Proprietary parts in modern Dell desktops

Motherboard and psu are both proprietary in XPS 8940 and G5 5000.  They use non ATX form factor motherboard with 6 pin ATX socket and two 4 pin cpu.  PSU is TFX form factor.  Not possible for you to swap out motherboard or psu.  

G5 5000

XPS 8940

TFX psu

@Pro4x1 : in addition to the great info @redxps630 already posted, another issue is the shape of the motherboard, the fact that the front peripherals are built directly into it and that Dell use non-standard connections for the power button. So even swapping the mobo and PSU into a new case is a hassle. 

That being said, given the current graphics card prices and Dell's frequent discounts, getting a Dell prebuilt often makes financial sense. My G5 desktop came in only $50 more expensive than what I had priced together on pcpartpicker assuming MSRP prices for the RTX 3070 and the cheapest case, psu, cooler. So it was quite a deal. I'm going to keep it until prices calm down next year or so, and then upgrade case+mobo+psu+maybe CPU to whatever is the top at that time.

@Pro4x1 if you end up buying, I recommend going for the new 11600K CPU. Better single thread performance, and decent overclockability.

Regarding the PSU, honestly you don't need 600W for that config. I'm running a i9-10900 + RTX3070 on a 500W PSU and never got close to its max. The GPU goes up to 220W in games, but the CPU only takes up 60-70W, since games don't use many cores.

Thanks for the info guys it’s what I expected. I don’t even need a beast of a graphics card. What I need a a bit of a upgrade on the processor have i7 4770 want i5 10600 (I’m mostly looking for better single threaded performance) I have a 1060 want 1660 super or something like 2060 level for a fairly undemanding game at 1440p.  It would be nice if dell even offered a power supply upgrade. I looked on their site but say I wanted to upgrade from my 480 to a 600 watt doesn’t look like they offfer such a thing. 

Re: have i7 4770 want i5 10600 (mostly looking for better single threaded performance)

this implies you currently have an XPS 8700

single thread performance of i5 10600 is 2870 in PassMark, fairly close to that of i7-9700(K/F) or better still i9-9900 (K).  these cpu are supported by XPS 8930.

what if you consider upgrade 8700 to 8930 which is the last XPS still using standard microATX motherboard and standard ATX psu.  Or if you want to save and have more upgrade potential get a used 8930 motherboard + cpu to replace 8700 board (8910, 8920, 8930 use clam shell psu enclosure in proprietary case).

it is much easier to upgrade psu in 8700 or 8930.

XPS 8930

I think I’m just going to build my own. That way I have more flexibility in the future and it will give me something to do. Thanks if information all.

Also keep in mind Intel specs says 10th Gen Core i7/i9 CPUs limit RAM speed to max of 2933 MHz, even when 3200 MHz RAM is installed. And 10th Gen Core i3/i5 limit RAM speed to max of 2666 MHz. So that may change your mind about a 10th Gen i5 vs i7.

You'd have to get an 11th Gen CPU to support 3200 MHz RAM at that speed...

@Pro4x1  Ignore Intel and go for an AMD processor.  I've recently built a new computer using an AMD Ryzen 5 3400G and it really went well.  Building your own allows you to use memory at XMP profiles, which Dell doesn't allow.  Also with AMD the socket doesn't keep changing!  I chose the 'G' processor as it has integrated graphics so I can use the computer whilst I'm waiting to buy a graphics card at a reasonable price.  I'm using it for Linux Mint, so I'm not really missing a separate graphics card. 

Yes the 8940 has proprietary parts. I cannot wait to see what Dell does to the next model. 

all dell towers no longer follow standard form factors. you will unfortunately have to buy something else if you want any kind of longevity out of ur pc

Here is a good video on Dell build quality. it is from Gamers Nexus, one of the biggest PC channels on Youtube, with 1.65 million subscribers.

. TOS76>

Are we not allowed to post YouTube links here?

Do Dell's current XPS and G series desktops use proprietary parts? I'm looking for a new PC and debating whether to build or buy one. In the future, I'd like to be able to easily switch out MOBO, power supply, etc. Buying a prebuilt video card is a decent way to get a video card these days, as I will not overclock it. I would probably build my own cards if they were more readily available at MSRP.