This is not to say that Dell OptiPlex 3040 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 (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 Acer Veriton ES2740g is using the faster 2666 MT/s RAM. The Dell OptiPlex 3040 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 Acer Veriton ES2740g as it has the ability to run 32 GB of RAM. The Dell OptiPlex 3040 SFF 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 Dell OptiPlex 3040 SFF has a DisplayPort. The Acer Veriton ES2740g does not have one? Don't worry though, nowadays video adapters are cheap and you can get almost any combination of conversion types.

In case your monitor supports HDMI only, you will be happy to hear that both models come with an HDMI port.

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 2 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 Acer Veriton ES2740g. Sadly, the Dell OptiPlex 3040 SFF 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 180 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

Acer_Veriton_ES2740g_motherboard.jpg motherboard layoutDell_OptiPlex_3040_SFF_motherboard.jpg motherboard layout