The Core i3 is a dual-core processor, and unlike the Pentium supports Hyper-Threading, allowing the two physical cores to present themselves as four virtual ones, for enhanced processing of parallel tasks. The Core i3 is partnered with 4GB of 1,600MHz DDR3 SDRAM, which is the bare minimum these days, and there is no option for more.
The processor also supplies the graphics in the shape of Intel HD Graphics 4400, which is a small step up from the HD Graphics 4000 of Ivy Bridge, but not the huge leap between that and HD Graphics 3000 found in Sandy Bridge. Whilst 3000 has 12 execution units, and 4000 has 16, 4400 moves up to 20. However, whilst 4000 can be around 2.5 times faster than 3000, 4400 is more like a 30 per cent improvement over 4000. The Core i3-4150T's 1.15GHz version of 4400 will get most of this benefit. The new HD Graphics have DirextX 11.1 support, too, alongside OpenGL 4, Shader Model 5, and OpenCL 1.2.
The Optiplex 3020 Micro takes a fairly minimal approach to storage. In fact, the only storage device included is a 500GB Toshiba 7,200rpm SATA hard disk with a 2.5in form factor, making it of the notebook variety. This will be ample for a general-purpose PC, even if it won't have the performance benefits of a solid state disk, and there's an M.2 expansion port available inside for fast SSD attachment. However, there's no room in this miniscule chassis for an optical drive of any sort, and it's a shame that Dell didn't shoehorn a Flash memory card reader in either, which is always a handy thing to have available.
Fortunately, a wealth of ports is on hand for attaching external devices. The front is home to single USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 ports, plus separate minijacks for headphones and a microphone. The rear hosts another USB 3.0 and three more USB 2.0 ports, alongside a full-sized DisplayPort, VGA, and Gigabit Ethernet LAN, as well as the connection for the external 65W power supply.