Dell makes some of the sleekest laptops in the premium segment, and this is showcased with the Dell Precision 5480 workstation laptop. Not only does it feel and look like a properly high-end product, it also has the performance level of a proper workstation machine, thanks to its Nvidia RTX 2000 Ada GPU.

However, given its positioning as a premium offering, the Precision 5480 also costs quite a bit of money. But for professional users who are willing to fork out over RM10,000 for the laptop – and that’s only for the base model – this is a capable workstation machine that will serve them well.

What It Is

Unfortunately, the Precision 5480 is no longer offered on Dell’s Malaysian online store; it has been replaced by the newer Precision 5490. That being said, both models are still quite similar to each other, so this review should be largely applicable to the newer Precision 5490. Of course, you can expect to get even better performance with the newer model, thanks to its Intel Ultra chip.

As the Precision 5480 is not offered anymore, I’ll take the pricing of the similarly equipped Precision 5490 as a point of reference. With the same GPU, RAM, and SSD configuration – along with a faster Core Ultra 7 165H processor – the final price comes up to a cool…RM16,724.

Without a doubt this is a lot of money, but that’s the price you have to pay for a premium workstation laptop like the Precision 5480, especially for its RTX 2000 Ada Generation GPU. After all, the GPU itself costs RM2,781 in Dell’s configurator for the Precision 5490.

So is it worth it spending that much money for the GPU? Well, let’s talk about that in the following section.

The Good Stuff

The main appeal of the RTX 2000 Ada Generation is its specialised drivers that are made for professional users. From commercial product design to large-scale calculations, this GPU is more ideal for these workloads than, say, mainstream RTX 40 series gaming GPUs.

To see just how capable the RTX 2000 really is, I put it through its paces in Cinebench 2024’s synthetic benchmark for GPU. This particular benchmark tests the rendering performance of the GPU in Redshift, which is a prominent renderer.

Anyway, the Precision 5480’s RTX 2000 returned a total score of about 6,900 points in this benchmark, and it is…a decent score for a GPU in a compact 14-inch form factor. Test results from synthetic benchmarks can only tell us so much, as the true appeal of the RTX 2000 (as mentioned) lies in its specialised drivers which are made for professional workloads.

That being said, although the RTX 2000 is mostly made for professional tasks, you can also do some gaming with it. I tested Borderlands 3 and Witcher 3 (Patch 4.04) on the Precision 5480 with maxed out graphics settings at the screen’s native 1920 x 1200 resolution, and it returned average framerates of 53.07fps and 59.39fps respectively.

Needless to say, the RTX 2000 is more than fast enough to run these AAA games with a playable framerate at max graphics settings, even if the GPU is not “made” for gaming.

Beyond performance, the display quality of the Precision 5480 is good too. The 14-inch 1920 x 1200 IPS panel, though not particularly sharp, can produce accurate-looking colours (to my eyes anyway) with a good level of brightness and wide viewing angles. I also appreciate the 16:10 aspect ratio with very minimal bezels on all four sides, lending to a sleek, modern-looking design.

Besides that, I’m very surprised by the low system noise of the Precision 5480. Even under heavy load for prolonged periods of time, the fan doesn’t kick up a fuss. I’m happy to report that the palm rest area of the laptop doesn’t get too warm either.

Input devices of the Precision 5480 are good too. The keyboard has plenty of travel to provide a comfortable typing experience, and it has a pronounced tactile bump as well for improved typing accuracy. The trackpad itself is also accurate with a smooth surface to glide on, though I do wish the trackpad itself was a tad bigger.

Last but not least is the overall design and build quality of the Precision 5480, which reminds me quite a bit of Dell’s premium XPS laptops. From the soft touch carbon fibre palm rest to the smooth anodisation of the aluminium chassis, this truly feels like a premium, expensive laptop.

And that is a good segue to the next section.

The Bad Stuff

There’s no denying that the Precision 5480 is expensive. Using the estimated pricing of the Precision 5490 as a reference point, even the “cheapest” configuration of the laptop goes for a whopping RM11,730. For that kind of money, it gets a Core Ultra 5 135H processor, an RTX 1000 Ada Generation GPU, 16GB RAM, and a 256GB SSD.

Another shortcoming of the Precision 5480 is its 60Hz display, which is at odds with the premium appeal of the workstation laptop. In a market where even laptops that cost half of the Precision 5480’s asking price have 120Hz screens, it’s really surprising that a notebook at this price point still has a 60Hz panel.

Is It Worth It?

Although the Dell Precision 5480 costs quite a bit of money with a puzzling display option, it remains true that it is a premium, compact workstation laptop. It is more than adequate in the performance department, it has a bright and colour-accurate display, and it’s a sleek-looking laptop with very solid build quality.

Granted, the Precision 5480 is no longer offered on Dell’s Malaysian online store, but the newer Precision 5490 is essentially the same laptop with even better performance courtesy of the Intel Core Ultra chips. If you’re looking for a premium workstation laptop that you can easily lug around in your backpack, the Precision 5490 should be in your shortlist.