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Dell PowerEdge C- Series vs HPE Apollo Systems comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 3, 2026

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Dell PowerEdge C- Series
Ranking in Density Optimized Servers
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
42
Ranking in other categories
Blade Servers (6th)
HPE Apollo Systems
Ranking in Density Optimized Servers
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
5.0
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
Rack Servers (9th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Density Optimized Servers category, the mindshare of Dell PowerEdge C- Series is 19.0%, down from 24.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of HPE Apollo Systems is 21.2%, up from 19.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Density Optimized Servers Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Dell PowerEdge C- Series19.0%
HPE Apollo Systems21.2%
Other59.8%
Density Optimized Servers
 

Featured Reviews

Sanjay Singh Bisht - PeerSpot reviewer
Assistant Manager - Datacenter at a outsourcing company with 51-200 employees
High-density servers have maximized compute efficiency and have powered critical workloads reliably
Regarding how Dell PowerEdge C- Series can be improved, I would highlight a couple of areas. While it's excellent for dense and scale-out workloads, it isn't perfect for every scenario, and the complex I/O and component upgrades pose challenges since each server node is compressed into a narrow removable sled, making physical space inside the node tight. Replacing components requires pulling the entire node out and dismantling the protective casing. PCI expansion is also limited compared to standard 2U single-node servers such as the PowerEdge R700 series, which can hold up to eight PCI slots. Dell PowerEdge C- Series typically supports only two to three slots, restricting the addition of multiple specialized network interface cards. Finally, the initial capital expenditure is heavy; acquiring a PowerEdge C chassis and its multiple sleds requires significant upfront commitment, making it less cost-efficient if you need one or two nodes now, as you generally need to commit to the ecosystem upfront.
Gökhan  DURMAZ - PeerSpot reviewer
Account Manager at TD SYNNEX
High-quality integration and strong support have optimized our rack server operations
HPE Apollo Systems is a good product because it has better support and best quality with integrity. When I speak about integrity, I speak about GPU integration or other integrations such as GPU integration, backup software integration, and hypervisor integration. Regarding the integration of high-speed interconnectors in HPE Apollo Systems, they impact computational tasks because the high-speed interconnect affects performance. I don't remember the specifics. Regarding the cooling technologies, they help to reduce operational costs. The positive impact I see from HPE Apollo Systems is that support is good and quality is good. In general, HPE Apollo Systems appears to be for rack servers with some optimization capabilities.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"PowerEdge C is the best server I have worked with. I like that it's user-friendly. PowerEdge C performs very well."
"Every new version is better than the previous one."
"PowerEdge serves as the server solution for installations and processing in our data center and provides the necessary infrastructure for our operations."
"The scalability of the product is good since it offers high performance and capacity."
"Using Dell PowerEdge C- Series has helped to reduce unplanned production downtime because we configure it redundantly with redundant configurations."
"The product's initial setup phase was easy."
"The solution's ease of use is its most valuable aspect for our organization, with user-friendly management, very good security, fair pricing, and useful new features added with every release."
"With the tool, we can easily upgrade and ensure compatibility between operating systems, hardwares and drivers. Among other features, the hardware also stands out because it is certified and aligns with the processor manufacturers like Intel. This enables them to offer the latest options which are not available with other suppliers."
"My advice for someone considering HPE Apollo Systems is that if they are looking for consolidation and their workload involves high availability requirements, or if they want to utilize GPUs, then this is a machine that should be considered instead of deploying multiple machines and multiple systems."
"HPE Apollo's pricing is low, and implementation is very easy compared to other products."
"The cost benefit of this solution is most valuable."
"Stability has been extremely good."
"We usually use three blades for two-rack units, and with enough storage, it's really a small system with a powerful CPU, powerful hard drives, powerful disks."
"The solution is well documented in a data sheet."
"It's pretty flexible. You can choose how much storage you put on the server. You can have one to three nodes, depending on whether you want more CPU or storage."
"Not having to manage traditional NAS has made a big difference."
 

Cons

"There is no return on investment or cost reductions in the long run after implementing Dell PowerEdge C- Series."
"Using Dell PowerEdge C- Series has not affected the overall flexibility of my operations or business."
"Cost is an important factor needing improvement. The pricing of PowerEdge solutions is very high nowadays."
"The VxRail should be opened to allow other virtualization platforms to be used."
"It would be better if it worked with SMTP servers on the cloud. Right now, it only allows notifications via the SMTP server. In the next release, I would like to have a better processor."
"There is some trouble with the stability part of the product, making it an area where improvements are required."
"So far, the accuracy and reliability of output with Dell PowerEdge C- Series are acceptable; I find 70% satisfactory, but I still need another year to make a complete determination."
"Customer service and support have been generally helpful but can be slow due to the need to navigate different specialists."
"There is a shared battery for all cache controllers in the node. When you have to replace that element, you have to take down all three nodes and not just one."
"I would want to see the flexibility of being able to run various network protocols including InfiniBand, Fibre Channel, as well as iSCSI, with iSCSI going up to 100 gigabytes per second - that would be outstanding."
"We have tried to used standardization using Ubuntu Linux and it's been hard. They had some difficulties getting the RAID configuration up and running because there are no drivers for it. It's not supported by HPE."
"One drawback which I had: When I needed to expand storage on the Apollo, I had significant problems getting disks for it. It was a very long wait-time. So, if I were to give any advice in regards to improving this product, I would say make more of the 8TB disks available quicker."
"We are struggling a little bit with some of the configuration we need to do, particularly with write capability to drives."
"The technical support for HPE Apollo Systems could be improved."
"If there's anything that hasn't been that stable, then it is the Lustre file system."
"We would like to see improved cooling because that is quite an issue. If you put that much compute power into a single rack, cooling really becomes an issue. And there is room for improvement there."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"PowerEdge C is a reasonably priced product, and the pricing depends on how many years you need the product. The cost also includes the support."
"There is a need to pay towards the annual subscription-based licensing model offered by the solution. The product is moderately priced. Price is a critical issue, and it is always good to have moderately priced solutions."
"PowerEdge C is a product that is priced at a medium range, so it is not too expensive."
"PowerEdge C is very expensive, but personally, I think it's worth the price."
"We buy licenses for the solution's advanced features."
"When we talk about pricing it is the cheapest on the market that I have found."
"The product costs can be high, especially for disks and other components."
"Despite the slightly higher price, we prefer Dell due to the high quality of their products."
"Obviously I would like to see the cost go down. That speaks for itself."
"The price of the solution is more expensive than Dell which is their main competitor. However, there are times we have managed to receive a comparable price."
"It is an expensive solution but it is worth the money. The standard licensing cost is for the GPU and the features that someone is using. There are additional charges but they depend on the solution."
"Compared to other products, HPE Apollo is not an expensive solution."
"There is an annual license required to use HPE Apollo."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Outsourcing Company
25%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Construction Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
6%
Outsourcing Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business26
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise15
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise15
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for PowerEdge C?
I purchased from Dell directly. Dell has given a special discount for that purchase and the support is always a positive factor from Dell's side. We got instant support whenever it was required and...
What needs improvement with PowerEdge C?
The main area for improvement in Dell PowerEdge C- Series is the booting time, as when we power on, it takes time.
What is your primary use case for PowerEdge C?
Dell PowerEdge C- Series is a hardware server installed in my organization. I use it as a hardware server installed in our data center, and we are running our Active Directory and file server for o...
What needs improvement with HPE Apollo?
It is too early to say what improvements HPE Apollo Systems could implement because the report still needs to come out and the customer needs to properly evaluate the solution.
What is your primary use case for HPE Apollo?
My main use case for HPE Apollo Systems is replacing many of the servers and storage boxes at one of the customer's sites to achieve workload optimization and optimized solutions. Additionally, whe...
What advice do you have for others considering HPE Apollo?
My advice for someone considering HPE Apollo Systems is that if they are looking for consolidation and their workload involves high availability requirements, or if they want to utilize GPUs, then ...
 

Also Known As

No data available
HP Apollo Systems, HP ProLiant SL, HP Apollo
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

NxtGen Datacenter, Medien-Service Untermain (MSU), Exasol, IndigoVision, Dayco
Weta Digital
Find out what your peers are saying about Dell PowerEdge C- Series vs. HPE Apollo Systems and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
913,924 professionals have used our research since 2012.