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| Photo courtesy Robert Bye |
Lenovo’s launch of the ThinkStation P620 marks the beginning of a new generation of workstations. It’s the first workstation to be based on AMD’s brand new Ryzen Threadripper PRO processor single-socket CPU platform. Thanks to an agreement between AMD and Lenovo, the Lenovo has a limited-time exclusive on the new processor.
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Lenovo says they are offering the ThinkStation P620 with a broad range of configurability to meet each customer’s unique needs in a way that wasn’t possible until now. AMD’s 64 core Ryzen Threadripper PRO Processor is available with clock speeds up to 4.3GHz, 128 lanes of PCIe 4.0 bandwidth, and 8-channel memory support for up to 2TB of RAM.
Prior to the arrival of this latest Threadripper, the max core count that a single-CPU system could handle was 18 cores, while the highest a dual-processor system could support was 56 using two Intel 28 core Platinum 8280 or Gold 6258R processors. The ThinkStation P620 opens up a new era of single CPU workstations. Now says Lenovo, users can realize 8K streaming in real-time, reduced render times, ultra-fast simulation, and smooth interactivity with 3D assets without having to scale to a dual-socket system and any latency.
The ThinkStation P620 comes with 10GB in Ethernet and support for up to two Nvidia Quadro RTX 8000 or four RTX 4000 AIBs, up to 1TB of memory and 20TB of storage. And, bragged Lenovo, this enterprise-grade powerhouse is the first and only PCIe Gen 4 workstation available today.
Threadrippers are usually liquid-cooled, but AMD and Lenovo collaborated on a unique air-cooling system based on a heat sink designed by the two companies.
The ThinkStation P620 comes with Lenovo’s Diagnostics 2.0 ThinkShield support, upgrades to Premier Support, and a three-year warranty.
In addition, says Lenovo, AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO desktop processors offer advanced security features at the silicon level allowing users to better guard their important data. This includes AMD Secure Processor, validating code before it is executed to help ensure data and application integrity, as well as AMD Memory Guard which enables memory encryption.
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| Lenovo P620 internal reveal (Source: Lenovo) |
“One of the challenges for IT departments we’ve seen,” said Rob Herman, General Manager, Workstation and Client AI Business Unit, Lenovo “is the push by end-users to try new technologies before they’ve been vetted—lacking enterprise-grade features, certifications and security, and support. We’ve worked closely with AMD, ensuring the ThinkStation P620 removes all these barriers.”
Lenovo says the system should be ideal for power users across industries. Epic games commented that previously they had to choose between either high core count or high clock speed. “The AMD powered Lenovo ThinkStation P620 is optimized for both aspects in a way that previous HEDT CPUs never quite were,” said Pat Swanson, IT engineer at Epic Games. We’re told that even Nvidia likes this new workstation because the money customers save on the processors, they can put into a more expensive GPU.
Lenovo says they are pushing the boundaries of what’s possible. Combining the power of AMD’s Ryzen Threadripper PRO processor with a fully customized and scalable chassis, the ThinkStation P620 has reimagined the traditional workstation, fine-tuned for multi-threaded applications.
The ThinkStation P620 will be available starting in September 2020. To learn more about the newest addition to Lenovo’s workstation product portfolio, visit www.lenovo.com/p620.
What do we think?
Lenovo has taken a leap forward and introduced the first AMD powered workstation in a very long time. AMD is ready for this and Lenovo’s accreditation will give AMD the backing it needs to take its message to enterprise to which we say, it’s about time.
*ThinkStation P620: AMD Threadripper Pro W3945W, 1*16GB RAM, 1* 256GB M.2 PCIe 3×4 SSD, NVIDIA Quadro P620 GPU, KYB+Mouse, Windows 10 Pro, 3 year onsite warranty MSRP USD: $4,599