The Lenovo ThinkStation P900 Workstation Review: Design 101
by Ian Cutress on May 6, 2015 7:00 AM ESTProfessional Performance: Windows
Due to the market positioning of the ThinkStation P900 as an high level workstation with a Quadro professional graphics card, it makes sense to compare the system with industry-standard benchmarks and the other entry level workstations we have previously tested where possible. Benchmarks in this instance come from SPECviewPerf 11, a well-known multi-software test, SYSMark from BAPCo that is used by several industries for comparison, and Linux-Bench for some more scientific and synthetic analysis.
SPECviewPerf 11
Despite having 20 cores and 40 threads in the mix, as well as the highest Quadro we've tested with SPECviewperf, the P900 has a few issues in these benchmarks. Not only does the software package have to be able to cope with a split memory configuration between the two CPUs (a non-unified memory architecture), but the single threaded performance of the system isn't winning any awards. That being said, the ensight section of the benchmark shows good numbers, as well as a few others. Lightwave does take a hit though.
SYSMark 2014
SYSmark focuses on several tests, with the office tests being more single threaded compared to the data and financial analysis. As a result the P900 falls behind on the office section, but steams ahead with multi-threaded tests. The overall score puts the top spot with the P900.
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ectoplasmosis - Wednesday, May 6, 2015 - link
Yes, the photos in most articles have been atrocious for a while now.It's not expensive or difficult to get a lightbox and learn how to use a DSLR...
xype - Wednesday, May 6, 2015 - link
I see a seasonic ad that goes right up to the to the article’s text edge. It makes it really, really hard to read. Great design, there.Samus - Wednesday, May 6, 2015 - link
Review system at $16,797.60That gave me a chuckle ;)
Flunk - Wednesday, May 6, 2015 - link
Workstation or loaded Hyundai Accent, which is better value?ImSteevin - Thursday, May 14, 2015 - link
Like with any tool, it depends what you need to do!DanNeely - Wednesday, May 6, 2015 - link
I'm a bit curious about part of the PSU design. From the label on the PSU itself, and the ODD/HDD power connectors on the mobo diagram, it's appears that during normal use the 3.3/5v power is being made using DC-DC converters on the mobo. (I suppose they could be dual purposing the +5Vsb unit in the PSU for part of that, but would've expected it to be marked differently if so.) I'm wondering why they left the -12v module in the PSU instead of moving it to the mobo (next to the RS232 port) as well. Are circuits that can invert DC power significantly more expensive/less efficient than something that could be done while closer to the AC?aggiechase37 - Thursday, May 7, 2015 - link
Does it come pre-loaded with spyware like their lappies? Also, whatever their excuse for the price: vom. I can build this system myself for a tenth of the price.zodiacfml - Friday, May 8, 2015 - link
Design 101? They should have taken a page from Apple's Mac Pro. As an engineer, I love that design despite an Apple hater. It doesn't have to be cylindrical externally or as compact but to be efficient in design.dragonsqrrl - Saturday, May 9, 2015 - link
This workstation seems woefully overpriced for the specs. A similarly spec'd Dell Precision costs ~$10,500.akula2 - Sunday, May 10, 2015 - link
The recent X99 based workstations I've built are far more superior in terms of low TDP. performance and savings. E.g.,E5-2680 v3: 12 Cores -- 120W -- 30Mb cache. -- costs much less.
Considering the investment for each workstation, the most important point missed:
How safe is the data in this machine when running Windows 7 or 8? Highly unlikely.
Hence, I chose Linux because of various reasons. E.g., PRNG issue, thanks to Intel's 'RdRand' CPU instruction.