Pat PilcherSummary
HP X360 Envy Laptop
HP’s latest Envy laptop can work with its keyboard or as a stand-alone tablet but there’s much more to it than that, writes PAT PILCHER.
From $2029
Owning a laptop used to equate to many compromises, but improvements to displays, graphics, and mobile-centric CPUs over the years have made using a laptop no great chore. HP realised this some time ago with its Envy line-up, which offers premium hardware without too many compromises.
Their newest laptop, the HP Envy x360 14, is a stunner. Its OLED display is impressive, and the overall design is easy on the eyes. More recently, AI has become huger than huge, and to this end, the Envy sports a dedicated copilot key, making it one of the first laptops around with baked-in copilot key access.
Being a 2-in-1 laptop, you can use the keyboard with the Envy in what HP calls “tent mode” (useful for giving presentations to a small group) or as a tablet. The review model came with an Intel Core Ultra 7 155U and a generous 16GB of RAM along with 512GB of SSD storage.
It’s also a slinky wee number, and its sleek chassis is just a hair over 18mm deep. Crafted out of black aluminium, it feels solid. The hinges that allow the screen to work its fold magic are reassuringly sturdy, with the screen offering little in the way of flexing as it is folded around.
There’s a 5MP webcam atop the screen, which is HDR capable and supports IR for Windows Hello logins when the light isn’t great. Privacy buffs will appreciate that there’s a physical camera shutter, so the webcam can’t be enabled through software.
Connectivity is well catered for. Along with two USB-C ports (one is used to connect the bundled power brick), you get two UBS A ports, HDMI and a 3.5mm headphone socket, which isn’t too shabby considering its compact chassis. On the wireless front, you get Wi-Fi 7, which offers a solid piece of futureproofing. Weighing in at 1.3 kg, the Envy won’t cause a huge shoulder strain during the commute to the office.
The move to USB-C in recent years is a real bonus in my books. In the past, you were chained to a proprietary laptop power brick, but thanks to the wonders of USB-C, any high-wattage USB charger will suffice. So, there’s one less thing to throw in your laptop bag, as you can have a USB-C adaptor at home and the office.
Where previous Envy x360 notebooks were silver, the 2024 review unit came in an attractive dark charcoal grey, lending it a clean, no-nonsense look. Its backlit keys offer decent tactile feedback and a surprising amount of travel. The keyboard itself feels well-spaced out, but annoyingly, the power button sits above the backspace key, which saw me hitting it instead of backspace more than once. While a quick tap won’t shut everything down, it will put the Envy to sleep, which stops being fun pretty fast. Power button grizzles aside, it comes with a decent-sized trackpad. This makes for effortless scrolling and has proved to be accurate.
The Envy’s 2880×1800 OLED screen is 14 inches (measured diagonally), offering up a 16:10 aspect ratio, making consuming media content a joy. Inky blacks, lush colours and a decent resolution meant everything on-screen looked crisp and sharp. Able to crank out 500 Nits (if plugged into a power supply) and HDR, it was ideal for Netflix chill sessions, YouTube, document editing and so on.
Loud twin down-firing speakers are fitted on the Envy’s underside. However, as with most other laptops, anyone wanting bass and full audio is best advised to connect some good headphones/earbuds. HP seems to have set the default power mode to something aimed at battery life rather than performance. Considering this, I switched to performance mode and put the Envy through its paces in the PCMark benchmark suite. There, it scored a respectable 6,201, about what you’d expect from a Core Ultra 7 CPU-equipped notebook PC.
The flip side of this is that the Envy acquitted itself well regarding the battery life test. Running a looped video with the best power efficiency, HDR, and default screen brightness levels set, I squeezed an impressive 13 hours and 27 minutes of run time out of it before it demanded quality time with the wall socket.
While the Envy can run on the smell of an oily rag, it does so by slowing everything down. You are unlikely to notice this with productivity apps, but gamers and power users will want to switch to performance mode. In its default mode, it should get you through a whole day of use plus some spare change.
So, the verdict? The Envy is a well-crafted piece of hardware that sports a decent trackpad/ keyboard. Its spec at 16GB of RAM plus Wi-Fi 7 support makes it a solid choice, especially with its gorgeous OLED display. It’s a compact and capable device, provided you can manage its default power mode.
https://www.hp.com/nz-en/shop/laptops-tablets/personal-laptops/envy-laptops/envy-x360-laptops.html
