Entered CNET Catalog: 09/13/2006
SKU: CNETDellDimensionC521
Manufacturer: Dell, Inc.
CNET editors' review
- Editors' Choice: No
- Reviewed on: 09/18/2006
First, the basics. Our Dimension C521 came with a 2.4GHz AMD Athlon 64 X2 4600+, 1GB of 533MHz DDR2 memory, a 320GB 7,200rpm hard drive, and a half-height 256MB ATI Radeon X1300 Pro graphics card. That's a nearly identical core configuration to that of the XPS 210, and like that Intel Core 2 Duo-based PC, there are few day-to-day tasks the Dimension C521 can't handle. Windows Vista should operate well, although you might need to scale back on the Aero visual effects due to the lower-end graphics card. The current Windows Media Center 2005 operating system, the DVD burner, and the included TV tuner should give you a decent digital entertainment experience, but you can forget about a more powerful sound card, a dedicated video encoder, or even a more powerful graphics card for bolstering video quality and playing games, because the Dimension C521 case isn't large enough to accept full-size expansion cards.
The Dimension C521 measures 15.75 inches tall, 4.5 inches wide, and 14.25 inches deep, making it taller and just slightly wider than the XPS 210 (which is 12.4 by 3.7 by 14.4). Both can accept only half-height expansion cards, but we're more willing to forgive that in the XPS 210 because it's smaller overall. The Dimension C521, on the other hand, takes up only slightly less space than a typical midtower desktop, so we're not really sure what benefit you get from its barely reduced volume. If you want to stick with Dell, the midtower Dimension E521 (the other AMD-based PC Dell announced alongside this one) makes a much better system for adding parts. PC Club also make competitive tower-style desktops in this price range, and Apple, WinBook, and others have better space-savers.
At least we can say that Dell chose our review Dimension C521's config wisely. On our performance tests, it hung in alongside the other systems we've reviewed over the past few months that fall within the $999-to-$1,300 price range. Yes, it finished last on a few tests but never by a wide margin, and in general it performed exactly where it should given its specs. We've made it clear in past reviews that Intel's Core 2 Duo chips are superior to AMD's Athlon 64 X2's, but AMD adjusted prices to stay competitive, and by using an Athlon 64 X2 4600+ in this price range, Dell has shown that AMD's chips are still worth considering. We are also satisfied with this system's 3D performance. You won't be able to play the most cutting-edge 3D shooters on the Dimension C521, but it will at least give you a playable experience with the more mainstream titles, such as the World of Warcraft.
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Multitasking test |
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Adobe Photoshop CS2 image-processing test |
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Apple iTunes encoding test |
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Microsoft Office productivity test |
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Quake 4 1,024x768, 4xAA 8xAF |
In addition to the aforementioned Dimension C521 configuration, Dell includes a 13-in-1 media card reader and a 17-inch LCD monitor. You can make the typical upgrades to add memory, a larger screen, or various software bundles (our system came with only Microsoft Works), but again, due to the limitations of the case, you can add neither a second internal hard drive nor a second optical drive. We wouldn't expect to find a wireless networking adapter in a larger, budget-to-low-midrange desktop, but we might expect to find one in a smaller PC. No matter how you consider the Dimension C521's case, Dell doesn't offer one here. We slammed the higher-end XPS 210 for lacking internal Wi-Fi, and it's absent in this system, too. But every other vendor of a small-form-factor PC, otherwise, makes built-in Wi-Fi available. Combine the absence of wireless networking and the overlarge but still upgrade-limited case, and our opinion is that Dell really needs to reconsider its ideas about the reduced-footprint PC.
We will give Dell credit for innovating in the area of its customer service. It's made great claims about improving support. Though, as with any telephone-based system, human inconsistencies are always possible, Dell's DellConnect service gives its techs a great new tool for troubleshooting problems on a customer's PC. We outlined DellConnect in detail in our review of the XPS 210, but in short, after a small software download, you can grant a Dell technician full access to your computer to fix a problem for you, but you also get full control over the process. The software is user-friendly, and its remote control capabilities save you from having to provide a technician with description of technical difficulties you might not fully understand. Best of all, DellConnect is available with any Dell PC, not just the higher-end XPS customer. Combine that service with Dell's year of parts-and-labor coverage, the warranty upgrade options, and Dell's robust Web site, and in terms of support, it's fair to say that Dell has made steps to improve.
Find out more about how we test desktop systems.
System configurations:
Apple iMac Core 2 Duo 17-inch
OS X 10.4.7; 1.83GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5600; 512MB DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz; integrated 64MB (shared) Intel GMA 950 graphics chip; 160GB Western Digital 7,200rpm Serial ATA hard drive
Dell Dimension C521
Windows XP Professional SP2; 2.4GHz AMD Athlon 64 X2 dual-core 4600+; 1,024MB DDR2 SDRAM 533MHz; 256MB ATI Radeon X1300 Pro; 320GB Western Digital 7,200rpm Serial ATA hard drive
Dell XPS 210
Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 SP2; 2.4GHz Intel Core Duo E6600; 1,024MB DDR2 SDRAM 533MHz; 256MB ATI Radeon X1300 Pro; 320GB Western Digital 7,200rpm Serial ATA hard drive
PC Club Enpower Sabre Extreme
Windows XP Home SP2; 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo E6600; 1,024MB DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz; 256MB Nvidia GeForce 7900 GT; Western Digital 250GB 7,200prm Serial ATA hard drive
Velocity Micro ProMagix E2010
Windows XP Professional SP2; 2.13GHz Intel Core 2 Duo E6400; 1,024MB DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz; 256MB Nvidia GeForce 7600 GS; Western Digital 320GB 7,200prm Serial ATA hard drive
Velocity Micro Vector GX Campus Edition
Windows XP Home SP2; 1.86GHz Intel Core 2 Duo E6300; 1,024MB DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz; 256MB Nvidia GeForce 7600 GS; 250GB Western Digital 7,200rpm Serial ATA hard drive
User opinions
Select a User Opinion to view: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
User Rating: 
2/10
Piece of junk!
Pros: Nothing at all.
Cons: Everything under the sun.
User Rating: 
6/10
Sd card slot?
Pros: I have it and it works fine.
Cons: Where is the SD slot card in this desktop?It should have aslot to put anykind of mouse.
User Rating: 
10/10
Perfect for use as a POS system/general use computer
Pros: The slim profile made it ideal for use behind a cash wrap, set up horiziontally just over the cash drawer. I bought two originally, and both computers performed flawlessly for over two years without a single hardware failure.
Cons: I was limited in my upgrade options, and the PCI express port was set on a far end, the wrong side for a dual-bay graphics card with an extra fan bay. It should have been set up in the middle, with a spot on either end.
User Rating: 
1/10
Totally waste of money, don't think about even if free.
Pros: Didn't find one.
Cons: Doesn't work, runs very slow. Not worth for the money. Mother board dies.
User Rating: 
7/10
Not To Shabby
Pros: This Pc is Ok in its stock form.. Ive maxed out mine its one hell of a machine. Upgrades are always good ;] Maxed the ram... Upgraded Video Card added a 250 gig external HD and this is a great PC. Great for a starter or a family PC!
Cons: Came with Vista... This hardly ran vista... Vista is crap anyways!
User Rating: 
4/10
Functional but not much more
Pros: It works with Vista
Cons: No room to upgrade, marginal performance
Running Vista Ultimate it's slow to do anything but it will run the OS. A year later I am struggling with the debate of upgrading it or scraping it for a whole new box.
User Rating: 6/10
C521 ok AS-IS......
Pros: Smaller, cheaper, nice big screen
Cons: Hard to upgrade, Windows Vista
We put a wireless card in it by buying a cheap 802.11g card with a low-profile circuit board, but full height metal spacer. I cut the spacer at both ends with tin snips to make it fit and molded the top end with pliers to fit the smaller DELL slot space. This took about 10 minutes to do and she now has a WiFi card in this system. But WHY??!!
Lesson here: buy full-size cases and make sure you have at least 1GB of RAM, (preferably 2) if you're running Vista.
My daughter now wants an ASUS eeePC preloaded with Linux. She's played with one in the sotre and thinks they're hot. I think they are cheap, fast and correctly spec'd. She'll have one soon.
User Rating: 
3/10
below average overall; SLOW
Pros: small, nice appearance
Cons: SLOW SLOW SLOW
User Rating: 
8/10
One of many low budget PC's I could of bought...
Pros: Fast, Quiet, Efficient
Cons: None that I have detected yet...
User Rating: 10/10
best computer out there
Pros: sleek, stylish, and X2!!!
Cons: can't really upgrade it
User Rating: 8/10
It is what it is...BASIC PC
Pros: Very good for what it is intended to be.
Cons: That flimsy power switch. Come on Dell...you can do better than that.
Aside from the flimsy power switch I mentioned, it's great so far. The footprint is small and it is extremely quite. I really like that! I don't even know it's there...that's how quite it is. The case is nice and fits very well on the desk space. A bit of an improvement over the typical Dell ugly in that there is more silver and the sides are white. Dells are so typically ugly! You would think they know this already?
User Rating: 7/10
Good for the price
Pros: Small form, quiet and cool machine
Cons: Dell keeps topping its own deal, only one week after my purchase.
CNET's review is not entirely fair. The HDD compartment is quite easy to access because the optical drive and media reader are both easy to slide out by lifting a tab and lock back in place by sliding them back. They have to be done one by one since they sit on each other. There is no tool required so I do not agree with Mr. Brown's comments. The unit runs fine and yes, as long as one does not plan to upgrade the PCI cards, which is often the case for home PC use, then there is no problem. The unit runs extremely quietly and cool. I have got it for 3 months, no problem. Dell has improved its products. In fact, I have since bought an Optiplex and Inspiron and am happy with all of them.
User Rating: 1/10
Worst computer I have owned.
Pros: There was nothing I could find about this turkey to recommend it.
Cons: Simply does not function. I spent most of my time talking to Dell technicians and trying to make it work.
User Rating: 1/10
Wouldnt know. Was not able to purchase!
Pros: NONE, NONE, NONE
Cons: CUSTOMER SERVICE, COSTUMER SERVICE.....
What a stinky customer service!!!!!!!
User Rating: 6/10
Small fast system, cheap price, yet no room to upgrade.
Pros: Dual core AMD processor, price.
Cons: No room for standard video card.
This system if good for general use, and the cost in parts would equal more than what I paid for this system with the monitor.
User Rating: 
9/10
Nice system, small size, works well.
Pros: Small case, works well, very nice home and small office PC
Cons: Limited internal expansion.
This is not a high end gaming system. If you do office tasks, Internet, enjoy music and watching DVD's, and playing most games, this is a great system. It is fast and fits both my home and office needs. I've had multiple programs running (PowerPoint, Word, Outlook, browser, and MusicMatch in addition to all the background stuff) with no noticable drop in performance.
I'm not really impressed with Media Center Edition, but it works.
I went with the 2G RAM and the 256M video card-well worth the upgrade. The fans are quite and the system runs cool.
The other reviews point out the most serious downside-you only have 2 PCI slots (one if you use a video card). The remaining slot is half-height. I use a lot of USB devices, so this is not a concern for me.
User Rating: 9/10
Great for basic home use
Pros: Compact, affordable, fast
Cons: None for me
User Rating: 2/10
Dell blew it big time with me
Pros: I'll never know
Cons: It came in a nice box
User Rating: 2/10
not much of a home pc
Pros: the tower is small and saves a lot of space
Cons: didnt work not
User Rating: 7/10
Compact profile, does the job nicely.
Pros: Efficient, everything needed for a good multi-use desktop
Cons: Not a speed demon, half-size plug in cards.
This is fast enough for everything she does, including a fair amount of PPT presentations and other graphics.
Not very expandable if you want to make a gaming or hot rod computer out of it, but does everything well as it is.
I don't agree with CNET's review. Both the burner/player and HD can be removed and replaced in a few seconds with no tools.
They made it sound like it's such a burden.
Yes, you do have to change out a couple of plastic brackets if you you want to use a different drive. I don't see where that is such a big deal. How often do you plan to do that anyway?
Of course adding another HD internally is out of the question.
We find it a slim and attractive piece of gear with enough computing power to support everyday work or leisure computing for a long time.
It's nothing super special, but it is no dog either.
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