Dell Pro Tower Plus FXC5C 2025, Core Ultra 9 285, 32GB, 1TB SSD, Black

The Core Ultra 9 285 CPU is a monster, landing in the 93rd percentile, and the port selection is top-tier at the 97th percentile. But integrated graphics and a 260W PSU drag the gaming score down to 16.5, making this a CPU-only workhorse. Great for developers, terrible for gamers.

The Core Ultra 9 285 is the star here. 24 cores at 2.5GHz base clock puts this CPU in the 93rd percentile of all desktops we track. That's one of the best processors on the market right now for multi-threaded work. Compiling code, running virtual machines, crunching spreadsheets, this chip chews through it. The 32GB of 5600 MT/s DDR5 RAM backs it up nicely, landing in the 84th percentile. You can run a lot of browser tabs and Docker containers before this thing breaks a sweat.

But then there's the GPU. Integrated Intel Graphics sits at the 52nd percentile, which is about average for office machines but a real bottleneck for anything visually demanding. The 260W PSU is the other constraint. That's a tight power budget for a 24-core CPU, and it means you're not dropping in a dedicated GPU later without also swapping the power supply. The 1TB NVMe SSD at the 66th percentile is fine for boot and everyday storage, but power users will fill it faster than they expect.

Stack this against the HP OMEN GT22-3080 or the Lenovo Legion Tower 5a Gen 10 and the trade-offs get real clear, real fast. Those machines come with dedicated GPUs and higher wattage power supplies, which makes them far better for gaming and creative work. The Dell's gaming score of 16.5 is embarrassing next to those. But the Dell's CPU sits in the 93rd percentile, and its port selection at the 97th percentile beats most gaming towers. The Apple Mac Studio M3 Ultra is a different beast entirely, aimed at creative pros with a much higher price tag. The ASUS ROG GM700 and CLX SET TGMSETRTU5204BM both offer dedicated graphics at similar or lower prices. If you don't need the Dell's specific CPU and port combo, you can get more balanced performance elsewhere.

At USD 2,470 to 2,474 in the US and CAD 4,080 in Canada, this is a serious chunk of change for a machine with integrated graphics. You're paying for that Core Ultra 9 285 and the Dell Pro build quality, which lands at the 70th percentile for reliability. That's solid but not exceptional. The value proposition hinges entirely on whether your workload is CPU-bound. If you're compiling code or running AI inference on the CPU, the price per core is actually reasonable. If you need any GPU horsepower, you're paying a premium for a machine that can't deliver it.

The Dell Pro Tower Plus FXC5C is a weird one. It packs a Core Ultra 9 285, a 24-core chip that lands in the 93rd percentile for CPU performance in our database, but pairs it with integrated Intel Graphics and a 260W power supply. That's like putting racing tires on a minivan. For developers and home office users, this thing scores 81.8 and 81.7 respectively, which is genuinely strong. But the gaming score of 16.5 tells you exactly what this machine is not for.

Dell is clearly aiming this at productivity and AI workloads, not gaming or creative rendering. The 32GB of DDR5 at 5600 MT/s sits in the 84th percentile for RAM, which is plenty for most professional tasks. The 1TB NVMe SSD is solid but not spectacular at the 66th percentile. And the port selection is genuinely excellent, 97th percentile, with 9 USB-A ports, 2 USB-C, DisplayPort 1.4a, and Gigabit Ethernet. You won't be hunting for a dongle with this thing.

Gamers should run, not walk, away from this machine. The 16.5 gaming score is a real letdown, and the integrated graphics at the 52nd percentile won't even handle esports titles well. Creative professionals who need GPU acceleration for video editing or 3D rendering should also look elsewhere. The 260W PSU means you can't just drop in a graphics card later without also upgrading the power supply. And if you're on a budget, the USD 2,470 price tag is hard to justify when competitors like the ASUS ROG GM700 offer dedicated graphics at similar or lower prices.

The Dell Pro Tower Plus FXC5C is a specialized tool. For developers and home office users who need raw CPU power and tons of connectivity, the 81.8 and 81.7 scores back up the recommendation. The Core Ultra 9 285 is genuinely impressive, and the port selection is best-in-class. But the integrated graphics and 260W PSU make this a one-trick pony. If your workflow is CPU-bound and you never plan to add a GPU, this is a solid buy. If you want any flexibility, look elsewhere.