Dell Latitude 7480 review

Where the Latitude 7480 stands

The Dell Latitude 7480 is a 2016 business ultrabook that defies the typical office-laptop profile. At roughly $135 today — one of the lowest prices in its category — it carries an unexpected asset: a GPU score of 45.9, more than ten times the category median of 3.8. That figure places it in mainstream graphics territory, a tier usually reserved for laptops costing several times more. The price reflects its age; the GPU reflects an unusual configuration.

Graphics: an exceptional outlier

A GPU score of 45.9 in a 2016 business chassis is exceptional. For context, this places the 7480 alongside laptops with entry-level dedicated graphics — hardware rarely seen in the Latitude line's mainstream configurations. In practical terms, the machine handles Grand Theft Auto V, Rainbow Six Siege, and Civilization 6 at recommended settings without difficulty. GPU-accelerated workloads — video encoding, light 3D rendering, photo editing — run at a pace that no $135 office laptop has any right to deliver.

CPU: the binding constraint

The trade-off for that graphics outlier is CPU performance. The CPU score of 23.8 is 55% below the category median of 53 — the 7480 has the GPU of a much more expensive laptop and the CPU of a much cheaper one. Single-threaded workloads, heavy compilation, large spreadsheet recalculation, and other CPU-bound tasks will feel the limitation. The mismatch is genuine: this machine is built for graphics work, not compute work.

Price trajectory

From $1,300 in 2016 to $135 today, the 7480 has shed nearly 90% of its value at an annual rate of about 7.2%. The projected price two years out is approximately $116 — a further 14% decline. The depreciation is essentially complete; the machine is priced at the floor of its curve, with little residual value left to lose.

How it compares

In the $125-$150 refurbished business range, the 7480 has few peers on the GPU axis. Above it, the HP EliteBook 840 G4 at $146 and the Lenovo ThinkPad T450 at $142 are typical office configurations with weaker graphics. Below, the HP ProBook 440 G4 and HP 250 G5 at $127 are commodity alternatives. None of them match the 7480's GPU surplus — its defining advantage in this price tier.

Bottom line

The Latitude 7480 is an unusual machine: a $135 business ultrabook with a mainstream-tier GPU. Its trade-off is equally unusual — a CPU well below the category median, making it unsuitable for compute-heavy work. But for buyers who need a cheap secondary laptop for GPU-accelerated tasks, casual gaming, or media work, the value proposition is exceptional. At this price, the GPU alone justifies the purchase.