IT Pro Verdict
Despite having a glossy, reflective screen, the ThinkCentre 91z is a good choice if you want a compact, powerful and fairly versatile all-in-one PC backed by an onsite warranty. It's competitively priced too, making it a cheaper Windows-based alternative to a equivalently specified 21.5in iMac.
Lenovo has been making all-in-one PCs for a while now and the ThinkCentre Edge 91z is its latest effort. The 91z is the company's first model to have the Edge branding, so it's aimed at small businesses and has a slimmer, more consumer-oriented styling than previous designs which had been quite boxy and chunky. It still has an onsite warranty that'll have a repairman at your door within two business days of a fault being reported, but it lasts for just a year rather than three years as with some Lenovo PCs.
The ThinkCentre Edge 91z gets its name from its edge-to-edge glossy panelling covering the 21.5in screen.
Like Apple, Lenovo has seen no need to use a touchscreen for the PC's 21.5in integrated display. This immediately cuts out the risk of a certain graininess that some touchscreens suffer. The Edge branding means that the display is glossy so it's rather reflective if you have a bright light behind or above you. However, colours are soft and natural-looking, although pure white tones aren't quite as bright as we've seen from our favourite monitors. Nonetheless, the 1,920x1,080 pixel display is certainly up to the job. You can even use it as a standalone monitor, thanks to the VGA input at the back, and effortlessly switch between the input and PC at the press of a button on the front panel.
The ThinkCentre Edge 91z's easel-like stand doesn't lend itself to easy tilting and swivelling.
Inside, the PC has a 2.5GHz Intel Core i5-2400S processor - a power-efficient choice that does a good job of powering through our benchmark tests with a fast overall score of 81. The system reviewed here comes with 4GB of memory and a 64-bit version of Windows Professional pre-installed to take advantage of it.
