Lenovo ThinkCentre Tiny-In-One TIO22GEN5 21.5" Black 2024

The ThinkCentre TIO22 Gen 5 is a 21.5-inch 1080p office monitor with a built-in dock for Lenovo Tiny PCs. Ergonomics are excellent and the webcam/mic/speaker combo is great for video calls. Display quality is mediocre and pricing varies wildly, so shop around. Buy it only if you own a compatible Tiny PC.

The panel is a 21.5-inch 1920 x 1080 IPS screen with a 75Hz refresh rate and 4ms response time. That's fine for spreadsheets, email, and video calls, but nothing to write home about. Brightness tops out at 250 nits, which is on the dim side if you sit near a window. Color coverage is 99% sRGB, so it's accurate enough for office work, but the color score lands in the bottom half of our database. The real performance story here is the VoIP setup: a 1080p webcam, noise-cancelling mic, and dual 3W speakers make this thing a legit video conferencing machine. The Smart Traffic Light indicator that tells coworkers you're in a meeting is a nice touch too.

Stacked against the competition in our database, this Lenovo is a different animal entirely. The ASUS ROG Strix XG27UCDMG and MSI MAG 271QPX QD-OLED are 27-inch gaming monsters with OLED panels and high refresh rates. The LG UltraGear 27GX790A-B and Samsung Odyssey G60SD are in the same boat. Those are for gaming and content creation. The ThinkCentre TIO22 Gen 5 is for office work and video calls. It beats those gaming panels on ergonomics and compactness, but loses badly on display quality and raw performance. If you want a monitor for your Tiny PC, this is the pick. If you want a monitor for anything else, look at the OLEDs.

Pricing is all over the map. In the US, you'll find it between USD 312 and USD 450, with Newegg's refurbished listing at the low end. That's a USD 138 spread for the same monitor. In Canada, the gap is even wider, from CAD 309 to CAD 682. If you're buying this, shop around. The value proposition hinges on whether you already own a compatible ThinkCentre Tiny PC. If you do, this monitor turns it into a clean all-in-one. If you don't, you're paying a premium for a docking feature you can't use.

The Lenovo ThinkCentre Tiny-In-One 22 Gen 5 is a monitor with a very specific job: turn a tiny ThinkCentre PC into a clean, all-in-one style workstation. It's got a 21.5-inch 1080p IPS panel, a built-in webcam, mic, and speakers, and a slot on the back to dock your Tiny PC. That modular trick is the whole point here.

This isn't a gaming monitor or a color grading panel. It's an office workhorse built for video calls and desk tidiness. The ergonomics are genuinely great, and the connectivity is solid. But the display itself is pretty basic, and the price swings wildly depending on where you shop.

Skip this if you don't own a Lenovo ThinkCentre Tiny or ThinkStation Tiny PC. The whole point is the modular dock, and without a compatible Tiny, you're paying extra for a feature you'll never use. Also skip it if you need a bright, color-accurate display for photo or video work. 250 nits and a bottom-quarter display score won't cut it. Gamers should look elsewhere too, 75Hz is not a gaming refresh rate.

This is a niche product that nails its niche. If you have a Lenovo ThinkCentre Tiny or ThinkStation Tiny from 4th Gen or later, this monitor is a no-brainer. It cleans up your desk, gives you a solid webcam and mic setup, and the ergonomics are genuinely excellent. If you don't have a Tiny PC, you're paying for a feature you can't use, and there are better plain monitors for less money.