Dell offers the OptiPlex 740, a system from its business desktops
line, in minitower, desktop (horizontal orientation), and ultracompact
versions. The inexpensively configured minitower we tested ($1024 as of
05/09/2007) had an inoffensive design, using mostly matte-black plastic but
also a few shiny black pieces. The ultracompact version (which we did not look
at) takes up about one-third the space of the minitower, and with an adapter,
you can mount it on the back of Dell's 17-inch LCD monitor to save even more
space.
Hard drives mount perpendicularly to the side of the minitower
OptiPlex's case, in plastic sleds with rubber mounts to reduce vibration
(though the mounts use less rubber than we used to see in Dell systems). If you
pinch the sides of the mounts, the drives slide out easily; I had a slightly
harder time getting them back in, however. Clips on the side of the air scoop
route the SATA drive cables neatly, and the cables are precisely the right
length for their connectors to reach the drive bays. If you were to premount
drives in the sleds, you could probably have a new drive installed in less than
a minute.
Slots cut into the interior of the OptiPlex 740 case let you
slide optical drives in without screws; you simply press a button to pop the
front bezel off and release a drive. You can install or uninstall an expansion
card rapidly, thanks to a fairly good quick-release adapter; the power supply
comes out without tools, too. The case's side panel pops off when you pull a
lever (with a hefty integrated lock) on the top of the case. The Dell's side
panel is much easier to reattach than those of the other two systems: You
simply insert the panel's bottom edge into the side of the case and then tip
the panel up and slam it shut, instead of sliding it on.
The system we
reviewed did not have a chassis-intrusion-detection mechanism installed, but
Dell offers it as a no-cost option. You can buy a security sleeve for mounting
the desktop or ultracompact versions under a desk or on a wall, but with the
tower system, you'll have to rely on a cable lock.
The OptiPlex 740's
motherboard has an embedded Trusted Platform Module security chip; you can use
this chip along with the included software to encrypt passwords and document
folders. The chip works with Vista's Bit Locker security feature, which lets
you encrypt your entire hard drive.
The configuration we tested had
integrated graphics, and it allowed only a single, VGA-monitor connection,
though Dell sells an internal DVI adapter card for $10 that you can use to
connect dual displays. But if you're willing to spend a bit more money, you
might as well opt for discrete graphics: Dell charges just $64 for a 128MB ATI
1300 card. Our test configuration also included Dell's low-end 20-inch
wide-screen monitor, the E207WFP; we didn't subject it to a formal evaluation,
but it had no obvious visual flaws. The monitor does not allow height
adjustments or swiveling, however.
Adding a discrete graphics card might
help the system's overall performance, if only because it wouldn't steal from
system memory. Our test system had plenty of RAM, but in our WorldBench 6 Beta
2 tests, the OptiPlex 740's score of 70 only barely beat an identically
configured Lenovo 3000 J115. But while the OptiPlex earned a Superior rating
for performance, it was competing only against the J115 and an HP Compaq
dc5750--these three are the first Vista value systems we've tested. Compared
with the power Vista systems we've tested, all of these systems are quite
slow--the fastest Vista system we've tested to date scored a 129 on our
benchmark.
You can opt for the base 24/7 tech support and
next-business-day on-site warranty service, but Dell also offers same-day
on-site service for an extra $154 on a three-year plan. Dell trumpets that its
OptiPlex tech support lines are based in North America (unlike those for its
Dimension products). The company offers a special deal that guarantees access
to tech support in 2 minutes or less for $69 extra--but Lenovo promises
1-minute-or-less access at no extra cost with its systems. Dell scored average
in nearly all areas of our most recent
reliability and service
survey, except for a below-average mark for its phone hold time (so
perhaps that 2-minute deal is worth buying).
The OptiPlex 740 is far
from the fastest Vista system you can buy, but its innovative, quiet case
design makes it a top choice among business systems, especially if noise
reduction is a priority for your office.
Alan
Stafford