Alienware Aurora R12 Desktop vs. ASUS ProArt Station PD5 - PD500TC
Here is a side by side comparison between Alienware Aurora R12 Desktop and ASUS ProArt Station PD5 - PD500TC specs including price, processors, memory, graphics, storage, ports, and more.
Dual-channel DDR4 2933 MHz, 3200 MHz, or 3400 MHz.
4 x UDIMM slots with up to 32GB per slot.
Memory Slots: 4 DIMM slots
Memory Type: Single or Dual Channel DDR4 Memory
Memory Speed:
3200MHz
Memory Per Slot:
8GB16GB32GB
Memory Configurations
8GB16GB32GB64GB128GB
3200 MHz Dual-Channel DDR4 memory.
Storage
256GB512GB1TB2TB
M.2 PCIe NVME SSD
1TB2TB
7200 rpm 3.5" SATA Hard Drive
256GB512GB1TB2TB
M.2 PCIe NVME SSD
1TB2TB
7200 RPM 3.5” SATA HDD
Slots
2 x PCIe x16 slots
2 x PCIe x4 slots
4 x SATA slots
1 x M.2 2242/2260/2280 slot
For solid-state drive/Intel Optane memory
1 x M.2 2230 slot
For WiFi and Bluetooth combo card
Expansion Slots
1 x PCIe x16 slot
PCIe Gen 4.0, Full-height
2 x PCIe x1 slot
PCIe Gen 3.0, Full-height
SATA
6 x SATA slots
For HDD and SSD.
M.2
1 x M.2 2230 slot
For WiFi and Bluetooth combo card
2 x M.2 2230/2280 slot
For NVMe PCIe SSD
Connectivity
Alienware Aurora R12 Desktop
ASUS ProArt Station PD5 - PD500TC
Wi-Fi
Qualcomm QCA9377 (DW1810)
Up to 433 MbpsDual band 2.4 GHz/5 GHzWiFi-5 (802.11ac)Bluetooth 5.0
Intel AX201
Up to 2400 MbpsDual band 2.4 GHz/5 GHzWiFi-6 (802.11ax)Bluetooth 5.1
Killer AX1650i
Up to 2400 MbpsDual band 2.4 GHz/5 GHzWiFi-6 (802.11ax)Bluetooth 5.1
Wi-Fi 5
Dual band 2.4 GHz/5 GHzWiFi-5 (802.11ac)Bluetooth 5.2
Wi-Fi 6
Dual band 2.4 GHz/5 GHzWiFi-6 (802.11ax)Bluetooth 5.2
Bluetooth
Bluetooth 5.0Bluetooth 5.1
Bluetooth 5.0
Ethernet
Killer E3100 PCIe Gigabit Ethernet controller
10/100/1000/2500 Mbps.
Gigabit Ethernet controller
10/100/1000 Mbps.
Software
Alienware Aurora R12 Desktop
ASUS ProArt Station PD5 - PD500TC
OS
Windows 10 Home
Windows 10 Pro
Windows 11 Home
Windows 11 Pro
Built-in Apps
Alienware Command CenterDell Digital DeliveryDell Mobile ConnectDell Recovery EnvironmentDropBoxMicrosoft® Office 30 Day Trial
ProArt Creator HubMy ASUSOffice 30-day Trial
Camera & Audio
Alienware Aurora R12 Desktop
ASUS ProArt Station PD5 - PD500TC
Audio
No Speakers
Audio controller
Realtek ALC3861
External Ports
7.1 channel output
Microphone-in
Stereo headphones
Headset combo connector
Audio controller
High Definition 7.1 Channel Audio
External Ports
1 x Combo audio port
Front
3 x Audio ports
7.1 channel audio
Misc
Alienware Aurora R12 Desktop
ASUS ProArt Station PD5 - PD500TC
Security
BIOS Booting User Password Protection
HDD User Password Protection and Security
McAfee LiveSafe™ 30-day trial
Trusted Platform Module (Firmware TPM)
In the box
Optional
Wireless optical mouse
Wired optical mouse
Wireless keyboard
Wired keyboard
3.5" HDD assembly kit
Warranty
1 Year Hardware Warranty with Onsite/In-Home Service After Remote Diagnosis
Alienware Aurora R12 Desktop vs. ASUS ProArt Station PD5 - PD500TC
The Alienware Aurora R12 Desktop and the ASUS ProArt Station PD5 - PD500TC were released in the same year, 2021. Both systems share the same full-tower form factor that can accommodate a large motherboard, multiple graphics cards, extra storage, and better cooling solution.
Processor
The Central Processing Unit (CPU) is like the brains of your desktop computer. Its performance determines how fast and responsive your PC is. Generally, a processor with newer architecture, more CPU cores, higher TDP (measured in W), and faster clock speed (measured in GHz) tends to be more expensive and run faster than others with older architecture, fewer CPU cores, lower TDP, and lower clock speed.
For Alienware Aurora R12 Desktop, you have options to configure it with a 65W 11th Generation Intel Rocket Lake 6-core Intel Core i5-11400 up to a 125W 8-core Intel Core i9-11900KF with a boost speed up to 5.30 GHz.
While ASUS ProArt Station PD5 - PD500TC has configurations with a 65W 11th Generation Intel Rocket Lake 6-core Intel Core i5-11500 up to a 65W 8-core Intel Core i9-11900 with a boost speed up to 5.20 GHz.
Memory
The Random Access Memory or RAM is the super-fast and temporary storage used to handle all active tasks, apps, and games that will go away when your PC turns off. The more memory your PC has, the better multitasking your PC can handle without having to reload data from slower permanent storage that includes the hard disk drive or solid-state drive.
Both PCs have the same amount of four RAM slots meaning that you upgrade later if you are unsatisfied with the amount of memory on your PC. You can upgrade memory on Alienware Aurora R12 Desktop up to 64GB of 3400MHz dual-channel DDR4 memory. For ASUS ProArt Station PD5 - PD500TC, it supports up to 128GB of 3200MHz dual-channel DDR4 memory.
Ports
Computer ports are the interface for connecting your PC to its peripheral devices or other PCs. The most common peripherals are keyboard, mouse, monitor, flash drive, speaker, and printer. Most of them use Universal Serial Bus (USB) as their connection to your computer. So the PC with more USB ports can connect to more peripherals at the same time.
There is a total number of 15 USB ports available on the Alienware Aurora R12 Desktop, six more than the ASUS ProArt Station PD5 - PD500TC that has only 9 USB ports. On top of the number of USB ports, the type and version of each USB port are also necessary for determining how fast it is.
The Alienware Aurora R12 Desktop has thirteen USB Type-A ports and two USB Type-C ports. It has six ports that support USB 2.0 (480 Mbps), seven ports that support USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps), and two ports that support USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps).
For ASUS ProArt Station PD5 - PD500TC, it has eight USB Type-A ports and one USB Type-C port. The PC has two ports that support USB 2.0 (480 Mbps) and seven ports that support USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps).
