Fun Purchase - All-In-One PC

 My recent purchase of a new Optiplex 3280 All-in-One was particularly satisfying.  Some long-running plans, wishful experiments, particular requirements and a great offer all came together to make the perfect buying experience.

My back & neck issues prevent me from using a laptop on the sofa or anywhere really; the ergonomics are intolerable.  Mix this with my mediocre eyesight and the fact that I almost always plug a laptop into the power socket and a smaller all-in-one PC makes total sense.  I had been toying with buying a 17" laptop but even then the screen is kind of small and the thermal characteristics would have annoyed me (given I never take it anywhere to leverage the portability).

About 18 months ago I bought a 14" 2-in-1 laptop with 1080p screen.  I found it a little hard to see and didn't mind passing it on to my child who needed a laptop.  This after installing 32Gb RAM and keeping the included 8Gb stick for future use.  I chose 1x8Gb instead of 2x4Gb on purpose to keep my options open (more on this later).

5 years ago I purchased a Samsung 850 Pro SSD which has built-in, hardware-based encryption and a 10 year warranty!  The encryption is handy because it frees the CPU of having to encrypt disk access (more efficient, quiet) and makes for a simpler OS install.  I expect the system is faster overall too, which will help offset the use of older, slower SATA storage.  Typing in a password at system startup is something I can live with however the Bitlocker + UEFI Bios option is pretty convenient I must say (no need to type in password).

The one problem with using built-in SSD encryption is it requires a Bios that supports ATA Passwords , and desktop motherboards typically do NOT.  Combine this with the left-over 8Gb laptop RAM and it's hard to not buy another laptop.

Having got fed up with my ancient, glitchy Lenovo x230, I was looking around for options.  Typically I stick to Inspiron laptops but on a whim I looked at Dell business all-in-ones.  This is what I found:

1. 21.5" screen (bit big but at least it's not 24" like Inspiron AIO)
2. touchscreen (great for multiple purposes and a neater finish)
3. 10th gen i5 (6 physical cores but still using older 2666Ghz RAM)
4. laptop hardware internals (I can use that left-over 8gb RAM and SSD built-in encryption)
5. business model (better build quality)
6. heavy discount (~35% off)

I couldn't use my motor association money-back offer or the $50off$1000PC Dell coupon, but I did find a $100 coupon online.  Not bad for 5 mins work!

Optiplex 3280 Front w/ Camera

Optiplex 3280 Side

So now I have an AIO PC and couldn't be happier.  I've actually wanted one for a little while but was unable to "take the plunge" until now.  It's a little heavier than I thought on account of all the metal in the chassis, but I'm glad it's sturdy.  My next move is to come up with a case to take it on holidays as the box it came in is way too big (they must use it for the 27" models too).  1080p on a 21.5" screen is a great combination; any bigger and the pixels are really obvious (at close range).  Oh, and I got my 32Gb RAM back off my child who now has each of the 2x8Gb RAM sticks from previous and this Dell purchase.

Upgraded SSD, RAM.  Metal Chassis

Had to suppress the logo; no free rides here Dell!

 

DIY splash guard for the kitchen (and suppressed logo - nail polish)

Some other minor things that also went my way:

1. Ubuntu 20.04 UEFI install (have had trouble with UEFI in the past, and have been on 18.04 Cinnamon till now)
2. Windows Pro OS might come in handy down the road
3. bought the port cover to protect when using in kitchen area (and you never know)
4. opted out of keyboard/mouse I'll never use (nice touch Dell!)
5. popup camera and microphone array mean good conference capabilities
6. suprisingly easy to open, 32Gb RAM works (it didn't in an XPS laptop)
7. got myself out of UEFI install failure issues (thanks to lessons learned from past failures)

Couple things that didn't go my way:

• Ubuntu 20.04 doesn't automatically overprovision the SSD (Lubuntu 18.04 does it!)
• Wifi issue; work-in-progress (keeps disconnecting).