Lenovo ThinkCentre M90q Gen 1 Tiny

A 2020 ThinkCentre Tiny on the Q470 chipset with 2 M.2 NVMe slots, 1 2.5" bay and up to 64 GB of RAM (official). It can take a PCIe card, which is rare in this size.

☆ Save modelGood for 4K HEVC; no AV1 decodeSpecs widely confirmed

Used price

Used M90q Gen 1 units on eBay US currently start at $176, and the typical asking price is about $349 across 27 fixed-price listings. The spread mostly reflects the CPU fitted (i5-10500T, i7-10700T), RAM and SSD included, and whether a power adapter is in the box.

Specifications

Checked against: Lenovo PSREF spec sheet. Official limits can be lower than what owners report working.

What owners should know

• Two M.2 slots plus 10th-gen CPUs with Hyper-Threading: a strong Proxmox node if priced near an M920q.

Power consumption

Not measured yet. We only publish idle figures with a source, the configuration and the method. If you have measured one at the wall, send us your reading (CPU, RAM, drives, OS, meter and date). See how to measure idle power.

What to buy with it

• 64 GB RAM kit

  2 × 32 GB DDR4 SODIMM, 2933 MT/s or faster (runs at 2933)

  2 SODIMM slots, 64 GB official maximum. DDR4 laptop-size modules (not desktop DIMMs, not DDR5).
• 2 × NVMe SSD

  M.2 2280 NVMe SSD (PCIe), e.g. 1 TB with DRAM cache or HMB for VM storage

  2 M.2 2280 storage slots. Two drives allow a ZFS mirror or separate boot and VM storage.
• 2.5" SATA SSD + caddy · optional

  2.5" SATA SSD (7 mm), plus the model's drive caddy/cable if the unit did not ship with one

  1 × 2.5" bay. Not usable at the same time as a PCIe riser card in this chassis.
• 10GbE network card + riser · optional

  Low-profile PCIe 10GbE NIC (Intel X520/X710 or Mellanox ConnectX-3/4 are common picks) and the model-specific riser + bracket

  Low-profile PCIe network card in the riser slot (riser and bracket bought separately). Owner-reported, not a vendor-listed option: check card height and cooling.
• Power adapter (if missing) · optional

  Lenovo 65 W or 90 W or 135 W or 230 W adapter with the correct connector

  Many ex-office units are sold without one. Use the wattage the manufacturer lists for the CPU fitted.

We list the spec to look for rather than a price, because part prices change daily and we only show prices from a live source.

Plex and Jellyfin transcoding

Handles 10-bit HEVC (typical 4K HDR) in hardware. No AV1 decode, so AV1 files fall back to the CPU. The table covers every CPU option sold in this chassis. Check which CPU a listing actually has.

Plex needs a Plex Pass for hardware transcoding; Jellyfin does not. More detail in our Quick Sync generations guide.

Before you buy one used

• Confirm the exact CPU model in the listing photos or System Information screenshot, not just "Core i5".
• Check that a power adapter of the right wattage is included (65 W or 90 W or 135 W or 230 W). Many ex-office units ship without one.
• Ask whether the BIOS is unlocked. Ex-corporate machines sometimes keep an admin password.
• A 2.5" drive needs the caddy and cable, which are often missing when a unit shipped with only an M.2 SSD.
• The PCIe riser is usually not included. Budget for it separately.

Full listing checklist →

Find one

Email me when one is listed under my price

Frequently asked questions

How much RAM does the M90q Gen 1 support?

Lenovo's official maximum is 64 GB across 2 DDR4 SODIMM slots at up to 2933 MT/s.

How many NVMe SSDs can the M90q Gen 1 hold?

2 M.2 NVMe slots for storage plus 1 2.5" SATA bay, so up to 3 internal drives.

Does the M90q Gen 1 have a PCIe slot?

Yes: PCIe x8 via riser. PCIe 3.0 x8 low-profile slot (uses the 2.5" bay space)

Can the M90q Gen 1 use 10GbE or 2.5GbE networking?

10GbE via Low-profile PCIe network card in the riser slot (riser and bracket bought separately) (reported by owners, not a vendor option).

Is the M90q Gen 1 good for Plex or Jellyfin?

Handles 10-bit HEVC (typical 4K HDR) in hardware. No AV1 decode, so AV1 files fall back to the CPU. That applies to the best CPU option (Core i7-10700T, UHD 630); check which CPU a listing has.

How much power does the M90q Gen 1 use at idle?

We have not published a sourced measurement for this model yet, and we do not estimate one. Idle draw depends on CPU, drives, BIOS power settings and OS.

Good for

• Two NVMe slots
• PCIe slot
• 10GbE
• 2.5GbE+ networking
• 64 GB RAM (official)
• Plex / Jellyfin 4K
• Proxmox node
• OPNsense / pfSense router
• vPro / AMT

Related guides

• Which used mini PCs can transcode 4K for Plex and Jellyfin?
• How to check a used mini PC listing before you buy
• Do Lenovo Tiny, OptiPlex Micro and EliteDesk Mini PCs support 64 GB of RAM?
• Which used mini PCs can take a 10GbE network card?
• Mini PC power consumption for a 24/7 home server: how to measure and reduce it
• Choosing a used mini PC for Proxmox: RAM, drives, NICs and clusters
• Mini PC NVMe SSD upgrade guide: slots, sizes and the 2.5" bay
• Mini PC RAM upgrade guide: DDR4 vs DDR5, speeds and slots
• Using a used mini PC as an OPNsense or pfSense router
• Can a used mini PC be a NAS? Drive limits and better options
• Used business mini PC vs a new Intel N100 mini PC for a home server
• Lenovo Tiny, OptiPlex Micro and EliteDesk Mini names explained (TinyMiniMicro)

Head-to-head comparisons

• M90q Gen 1 vs EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini
• M920q vs M90q Gen 1
• M920x vs M90q Gen 1
• M70q Gen 1 vs M90q Gen 1
• OptiPlex 7080 Micro vs M90q Gen 1

Similar models to consider

• Dell OptiPlex 3080 Micro1× NVMe · 64 GB max · no PCIe · Good for 4K HEVC; no AV1 decode
• Dell OptiPlex 7080 Micro2× NVMe · 64 GB max · PCIe · Good for 4K HEVC; no AV1 decode
• HP EliteDesk 800 G6 Mini2× NVMe · 64 GB max · no PCIe · Good for 4K HEVC; no AV1 decode

Compare these side by side →