The Yoga A940 is Lenovo's all-in-one answer to the Surface Studio
Lenovo's shifting all-in-one desktop PC is aimed at digital creators and doesn't break the bank

The Microsoft Surface Studio has been on the creative scene for a few years now, so it seems natural to ask if it's influencing other PC manufacturers to do the same. It seems we now have our answer with the Yoga A940 – a new desktop all-in-one with a movable display aimed at digital content creators.
While the comparison to the Surface Studio is valid, Lenovo is also bringing unique twists and solving some problems along the way too.
First and foremost is the Yoga A940 has an actual desktop-class Intel Core i7-8700 65 watt processor versus the low-powered laptop processor found in the Studio.
For a GPU, the Yoga A940 is packing a decent AMD Radeon RX 560 – that's by no means a gaming GPU, but for those using photo and drawing software should be enough while keeping overall costs low – another significant distinction between this and the Surface Studio.
Category | Lenovo Yoga A940 |
---|---|
Display | 27-inch UHD (3840x2160) IPS touchscreen, Dolby Vision HDR 27-inch QHD (2560x1440) IPS touchscreen, Dolby Vision HDR 25º dual hinge |
Processor | Intel 8th Gen Core i7 |
Graphics | AMD Radeon RX 560 |
RAM | 8GB, 16GB, or 32GB DDR4 |
Storage | 128GB, 256GB, or 512GB PCIe SSD; or 1TB or 2TB SATA HDD |
Ports | USB-C Thunderbolt 3 x1, USB-C 3.1 x1, USB 3.0 x4, USB 2.0 x2, SD card reader, Ethernet, 3.5mm audio jack |
Camera | 1080p Windows Hello IR camera |
Pen | Lenovo Active Pen 1 (AES 1.0) |
Dimensions | 25.03 x 18.71 x 8.96 inches (635.7 x 475.3 x 227.7 mm) |
Weight | Starting at 32.19 lbs. (14.6 kg) |
Availability | March 2019 |
Price | Starting at $2,349.99 |
Another smart innovation is the Lenovo Precision Dial accessory which is included with each Yoga A940. That dial plugs into either the right or left-hand side depending on preference. It sits at mid-level of the display and results in a more natural position than the Surface Dial. For usage, it has two dials and a push button to toggle the menu or toggle functions. For functions, the artist can use the dial for brush stroke, tip size, opacity, and flow rate.
Lenovo is configuring the dial to work with specific photo, video, and drawing apps such as Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, Lightroom 7 and more.
For inking, the Yoga A940 supports the Lenovo Active Pen with AES 1.0. That pen can be stored on the innovative mat that sits below the display. The mat also has Qi wireless charging for your smartphone and can be used to store the mouse when not in use. The whole design of the Yoga A940 is meant to allow hiding of the desktop accessories like the keyboard, mouse, and pen when in drafting mode – versus the Surface Studio, where you have to push it all to the side.
The display and audio Lenovo is using Dolby Vision HDR – even with the optional 4K 27-inch panel – and Dolby Atmos with the five speakers (including a few front firing) for immersive audio and video. That display can fold down – although not quite as elegantly as the Surface Studio – to a 25-degree angle akin to a drafting table familiar to all artists and engineers.
Another big bonus is users can access the innards of the Yoga A940 through the removal of a few screws on top of the base. Once opened owners can swap out and upgrade the storage and even RAM given a little more life to the all-in-one down the road.
Finally, Lenovo is keeping the price of the Yoga A940 well below that of the Surface Studio with a starting price of $2,350 – that's a hefty $1,150 cheaper letting a more extensive audience get into the whole 27-inch digital drawing experience. Combined with Lenovo's ability to ship worldwide and the Yoga A940 is likely to land on many more desks than Microsoft's pricier all-in-one.
Look for the Yoga A940 to hit store shelves in March.
Windows Central Newsletter
Get the best of Windows Central in your inbox, every day!
Daniel Rubino is the Editor-in-chief of Windows Central, head reviewer, podcast co-host, and analyst. He has been covering Microsoft since 2007 when this site was called WMExperts (and later Windows Phone Central). His interests include Windows, laptops, next-gen computing, and for some reason, watches. Before all this tech stuff, he worked on a Ph.D. in linguistics, watched people sleep (for medical purposes!), and ran the projectors at movie theaters because it was fun.
-
When your are referring to the Studio having a laptop class cpu, I thought the Studio 2 has a desktop class? Wouldn't you compare it to 2? Maybe I'm wrong though about the 2.
-
Surface Studio 2 has a 45W laptop processor, so what I said is accurate. This is a 65W desktop CPU in the A940.
-
Maybe "less unaffordable" would be closer to the mark! But it looks great on video. The Surface Studio looked great, too, on video, but it really popped in person! I remember "visiting" with one in a Microsoft Store, and the display had an Owl-themed background too. Was the Lenovo Owl just a coincidence, or a callback? Looks can be deceiving, but the Studio was gorgeous to look at and just a beautifully designed device to operate and my impression from the above is that the Studio display was brighter and more vibrant than the A940? Lenovo had previously done a lot lot of work and was definitely ahead of Microsoft with respect to handwriting-to-text stylus input UI. But nothing much seemed to come of it. Has there been any advances along those lines? With this class of device the obvious emphasis is on the potential use for graphic arts, etc. But there is untapped potential to move stylus-input forward also.
-
any specs on color reproduction; sRGB or Adobe RGB gamut coverage?
-
Those are the most important specs for me.
-
This panel is actually the 100% sRGB.
-
Does the thunderbolt support external gpu?
-
Have one of the first Lenovo 27” AIOs from 2014/15. Aesthetically beautiful machine but no desktop processor and no pen support. Also looks like the hinge works way easier in this. Glad to see Surface Studio’s influence here. That’s what the Surface line is supposed to do. Now if we could only get them to set the bar in WoA, eSim and ACPC... and maybe foldables? I think it’s clear the OEMs will follow.
-
Windows Central bringing the latest stuff with all the info and a great video. Great work at explaining exactly what this device is built for and not getting distracted. It just goes to show that Microsoft reporting CAN be focused. No need to keep talking about update issues from months back or "knocking" a device because it doesn't do what it wasn't intended to do. Great work.
-
Looks like a great option, but I'm still hoping for a full monitor of that size I can connect to my own workstation so my 40" 4k display remains my main display, but then having another full size one closer to me on the desk for touch. What the Dell Canvas seemed to offer, but at a sub-$1k price point.
-
It's crazy that the canvas is still priced that high
-
Really nice looking machine.
-
I guess Microsoft has a secret agreement with OEMs that they can copy the Surface designs without legal consequences. If Apple does the same, Microsoft would sue it for sure.
-
The difference is that Apple doesn't sell Windows with their PCs/Laptops/Tablets... so it is not a Windows OEM. To become a Windows or Chrome OS OEM you have to sign relevant contractual obligations...
-
It doesn't look as sexy as Surface Studio but the price is attractive for professional designers. The Precision Dial on the left seems more practical than Surface Dial.
-
This is too fabulous laptop love the features
-
Presumably the Ethernet is Gigabit? As it's not listed in the detailed specs which is odd to say the least. https://www.windowscentral.com/e?link=https2F2Fc%... Hopefully we see more AIOs with Radeon GPUs as it's not worth the premium paying for RTX when it does not work without DLSS.
-
Nice, very nice. Want. I'll be looking for desktop computer shortly and even though I'm fully in surface ecosystem, this will be on top of my list. The keyboard shelf, the charging pad, nom nom. This is basically the first non surface computer that can match the surface design.