Lenovo ThinkCentre M70s Gen 6 2024

A shockingly powerful CPU crammed into a sensible office box. Buy it for work, not for play, and definitely don't pay more than $1700.

What surprised us most is how this CPU, which lands in the 89th percentile in our database, handles sustained workloads without any fuss. The 20-core chip can boost up to 5.2 GHz, and in a compact chassis like this, you'd expect a jet engine, but it stays remarkably composed. The integrated graphics are the obvious bottleneck, sitting right in the middle of the pack, which is perfectly fine for driving a couple of 4K monitors for work but a total non-starter for modern games or 3D rendering.

Stacked against something like the Dell Tower Plus EBT2250, the ThinkCentre trades blows on CPU performance but gives up a lot in GPU power and expandability. The HP Omen GT22 and ASUS ROG GM700TZ are in a completely different universe, they're gaming rigs with dedicated graphics that will run circles around this machine in any 3D task. If you need a no-nonsense business desktop with Intel vPro remote management, the Lenovo is the clear pick. If you need to do any creative work or gaming, look at those competitors instead.

Pricing is all over the map, from $1611 to $2169, so you absolutely need to shop around. At the lower end, this is a solid deal for a vPro-enabled workstation with this much CPU horsepower. At the high end, you're getting fleeced. Newegg seems to be the place to check for the best price, and honestly, if you pay more than $1700 for this config, you're not trying hard enough.

The Lenovo ThinkCentre M70s Gen 6 is a quiet powerhouse for the office, and the one thing to know is that it's built for serious multitasking, not gaming. That Intel Core Ultra 7 265 chip is a beast for productivity, and with 32GB of DDR5 RAM, this little SFF box will chew through spreadsheets, code compiles, and a frankly ridiculous number of browser tabs without breaking a sweat. Just don't expect to play anything more demanding than Solitaire on it after hours.

If you're looking for a machine that can game, edit video, or do any 3D modeling, this isn't it. Go get an HP Omen or an ASUS ROG desktop instead. This ThinkCentre is a single-minded productivity tool, and trying to make it something it's not will just end in frustration.

For a pure office workhorse, this is a fantastic machine. The Core Ultra 7 265 is a productivity monster, and the 32GB of RAM means it'll stay relevant for years. The integrated graphics and cramped storage are the trade-offs, but they're acceptable ones for its intended audience. Just make sure you snag it at the right price, and don't even think about trying to turn it into a gaming PC.