Dell Pro Slim QCS1250, Core i5-14500, 16GB, 512GB SSD, Black

The i5-14500 is the highlight here, landing in the 68th percentile for CPU performance and making this a snappy office machine. But the integrated UHD 770 graphics drag the gaming score down to 11.4 out of 100, and the 512GB SSD is tight. At $750 USD, it's a focused business desktop, not an all-rounder.

The i5-14500 is the one component that punches above its weight. With 6 performance cores and 8 efficiency cores, it handles multitasking and bursty workloads well. Our CPU benchmark puts it in the 68th percentile, which means it's solidly above average for desktops in our database. For spreadsheets, browser tabs, and business apps, this chip won't hold you back. The 24MB of cache helps with repeated tasks, and the 5 GHz boost clock gives it snappy single-thread performance.

The rest of the system is more modest. The Intel UHD 770 integrated graphics sit in the 46th percentile, which is about average for integrated GPUs but nowhere near what you'd want for anything beyond basic display output. The 512GB NVMe SSD lands in the 42nd percentile for storage, so it's fine for booting Windows 11 Pro and loading office apps, but you'll want external storage if you deal with large files. RAM is 16GB of DDR5, which is adequate but sits at the 48th percentile, meaning half the desktops we've tested have more.

Stacked against the Apple Mac mini M4 Pro, the Dell gets absolutely crushed on GPU performance and efficiency, but it costs less and runs Windows 11 Pro natively. The Lenovo Legion Tower 5a and HP OMEN GT16-0364 are gaming machines with dedicated GPUs, so they'll run circles around the QCS1250 in any graphics workload, but they're also bigger, louder, and more expensive. The MSI Aegis RS2 and iBUYPOWER Slate are similar stories, aimed at gamers rather than office workers. For pure business productivity, the Dell's i5-14500 holds its own against these competitors in CPU tasks, but the lack of a discrete GPU and the limited storage make it a one-trick pony.

At $750 USD, the QCS1250 is priced like a budget business desktop, and that's exactly what it is. The CPU is the main value driver here, since the i5-14500 alone would cost a decent chunk of that price if you built it yourself. But you're also paying for the Dell name, the compact form factor, and Windows 11 Pro. The 512GB SSD and 16GB RAM feel a bit stingy at this price point, especially when competitors sometimes throw in 1TB drives or 32GB of RAM for similar money. Still, for a no-frills office machine with a solid processor, the price per performance ratio is reasonable.

The Dell Pro Slim QCS1250 scores 52.4 out of 100 in our database, which puts it firmly in the middle of the pack for desktops. But that number hides a pretty specific story. This is a business machine through and through, scoring 62.9 for business use and just 11.4 for gaming. The i5-14500 is the star here, a 14-core chip that can boost up to 5 GHz, and it lands in the 68th percentile for CPU performance. Everything else is built around keeping costs down and the footprint small.

You get 16GB of DDR5 RAM, a 512GB NVMe SSD, and Intel UHD 770 integrated graphics. No dedicated GPU, no fancy cooling, just a 180W PSU and a compact chassis that weighs 8 pounds. At $750 USD, it's not trying to impress anyone with specs. It's trying to be a reliable office workhorse that won't take over your desk.

Anyone who wants to game, edit video, or run GPU-heavy workloads should look elsewhere. The 11.4 gaming score is one of the weakest we've seen, and the integrated UHD 770 graphics simply can't keep up. If you need more than 512GB of storage, you'll also be disappointed, since the SSD sits in the 42nd percentile. And if you rely on lots of peripherals, the port selection ranking in the 41st percentile means you might need a hub. This is a machine for spreadsheets and email, not for creative work or play.

The Dell Pro Slim QCS1250 is a focused machine. If you need a compact Windows 11 Pro desktop for office work, email, and light multitasking, the i5-14500 delivers above-average CPU performance in a tidy package. The 62.9 business score reflects that strength. But the 11.4 gaming score and mediocre storage and port rankings mean this is not a flexible machine. Buy it for the office, not for the living room.