Lenovo ThinkStation S20 Workstation Review

Performance Summary: For the most part, the Lenovo ThinkStation S2 workstation performance matched our expectations. Thanks to its quad-core 2.93GHz, Hyper-Threaded Intel Xeon processor, it offers excellent CPU bandwidth. Add to that the Quadro FX 4800 GPU, and you also get a ton of pixel processing power, as our pro graphics-oriented benchmarks demonstrated.

If you are not familiar with workstations, then you are probably still balking a bit at the price tag of the ThinkStation S20. Sure, $3,645 is a lot of money, but it is relatively competitive to the price you'd pay at Dell or HP for a workstation based on a similar component build. The simple fact is that workstations, as our test system was configured here ($1500 graphics sub-system and all), aren't cheap. Thanks to its new Intel Nehalem-based Xeon processor, ECC memory, high-end Intel workstation motherboard and professional series graphics card, the cost of its primary components stack up quickly. Still, when 3D rendering or CAD/CAM design needs to get done, as the saying goes, you'll want the right tools that are fit for the job. Often, that means looking at a machine like the Lenovo ThinkStation S20.

If OpenGL performance is essential to your company's daily thoughput, the S20 offers a lot to be happy about. If you don't need quite the level of performance offered by our test unit, you can drop down a level or two on the graphics card and save a substantial sum. Regardless of how you configure it, we're sure many of you can appreciate the simple, understated appearance and mostly tool-less internal design. If that's not enough to make you check out the S20, then the 3-year warranty and surprisingly quiet operation might help. If you are in search of a new workstation for yourself or your company, we think it makes sense to add the Lenovo ThinkStation S20 to your list of considerations.

•  Great performance •  3-year warranty •  Practical, inconspicuous external design •  Easy, mostly tool-less internal design •  Quiet	•  Expensive (but no more so than comparable workstations) •  Design could be too plain for some people