GBP 5 off when spending GBP 30 or more using checkout code CIAO11. Lenovo ThinkCentre M58p ... more
9964 - SFF - 1 x Core 2 Duo E8400 / 3 GHz - RAM 2 GB - HDD 1 x 500 GB - DVD-Writer - GMA 4500 Dynamic Video Memory Technology 5.0 - Gigabit Ethernet - Vista Business / XP Pro downgrade - pre-installed: Windows Vista - Intel vPro Te
Postage & Packaging:£4.99 Availability:Delivered Next Day
Advantages: The case dosn't look too bad Disadvantages: Addequate but outdated CPU
significantly lower than Lenovo is 3Ghz upwards. Quite how the ThinkCentre A55 hopes to even try to compete with other manufacturers offering 3-4Ghz CPU's with a price tag of around £50 less is somewhat of a mystery. Having said that, as my mate has proven with flying colours.."there is one born every minute"
The memory installed is on a par with most budget PC's and is supplied with 512Mb DDR II SDRAM. Thankfully memory these days is a relatively cheap upgrade option.
The hard drive installed again is somewhat below acceptable for the price tag. The A55 is supplied with an 80Gb hard drive. Although this size of drive is acceptable, for £400 you would expect something around 100 -120Gb in size.
The graphics card is on-board as is the norm with all budget PC's. The graphics memory is shared with the PC's RAM and is adjustable via the PC ...
Advantages: Slimline, Well Featured, Looks Good Disadvantages: No Firewire, Not thought out properly
ThinkCentre... Think Smarter
IBM?s range of workstations have always been backed up with a long history, after all shouldn?t IBM be the experts, they did ?invent? the PC after all! IBM?s ThinkCentre range represents IBM?s mid-range business workstations, enough power and multimedia capabilities to run the top end office and productivity, whilst keeping costs down to make the systems as affordable as possible. A hidden but equally important part of the ThinkCentres resides inside the computer and installed on the hard drives, these discrete design decisions and software packages that are shipped with the machines. I have recently installed 86 IBM ThinkCentre S50?s at work; this review is my attempt to distil my experiences into words.
WHATS IN THE BOX?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When the box arrives at your door, or in my case three ...
1 x 160 GB - standard - Serial ATA-300 - 7200 rpm - vibration dampening, 1 x 250 GB - standard - Serial ATA-300 - 7200 rpm - vibration dampening, 1 x 320 GB - standard - Serial ATA-300 - 7200 rpm - vibration dampening, 1 x 500 GB - standard - Serial ATA-300 - 7200 rpm, 1 x 500 GB - standard - Serial ATA-300 - 7200 rpm - vibration dampening
Monitor
Monitor Type
None
Graphics controller
Type
Integrated, PCI Express 2.0 x16 - plug-in card
Graphics Processor / Vendor
Intel GMA 4500 Dynamic Video Memory Technology 5.0, Intel GMA 4500 Shared Video Memory (UMA), ATI Radeon HD 3470
Digital Video Standard
DisplayPort, Digital Visual Interface (DVI), DisplayPort
HDCP compatible
Yes
Max Monitors Supported
2
Max Allocated RAM Size
765 MB
Video Memory
256 MB
Audio output
Type
Sound card - integrated
Compliant Standards
High Definition Audio
Input device
Type
Mouse, keyboard
Keyboard
Keyboard Name
Preferred Pro USB
Interface
USB
Mouse
Technology
Optical
Interface
USB
Features
Scroll
Networking
Networking
Network adapter - integrated
Ethernet Controller(s)
Intel 82567LM
Data Link Protocol
Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet
Remote Management Protocol
DMI 2.0, ASF 2.0, ASF 2.0
Features
Wake on LAN (WoL), ACPI support
Compliant Standards
IEEE 802.3
Operating system / software
OS Provided
Microsoft Windows Vista Business, Microsoft Windows XP Professional, Microsoft Windows Vista Business / XP Professional downgrade
Microsoft Office Ready
Includes a preinstalled image of select 2007 Microsoft Office suites. Purchase a Medialess License Kit (MLK) to activate the software.
Software
PC Doctor, Sonic RecordNow, Diskeeper Home Edition, Norton Internet Security (90 days subscription), ThinkVantage Rescue and Recovery, Sonic Solutions Drive Letter Access (DLA), Adobe Reader, ThinkVantage Client Security, ThinkVantage Productivity Center, ThinkVantage System Update, Google Picasa, Windows Live Search, Windows Live Toolbar, Microsoft Office 2007 (60 days trial), Corel WinDVD, Windows XP Professional recovery DVD
OS Preinstalled
Windows Vista
Environmental parameters
Min Operating Temperature
10 °C
Max Operating Temperature
35 °C
Humidity Range Operating
10 - 80%
Sound Emission
25 dBA, 28 dBA
Manufacturer's product description
The ThinkCentre M58p was designed specifically for the rigorous demands of large enterprises in the business and education world.
