HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini vs. Lenovo ThinkCentre M73 Tower

Comparison and Differences

HP_EliteDesk_800_G6_Mini.jpg case front and back pannel

Lenovo_ThinkCentre_M73_Tower.jpg case front and back pannel

Model
Form factor	Micro	Mini Tower
CPU options	Intel Gen10 i3/i5/i7/i9; Celeron; Pentium;	Intel Gen4 i3/i5/i7; Celeron; Pentium;
Chipset	Q470	H81
Dedicated GPU *	NVIDIA GTX 1660 Ti (custom)	GeForce GTX 1660 Super
RAM	SODIMM DDR4-2933	DIMM DDR3-1600
RAM slots	2	2
RAM speed	2933 MT/s	1600 MT/s
RAM max	64 GB	16 GB
USB ports	USB-C 3.1; (3x)USB-A 3.1; (3x)USB-A 3.0;	(2x)USB-A 3.0; (4x)USB-A 2.0;
Video ports	(2x) DisplayPort;	DisplayPort; VGA;
Other ports	RJ45; Hdph; Headset;	RJ45; Hdph; (2x) Mic; Line-Out; Line-In; Serial; (2x) PS2;
Optional ports	DP1.4/ HDMI2.0a/ VGA/ USB-C(DP1.4)/ (2x)USB-A 3.0/ LAN/ Thunderbolt3; NVIDIA GTX 1660/(2x)USB-A 2.0/ Serial; WiFi antenna;	Parallel; Serial; Media card reader (USB 2.0);
SATA ports	1	3
PCI slots	N.A.	PCIe 3.0 x16; (2x) PCIe 2.0 x1;
M.2 slots	(2x) M.2 2280/2230 M-key (PCIe x4); M.2 2230 (WiFi/BT);	N.A.
Drive bays	2.5in;	(2x) 2.5/3.5in; 5.25in;
PSU	65/90/150 W	ATX 280/450 W
Weight	1.42 kg (3.13 lb)	9.4 kg (20.72 lb)
Released	2020	2013
Manual	link	link
Price**	Check Price	Check 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 HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini and Lenovo ThinkCentre M73 Tower

If you are looking for a more modern desktop, then you should go with the HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini which was released in 2020. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M73 Tower is older and entered production in 2013.

If you are looking for the smaller form factor the HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini is the right one for you. It is smaller than the Lenovo ThinkCentre M73 Tower and will fit more easily under your desk.

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 HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini as it is running a newer generation CPU. This is not to say that Lenovo ThinkCentre M73 Tower 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 HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini is using the faster 2933 MT/s RAM. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M73 Tower 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 HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini as it has the ability to run 64 GB of RAM. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M73 Tower 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 HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini has 7 USB ports. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M73 Tower is inferior in this regard and packs 6 USB ports. In any case, if you miss USB ports, you can always purchase a USB hub. What is nice about the HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini, is that it has 3 USB 3.1 port(s) which allows transfer of up to 10Gb/s. Unfortunately, the Lenovo ThinkCentre M73 Tower has no such port, thus restricting your transfer speeds significantly. For people who want to use external drives on regular basis, this might be an issue.

DisplayPort is crucial for any desktop machine. It is good to see that both models are featuring DisplayPorts. However, the HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini comes with 2 ports, while the Lenovo ThinkCentre M73 Tower has only 1. If you are planning to use multiple monitors, the HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini 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 Lenovo ThinkCentre M73 Tower is better equipped as it comes with 3 SATA slot(s), while the HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini has 1 slot(s).

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 HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini. Sadly, the Lenovo ThinkCentre M73 Tower 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

Having a Power Supply Unit with high power rating is important, if you are going to use components which require extra power. The HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini comes with a decent 150 Watt PSU, but the Lenovo ThinkCentre M73 Tower has a more powerful one rated at 450 Watts. Choosing either one depends on your specific requirements and use case. Also don't forget that some models might have more than one PSU option - try to always get the most powerful one, especially if you plan to upgrade to a powerful GPU.