Side note: It is good if the available M.2 slots support the PCIe/NVMe interface. Unfortunately, the Dell OptiPlex 980 SFF doesn't come with one and you will need to rely on the good old SATA.

Sometimes the M.2 interface will be 5 times faster or more. The M.2 SSD interface allows you to transfer data with higher speeds compared to the old SATA interface.

Think about your use case and decide if the SATA slots provided by this model will be sufficient. Keep in mind that having too few SATA slots might restrict your options for connecting additional memory drives. The Dell OptiPlex 980 SFF comes with 235 SATA slot(s). SATA slots are located on the system board and it is where HDD, SSD and Optical Disk Drives are connected. It is not a problem if there is a DisplayPort is available. However, the Dell OptiPlex 980 SFF doesn't have one. It has very similar capabilities to the DisplayPort with few exceptions. HDMI port is another digital video port which allows you to connect external monitors. Try to always aim for the higher versions of DP as it allows for better resolutions and refresh rates. The version of this DisplayPort is also important. It is good to see that the Dell OptiPlex 980 SFF is featuring a DisplayPort. If you need a faster connection for your peripherals, like external Solid State Drive, you will need to choose another model.ĭisplayPort (DP) is crucial for any desktop machine as it allows you to connect external monitors. Unfortunately, this model doesn't come with a USB 3.1 port. Higher version of USBs support faster transfer speeds. Having more USB ports is always better, but also pay attention to the version of those USB ports. The Dell OptiPlex 980 SFF comes with 10 USB ports in total. Before buying, considering your use case and plann for extension ports in advance. For example, if you don't have enough USB ports, using external devices becomes problematic. Ports are something important that people should pay more attention to. The Dell OptiPlex 980 SFF supports a maximum of 16 GB of RAM. For everything else, go for 16GB and more. For everyday work and light gaming we recommend 8GB of RAM. If this happens often, you may see significant drop in performance. It is important not to run out of RAM memory during everyday work. Size of the RAM is another important parameter. In case you want faster RAM speeds, you will need to upgrade your system with a newer generation one. The motherboard of the Dell OptiPlex 980 SFF supports RAM speeds of up to 1333 MT/s. This is important for the overall speed of your system. This should be sufficient for anyone especially for power users who will need significant amounts of RAM.įaster RAM speeds permit your processor to access the data stored in the RAM memory faster. Most desktops will have two to four slots. MemoryĪ RAM slot (also called memory socket) is where RAM memory sticks are inserted into the computer. The Dell OptiPlex 980 SFF supports Gen1 Intel Core technology.

Dell optiplex 780 motherboard specs