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XPS, Alien or Precision Desktop
I run a solo tax and accounting practice and at any one moment working with multiple clients invariably I'll have open multiple pdfs, excel spreadsheets, word docs, online tax and actg programs, emails, three monitors etc., I have tried various high-end mobile workstations, and all have bogged down.
I now explore Dell desktops, and I have contacted three Dell sales reps. One suggested an XPS because of the multitasking. Another suggested the Alien because of its advanced graphics will combat the pdfs. The third recommended the Precision because of the multitasking. Very confusing. Any thoughts ?
fireberd
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October 13th, 2017 04:00
The Precision is sold for commercial (business) workstation operations. The XPS is the high end consumer/home user model and the Alienware is Dell's "gaming" line. There is another option, the OptiPlex line which is also sold as a business application system and should be considered.
For your use I would think a business line system would be more appropriate.
ejn63
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October 13th, 2017 06:00
Go with the OptiPlex or Precision line AND Pro/Gold Support. It's the timing of service that differentiates the system - the XPS and Alienware models are sold for consumer use - they are not supported like the Precision and OptiPlex models are.
Desktop systems are still inherently faster than mobile ones - mobile CPUs and GPUs are optimized for power economy over outright performance.
It sounds like a Precision workstation is in order for this workload - make sure the boot device is a solid state drive and that it has at least 16 G (if not 32) of memory. If your're really running three simultaneous displays, also get as much GPU horsepower as you can afford.
mhinze
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October 13th, 2017 18:00
Thank you for the concise response. The sales reps were hitting on the fact that notably Alien has the dedicated graphics to combat the pdfs that house clients broker statements etc ( often exceeding 20,000KB). So I see taking your advise adding on to it robust graphics.
mhinze
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October 13th, 2017 18:00
Thank you