Dell Vostro 3070 vs. Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tower

Comparison and Differences

Dell_Vostro_3070.jpg case front and back pannelLenovo_ThinkCentre_M72e_Tower.jpg case front and back pannel
Model
Form factorMini TowerMini Tower
CPU optionsIntel Gen8&9 i3/i5/i7/i9;Intel Gen2&3 i3/i5/i7; Celeron; Pentium;
ChipsetB360H61
Dedicated GPU *GeForce GTX 1660 SuperGeForce GTX 1660 Super
RAMDIMM DDR4-2400/2666DIMM DDR3-1600
RAM slots22
RAM speed2666 MT/s1600 MT/s
RAM max32 GB16 GB
USB ports(4x)USB-A 2.0; (2x)USB-A 3.0; (6x)USB-A 2.0;
Video portsHDMI 1.4; VGA;DVI-D; VGA;
Other portsRJ45; Hdph; Mic; Line-Out; Line-In;RJ45; Hdph; (2x) Mic; Line-Out; Line-In; Serial; (2x) PS2;
Optional portsN/AParallel; Serial; Media card reader (USB 2.0);
SATA ports13
PCI slotsN.A.PCIe 2.0 x16; (2x) PCIe 2.0 x1;
M.2 slotsN.A.N.A.
Drive bays3.5in;(2x) 2.5/3.5in; 5.25in;
PSU180 WATX 280/320 W
Weight5.2kg (11.46 lbs)9.4 kg (20.72 lb)
Released20192012
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 Dell Vostro 3070 and Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tower

If you are looking for a more modern desktop, then you should go with the Dell Vostro 3070 which was released in 2019. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e 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

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 Dell Vostro 3070 as it is running a newer generation CPU. This is not to say that Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tower 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 Dell Vostro 3070 is using the faster 2666 MT/s RAM. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tower 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 Dell Vostro 3070 as it has the ability to run 32 GB of RAM. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tower 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 6. 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.

Nowadays, almost every new computer comes equipped with a DisplayPort. However, none of the devices being compared here has one. Don't worry though, DisplayPort adapters are very cheap and you can get virtually any combination of conversion types.

The Dell Vostro 3070 comes with an HDMI port, while the Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e 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 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 Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tower is better equipped as it comes with 3 SATA slot(s), while the Dell Vostro 3070 has 1 slot(s).

M.2 SSD interface allows you to transfer data with higher speeds compared to the old SATA interface. Unfortunately, neither the Dell Vostro 3070, nor the Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e 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 3070 comes with a decent 180 Watt PSU, but the Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tower has a more powerful one rated at 320 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

Dell_Vostro_3070_motherboard.jpg motherboard layoutLenovo_ThinkCentre_M72e_Tower_motherboard.jpg motherboard layout