Lenovo Thinkpad L480 Specs, Price, and Best Deals

The Lenovo ThinkPad L480 is business and work laptop designed with customers in the midmarket in mind. It is not as beautifully designed as premium as a couple of ThinkPads previously made by Lenovo but it delivers in terms of performance and security.

You may also be interested in Lenovo Thinkpad T490, Lenovo Thinkpad E595, and the Lenovo Thinkpad X1 Extreme (Gen 3).

If you want to have an experience of Lenovo’s ThinkPad line of premium PC in terms of feel and performance without having to pay premium money in thousands of US dollars, the ThinkPad L480 is the go-to ThinkPad. Let’s have a peek of what the PC offers.

Lenovo ThinkPad L480 Key Specs

• Display — 14-inch HD (1366 x 768) antiglare or 14-inch FHD (1920 x 1080) antiglare, IPS or 14-inch FHD (1920 x 1080) antiglare, IPS, multitouch
• Dimension — 13.19 x 9.25 x 0.89in (335 x 235 x 22.5mm)
• Weight — 3.71lbs (1.68kg)
• CPU — Intel Core i5-8250U (1.6GHz)
• GPU — Intel UHD Graphics 620
• Operating system — Windows 10 Pro
• Ports — (2) USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-A (one Always On); (2) USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-C; HDMI 1.4b x 1; Ethernet (RJ-45) x 1; (1) 3.5mm combo audio; (1) Micro-SD card reader; Side docking connector; Security keyhole
• Battery — Integrated Li-ion 45Wh, supports Rapid Charge
• RAM — 8GB 2400MHz DDR4, up to 32GB max, dual-channel capable
• Storage — 256GB PCIe Solid State Drive (up to 512GB)
• Price — From $675

Build and Design

The Thinkpad L480 — in terms of build and overall aesthetic — is just like every other ThinkPad laptop there is. Tough and uncompromising body in the regular matte black colour, smooth keyboard with the signature Red TrackPoint, and red/black trackpad left and right buttons are component you’d find on a Lenovo laptop carrying the ThinkPad emblem.

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Since the device is a low-cost ThinkPad, some cost-cutting materials and processes were adopted in the making; it’s obvious that not too much effort were channeled into the making.

At 22.5mm, the Lenovo ThinkPad L480 is of the thickest ThinkPad ever made by Lenovo. Also, unlike the more expensive ThinkPads that are made from more premium materials like carbon fiber, aluminum, and magnesium alloy, the ThinkPad L480 is made out of polycarbonate plastic. Irrespective, the laptop has its fair share of ruggedness as it is military-grade MIL-STD 810G tested against shock, high humidity, vibrations, dust, extremes of temperature, etc.

The ThinkPad L480 comes with a fingerprint reader for Windows Hello authentication and is laced with plenty of ports: USB C, USB Type-A, HDMI port, micro SD card slot, and ethernet port are available in the singles and doubles (see specs above). There is a webcam right above the display but lacks the signature ThinkPad’s ThinkShutter privacy slider, unlike the ThinkPad A285 and ThinkPad T580.

Display

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The upper lid carries the 14-inch matte anti-glare display with thick bezels. The display is available in touchscreen and non-touchscreen models as well as in HD and FHD resolution options. You can configure the display in accordance with your budget or/and preference.

The brightness level is decent enough and the fact that the display is anti-glare makes it perfect for use in different environment; either in low or high light conditions.

If you need a smaller display, the Lenovo ThinkPad L380 with 13-inch display is a great alternative at even cheaper price.

Processor and Storage

The Lenovo ThinkPad L480 comes with a mundane design that might be a total turn off but in terms of performance, the laptop is one of the best you can get at the price it sells for. The ThinkPad L480 is powered by Intel 8th Gen Quad-core Core i5-8250U processor alongside Intel’s UHD Graphics 620 unit.

This is the CPU and GPU combination you’d find on modern premium ultrabooks and laptops and the fact that the processor comes with four cores means they will be about 40-45% faster performance than 7th Gen dual-core Core i5-7200U CPU. Should you have extra cash to shell out, a higher 8th Gen Intel Core i7 CPU model with vPro can be opted for instead.

Per storage, the base model of the Lenovo ThinkPad L480 starts at 8GB of RAM and 256GB of SSD storage (PCIe-based). RAM can be upped to 32GB while SSD storage can be maxed to 512GB.

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Battery

Although on paper, Lenovo says the ThinkPad L480’s 45Wh battery can supply up to 12 hours of usage, about 7-9 hours should be expected. 12 hours is also very possible but longevity ultimately depends on the usage intensity. The laptop comes with support for Rapid Charge which can boost battery from 0% up to 80% in one hour of charge.

Lenovo Thinkpad L480 Price and Availability

The base model of the ThinkPad L480 with 8GB RAM, Core i5 CPU, and 256GB of SSD start from about $700. Price can go as high as $1000 based on CPU and storage configuration.