Dell OptiPlex 5070M vs. Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tower

Differences between Dell OptiPlex 5070M and Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tower

If you are looking for a more modern desktop, then you should go with the Dell OptiPlex 5070M which was released in 2019. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tower is older and entered production in 2012.

If you are looking for the smaller form factor the Dell OptiPlex 5070M is the right one for you. It is smaller than the Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tower 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 Dell OptiPlex 5070M 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 OptiPlex 5070M 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 OptiPlex 5070M 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. What is nice about the Dell OptiPlex 5070M, is that it has 1 USB 3.1 port(s) which allows transfer of up to 10Gb/s. Unfortunately, the Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tower 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 Dell OptiPlex 5070M has a DisplayPort. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tower does not have one? Don't worry though, nowadays video adapters are cheap and you can get almost any combination of conversion types.

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 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 OptiPlex 5070M has 1 slot(s).

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 Dell OptiPlex 5070M. Sadly, the Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tower 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 OptiPlex 5070M comes with a decent 90 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