Lenovo ThinkCentre M800 Tower vs. Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Small

Comparison and Differences

Lenovo_ThinkCentre_M800_Tower.jpg case front and back pannel

Lenovo_ThinkCentre_M82_Small.jpg case front and back pannel

Model
Form factor	Mini Tower	Small
CPU options	Intel Gen6 i3/i5/i7; Celeron; Pentium;	Intel Gen2&3 i3/i5/i7; Celeron; Pentium;
Chipset	Q150	Q75
Dedicated GPU *	GeForce GTX 1650	GeForce GTX 1650 Low Profile
RAM	DIMM DDR4-2133	DIMM DDR3-1600
RAM slots	4	4
RAM speed	2133 MT/s	1600 MT/s
RAM max	64 GB	32 GB
USB ports	(6x)USB-A 3.0; (2x)USB-A 2.0;	(4x)USB-A 3.0; (4x)USB-A 2.0;
Video ports	(2x) DisplayPort 1.2; VGA;	DisplayPort; VGA;
Other ports	RJ45; Hdph; (2x) Mic; Line-Out; Line-In; Serial;	RJ45; Hdph; (2x) Mic; Line-Out; Line-In; Serial;
Optional ports	2x USB-A 2.0; Media card reader (USB 2.0); (2x) PS2; eSATA;	DisplayPort; PS2; Serial; Media card reader (USB 2.0);
SATA ports	3	4
PCI slots	PCIe 3.0 x16; PCIe 3.0 x1; PCIe 3.0 x16 (wired x4); M2 to PCI adapter (optional);	PCIe 2.0 x16; PCIe 2.0 x1; (2x) PCI;
M.2 slots	M.2 (WiFi/BT or PCI extension card)	N.A.
Drive bays	(2x) 2.5/3.5in; (2x) 5.25in;	2.5/3.5in; 5.25in;
PSU	ATX 250	TFX 240 W
Weight	12.5 kg (27.5 lb)	7.5 kg (16.53 Ib)
Released	2015	2012
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 Lenovo ThinkCentre M800 Tower and Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Small

If you are looking for a more modern desktop, then you should go with the Lenovo ThinkCentre M800 Tower which was released in 2015. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Small is older and entered production in 2012.

If you are looking for the smaller form factor the Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Small is the right one for you. It is smaller than the Lenovo ThinkCentre M800 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 Lenovo ThinkCentre M800 Tower as it is running a newer generation CPU. This is not to say that Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Small is bad - it can still run some powerful CPUs, albeit being an older generation.

Memory

Both models have have equal amount of ram slots (4 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 M800 Tower is using the faster 2133 MT/s RAM. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Small 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 M800 Tower as it has the ability to run 64 GB of RAM. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Small can do a bit less at max 32 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 8. 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 M800 Tower comes with 2 ports, while the Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Small has only 1. If you are planning to use multiple monitors, the Lenovo ThinkCentre M800 Tower 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 M82 Small is better equipped as it comes with 4 SATA slot(s), while the Lenovo ThinkCentre M800 Tower has 3 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 M82 Small, nor the Lenovo ThinkCentre M800 Tower 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

Having a Power Supply Unit with high power rating is important, if you are going to use components which require extra power. The Lenovo ThinkCentre M82 Small comes with a decent 240 Watt PSU, but the Lenovo ThinkCentre M800 Tower has a more powerful one rated at 250 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.