Lenovo ThinkPad 14" T490, Intel i5-8365U, 16GB, 256GB SSD, Black
No current retailer price
Snapshot
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Strong affordability (98th percentile) 98th
- Strong social proof (85th percentile) 85th
- Strong reliability (82nd percentile) 82nd
- Strong portability (76th percentile) 76th
Cons
- Below average screen (7th percentile)
- Below average storage (16th percentile)
- Below average cpu (20th percentile)
- Below average ram (26th percentile)
What owners think
How owner sentiment changed over time
ExclusiveBased on when customers actually wrote their reviews - so you can see whether early praise held up.
- Q2 202667/100
Buyers in this period had mixed experiences: one praised the refurbished laptop's performance and seller communication, another was satisfied with price and quality, but a third reported unacceptable cosmetic defects despite 'Excellent Condition' grading.
- Refurbished laptop met or exceeded expectations; ran diagnostics, found it impeccable, and praised seller communication and shipping.
- Cosmetic defects on 'Excellent Condition' unit: lid bubbling, deep scratches, and heavy trackpad wear from previous use.
- Good value for price; quality works well for the buyer.
- Q1 202490/100
Buyers praised the laptop's hardware, performance, and condition, with one noting Windows issues. Overall, they recommend it.
- Hardware quality and performance praised; works well and looks new.
- Recommendations given; buyers would recommend to others.
- Windows problems mentioned; hardware fine but OS issues.
Based on 10 dated customer reviews, grouped by calendar quarter. Period analysis is in English.
The proof
Performance
Specifications
Full Specifications
Processor
| CPU | Intel Core i5 8365U |
| Cores | 4 |
| Frequency | 1.6 GHz |
| L3 Cache | 6 MB |
Graphics
| GPU | Intel UHD Graphics 620 |
| Type | Integrated |
| VRAM Type | Shared |
Memory & Storage
| RAM | 16 GB |
| RAM Generation | DDR4 |
| Storage | 256 GB |
| Storage Type | SSD |
Display
| Size | 14" |
| Resolution | 1366x768 |
| Panel | IPS |
Connectivity
| USB-C Ports | 2 |
| USB Ports | 2 |
| HDMI | 1x HDMI |
| Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi 5 |
| Bluetooth | Bluetooth 5.0 |
| Ethernet | ✓ |
Physical
| Weight | 1.5 kg / 3.2 lbs |
| OS | Windows 10 Pro |
vs Competition
| Spec | Lenovo ThinkPad 14" T490 | Apple MacBook Pro M4 Max | ASUS ROG Zephyrus GA403WW-G14.R95080 | HP OMEN Transcend | MSI Raider RAIDERGE6814247 | Alienware Aurora LAC16251-9582BLU-PUS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Core i5 8365U | Apple M4 Max | AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 | Intel Core Ultra 9 285H | Intel Core i9 14900HX | Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX |
| RAM (GB) | 16 | 64 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 32 |
| Storage (GB) | 256 | 4096 | 2048 | 1024 | 2048 | 2048 |
| Screen | 14" 1366x768 | 14.2" 3024x1964 | 14" 2880x1800 | 14" 2880x1800 | 16" 3840x2160 | 16" 2560x1600 |
| GPU | Intel UHD Graphics 620 | Apple (40-Core) | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 |
| OS | Windows 10 Pro | macOS | Windows 11 Home | Windows 11 Home | Windows 11 Home | Windows 11 Home |
| Weight (kg) | 1.5 | 1.6 | 1.6 | 1.6 | 2.7 | 2.5 |
| Battery (Wh) | - | 72 | - | 71 | 100 | 96 |
| Compare | Compare | Compare | Compare | Compare |
| Product | CPU | GPU | RAM | Ports | Screen | Portability | Storage | Reliability | Social Proof | Affordability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lenovo ThinkPad 14" T490 | 20.1 | 27.7 | 25.6 | 58.1 | 6.5 | 76.4 | 15.8 | 81.8 | 84.8 | 97.6 |
| Apple MacBook Pro M4 Max Compare | 93.8 | 90.7 | 95.7 | 73.5 | 99.3 | 68.9 | 98.5 | 98.1 | 87.8 | 1.6 |
| ASUS ROG Zephyrus GA403WW-G14.R95080 Compare | 91.2 | 97.4 | 90.9 | 89.4 | 96.5 | 73.7 | 89.8 | 60.4 | 98.4 | 5.4 |
| HP OMEN Transcend Compare | 90.1 | 92.6 | 89.8 | 89.4 | 96.5 | 72.3 | 65.2 | 33.4 | 97.3 | 8.4 |
| MSI Raider RAIDERGE6814247 Compare | 93.2 | 94.5 | 86.4 | 98.6 | 98 | 9.3 | 93.9 | 60.4 | 51.3 | 10.2 |
| Alienware Aurora LAC16251-9582BLU-PUS Compare | 97.2 | 92.6 | 86.4 | 83.3 | 90.7 | 12.6 | 89.8 | 4 | 98.4 | 14.1 |
Usage Scores
- Overall42.6
- AI/LLM13.2
- Gaming10.2
- Portability59
- Creator15.1
- Student78.3
- Business54.1
- Developer38.9
- Entertainment33.6
A full written review is coming soon. The specs, scores, prices and charts above are always up to date.