Dell Latitude Dell Latitude 7490 14.1-in Laptop - Intel Core i7 Review

So you're looking at the Dell Latitude 7490, a 14.1-inch business laptop from a few generations back. It's packing an Intel Core i7-8650U processor, a solid 32GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD, all running Windows 11 Pro. At around $378, it's a very specific kind of deal. This isn't a flashy new machine. It's for someone who needs a reliable, well-built Windows laptop for office work, web browsing, and maybe some light multitasking, and doesn't want to spend a fortune. People often ask, 'is this good for students or business?' The scores say it's decently compact and okay for those uses, but it's definitely not built for anything demanding like gaming or creative work.

Let's talk about what those specs and percentiles actually mean. The quad-core i7-8650U lands in the 13th percentile for CPU performance. That tells you everything: it's fine for everyday tasks, but it's slow by modern standards. Opening a dozen browser tabs and a few Word docs? No problem. Trying to edit video or run complex spreadsheets? You'll feel it chug. The integrated graphics are in the 18th percentile, so gaming is basically off the table except for the simplest titles. The good news is the 32GB of RAM (70th percentile) and 1TB SSD (57th percentile). You'll have plenty of room for files and won't run out of memory, which is a huge plus for keeping things smooth during multitasking.

The value here is all about the upfront price. For under $400, you get a laptop with professional build quality, a ton of RAM, and a big SSD. That's hard to beat if your budget is super tight and your needs are basic. But you're trading away performance, battery life, and screen quality. For a similar price, you could find a newer used laptop with a better screen and CPU, but it might only have 8GB or 16GB of RAM. So the question is: do you need that 32GB right now, or would you rather have a better overall experience?

This sits in a weird spot compared to modern machines. The Apple MacBook Pro 14" with an M4 chip is in a different universe performance-wise, but it also costs over ten times as much, so that's not a fair fight. A more relevant comparison is a newer budget ultrabook like the ASUS Zenbook Duo. The Zenbook will have a vastly better screen, a much faster modern CPU, and be lighter, but you'd pay more for it, especially to get 32GB of RAM. Compared to a gaming laptop like the Lenovo Legion Pro 7i, there's no contest for performance, but the Latitude wins on portability and professional aesthetics. Honestly, the Latitude 7490's real competition is other used business laptops from the same era, like an older Lenovo ThinkPad.

Should you buy the Dell Latitude 7490? Only in a very specific scenario. If you need a durable Windows laptop for basic office work, you have a hard $400 limit, and you absolutely require 32GB of RAM for some light virtual machines or massive browser tab habits, this could work. But for almost everyone else, the answer is probably no. The slow CPU and bad screen are big drawbacks for daily use. You'd be better off saving a bit more for a newer model with a better processor, or looking for a used laptop from the last 2-3 years instead of 5-6. This is a tool for a specific job, not a great all-around daily driver.