The ThinkStation products from Lenovo are workstations designed for high-end computing. Following Lenovo’s acquisition of IBM’s PCD, the products most popularly focused on were ThinkPad and ThinkCentre. In 2008, Lenovo expanded the focus of its “THINK” brand to include workstations, with the ThinkStation S10 being the first model released.
Lenovo ThinkStation workstations are also the engineering platform for the North American Eagle (NAE).[1] Ed Shale, the driver of the NAE, and his team use Lenovo’s ThinkStation workstations for engineering design and data acquisition, to design the vehicle, build it, and design the programs and processes needed to break the world speed record.[1] Software used by the NAE team on Lenovo’s ThinkStation workstations includes Geomagic Studio, Verisurf, Dassault Systèmes (CATIA) Adobe Production Premium, and Microsoft Windows.[1]
According to Shale, “The challenges of innovative design that are encountered when trying to create the world’s fastest vehicle cannot be overcome without the use of a powerful workstation like the Lenovo ThinkStation.”[1]
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The ThinkStation workstation released by Lenovo in 2011 was the E30.
Announced in March 2011, the E30 workstation could be equipped with either Intel Core i[2] processors or Intel Xeon[3] processors. The workstation could be equipped with either 80GB or 160GB solid state drives.[2] Discrete graphics were available on the workstation, in the form of NVIDIA Quadro or NVS graphics.[2]
When the E30 was launched, Tao Gu, the executive director and general manager of Lenovo’s Workstation Business Unit said, "We created the ThinkStation E30 workstation to offer extremely powerful processing on a software-certified solution at desktop prices."[2]
Detailed specifications of the workstation are as follows:[4]
The ThinkStation workstations released by Lenovo in 2010 were the C20 and E20.
The C20 workstation was compact, designed to be easy to mount on a rack.[5] This compact size allowed up to 14 workstations to be stacked in a standard 42U rack.[5] It also meant that users who used a single workstation were offered extra space either on or beneath their desk.[5]
Detailed specifications of the workstation are as follows:[5]
SLASHGEAR stated that they “had trouble slowing the C20 down – this isn’t a PC where opening a few dozen browser windows will cause lag – and it stayed admirably quiet too (though fan noise did ramp up as the system was stressed during benchmark testing)”.[5] The reviewer also stated that the price would be far too high for most people to afford.[5]
The reviewer summed up the workstation by saying, “Graphics professionals, video editors or anyone looking to do vast amounts of crunching in minimal amounts of time, however – and without turning their office into a server farm – should definitely be considering the C20.”[5]
In addition, since the machine was designed as a workstation used by graphic professionals and video editors it was not intended to replace high end gaming machines.[5]
PCMag received the workstation positively saying, “The Lenovo ThinkStation C20 should be at the top of your list if you're looking for an ISV-certified Windows 7-based workstation.”[6] The workstation was awarded 4 out of 5 stars by PCMag and given an Editor’s Choice award.[6]
The workstation has been certified by several ISVs, including:[7]
The E20 workstation was called ‘a “real” workstation for the price of a consumer PC’ by PCMag.[8] It received the “Honorable Mention” award in PCMag’s “Best of the Year” 2010 awards.[8] The workstation also included several environmentally-friendly features.[8] Among these were Energy Star 5.0 and GREENGUARD certifications.[8] The workstation incorporated 66% recycled plastics, with several recycling programs available from Lenovo once the workstation reached end-of-life.[8]
Desktop Review received the workstation positively saying, “Quiet, capable and offering excellent build quality, the ThinkStation E20 is a good option for those in need of a workstation's benefits in a slimmer, more efficient package.”[9] The workstation was awarded 4 out of 5 stars by Desktop Review.[9]
Detailed specifications of the workstation are as follows:[8]
The workstation has received certifications from several ISVs, including:[7]
The ThinkStation workstations released by Lenovo in 2009 were the S20 and D20.
The S20 workstation was released by Lenovo in 2009 and had significant expansion options.[10] The workstation included a PCI, PCIe x1, and two PCIe x16 slots.[10] The workstation also included space for a second optical drive, and two additional 3.5 inch hard disk drive bays.[10] There were also 10 USB ports and 1 eSATA port.[10] However, there was no standard Firewire port.[10] The S20 workstation also included several environmentally-friendly certifications including EPEAT Gold, RoHS, Energy Star 5.0 and GREENGUARD.[10]
Detailed specifications of the workstation are given below:[10]
The S20, like other workstations in the ThinkStation product line, has been certified by multiple ISVs, including:[7]
Also released in 2010 along with the S20, the D20 workstation was reported by Desktop Engineering as bearing a strong resemblance to the S20, although it was noticeably larger.[11] According to Desktop Engineering, the D20 workstation delivered very high scores on their benchmark tests, both for Windows XP and Windows Vista.[11] Despite the presence of several fans, the workstation was reported to be nearly silent after the initial boot.[11]
Detailed specifications for the workstation are as follows:[11]
The ThinkStation workstations released by Lenovo in 2008 were the S10 and D10.
In its review of the S10, Trusted Reviews indicated that the workstation used a consumer chipset – while also saying, “Looking at the available specifications, there's nothing to raise suspicion that these machines may underperform.”[12]
Detailed specifications of the workstation are as follows:[12]
For the D10 workstation, Lenovo incorporated server grade chipset and processors, as opposed to the S10.[12] The Intel 5400a chipset used in the workstation supported two Intel Xeon processors and 64GB RAM.[12] The size of the workstation’s motherboard necessitated a larger case to accommodate it.[12] However, the increase in size offered additional drive bays. The case could also be mounted on a rack.[12] The detailed specifications of the D10 workstation are as follows:[12]
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