Lenovo enters business space with A70z all-in-one

Lenovo Inc. has announced the ThinkCentre A70z, its first all-in-one PC desktop for businesses, in an effort to further expand both its and its partners' market share.

Stefan Bockhop, director of channel sales at Lenovo Canada, said the new all-in-one business-class PC is an alternative form factor to traditional PC workstations.

“Customers that use the ThinkCentre A70z will get between 50 and 70 per cent of their desk real estate (space) returned to them,” he said. “This is for customers who want a sleeker, cleaner and more environmentally-friendly environment.”

Bockhop said partners and end-users will find market opportunities for the all-in-one in business areas such as cloud computing and digital signage environments.

Tim Brunt, senior analyst for personal computing and technology at IDC Canada, said by the end of 2013, between 20 and 25 per cent of all PC desktops shipped in Canada will be all-in-ones.

“All-in-ones are great for things such as digital signage, kiosk displays, checkouts, or even advertising displays,” Brunt said. “This time last year, all-in-ones were over $1,500 and now you can find them for under $400. The price point and also the convenience of not having to hook this up to a display with cables are some of the key drivers for this adoption.”

For channel partners, all-in-one PCs usually offer richer margins compared to traditional notebooks and desktops, Brunt explained. Partners can also wrap hardware, software and services solutions around the sale of an all-in-one PC to further increase their sales.

Lenovo's ThinkCentre A70z is optimized for Microsoft Windows 7 and features a 19-inch widescreen LCD monitor. The unit also comes with its own VESA stand which can be used to mount the PC to a wall or desk.

The machine comes with a choice of Intel Core processors and also comes with a DVD drive, six USB ports, two audio speakers and can support up to 500GB of storage. As add-ons, the ThinkCentre A70z comes with optional Wi-Fi, an optional high resolution Webcam and built-in Skype application, as well as an option for a wireless keyboard and mouse.

The A70z is also serviceable because users have access to internal parts such as the memory and hard drive, Bockhop said.

Brunt said the ThinkCentre A70z would do well for businesses that are looking to do light to medium computing. He cites a business's reception area as a possible use-case scenario where an all-in-one PC would work well.

The ThinkCentre A70z all-in-one PC will be available at the end of this month, and starts at $540. Customers who purchase this PC will also have the option to download a free 90 day trial version of Lenovo's Online Backup service, which provides users with 5GB of storage and backup services.