Lenovo T470S Review: An Outstanding Business Laptop

Lenovo T470S: At First Glance

The Lenovo Thinkpad series has been serving users with business functionalities for years. Recently, the Thinkpad series has begun to evolve such that models from this series are getting more portable and travel-friendly.

One of such model of the Thinkpad series that does all I have said above and even more is the Lenovo T470S. This laptop, which was released in 2017, packs powerful hardware specifications into a portable and resilient chassis.

Despite its numerous feats, the Lenovo T470S comes at a start price that any business person can afford and even buy in bulk for large businesses. Speaking of which, at the time I wrote this review (April 2022), the Lenovo T470S had a starting price of $420.00.

At this point, let us proceed to see the powerful specifications you will be getting from the Lenovo T470S at that price.

Lenovo T470S: Design, Dimension, and Weight

When you hear a business laptop, you might paint the pictures of a general-purpose laptop in your mind. If that is the case, you are right because that is exactly what the Lenovo T470S looks like.

The lid of this laptop is made of a carbon fiber material which makes it lightweight. However, the base of the laptop is made from magnesium which adds a lot of sturdiness to its base.

Speaking of sturdiness, you will be impressed to know that this laptop passed military-grade (MIL-STD 810G) certifications. Hence, the Lenovo T470S can resist to some extent, technical faults that can arise from high temperatures, vibrations, shocks, and sand.

For its color selection, Lenovo has decided to give this laptop a black look which makes it suitable for formal environments.

On the lid of the laptop, you will find a ”ThinkPad” insignia on the top left edge. When running your palm through the surface of the lid, you will feel its smoothness under your palm.

At the base of the Lenovo T470S lid, you will find two metal hinges. These hinges are rigid, and they hold the lid firmly to the laptop’s base.

As a result of the hinges’ sturdiness, you cannot open the laptop’s lid with one hand without the assistance of the other hand. However, despite the sturdiness of the hinges, you can open the lid up to 180 degrees.

Once you lift the lid, the laptop’s 14-inch screen comes into view.

Back to the 14-inch display of the Lenovo T470S, it is available in two resolution options. You can either get it in Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) resolution or WQHD (2560 x 1440 pixels) resolution.

Let me do a quick breakdown of these two resolutions so that you can decide which one is better. From the figures above, you can see that the WQHD resolution display option has more pixels than the FHD resolution display option.

This implies that the WQHD resolution display option will offer better image quality than the FHD resolution display option. Therefore, media professionals who want the best display quality from their laptops should stick with the WQHD resolution display option.

However, if all you want is just for business and general computing tasks, then you can go for a Lenovo T470S with an FHD resolution. Moreover, opting for this display option will save you some money.

Other than their differences in resolution, these display options also have different maximum brightness.

Speaking of which, the FHD display option has a maximum display brightness of 250 nits. Meanwhile, the WQHD display option has a maximum display brightness of 300 nits.

Although both display options are considerably bright, the WQHD display option is brighter and more suitable for outdoor usage. Another difference between these display options is their touch abilities.

While the FHD display option is touch-enabled and supports multi-touch, the WQHD option is not touch-enabled.

Having talked about the differences between the two display options, let us proceed to their similarities. To begin with, both display options feature an anti-glare coating.

The anti-glare coating allows you to use the Lenovo T470S in bright environments without having to deal with reflections that are capable of damaging your sight.

Another similarity between these two display options is that they both have LED backlights. The LED backlights of these displays contribute to their decent display brightness.

Furthermore, both display options are made with IPS panels which are well known for their wide viewing angles. To be precise, this laptop has a wide viewing angle of 160 degrees.

Thanks to the wide viewing angles of this laptop, you will have a clear view of the display from all angles within 160 degrees.

Furthermore, both display options have a 16:9 aspect ratio which implies that the display is 16 units wide and 9 units tall. Hence, more content will fit into the display’s width.

Moving on, the Lenovo T470S display is surrounded by thick bezels, especially the top and bottom bezels. The thick top bezel gives room for a 720p resolution camera which works well for video conferencing.

Meanwhile, the bottom bezel houses a small Lenovo insignia on the left side and a T470S on the right.

So far, I have said a lot about the upper part of the Lenovo T470S. Therefore, let us proceed to its base, where you will find the chicklet-style keyboard.

The keyboard is small, flat, and features rectangular keys with good feedback. In addition to that, you will be impressed by the nice key travel of the keys.

Speaking of key travel, this is the distance that a key goes down when you press it before it registers. Thanks to the decent key travel of this laptop’s keys, it will make your typing sessions seamless.

However, one thing that might be of concern to some users is that the keys make a loud noise when typing. Also, the keyboard is not backlit, which might make it difficult to see the keys clearly when typing at night.

Before we move away from the keyboard, you should be aware that there is a TrackPoint on this keyboard. The small red circular TrackPoint is located between G, B, and H keys and is useful for controlling the cursor.

As expected, there is also a touchpad below the keyboard which can also be used for navigation. Impressively, the touchpad has accurate cursor movement.

The two dedicated buttons on the touchpad have a nice clicky sound. Overall, the touchpad works well such that you might not need an external mouse at all.

Moving on, the sound production of the Lenovo T470S is handled by a dual speaker. Sadly, the sound produced by the speaker is not very loud, and the bass is inadequate.

You might also notice a bit of sound distortion in the sound produced. However, because the Lenovo T470S is more of a business laptop than a multimedia laptop, its sound limitation is understanding.

Before I proceed to the port selection on this laptop, you will notice a ”ThinkPad” logo boldly written on the right edge of the deck.

Now, let us talk about the port and connectivity options.

It might impress you to know that the Lenovo T470S has a lot of ports which are all located at the sides of the laptop’s base. Starting with the left side, you will find an AC charging port, one USB 3.1 Gen 1 port, and one 3.5 mm audio jack.

You will also find a 4-in-1 card reader slot (SD, SDXC, SDHC, MMC). Meanwhile, on the right side, you will find two USB 3.1 Gen 1 port and one USB 3.1 Type-C (Thunderbolt 3) port.

That is not all; you will also find one HDMI 1.4b port and one Ethernet port. Thankfully, with the numerous port selections on this laptop, there is provision for all the wired connectivity you need.

However, there is also a provision for wireless connectivity on this laptop. Lenovo has provided users with Bluetooth 4.1 and WiFi 802.11 ac.

Before I round up this section, let me talk about the weight and size of the Lenovo T470S. Regarding that, it has a weight of 1320 g, and it measures 331 x 226.8 x 18.8 mm (W x D x H).

From its weight and thickness, it is safe to regard the Lenovo T470S as being lightweight and slim.

In comparison, the ASUS ViviBook F412DA weighs more than the Lenovo T470S and is also thicker. Precisely, the ASUS ViviBook F412DA has a weight of 1500 g, and it measures 322 x 212 x 19.9 mm (W x D x H).

Also, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 6 weighs slightly more than the Lenovo T470S, but it is less thick. Specifically, the Lenovo Thinkpad X1 Yoga weighs 1399 g and measures 313 x 223 x 14.9 mm (W x D x H).

In conclusion, the Lenovo T470S has a solid design and build. Also, thanks to its compactness and portability, you can easily throw it into a bag and take it anywhere.

Not only that, but it has also earned a military-grade certification which means that it can withstand rough handling.

Based on all that, I will be rating this laptop a nine out of ten in this design and dimension section of the Lenovo T470S review.

Lenovo T470S: Processor (CPU) Performance

The Lenovo T470S ships with a dual-core Intel Core i7-7600U processor. This processor has a base frequency of 2.80 GHz and a maximum frequency of 3.90 GHz.

Additionally, the processor has a 4 MB cache memory which saves frequently used data temporarily. Thankfully, the Intel Core i7-7600U is a high-end processor which means that it is capable of performing intensive processing tasks.

It will not only perform these tasks, but it will also get the tasks done within a short period of time. For more practical information about this processor’s performance, let us look at the result of this laptop in a Cinebench R15 test.

Briefly, Cinebench R15 is a benchmark test that assesses the performance of a computer’s processor when using a single core or all the cores. When only a single processor core is used in the test, the result is called a single-core score.

Meanwhile, when all the processor cores are used in the test, the result is referred to as a multi-core score. In the case of the Lenovo T470S’ Core i7-7600U processor, when its two cores are used in the test, the result is known as the multi-core score.

On the other hand, if only one of the processor cores is used in the test, the result is a single-core score. You should be aware that in this test, higher scores mean better performance.

That said, the Lenovo T470S had a single-core score of 162 points. It also had a multi-core score of 368 points.

Thankfully, the Lenovo T470S happens to be the best performer among its other competitors in the test. It was followed closely by the Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series E7470, which had a single-core score of 142 Points.

The Dell Lattitude 14 also had a multi-core score of 334 points. However, it is worth noting that the Dell Lattitude 14 uses a less powerful Intel Core i7-6600U processor.

In conclusion, the Lenovo T470S has a powerful processor, and it surpassed its competitors in the benchmark test by topping the performance list. Therefore, I will be rating this laptop a nine out of ten in this processor section of the Lenovo T470S review. 

Lenovo T470S: Memory (RAM) Performance

The Lenovo T470S comes with DDR4 memory which has a speed of 2400 MHz. On the motherboard of this laptop, you will find 8 GB RAM soldered and unremovable.

In addition to that, there is an extra slot where you can add more RAM as well. However, the total capacity of memory supported by this laptop is 24 GB.

Hence, you can not add more than 16 GB of RAM to the second upgradable slot. Performance-wise, even with the least amount of memory on the Lenovo T470S, you will be able to do multiple tasks decently.

Speaking of which, with 8 GB RAM, you can have up to 20 Chrome browser tabs running smoothly without lags. Furthermore, you will find it very smooth to switch from one browser tab to another.

Most importantly, you can as well decide to stream YouTube videos on some of its tabs without experiencing a slowdown. Better still, for more rigorous multitasking, you can increase the RAM capacity of the laptop, as stated above.

At this point, I will show you how well this laptop performed in a PCMark 8 benchmark test. For your information, PCMark 8 is a benchmark test that measures the memory performance of a computer.

In similarity with the benchmark test employed in the previous section, higher scores in this test denote better performance. Therefore, in the test, the Lenovo T470S scored 3968 points.

Once again, the Lenovo T470S topped the performance chart. Next to it on the chart is the Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series E7470 which scored 3344 points.

In conclusion, the Lenovo T470S again delivered an outstanding performance in the benchmark test. It also supports a large memory size which means you have all you need to run more than enough multiple tasks simultaneously.

Based on these, I will give the Lenovo T470S a rating of eight in this section of the review.

Lenovo T470S: Storage Options and Performance

The Lenovo T470S comes with M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD. Impressively, the M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD is the fastest storage you can find on computers these days.

More impressively, this laptop does not only feature a fast storage type, but it also has a large storage space. Speaking of which, the Lenovo T470S supports a maximum of 1 TB of storage.

Hence, with 1 TB storage, you will have enough space to save a decent amount of data. Still, Lenovo did not stop there; it also made provision for external storage expansion via a 4-in-1 card reader.

At this point, I will like to show you the performance of this laptop in a CrystalDiskMark test. For those who require clarification, a Crystaldiskmark test measures a computer’s sequential read and write speed.

To be more explanatory, read speed describes how fast a file will open on a computer. On the other hand, write speed describes how fast a file will save to a computer.

In similarity with other benchmark tests in this review, higher read and write speeds denote better performance.

Hence, in the test, the Lenovo T470S had a sequential read speed of 1760 MBps. It also had a sequential write speed of 1666 MBps.

In comparison, the Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series E7470 had a read speed of 518 MBps and a write speed of 307.7 MBps. It might impress you to know that the Dell Latitude 14 also uses an M.2 SSD.

For a better understanding of the result comparison, the test shows that the Lenovo T470S will open files and save files faster than the Dell Latitude 14. Hence, once again, the Lenovo T470S performed better.

Therefore, I will be rating this laptop nine out of ten in this storage review section.

Lenovo T470S: Graphics Card Performance

For handling graphics tasks, the Lenovo T470S uses an integrated Intel HD Graphics 620. This graphics card has a base frequency of 300 MHz and a boost frequency of 1150 MHz.

However, being an integrated graphics card, the Intel HD Graphics 620 does not have video RAM (VRAM). For clarity, VRAM is a special memory for storing graphics data.

VRAM improves the graphics performance of the graphics card that has it. Hence, only the more powerful dedicated graphics cards come with a VRAM.

Despite having an integrated graphics card that lacks a VRAM, the Lenovo T470S can still handle light graphics tasks. It can also play some games at low graphics settings.

For instance, the laptop is capable of playing Tomb Raider (2013) smoothly at 73.9 fps on a low graphics setting. Not only that, but BioShock Infinite (2013) will also play smoothly at 47.1 fps on low graphics settings as well.

Now, let us see how this laptop fared in a 3DMark benchmark test. For your information, a 3DMark test evaluates how well a computer can handle 3D graphics.

Just like every other benchmark test mentioned in this review, higher scores in this test mean better graphics performance. Therefore, in the test, the Lenovo T470S scored 9610 points.

In comparison, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon scored 7516 points in the same test benchmark. Meanwhile, the Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series E7470 scored 5819 points.

You should be aware that both competitors also use the same Intel HD Graphics 620 as the Lenovo T470S. Therefore, the Lenovo T470S once again outshined its competitors in the test.

Therefore, I will be rating it eight out of ten in this graphics review section.

Lenovo T470S: Battery Life and Performance

The Lenovo T470S comes with two integrated batteries. One of the batteries has a capacity of 23 WHr while the other has a battery capacity of 26 WHr.

Altogether, there is a 49 WHr battery on this laptop.

For the expected battery life, Lenovo has claimed that the battery will deliver up to 10 hours and 30 minutes of battery life. If truly you can get 10 hours of battery life from your laptop, then you can work all day without having to charge it.

However, before we start getting all excited, let us verify Lenovo’s claim. To do that, let us consider a battery test carried out by notebookcheck.com.

The test involved continuously surfing the web over WiFi and at a screen brightness of 150 nits. From the test, a model of the Lenovo T470S with an FHD resolution lasted 6 hours and 57 minutes.

Meanwhile, a WQHD model of the laptop, which is expected to consume more power, lasted 5 hours and 37 minutes in the same test. Although the result of these tests is below Lenovo’s claim, that is still a respectable amount of battery life.

In comparison with the Dell Lattitude 14 7000 Series E7470, which uses a 55 WHr battery, the Lenovo T470S performed better. Specifically, the Dell Lattitude 14 lasted 5 hours and 45 minutes in the same test.

Based on all I have said in this section, I will be rating the Lenovo T470S eight out of ten in this section of the review.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

Every section of this review has proven the Lenovo T470S to be an excellent laptop. This laptop has a unique microfiber design on its lid.

It is also very tough, resilient, portable, and lightweight. In addition to that, this laptop is available in two display options that deliver excellent picture quality.

For any business person, the Lenovo T470S offers a lot of connectivity ports, large storage, and decent battery life. However, the laptop has bulky bezels, and the performance of its speaker is not the best you can get.

In conclusion, the Lenovo T470S is a good business laptop. Hence, if a business laptop is what you have been looking for, you just got yourself one.

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