Fujitsu Esprimo Q520 vs. Lenovo ThinkCentre M600 Tiny

Comparison and Differences

Fujitsu_Esprimo_Q520.jpg case front and back pannelLenovo_ThinkCentre_M600_Tiny.jpg case front and back pannel
Model
Form factorMicroMicro
CPU optionsIntel Gen4 i3/i5/i7Intel Braswell Celeron; Pentium;
ChipsetH81Integrated SoC
Dedicated GPU *N.A.N.A.
RAMSODIMM DDR3-1600SODIMM DDR3-1600
RAM slots21
RAM speed1600 MT/s1600 MT/s
RAM max16 GB8 GB
USB ports(2x) USB-A 3.0; (4x) USB-A 2.0(4x)USB-A 3.0; (2x)USB-A 2.0;
Video portsDisplayPort 1.2; DVI(2x) DisplayPort;
Other portsRJ45; Line in; Line out; Card readerRJ45; Headset; Mic;
Optional portsVGA (DVI to VGA adapter)VGA/HDMI/DP/Serial; WiFi antenna;
SATA ports21
PCI slotsN.A.N.A.
M.2 slotsN.A.Optional M.2 2280/2242 M-key (SATA); M.2 2230 (WiFi/BT);
Drive bays2.5in; 5.25 inch2.5in;
PSU65 W65 W
Weight1.60 kg (3.53 lb)1.3 kg (2.9 lb)
Released20142015
Manuallinklink
Price**Check PriceCheck Price

** As an Amazon associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
* Dedicated GPU warning: Check if your particular power supply model has enough power. Additionally some PSUs don't come with an auxiliary PCIe power connector and you may need to buy a SATA to PCIe power adapter.

Differences between Fujitsu Esprimo Q520 and Lenovo ThinkCentre M600 Tiny

If you are looking for a more modern desktop, then you should go with the Lenovo ThinkCentre M600 Tiny which was released in 2015. The Fujitsu Esprimo Q520 is older and entered production in 2014.

Both models have the same form factor, meaning reoughtly they have the same phiysical size and form.

Processor

Usually the newer the generation of the CPU, the better the performance and efficiency is. If your budget allows it, you should go with the Lenovo ThinkCentre M600 Tiny as it is running a newer generation CPU. This is not to say that Fujitsu Esprimo Q520 is bad - it can still run some powerful CPUs, albeit being an older generation.

Memory

The Fujitsu Esprimo Q520 has 2 RAM slots while the Lenovo ThinkCentre M600 Tiny has only 1 slot(s). This is not something to worry about. Just make sure you take it into consideration when planning how much RAM you are going to use.

None of the desktops has an advantage when it comes to the speed of the RAM being used. Both models support RAM speeds of up to 1600. Additionally, if you will be needing a lot of RAM, better go for the Fujitsu Esprimo Q520 as it has the ability to run 16 GB of RAM. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M600 Tiny can do a bit less at max 8 GB. Most of the times, this should be sufficient for the majority of users.

Ports

Both models have the same amount of USB ports for total count of 6. If this is not enough, using a USB hub is always a viable option. None of the desktop models has a USB 3.1 port (10Gb/s), so if you need a fast connection to your peripherals, like external Solid State Drive, you will need to look elsewhere.

DisplayPort is crucial for any desktop machine. It is good to see that both models are featuring DisplayPorts. However, the Lenovo ThinkCentre M600 Tiny comes with 2 ports, while the Fujitsu Esprimo Q520 has only 1. If you are planning to use multiple monitors, the Lenovo ThinkCentre M600 Tiny is the better choice.

None of the models has an HDMI port. If your monitor supports only the HDMI interface, you will need to buy an adapter. Such adapters are cheap so nothing to worry about.

SATA ports are placed on the system board and it is where you connect your HDD, SSD and Optical Disk Drives. More SATA slots will allow you to have more drives running at the same time. In this regard the Fujitsu Esprimo Q520 is better equipped as it comes with 2 SATA slot(s), while the Lenovo ThinkCentre M600 Tiny has 1 slot(s).

M.2 SSD interface allows you to transfer data with higher speeds compared to the old SATA interface. Unfortunately, neither the Lenovo ThinkCentre M600 Tiny, nor the Fujitsu Esprimo Q520 has one. However, you can still use a SATA SSD drive which should give you satisfactory performance.

Make sure that the available M.2 slot supports the PCIe (also called NVMe) interface. This is important as there are M.2 slots which support only the inferior SATA III interface. For comparison, the SATA III interface has max speeds of 6Gb/s, while the PCIe 3.0 x4 will support speeds up to 32Gb/s!

Power Supply

Looking at the Power Supply Unit (PSU) of the two models we don't see any differences. For either of them you get a maximum power of 65 Watts. However be careful, many models have more than one power supply option. When buying your computer, it is a good idea to get a version with the most powerful PSU. This will potentially allow you to upgrade to a more powerful GPU for example.

Motherboard

Fujitsu_Esprimo_Q520_motherboard.jpg motherboard layoutLenovo_ThinkCentre_M600_Tiny_motherboard.jpg motherboard layout