The VAR Guy

Lenovo is continuing its tradition of inspiring PC designs with the IdeaCentre Q180, which, according to Lenovo, is the the “world’s smallest fully functional desktop PC.” In reality, the Q180 is just a very compact nettop, but what does it have to offer? Here are some thoughts …

Yes, the IdeaCentre line of products traditionally is aimed at the consumer, but that doesn’t mean the tiny computer doesn’t have some channel functionality. The IdeaCentre Q180 is “no larger than a paperback book,” but has been outfitted with a dual-core Atom CPU clocked at 2.1 GHz, 2GB of DDR3 RAM (upgradeable to 4GB) and USB 3.0. The tiny box can also house either a 750GB HDD or 128 GB SSD, and has a VESA mount built into the back of the device to ensure easy hiding behind an HDTV of your choice. Thanks to an AMD Radeon HD 6450A, Lenovo has made the Q180 HD-ready for both demanding HD content and 3D BluRay movies, should a BluRay player ever be attached to the unit.

Lenovo has priced the Q180 starting at about $399, but with Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales going on, it would be possible to get your hands on one for about $303 when all is said and done.

So where’s the channel use case for this? The Q180 with its SSD should be zippy for a variety of tasks for almost any user, including low-level graphics design and media management. What’s more, the Q180 could be a very friendly device for running digital signage displays, since it supports both VGA and HDMI, and with the mobile AMD Radeon HD 6450A video card, users could push out high-resolution images and video to HD screens for booth demos or interactive lobby kiosks and displays. Or, it could just be that perfect little PC for the family to share, either in the kitchen or hooked up to a TV.

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