Dell XPS 8500 vs. HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Tower

Comparison and Differences

Dell_XPS_8500.jpg case front and back pannelHP_EliteDesk_800_G6_Tower.jpg case front and back pannel
Model
Form factorMini TowerMini Tower
CPU optionsIntel Gen2 & 3 i3/i5/i7;Intel Gen10 i3/i5/i7/i9; Celeron; Pentium;
ChipsetH77Q470
Dedicated GPU *GeForce GTX 1650 SuperGeForce GTX 1660 Super
RAMDIMM DDR3-1333/1600 DIMM DDR4-2933
RAM slots44
RAM speed1600 MT/s2933 MT/s
RAM max32 GB128 GB
USB ports(8x) USB-A 2.0; USB 3.0;USB-C 3.1; (4x)USB-A 3.1; (4x)USB-A 3.0; (2x)USB-A 2.0;
Video portsHDMI 1.2; VGA;(2x) DisplayPort;
Other portsRJ45; S/PDIF; Mic; Headset;RJ45; Hdph; Headset; Line-Out;
Optional portsN.A.DP1.4/ HDMI2.0a/ VGA/ USB-C(DP1.4)/ (2x)USB-A 3.0/ LAN/ Thunderbolt3; Serial; SD card reader;
SATA ports44
PCI slotsPCIe 3.0 x16; (x3) PCIe x1; mPCIe;PCIe 3.0 x16; (2x) PCIe 3.0 x1; PCIe 3.0 x16 (wired x4);
M.2 slotsN.A.(2x) M.2 2280/2230 M-key (PCIe x4); M.2 2230 (WiFi/BT);
Drive bays(2x) 3.5in; (2x) 5.25in; mSATA;2.5in; (2x) 3.5in; 5.25in; 5.25in (slim);
PSU460 W260/550 W
Weight13.8 kg (30.42 lb)9.86 kg (21.74 lb)
Released20122020
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 XPS 8500 and HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Tower

If you are looking for a more modern desktop, then you should go with the HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Tower which was released in 2020. The Dell XPS 8500 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 HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Tower as it is running a newer generation CPU. This is not to say that Dell XPS 8500 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 HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Tower is using the faster 2933 MT/s RAM. The Dell XPS 8500 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 HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Tower as it has the ability to run 128 GB of RAM. The Dell XPS 8500 can do a bit less at max 32 GB. Most of the times, this should be sufficient for the majority of users.

Ports

In total the HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Tower has 11 USB ports. The Dell XPS 8500 is inferior in this regard and packs 9 USB ports. In any case, if you miss USB ports, you can always purchase a USB hub. What is nice about the HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Tower, is that it has 5 USB 3.1 port(s) which allows transfer of up to 10Gb/s. Unfortunately, the Dell XPS 8500 has no such port, thus restricting your transfer speeds significantly. For people who want to use external drives on regular basis, this might be an issue.

Unfortunately, only the HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Tower has a DisplayPort. The Dell XPS 8500 does not have one? Don't worry though, nowadays video adapters are cheap and you can get almost any combination of conversion types.

The Dell XPS 8500 comes with an HDMI port, while the HP EliteDesk 800 G6 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 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.

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 EliteDesk 800 G6 Tower. Sadly, the Dell XPS 8500 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

Having a Power Supply Unit with high power rating is important, if you are going to use components which require extra power. The Dell XPS 8500 comes with a decent 460 Watt PSU, but the HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Tower has a more powerful one rated at 550 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_XPS_8500_motherboard.jpg motherboard layoutHP_EliteDesk_800_G6_Tower_motherboard.jpg motherboard layout