Lenovo Y480 or Y400?

[ivandjaw]

Hello everyone,

I'm thinking to get a decent gaming laptop for less than $900 and these 2 are the best I can find right now. Nevertheless I'm confused which to pick as both seems to have the same specifications. I don't know why does Lenovo have both models sooo similar?

I'll buy mine only with 1 year warranty and without any accessories.

Both come with i7-3630QM processor, 8GB RAM, and dedicated NVIDIA GeForce GT650M GDDR5 2GB

My considerations:

Y400 (~$850 after tax & shipping):
+ newer than Y480
+ have 16GBs SSD
- only 1x USB3.0
? does the keyboard backlitted?

Y480 (~$800 after tax & shipping):
+ good review
+ 3x USB3.0
- older than Y400 (I don't know by how long)
- no SSDs

What limit my choice is that both only have 1366x768 display, while the next available option having 1600x900 resolution will be above my budget. Moreover both come only with 1TB of 5400rpm HDD.

I will really appreciate your comments about choosing between these two or if you have other recommendations about laptops <$900 that have at least the same or better specifications with these lenovos.

Thank you!

 

[Labrynthian]

This gives a good overview of the differences between the two...

http://www.theverge.com/products/compare/4603/6055

I suggest the Y400, however. This is because it comes with the 650M card, AND the option for SLI. So if you want to boost your graphics you can. Also, it can hold more RAM and comes at a lower price than the Y480.

As for suggestions, I suggest looking into the Y580... it's the best gaming laptop in the under $1,000 range. It's packed with a core i7 processor, 8GB RAM (Max. 2GB default), and a NVIDIA GTX 660M card. It's starting price is $900, but if you look hard enough, you could find one in between $800-$900.

Take a look

http://www.theverge.com/products/ideapad-y580/4604

 

[ivandjaw]

This gives a good overview of the differences between the two...

http://www.theverge.com/products/compare/4603/6055

I suggest the Y400, however. This is because it comes with the 650M card, AND the option for SLI. So if you want to boost your graphics you can. Also, it can hold more RAM and comes at a lower price than the Y480.

As for suggestions, I suggest looking into the Y580... it's the best gaming laptop in the under $1,000 range. It's packed with a core i7 processor, 8GB RAM (Max. 2GB default), and a NVIDIA GTX 660M card. It's starting price is $900, but if you look hard enough, you could find one in between $800-$900.

Take a look

http://www.theverge.com/products/ideapad-y580/4604

hi Labrynthian

thanks for your answer!

In this case the Y480 that I'm gonna buy have a 650M card too as what Y400 have. What will you choose?

 

[Labrynthian]

Can you paste the specs of the Y480 you're going to buy? The Y480 I saw has a 2nd gen core i7 processor, not a 3rd gen core i7 processor. The Y480 DOES seem like the more reliable laptop, but just because it's a bit more expensive, doesn't necessarily mean it's the better one. If you can post the specs of the laptop as you're going to buy them, I'd be able to judge better.

 

[ivandjaw]

Can you paste the specs of the Y480 you're going to buy? The Y480 I saw has a 2nd gen core i7 processor, not a 3rd gen core i7 processor. The Y480 DOES seem like the more reliable laptop, but just because it's a bit more expensive, doesn't necessarily mean it's the better one. If you can post the specs of the laptop as you're going to buy them, I'd be able to judge better.

Suree, thankss!

Y480: Model Highlights
Part number: 2093B7U
Processor
3rd Generation Intel Core i7-3630QM Processor( 2.40GHz 6MB)
Operating system
Windows 8 64
graphics
NVIDIA GeForce GT650M GDDR5 2GB
Memory
8.0GB PC3-12800 DDR3 SDRAM 1600 MHz
Display
14.0" HD Glare with integrated camera 1366x768
Pointing device
Industry Standard Touchpad
Hard Drive
1TB 5400 rpm
Optical Drive
DVD Recordable (Dual Layer)
Battery
6 Cell Li-Polymer
Network Card
Intel Centrino Wireless-N 2200BGN
Bluetooth
Bluetooth Version 4.0
Warranty
One year
Form Factor
Notebook
Camera
Integrated HD Camera
HDMI
HDMI (Out)
Check: http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/web/LenovoPortal/en_US/catalog.workflow:item.detail?GroupID=457&Code=2093B7U&category_id=C7563337D3E07CC4B84607F2E57AE7FD#.ULjjSazAfh4

Y400:
Model Highlights
Part number: 95232FU
Processor
3rd Generation Intel Core i7-3630QM Processor( 2.40GHz 6MB)
Operating system
Windows 8 64
Graphics
NVIDIA GeForce GT650M 2GB
Memory
8.0GB PC3-12800 DDR3 SDRAM 1600 MHz
Display
14.0" HD Glare with integrated camera 1366x768
Pointing device
Industry Standard Multi-touch 2 button touchpad
hard drive
1TB 5400RPM+16GB SSD
Optical Drive
DVD Recordable (Dual Layer)
Battery
6 Cell Li-Polymer
Network Card
Intel Centrino Wireless N-2230
Bluetooth
Bluetooth Version 4.0
Warranty
One year
Form Factor
Notebook
Camera
Integrated HD Camera
HDMI
HDMI (Out)
Check: http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/web/LenovoPortal/en_US/catalog.workflow:item.detail?GroupID=457&Code=95232FU&category_id=6716C35E262487E9B548B6298FE58D3B#.ULjjfazAfh4

thanks a lot for your help! really appreciate it!!

 

[Labrynthian]

No problem

Ok So looking at this, I recommend the Y400, only because of the +16GB SSD. This will enhance your storage capacity and efficiency. Otherwise, they are both pretty much the same and it comes down to a question of price. Since they both are of the same quality, you'd get the one that's cheaper, of course.
so think hard, and decide. What you've listed, shows pretty much the same specs in both, so be smart and go for the cheaper one, and you'll be set. Don't forget to best answer it

 

[ivandjaw]

No problem

Ok So looking at this, I recommend the Y400, only because of the +16GB SSD. This will enhance your storage capacity and efficiency. Otherwise, they are both pretty much the same and it comes down to a question of price. Since they both are of the same quality, you'd get the one that's cheaper, of course.
so think hard, and decide. What you've listed, shows pretty much the same specs in both, so be smart and go for the cheaper one, and you'll be set. Don't forget to best answer it

yes, and for 50 more bucks for a 16GB SSD (which means $3.2/GB) I think it's pretty expensive.. I just think that Y480 may be better since it has more USB3.0 hub, where the rest are the same! Moreover I don't really like the red color on each of the keyboard button, just not my style.

I think i'll go with Y480 this time.

thanks a lot!

 

[ivandjaw]

Best answer selected by ivandjaw.