Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Dell PowerScale (Isilon) vs HPE 3PAR StoreServ comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 7, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
6.2
Organizations benefit from Dell PowerScale's efficiency, scalability, cost savings, improved performance, and reliable data management without extra staffing.
Sentiment score
7.2
HPE 3PAR StoreServ offers varying ROI, with benefits in performance and efficiency, though not all users see measurable returns.
Despite being more expensive than Huawei, it is stable and most enterprises accept the price due to its stability.
Senior System Engineer at Atlas Security
In terms of Dell PowerScale (Isilon) specifically, we have seen a return on investment due to faster performance than our last few storage arrays, and the general usability is a lot better.
Storage & Data Protection Specialist at General Dynamics Land Systems
The second cluster of Dell PowerScale (Isilon) gives us flexibility for small things like code upgrades, all the way to scenarios where we have lost this data center or data, allowing us to check if data is still intact on the other side.
Senior System Engineer at a healthcare company with 10,001+ employees
The return on investment is very good.
System Engineer at Hybrid Tech
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.3
Dell PowerScale users generally find support satisfactory, noting responsiveness and knowledge, but highlight inconsistencies and areas for improvement.
Sentiment score
7.3
HPE 3PAR StoreServ support is praised for expertise and responsiveness, despite occasional language barriers and regional satisfaction variations.
Support online is definitely a ten out of ten.
Pre-Sale Engineer at Arab Operators
When we face issues, we raise a ticket through the valid portal, and they respond immediately and assign a local engineer to coordinate the support process.
Senior System Engineer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Dell provides support within four hours, and they always fulfill their promises.
Senior System Engineer at Atlas Security
If we activate the 3PAR call home function, then the remote technician always has access to our StoreServ and provides strong suggestions to improve our 3PAR performance.
System Engineer at Hybrid Tech
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
Dell PowerScale offers seamless scalability, supporting diverse storage types and accommodating significant workloads to meet future storage demands.
Sentiment score
7.5
HPE 3PAR StoreServ is praised for scalability, ease of expansion, and adaptability, despite some complexity in older versions.
We started on PowerScale with around about 300 terabytes and are now two and a half petabytes, still on the same file system.
Storage Architect at a educational organization with 10,001+ employees
That's really saved us in certain areas as we didn't have funding to expand Dell PowerScale (Isilon) until next year, which is why we utilized the cloud pools functionality to offload.
Senior Infrastructure Specialist at a healthcare company with 10,001+ employees
As an unstructured data storage solution, writing into it and accessing it from the other nodes is highly scalable with no issues.
Senior Technical Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.1
Dell PowerScale is praised for stability, reliability, easy management, and high uptime, with infrequent, manageable hardware issues.
Sentiment score
8.1
HPE 3PAR StoreServ offers reliable performance with minimal downtime, quick issue resolution, and effective support for seamless operations.
Since we have good protection levels, the data is secured and replicated across the disks.
Pre-Sale Engineer at Arab Operators
Even if a node goes down, other nodes can respond and provide data back to the user without issues.
Storage Platform Engineer at Expedia Group
I assess the stability and reliability of Dell PowerScale (Isilon) as perfect.
Storage & Data Protection Specialist at General Dynamics Land Systems
HPE 3PAR is a very stable solution from HPE, and people have been using this for more than five years.
System Engineer at Hybrid Tech
My experience with the stability and performance of HPE 3PAR StoreServ involved one crash, which was caused by failing hardware.
Information Systems & Security Administrator at a government with 501-1,000 employees
 

Room For Improvement

Dell PowerScale (Isilon) users face integration, usability, and scaling challenges, with needs for improved support, security, and AI features.
HPE 3PAR StoreServ users seek improved UI, simplified updates, enhanced virtualization, better reporting, scalability, cloud integration, and support.
Hardware failures under warranty should be addressed within the promised timeline.
Senior Engineer at Continental Tire
I would want to see more AI features with Dell PowerScale (Isilon).
Storage & Data Protection Specialist at General Dynamics Land Systems
If I could improve one thing on Dell PowerScale (Isilon), it would be better object storage as it recently breached into S3, and that capability could be broadened.
Senior System Engineer at a healthcare company with 10,001+ employees
In Pakistan, some parts are not readily available, and we need to import them from Singapore or other countries.
System Engineer at Hybrid Tech
HPE 3PAR StoreServ might be missing certain features available in newer products.
Information Systems & Security Administrator at a government with 501-1,000 employees
We just need to verify whether our current virtual server setup is acceptable to the RBI, as they had raised questions about the VSO, ISO configurations we had implemented.
Asst. Manager at a financial services firm with 51-200 employees
 

Setup Cost

Dell PowerScale is costly but valued for its features, flexible licensing, scalability, and long-term cost efficiency.
HPE 3PAR StoreServ pricing varies widely, with negotiation potential; performance and reliability often justify initial and ongoing costs.
It's quite expensive for the amount of storage we have.
Senior Infrastructure Specialist at a healthcare company with 10,001+ employees
Cheaper nodes will cost less, while higher performance nodes will be pricier.
Storage Platform Engineer at Expedia Group
Costs align well with what it delivers, making it a fair price for a powerful tool that meets all our needs.
Tv Systems Technical Supervisor at a media company with 501-1,000 employees
It is expensive, however, when we compare it to the features provided by HPE, the price-to-performance ratio is very good.
System Engineer at Hybrid Tech
Any customer will always ask for the cheaper price.
Asst. Manager at a financial services firm with 51-200 employees
 

Valuable Features

Dell PowerScale provides scalable, efficient storage with strong integration, data protection, and easy administration to enhance operational efficiency.
HPE 3PAR StoreServ is ideal for enterprises, offering easy management, high performance, scalability, reliability, and seamless system integration.
Dell PowerScale offers high scalability and stability as well, making it a valuable solution for enterprises.
Senior System Engineer at Atlas Security
In our AI initiatives, Dell PowerScale (Isilon) plays a significant role in data analysis, data fusion; principally, it is involved in data analysis, data extraction, and statistical analysis.
Senior Technologist at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees
Single files are limited to four terabytes in our configuration, however, the system can support up to 16 terabytes, so we can scale based on that too.
Systems Engineer at Unisity LLC
There is no downtime when we upgrade our 3PAR systems.
System Engineer at Hybrid Tech
We are expecting on-site support, which is the main benefit we are getting with HP.
Asst. Manager at a financial services firm with 51-200 employees
I find the HPE 3PAR StoreServ valuable for its ease of use and resilience, which is beneficial.
Information Systems & Security Administrator at a government with 501-1,000 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Dell PowerScale (Isilon)
Ranking in NAS
2nd
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
80
Ranking in other categories
File and Object Storage (2nd)
HPE 3PAR StoreServ
Ranking in NAS
8th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
304
Ranking in other categories
Modular SAN (Storage Area Network) (2nd), All-Flash Storage (11th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the NAS category, the mindshare of Dell PowerScale (Isilon) is 15.5%, down from 17.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of HPE 3PAR StoreServ is 3.3%, down from 3.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
NAS Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Dell PowerScale (Isilon)15.5%
HPE 3PAR StoreServ3.3%
Other81.2%
NAS
 

Featured Reviews

BE
Systems Engineer at Unisity LLC
Flexibility and reliability have supported seamless data growth
I cannot think of anything to improve about Dell PowerScale (Isilon). The hardest challenge we have is due to how we've bought things over time. The way that we moved to the PowerEdge platform for the newer systems creates a scale problem as I still buy the older style systems, which are more dense storage. They're different chassis, so the problem we run into in the data center is the depth of the actual equipment. The newer equipment, if we buy an FX910 or a 900, it's a lot shorter in scale than if I buy an 83,000, which is much bigger. This makes it more complicated for deployment.
CO
Information Systems & Security Administrator at a government with 501-1,000 employees
Ease of use in data center boosts resilience and infrastructure efficiency
I find the HPE 3PAR StoreServ valuable for its ease of use and resilience, which is beneficial. The main benefits I have seen from having HPE 3PAR StoreServ include its use at a small branch I managed for about three years with around 60 users. It operates effectively because it is an HPE product we use there. I have not experienced any significant issues besides occasional IT-related ones, such as local database problems. Since handing over the administration of the system to someone else and moving to another department, there have not been any issues. There are many features that exist but I haven't needed to try. Before moving out of that role in my organization, I knew it was a product I enjoyed working with for infrastructure purposes. After completing my new role, I intend to return to infrastructure.
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which NAS solutions are best for your needs.
884,656 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Comparison Review

it_user182013 - PeerSpot reviewer
Federal Civ/Intel Engineering Lead at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
May 1, 2015
Measuring Up: EMC XtremIO and HP 3PAR
Leading up to EMC World 2015, IT Central Station asked how I would compare EMC XtremIO and HP 3PAR. Until recently, the flash storage conversation in my organization and many others has centered on XtremIO and Pure Storage, the leaders of the all-flash array (AFA) space. To that end, I've written a…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
8%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Marketing Services Firm
9%
Financial Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business19
Midsize Enterprise20
Large Enterprise44
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business73
Midsize Enterprise74
Large Enterprise170
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?
The solution provides massive performance, scalability, efficiency, and ease of management.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?
As I mentioned before, we did not purchase Dell PowerScale (Isilon) directly. Since our organization is a government entity, the country policy does not allow direct purchases; it goes through a fo...
What needs improvement with Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?
I have experienced a RAM failure in some of the nodes of Dell PowerScale (Isilon), and that required hardware replacement. For large file replication from site to site, it takes a long time. This l...
What's the difference between HPE 3PAR StoreServ and HPE Primera?
HPE Primera has many great features but one of the best is that it is very easy to deploy. From an overall perspective, it is reliable, easy to set up, stable, and offers quality block storage. All...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for HPE 3PAR StoreServ?
As a customer, I always prefer to have a lower price. Any customer will always ask for the cheaper price.
 

Also Known As

PowerScale, Dell EMC Isilon
HPE 3PAR Flash Storage, InServ, Storeserv, 3PAR Flash Storage, HP Enterprise Storage, 3PAR Flash Array, HP 3PAR Flash Storage
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

OMRF, University of Utah, Translational Genetics Research Institute, Arcis, Geofizyka Torumn, Cyprus E&P Corporation, Colburn School, Columbia Sportswear, Harvard Medical School, University of Michigan, National Library of France,
Just Energy, Latisys, team AG, DreamWorks, BlueShore Financial, Erasmus MC
Find out what your peers are saying about Dell PowerScale (Isilon) vs. HPE 3PAR StoreServ and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.
884,656 professionals have used our research since 2012.