Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tiny vs. Lenovo ThinkCentre M900 Tiny

Comparison and Differences

Lenovo_ThinkCentre_M72e_Tiny.jpg case front and back pannelLenovo_ThinkCentre_M900_Tiny.jpg case front and back pannel
Model
Form factorMicroMicro
CPU optionsIntel Gen2&3 i3/i5; Celeron; Pentium;Intel Gen6 i3/i5/i7; Celeron; Pentium;
ChipsetH61Q170
Dedicated GPU *N.A.N.A.
RAMSODIMM DDR3-1600SODIMM DDR4-2133
RAM slots22
RAM speed1600 MT/s2133 MT/s
RAM max16 GB32 GB
USB ports(4x)USB-A 3.0; USB-A 2.0; (Default 5x USB-A 2.0);(6x)USB-A 3.0;
Video portsDisplayPort; VGA;(2x) DisplayPort;
Other portsRJ45; Hdph; Mic;RJ45; Headset; Mic;
Optional portsUSB-A 2.0; Serial; WiFi antenna; VGA/HDMI/DP/Serial; WiFi antenna;
SATA ports11
PCI slotsN.A.N.A.
M.2 slotsM.2 2230 (WiFi/BT)M.2 2280/2242 M-key (PCIe x4); M.2 2230 (WiFi/BT);
Drive bays2.5in2.5in;
PSU65 W65 W
Weight1.3 kg (2.9 lb)1.3 kg (2.9 lbs)
Released20122015
Manuallinklink
Price**Check PriceCheck Price

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* 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 Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tiny and Lenovo ThinkCentre M900 Tiny

If you are looking for a more modern desktop, then you should go with the Lenovo ThinkCentre M900 Tiny which was released in 2015. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tiny is older and entered production in 2012.

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 M900 Tiny as it is running a newer generation CPU. This is not to say that Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tiny is bad - it can still run some powerful CPUs, albeit being an older generation.

Memory

Both models have have equal amount of ram slots (2 RAM). Usually two RAM slots are more than enough for most cases. However, the count should be taken into account when planning how much and what combination of RAM you are going to need for your system.

The Lenovo ThinkCentre M900 Tiny is using the faster 2133 MT/s RAM. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tiny is slower by supporting RAM speeds of up to 1600 MT/s. Additionally, if you will be needing a lot of RAM, better go for the Lenovo ThinkCentre M900 Tiny as it has the ability to run 32 GB of RAM. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tiny can do a bit less at max 16 GB. Most of the times, this should be sufficient for the majority of users.

Ports

In total the Lenovo ThinkCentre M900 Tiny has 6 USB ports. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tiny is inferior in this regard and packs 5 USB ports. In any case, if you miss USB ports, you can always purchase a USB hub. 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 M900 Tiny comes with 2 ports, while the Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tiny has only 1. If you are planning to use multiple monitors, the Lenovo ThinkCentre M900 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 slots are located on the motherboard and it is where SSD, HDD and Optical Disk Drives are connected. Each of the two models being compared have 1 SATA slot(s). Keep in mind that having too few SATA slots might limit your options for connecting additional memory drives.

If you want the fastest transfer speeds for your SSD, an M.2 interface is crucial. Thus, if the M.2 SSD slot is a mandatory requirement for you, go with the Lenovo ThinkCentre M900 Tiny. Sadly, the Lenovo ThinkCentre M72e Tiny has no such slot, and you will be forced to use the SATA interface instead.

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

Lenovo_ThinkCentre_M72e_Tiny_motherboard.jpg motherboard layoutLenovo_ThinkCentre_M900_Tiny_motherboard.jpg motherboard layout