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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
6.6
Dell PowerScale offers scalable, cost-efficient storage enhancing data management, performance, and durability, benefiting business growth and resource optimization.
Sentiment score
7.2
HPE 3PAR StoreServ boosts performance, reduces costs, enhances efficiency, and provides quick ROI, leading to high user satisfaction.
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
7.1
Dell PowerScale's support is praised for responsiveness and expertise, though some suggest improvements in first-line response times.
Sentiment score
7.3
HPE 3PAR StoreServ's customer service is reliable, proactive, yet experiences vary, notably in communication and escalation processes.
Support online is definitely a ten out of ten.
Pre-Sale Engineer at Arab Operators
Dell provides support within four hours, and they always fulfill their promises.
Senior System Engineer at Atlas Security
They have managed previous issues well.
IT Manager at Regional Health Services
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, efficient petabyte-level storage, and easy integration, with some initial complexity and node compatibility challenges.
Sentiment score
7.5
HPE 3PAR StoreServ offers scalable storage, efficiently handling diverse workloads and future needs, with minimal upgrade complexity issues.
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 (Isilon) provides high stability, minimal downtime, with easy management and frequent upgrades ensuring nearly 100% uptime.
Sentiment score
8.1
HPE 3PAR StoreServ is stable and reliable, with minimal downtime, seamless updates, and effective support for setup challenges.
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 needs cost reduction, better usability, improved cloud integration, enhanced security, and streamlined management and support features.
HPE 3PAR StoreServ needs improved usability, support, integration, and cost management while enhancing performance, efficiency, scalability, and cloud compatibility.
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
 

Setup Cost

Dell PowerScale's ease of management and flexibility justify its higher cost against competitors, offering a compelling total cost of ownership.
HPE 3PAR StoreServ pricing ranges from $60,000 to $2 million, with competitive rates but costly additional licensing.
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
 

Valuable Features

Dell PowerScale excels in scalability, flexibility, data management, and cost-effectiveness, offering seamless integration and efficiency for large-scale operations.
HPE 3PAR StoreServ excels in performance and integration, offering ease of use, automation, and robust storage management features.
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
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
76
Ranking in other categories
File and Object Storage (2nd)
HPE 3PAR StoreServ
Ranking in NAS
10th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
303
Ranking in other categories
Modular SAN (Storage Area Network) (5th), All-Flash Storage (15th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the NAS category, the mindshare of Dell PowerScale (Isilon) is 15.1%, down from 17.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of HPE 3PAR StoreServ is 3.4%, down from 3.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
NAS Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Dell PowerScale (Isilon)15.1%
HPE 3PAR StoreServ3.4%
Other81.5%
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.
Muhammad Saqib - PeerSpot reviewer
System Engineer at Hybrid Tech
Uninterrupted upgrades accelerate performance with good support
I would rate the solution eight out of ten. It should be noted that in Pakistan, some parts are not readily available, and we need to import them from Singapore or other countries. We encountered an issue with a customer where the midplane failed and was not available. We had to wait for several days for a replacement, even in a 24/7 support case. Additionally, we faced motherboard failures in the customer's environment, encountering two motherboard failures simultaneously. We obtained one motherboard immediately, yet had to wait ten days for another. These issues should have been resolved promptly given the 24/7 support level.
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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
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
8%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business17
Midsize Enterprise19
Large Enterprise42
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business72
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 for my experience with the pricing, setup cost, and licensing, we have had Dell PowerScale (Isilon) for a while now, so we are basically on the renewal track all the time. We did not find it to ...
What needs improvement with Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?
I think Dell PowerScale (Isilon) is very good right now. Perhaps improvements could be made on the CPU level with a better CPU. I haven't used the NVIDIA yet, but a better Intel CPU would be benefi...
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?
It is expensive, however, when we compare it to the features provided by HPE, the price-to-performance ratio is very good.
 

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: December 2025.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.