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Dell PowerEdge FX [EOL] 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 FX [EOL]
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
8.1
Number of Reviews
13
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
HPE Apollo Systems
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
5.0
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
Rack Servers (9th), Density Optimized Servers (2nd)
 

Featured Reviews

MP
IT Lead at Meditab Software, Inc.
Offers a user-friendly interface and saves costs in data centers
Dell PowerEdge FX is very good and user-friendly, with a console that is easy to manage, and it is budget-friendly compared to other products. Dell PowerEdge FX has made management very good and easy for us, and we have created virtual machines on these PowerEdge servers as well. The modular design of Dell PowerEdge FX is very beneficial for our IT operations because it is small and compact, fitting easily into our data center rack while saving physical space and power. They have a capable technical support team that helps to resolve issues, and their regular updates to hardware components and communication keep us up to date with challenges. Dell PowerEdge FX has some features that we noticed for supporting AI initiatives or data-intensive applications, but we are planning to explore all the features in depth.
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

"The power efficiency is very good and nice."
"It has extremely high performance, and it is easy to manage."
"The most valuable feature of Dell PowerEdge FX is you can customize the solution to your specifications, such as speed. Additionally, part orders are shipped and received quickly when a part needs to be replaced."
"What differentiates PowerEdge from competing racks I've used is its compactness."
"The best feature is PowerEdge's ability to stack up eight blade servers in one 2U chassis."
"Once we virtualize the infrastructure, it is very easy to upgrade."
"It is a scalable solution. My company hasn't faced any difficulties related to the product's performance and scalability since Dell ensures to provide a high-performance service."
"The console and user-friendly UI of Dell PowerEdge FX are the most valuable features. Its interface is easy to understand even for non-technical users."
"Taking into consideration the cost, HPE gave us the ability to actually do what we wanted to do."
"We are running Apollo with SL-series servers and the best thing about them is the density of the storage area available."
"It's going to meet our needs moving forward, it is scalable."
"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 cost benefit of this solution is most valuable."
"For us, the most valuable features are the price and density."
"HPE Apollo's most valuable feature is the ability to expand our storage capacity."
"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."
 

Cons

"They could improve from a manufacturing perspective and not the product itself."
"Before the cloud solution and virtualization, we relied on Dell hardware from specific vendors. The lifecycle for cloud infrastructure is shorter than it used to be. We need a longer lifecycle from the IT supplier providing the computing solution."
"The positioning of the power supply is not ideal. Both of them are on the same side, so you need to untie the cabling when you're installing the server. Another thing is storage separation. The storage can only be used by a particular server blade. I want the ability to use a storage unit for more than one server."
"I would prefer the next releases of Dell PowerEdge FX to be easier to use and flexible to upgrade. Sometimes, we have to do the tasks manually, but automation would be very helpful."
"There are times when a part might break down and we need to have Dell replace it."
"I rate Dell support six out of 10. It varies. Sometimes it's good. Sometimes it's bad. The response time could be better."
"It should have more simplified management. It is a common problem where vendors think that they have simplified a solution, but the users don't look at it in the same way. A vendor thinks that there are only ten steps for a task, but we consider them as many steps. It should also have more support for NVMe. For high performance and speed, there should also be more network cards for the fiber channel and ethernet."
"The product must provide more integration."
"We are quite happy with it, but its price and storage density can be better."
"Big stability issues with the CPU on the first generation which made them virtually unusable."
"Lustre seems to be just a little bit unstable overall."
"Connectivity to the outside of the server needs to be improved at the same time the network is improving."
"HPE Apollo's after-sales support and technical support should be improved."
"The solution could improve the hardware, such as the motherboard or servers. We have had hardware faults in the past."
"The licensing could be greatly improved, I think."
"The technical support for HPE Apollo Systems could be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Payments are generally made towards the perpetual-based licensing costs attached to the solution, but people can also opt for subscription-based licenses."
"The price of the license is expensive."
"The cost of Dell PowerEdge FX depends on the configuration we are using. We usually pay $5,000 to $10,000 based on the configuration, including RAM and storage."
"The price of Dell PowerEdge FX is affordable, and when compared to other solutions, such as Lenovo and HPE it is less expensive. There are any extra costs other than the standard solution."
"Compared to other brands, this solution is the cheapest. I would rate the pricing as a five out of five."
"I rate the product price a four on a scale of one to ten, where one is a high price, and ten is a low 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."
"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."
"Compared to other products, HPE Apollo is not an expensive solution."
"There is an annual license required to use HPE Apollo."
"Obviously I would like to see the cost go down. That speaks for itself."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Construction Company
17%
Outsourcing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
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 Business8
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise2
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise15
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Dell PowerEdge FX?
The cost of Dell PowerEdge FX depends on the configuration we are using. We usually pay $5,000 to $10,000 based on the configuration, including RAM and storage.
What needs improvement with Dell PowerEdge FX?
The system is good, but compared to open-source and assembled servers, it is somewhat costly. If it were cheaper, it would be even better. I would prefer the next releases of Dell PowerEdge FX to b...
What is your primary use case for Dell PowerEdge FX?
We are providing the end-user experience by creating virtual machines on the server and assigning them to our clients. We set up multiple virtual machines on the Dell PowerEdge FX server and isolat...
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

PowerEdge FX
HP Apollo Systems, HP ProLiant SL, HP Apollo
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Tracewell, Govers, AXA ASSISTANCE ITALIA
Weta Digital
Find out what your peers are saying about Dell Technologies, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, IBM and others in Rack Servers. Updated: September 2026.
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