Lenovo ThinkCentre M90t Gen 5 Raven Black 2024

A big, fast office tower with a killer CPU and zero gaming ambitions. If you need Windows 11 Pro and upgrade room, this is your machine, just don't pay the CAD 3,747 sucker price.

The Core i7-14700 is the star here. With 20 cores and a 2.1GHz base clock, it chews through multitasking, large spreadsheets, and demanding office apps without breaking a sweat. Our database puts the CPU well above average for this category, and the port selection is a standout too. But that integrated GPU is a real weak spot. It's fine for driving a couple of monitors and basic video playback, but it lags behind most dedicated graphics solutions. The 16GB of DDR5 RAM is solid, though the 512GB SSD is about average for this class. For a business desktop, the performance story is strong where it counts and forgettable where it doesn't.

Against the HP OMEN GT22-3080 or ASUS ROG GM700, the ThinkCentre looks silly for gaming, those machines have dedicated GPUs and this one doesn't. But that's not the fight Lenovo is picking. The M90t is aimed squarely at the Dell Tower ECT1250 and other business desktops, and there it holds its own with a stronger CPU and better port selection. The Apple Mac Studio M4 Max is a different beast entirely, way more powerful for creative work but also a completely different platform and price bracket. If you need Windows, vPro, and a traditional tower with upgrade room, the ThinkCentre is the sensible pick.

Pricing is all over the map. In the US you're looking at USD 2,109 to 2,202, but in Canada the spread is wild, from CAD 2,363 all the way up to CAD 3,747. That's a CAD 1,384 gap between vendors for the same machine. If you're buying in Canada, shop around hard and don't pay anywhere near the top of that range. For a business desktop with this CPU and build quality, the lower end of that CAD range is fair. The higher end is someone taking you for a ride.

The Lenovo ThinkCentre M90t Gen 5 is a business workhorse that knows exactly what it is, and doesn't apologize for what it isn't. You're getting a 14th Gen Core i7-14700 with 20 cores, 16GB of DDR5, and a 512GB NVMe SSD in a big, upgrade-friendly mid-tower. The one thing to know? This is a serious productivity machine for office work, not a gaming rig. The integrated Intel UHD 770 graphics put gaming performance at a rough 12.7 out of 100, so don't expect to run anything beyond solitaire and spreadsheets.

If you're looking for a gaming PC or anything that needs real graphics horsepower, this isn't it. Go get an HP OMEN or ASUS ROG with a dedicated GPU instead. And if you want something compact for a small desk, the 8.28kg mid-tower footprint will drive you nuts. This is for people who want a big, quiet, upgradeable office workhorse, not a sleek all-in-one or a gaming battlestation.

Buy this if you need a reliable, fast Windows desktop for serious office work and you value upgrade space over compactness. The i7-14700 is a genuine performer, and the big case means you can add storage and RAM down the road. Just know that the integrated graphics are a hard ceiling, and that 300W PSU means you won't be dropping in a serious GPU later without a power supply swap. For the right buyer, this is a no-brainer. For anyone hoping to game, look elsewhere.