Review: Lenevo A70z All In One PC

I’m going to talk computers again. Because a new one has arrived at my home and I’ve been asked to review it. And how do you get this stay-at-home blogging writer mom all kinds of excited? Just send her a computer in the mail. And watch what happens.

Fanning self, staring lustily at hard drives, boot them up, watch them run, look at my blog go, open pictures, speed, plug ins, lots of clicking and dragging. Dang, I need a cold shower.

While I am disclosing this all right up front however, you should already know by now that I am no computer guru. I don’t know the benefits of one processor from another. But I am a user. Obviously. I am also running my own blog which some might consider my own business. I have kids using computers everyday. I have a husband reviewing film for work on computers on many evenings. I have family members who come over and log on and friends who are curious about what we use and a brother who actually is a computer guru kicking the tires on every PC he comes across. We’re users and we’re shameless about it. So let me tell you about this particular PC and how I think it could be, well, used.

The lust-worthy PC that was magically dropped on my doorstep a couple weeks ago is a Lenovo A70z All in One PC. I know, a PC! So many of us use laptops these days. They fold up and go with us. Easy. So why would anyone want to invest in a stand alone PC?

Well, here’s the thing about the Lenovo. It has a lot of the benefits of a laptop, and maybe a few more.

Pros and Cons

1. The hard drive is built into the back of the monitor. The advantage?

• It takes less than 5 minutes to pull out of the box and set up
• It saves a ton of space
• It’s easy to put just about anywhere – you could even mount it on the wall

2. The screen is big – 19″. I don’t know about you but sometimes I just miss a nice big open screen when I use my lap top. Also this makes for great display use since it’s something everyone standing around you can see.

3. It’s easy to pack up. All it has is the monitor, the keyboard and the mouse. If you want to bring it on vacation with you, technically you could without much fuss.

4. It boots up fast. Really fast. Just push the button and it turns on like a TV. Nice.

5. Six USB hook ups, 500 GB of space, CD/DVD drive/burner, a web camera, optional Wi-Fi, and great speakers make this usable right away.

6. It’s Energy Star 5.0 compliant – which matters to this user for sure. Not many PCs can compete with that. Plus it came with a reusable bag instead of the usual extra plastic packaging which is their bit to do something more for the environment.

7. It’s affordable. Depending on the type of processor and other features you select, you can buy it for as little as $500 or for as much as $729.

Some disadvantages? Many users are getting used to thinner screens. While this PC is great in that everything is IN the monitor, it still feels a bit bulky. I think it would feel better if its mounted rather than relying on the kickstand in the back. There is also no SD card slot. My brother (aforementioned computer guru) argued that small businesses wouldn’t need this feature. But I do. Just saying.

Please note that said computer guru gave this PC the thumbs up. He mumbled all sorts of positive sounding words about core processors and nice speed and decent space – I think he even called it a “nice little box”. (Now that I think about it, perhaps he too needs that cold shower. But I digress.)

Who can use this?

Well, obviously this would work very well at a business with a kiosk for customers to use. It would work well for small offices needing to save space and money. It would work well for offices that need to move their equipment efficiently.

But I’m a mom and blogger at home with my kids. So let me tell you how I think this works well for a family too.

This PC is ideal for children. Why? It’s easy to set up in a family area without taking up much room. I like the idea that I could have this set up in a public space and WATCH my children online. The screen makes it easy for me to see what they are doing. It’s also very sturdy and seems to stand up well to children pointing, using, typing, putting disks in, skypeing with Grandpa, playing games online, checking scores, watching movies, doing homework and the rest.

And you know which other family members would do well with this PC? The grandparents of the household. This PC is very easy to set up. It’s user friendly. Everything is built in. Plug in and go. My father certainly doesn’t know much about processors either but this nice big clean screen, fast boot up time, built in webcam for skype (a priority for him) with easy to use Windows 7, and regular sized keyboard would make his user experience much more intuitive and comfortable compared to the day to day frustrations he has with his old, cranky, hard to read laptop.

All in all, I’m impressed. It feels very dependable, fast, quiet and easy to use. It’s got what you need, it is practical, it takes up very little space, it’s energy efficient, it’s no fuss. All of these things make this user happy. For all that it does for the price, it makes an ideal family work station.

So that’s my two cents. I get to keep this puppy around for awhile on a long term loan so if you have questions, feel free to post them. Thanks to Lenovo for the chance to check out this fabulous PC.

By the way? Stay tuned for a giveaway. Yep, get your cold showers ready. One of these may just be yours soon. So check back here later.

In the meantime, some other great reviews of this PC can be found here:

Gear Diary

Slash Gear

FTC disclaimer: A Lenovo All in One A70z PC was sent to me on long term loan for review purposes.