Lenovo ThinkPad L450 review

A Broadwell-era ThinkPad whose graphics placing flatters it

The ThinkPad L450 from 2013 asks $187, well under the business-class median of $297. Its configuration: a Core i5 5300U dual-core with 16GB of RAM. The headline number needs the usual honesty treatment: best GPU score reads 45.85 — 1094% above the business-class median — but that placing flatters the hardware; the integrated Broadwell graphics were office-tier silicon when new, and the score reflects the class's mostly integrated-only field rather than mainstream capability.

What the ok-flags actually say

The game gates give the calibrated truth: Overwatch, GTA V, and Rainbow Six Siege clear their minimum bars — genuinely green checks an office iGPU of no achievement cannot print — while everything modern and heavy stays out of scope. The final verdict on gaming lives with those flags, not with the flattering percentile: minimum-bar esports on a twelve-year-old machine, nothing more ambitious.

The readings that carry weight

Reliability at 17 against 42.5 is the flagged weakness and the honest centerpiece: a 2013 chassis is deep into its second decade. The 16GB RAM ceiling sits 60% below the class median of 40GB — era-typical, though enough for the office duty the ok-flags scope. Worth-the-price is the verdict; the low entry fee and the gate-supported capability are in balance.

Price trajectory

From a $1,300 anchor the machine has settled at $187 at 6.23% per year, with a two-year projection of $164 — a 12% drop. The value unwound years ago; what remains is utility pricing on a chassis whose reliability flag is the real risk variable.

Against the alternatives

Above it: Lenovo's ThinkPad T550 at $214 and Dell's Latitude 3580 at $214. Below: Dell's Latitude E7240 at $160 and HP's EliteBook Folio 1040 G1 at $167. The band is all twelve-year-old business metal; condition and battery health decide more than any spec line.

Bottom line

Worth the asking price for minimum-bar duty on a classic business chassis. The honest framing: the graphics placing is flattery, the ok-flags are the truth, the reliability reading is the risk — and at $187 the price already prices all three in.