Lenovo ThinkPad E495 is an affordable business laptop in the ThinkPad E-series. Although Lenovo has opted for AMD components rather than Intel, it is still one of the best office laptops at this price. That is the reason why this AMD Ryzen 5 laptop is creating serious buzz in the laptop market.
We have reviewed the ThinkPad E495 – 20NE000JUK in this article. In case you are considering buying this ThinkPad laptop, continue to read. This review will offer you appropriate and ample information about the Lenovo ThinkPad E495. We have evaluated its specs, design, display, keyboard and battery life as well as its performance.
Specs Sheet
Processor: AMD Quad-Core Ryzen-5 3500U / 2.1GHz Max. Turbo Speed 3.7GHz
RAM: 8GB
Storage: 256GB SSD
Display: 14-inch FHD IPS (1920 x 1080) Resolution
Graphics: AMD Radeon Vega 8 Integrated
Battery: Up to 11 hours
Weight: around 3.85 lbs (1.75 Kg)
Operating System: Windows 10 Pro (64-bit)
SKU: 20NE000JUK
Lenovo ThinkPad E495 looks solid on paper, thanks to its high-end components. Let’s find out whether it can handle tough tasks and live up to the expectations as a business laptop.
Design
As soon as you unbox the ThinkPad E495 – 20NE000JUK, you would notice its top surface. It features a slightly rough surface made of plastic that feels robust and sturdy. You can open its lid with one hand that comes with a durable hinge, which lifts the bottom a bit when you open it.
On the bottom, there are discontinuous grills for hot air vent. The slight lift that hinge provides space for air circulation and helps the fan. We found no flex on the palm rest or the keyboard inside the ThinkPad E495. The build material looks long-lasting and did not scratch when we used it roughly.
Display
The ThinkPad E495 features a 14-inch wide display with a screen resolution of 1920 x 1080. Lenovo claims that its 1080p panel could deliver a screen brightness of 250 nits. Although it is nearly true for the middles of the screen, the average screen brightness of its screen is around 230 nits.
In addition, the manufacturer has integrated the ThinkPad E495 with AMD’s Radeon Vega 8. This is a powerful graphics card and delivers immersive visuals with vivid colours. Overall, its display provides superb visual experience, whether you are streaming videos or working on media editing tools.
Keyboard
Lenovo has included the typical ThinkPad keyboard in this laptop which is nothing but a treat. To be honest, we very much like this keyboard for its long-travel keys, clicky feedback and large keys. Moreover, there are there is a nipple while the trackpad features dedicated mouse buttons on it.
The surface of the trackpad is made of plastic, but you get the feeling of an aluminium lid. However, this business laptop does not have LED-backlit lights on its keyboard.
Connectivity
There is a range of ports on the ThinkPad E495 that you can use to connect peripherals or other devices. These up to date ports include two Type-A ports (USB 3.1 / USB 3.2), a USB 2.0 Type-A and a Type-C 3.1 USB port. In addition, there is an HDMI port and a 3.5mm audio jack. Unfortunately, there is no MicroSD or full-sized SD card reader slot.
Performance
Lenovo has armed the ThinkPad E495 – 20NE000JUK with an AMD processor instead of an Intel one. This is an AMD Ryzen 5 laptop that runs on the Windows 10 Pro operating system. Its quad-core processor offers a basic frequency of 2.1GHz and can deliver the maximum clock speed of 3.7GHz.
Also, there is a 256GB storage drive which is paired with an 8GB RAM. This is a single-channel RAM, but you can always add another RAM module. Adding another model will not only increase speed but also improve the Vega 8 graphics card performance. Nevertheless, its processor is still ahead of competitors, thanks to its SSD drive.
Coming to its battery performance, Lenovo claims that the ThinkPad E495 can deliver up to 11 hours of battery life. However, we tested this claim by putting the ThinkPad E495 under stress and ran some heavy software and media tools. Although the claim was never met, the laptop still performs good and delivered a battery life of more than 9 hours.
Verdict
Lenovo ThinkPad E495 is an affordable business laptop that comes with an 8GB memory, SSD storage and an FHD display. This is a quad-core laptop with a small footprint that lives up to the expectations. All in all, the ThinkPad E495 – 20NE000JUK is a decent choice for creative professionals. You can work on it whether you are sitting in your office, home or on the go.
