Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 review: A great value for productivity

To many, Lenovo’s ThinkPad laptops are the gold standard for Windows productivity, but they can be pretty spendy. The ThinkBook lineup offers almost every luxury you’ve come to expect from Lenovo’s serious business laptops with a much lower price point. The Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4 starts at just over $1,000 with solid but not amazing specs and fantastic build quality. It won’t scratch your gaming itch, but if you need to get work done, it’s hard to go wrong with the ThinkBook 14. 

Looking for more options? Check out PCWorld’s roundup of the best laptops available right now.

Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4: Specs and features

The Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4 is a “budget-premium” business laptop—the base configuration has a Core Ultra 5 and just 8GB of RAM, and the 14-inch LCD touchscreen is only 1920×1200 and 60Hz. On the other hand, the aluminum chassis is robust and durable, which is necessary if you’re going to haul a laptop to meetings and toss it in your bag. The 2-in-1 design also makes this notebook useful in more situations than your average productivity machine. 

Lenovo also offers this laptop with a more powerful Core Ultra 7 CPU and 16 or 32GB of RAM, which will make the ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 better for multitasking and working with large files. These upgrades don’t add too much to the price, either. Fully decked out, the ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 clocks in around $1,400. The Meteor Lake chip in this machine does have AI acceleration, but it’s not fast enough to qualify for Microsoft’s Copilot+ features. Here are the specs of the laptop I tested. 

• CPU: Intel Core Ultra 5 125U
• Memory: 16GB DDR5
• Graphics/GPU: Intel Arc iGPU
• Display: 14-inch 1920 x 1200 IPS LCD touchscreen, 60Hz
• Storage: 512GB M.2 SSD PCIe Gen 4
• Webcam: 1080p, IR for Windows Hello
• Connectivity: 1x USB-C Thunderbolt 4 (40Gbps), 1x USB-C (10 Gbps), 2 x USB-A (5 Gbps), 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x microSD card reader, 1x 3.5mm audio jack
• Networking: WiFi 6 802.11AX, Bluetooth 5.2
• Battery capacity: 60Whr, 65W charging
• Dimensions: 12.32 x 8.81 x 0.66 inches
• Weight: 3.61lbs
• MSRP as tested: $1,149.99

Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4: Design and build quality

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

The ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 has a mature, elegant design. If you walk into a room with this machine, no one will think you grabbed a gaming notebook off your desk. The underside tapers to present a slimmer side profile, which also makes the machine very easy to pick up from almost any angle. 

The chassis is fully aluminum, with a slick dual-texture finish on the lid. It comes with a Lenovo Slim Pen, which is about as good a stylus as you’ll find bundled with a Windows laptop. It attaches magnetically to the right edge of the laptop for quick access. There’s a robust settings application, and the pen is comfortable to hold. Sadly, Windows 11 still isn’t very good for stylus input, but that’s not Lenovo’s fault. 

Next to the stylus attachment, you’ll find the ThinkBook’s power button with integrated fingerprint scanner. It’s a bit slow if you’re accustomed to using a fingerprint sensor on a phone, and I don’t like how close it is to the pen. You have to sneak your finger in right next to the stylus tip to reach the button. That said, the accuracy is good if you can reach it. This edge also sports a microSD card slot, a USB-A port, and a Kensington lock. On the opposite side, the ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 has both of its USB-C ports, another USB-A, an HDMI port, and a 3.5mm audio jack. 

The 3.61-pound weight is slightly heavy for a 14-inch laptop, but the compact footprint makes it easily portable. The size also helps when you utilize the convertible 360-degree hinge to prop the machine up like a tent or fold the keyboard back. The hinge is on the stiff side, which is preferable for a 2-in-1, so it’ll stay put when you move between postures. You’ll probably need two hands to open the notebook, though. 

The lid has Lenovo’s trademark reverse display notch, which gives you an ergonomically friendly lip to grasp when opening the laptop. This area houses the 1080p webcam (with Windows Hello support), but the rest of the bezel is extremely narrow—it’s almost all screen. The privacy-minded will also be happy to hear there is a physical camera shutter for the webcam. 

Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4: Keyboard and trackpad

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

Lenovo’s laptops consistently offer good keyboards, but some are better than good. The ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4 is in the latter camp—it’s got an excellent keyboard. There’s no room for a number pad, but the compact layout fills most of the available space with full-sized keys that feel tactile and sturdy. The keys have reasonable travel, and the bottom out is firm without being harsh. 

The ThinkBook has a small cutout that gives the arrow cluster a bit more space. These keys are not quite full size, but they’re not split in half like many of today’s mainstream laptops. Not only are these keys easy to find by touch, the layout is super-smart. I adore having the page up and down keys right next to the arrows. 

If you do a lot of typing on the go, this is a fantastic machine to use. There’s even a Windows Copilot key, in case you want to consult a robot. The only thing you’re missing from the more expensive ThinkPad line is Trackpoint, but most people don’t need that additional pointer. It’s one of the few features you lose with the ThinkBook 14 versus the ThinkPad X1 convertible. 

The trackpad isn’t the largest, but neither is this laptop. At 120 x 75mm, the trackpad occupies a sizable chunk of the space below the keyboard. It’s extremely responsive, and the smoothness is incredible. Lenovo opted to cover the surface of the trackpad with mylar. It gives the trackpad a silky texture that embodies the “premium” feel you’d expect from a high-end notebook. 

Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4: Display and audio

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

The display on the ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4 is not a show-stopper, but it is entirely serviceable for its intended use case. The resolution clocks in at 1920 x 1200, which is lower than many similarly priced laptops in 2024. The refresh rate is also stuck at 60Hz, and the brightness tops out at 300 nits. Again, there are 14-inch notebooks that offer more capable displays with OLED technology, higher brightness, faster refresh rates, and a lot more pixels. Those machines are much more expensive, though. 

The screen is plenty sharp for productivity work, and a higher resolution at this size wouldn’t make apps or videos look any better. It’s a nice overall visual experience that won’t drain too much power. The brightness might be annoying if you need to use the ThinkBook in a brightly lit office, or, heaven forbid, outdoors. I’d like to see at least 400 nits of brightness on a laptop in this price range. 

The ThinkBook has stereo speakers tucked into the bottom of the chassis. The sound is typical of laptop speakers. They’re fine for movies and TV, anything where the audio is mostly spoken words. Music sounds acceptable at lower volumes, provided you’re not too picky. There’s next to no bass in the sound profile, and the speakers will distort if you crank them too high. 

Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4: Performance and benchmarks

The ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 is designed for efficiency and portability, which means it’s not the fastest machine out there. However, it makes up for that with its long battery life, and it does still compete well with other laptops in its price range. 

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

PCMark 10 is designed to test a machine across a variety of metrics like web browsing, video chat, and photo editing. With Lenovo’s default adaptive power setting, the ThinkBook competes well with Core Ultra 5 and Core Ultra 7 chips. It only loses about 10 percent compared to the more expensive ThinkPad X1 convertible. 

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

Cinebench is a CPU-focused test that shows how a PC handles heavy but brief multi-core workloads. The ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 catches up to the ThinkPad X1 here, scoring in the middle of the pack among similarly priced Windows laptops. The Ryzen in the Asus Zenbook 14 OLED and Core Ultra 7 155H in the Dell XPS 14 are well out in the lead, though. 

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

The Handbrake test is similar to Cinebench in that it shows how a computer handles multithreaded tasks, but this is a longer-duration test where thermals matter more. Scores in this test are consistent across the U-series Intel Core processors, so the ThinkBook, ThinkPad X1, and performance-tuned Lenovo Yoga 7i score around the same. Dell’s XPS 14 with a Core Ultra 7 155H steals the show, though. 

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

While the ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 is not a gaming machine, it can be helpful to know what the integrated GPU is capable of doing. The unfortunate answer is: not much. It runs neck and neck with other Meteor Lake chips with their modest Intel graphics. The Dell XPS 14 leads the way, showing what’s possible with a real GPU. It’s followed by the Asus Zenbook 14, which has strong AMD integrated graphics. The ThinkBook 14 is not the best laptop if you intend to play anything more complex than Vampire Survivors. 

Benchmarks only tell part of the story. Using the ThinkBook day-to-day is a good experience. Apps open quickly, and you can multitask without noticeable slowdowns. Even 16GB of RAM can feel a bit claustrophobic in 2024, particularly if you like to keep a lot of browser tabs open. I’d recommend staying away from the base model with 8GB of RAM. That’s not enough, even for productivity use. The 16GB of RAM version I tested was good enough for what you can realistically do on a 14-inch laptop. 

If your use case involves transferring large files over Wi-Fi, you may want to look elsewhere. While the Wi-Fi 6 radio is fine for browsing the web, it has lower maximum throughput than Wi-Fi 6e and 7, which are available on competing laptops. You will need a compatible network, though. 

Lenovo doesn’t add too much software on top of the standard Windows loadout. There’s the Vantage settings app, which I like much more than the configuration utilities offered by other OEMs. There is also, however, a trial of McAfee on the machine that pops up alarming warnings trying to get you to upgrade. You can uninstall it, though. 

Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4: Battery life

The ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4 has a 60Wh battery, which is a bit small compared to other laptops of this size. Lenovo’s performance tuning is efficient, though, offering healthy longevity on par with some computers with larger batteries. 

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

IDG / Ryan Whitwam

Our battery test consists of playing a 4K copy of Tears of Steel on repeat in the Movies & TV app (in airplane mode) until the laptop runs out of juice. The ThinkBook lands in the middle of the pack, but all these laptops have overall good battery life. It ran for more than 14 hours in our test. There’s no doubt you can make it through a work day with this notebook, even if you have to crank up the display brightness. 

Charging is accomplished via the USB-C ports. The ThinkBook comes with a 65W charger, which is much more compact than most laptop power supplies, but you can get smaller USB-C chargers. I tested the ThinkBook with a third-party USB-PD charger, and it worked just as well as the OEM model. It’s nice to have that option. 

Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4: Conclusion

Lenovo’s latest ThinkBook is sleek, sturdy, and a delight to carry around. The 2-in-1 design lets you reorient the machine to make better use of the touchscreen display, and I appreciate that Lenovo includes the Slim Pen even if Windows 11 isn’t always great at stylus input. It’s not the fastest computer you can buy, but it’s more than good enough for browsing, writing, spreadsheets, video, and anything else you’re likely to do at work. 

You should have no problem getting in a full workday with the Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4, even if you forget the charger at home. If you do somehow manage to drain the battery, you can recharge with almost any USB-C plug, possibly even the one you use for your phone if it supplies enough power. That can help reduce the clutter you have to haul around. 

While I don’t recommend the base model with 8GB of RAM, the 16GB upgrade isn’t much more spendy. Lenovo always juggles its pricing frequently, so sales on this configuration or the upmarket Core Ultra 7 version are likely. If you do pick up the ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 Gen 4, you’ll get a fantastic little productivity laptop at a good price.