Jump to content

HP Spectre x360 13 review: A high-end two-in-one that’s hard to beat


DudeAsInCool

Recommended Posts

It is sleek.

Enlarge / It is sleek. (credit: Valentina Palladino)

There was a lot to love about the 4th-generation HP Spectre x360 13, but HP wasn't satisfied. The new 5th-gen laptop, which debuted at the end of 2019, has more improvements than you'd think just by glancing at it. in fact without inspecting it thoroughly, you may think the new Spectre x360 13 looks and feels just like the previous model. But fear not, it's different—HP significantly shrank the device, added a mic-mute button, gave it optional LTE support, and stuffed 10th-gen Ice Lake Intel processors inside of it.

When OEMs make improvements and try to fix problems on a laptop, they often have to make sacrifices. With thin-and-light flagships like these, sacrifices typically come in power, battery life, and port selection, just to name a few areas. But HP didn't remove anything from the 4th-generation laptop when making the newest model—a fact that will work in its favor as it has to compete with the likes of the Dell XPS 13 two-in-one and the new Dell XPS 13 laptop. But just how much better did HP make the Spectre x360 13, and are there any hidden negatives about the newest iteration? We recently spent a few days with the laptop to find out.

Look and feel

Specs at a glance: HP Spectre x360 13 (2019, as reviewed)
Screen 13.3-inch FHD (1920 x1080) WLED touchscreen
OS Windows 10
CPU Intel Core i7-1065G7 (Ice Lake)
RAM 8GB
Storage 512GB PCIe SSD + 32GB Optane Memory
GPU Intel Iris Plus Graphics
Networking Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX 201 (2x2), Bluetooth 5
Ports 2 x Thunderbolt 3, 1 x USB-A, 1 x microSD card, 1 x headphone jack
Size 12.1×7.7×0.7 inches
Weight 2.88 pounds
Battery 60Whr 4-cell
Starting price $1,099.99
Price as reviewed $1,299.99
Extras Camera kill switch, mic-mute button, optional LTE, active pen included
(Ars Technica may earn compensation for sales from links on this post through affiliate programs.)

If you spend an inordinate amount of time around laptops like I do, the new narrowness to the 5th-gen HP Spectre x360 13 would immediately strike you. The previous model had chunky black bezels at the top and bottom of its display, increasing the overall width of the device. HP slashed most of that unnecessary space here, leaving behind a modest bezel at the bottom of the display with the HP logo on it. The company developed a super-tiny (2.2mm) IR camera as well, so it could keep that form of Windows Hello on the shrunken top bezel.

Read 17 remaining paragraphs | Comments

View the full article

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Our picks

    • Wait, Burning Man is going online-only? What does that even look like?
      You could have been forgiven for missing the announcement that actual physical Burning Man has been canceled for this year, if not next. Firstly, the nonprofit Burning Man organization, known affectionately to insiders as the Borg, posted it after 5 p.m. PT Friday. That, even in the COVID-19 era, is the traditional time to push out news when you don't want much media attention. 
      But secondly, you may have missed its cancellation because the Borg is being careful not to use the C-word. The announcement was neutrally titled "The Burning Man Multiverse in 2020." Even as it offers refunds to early ticket buyers, considers layoffs and other belt-tightening measures, and can't even commit to a physical event in 2021, the Borg is making lemonade by focusing on an online-only version of Black Rock City this coming August.    Read more...
      More about Burning Man, Tech, Web Culture, and Live EventsView the full article
      • 0 replies
    • Post in What Are You Listening To?
      Post in What Are You Listening To?
    • Post in What Are You Listening To?
      Post in What Are You Listening To?
    • Post in What Are You Listening To?
      Post in What Are You Listening To?
    • Post in What Are You Listening To?
      Post in What Are You Listening To?
×
×
  • Create New...