HP ENVY x2 Review

Part tablet and part notebook, the new ENVY x2 is HP's most impressive Windows 8 hybrid PC to date, but is it worth $850? Read our full review to find out.

Read the full content of this Article: http://www.notebookreview.com/notebookreview/hp-envy-x2-review/

 

Such a promising laptop, pegged by bad decision. They should've stick with the iCore processor and use the X100 Sandisk SSD they used in the X1 Carbon with 8GB RAM. That would make this an awesome ultrabook hybrid PC.

 

I don't think it should be an either-or decision. This device should get a battery life 3-4 times what Ivy Bridge convertible tablets like the Vaio Duo 11 and XPS 12 get. On the other hand, they're a lot more powerful and support 1080p resolution for only a modest increase in price. Different strokes for different folks. I think it's nice when a company like Lenovo offers both choices (IdeaTab Lynx and IdeaTab Yoga 13 being comparable to the Envy x2 and XPS 12, respectively). If the Windows 8 convertible tablet market expands, I'm sure we'll see both offerings from most major companies, including HP.

 

I agree better performance would be great, but this is a tablet parading as a laptop and not vice versa, meaning they have to stick to components that fit and work inside a tablet. A Core i5 would melt a slate, there'd be no way to cool it properly. The other touch screen devices that do have Core i5 are laptops parading as tablets, the screen is just a "dummy terminal" if you will and does not house any of the brains and components.

Now, whether HP chose the right direction and the functionality and form factor of the X2 is what people want, remains to be seen. As Mitlov says, Lenovo is hedging their bets by offering both styles.

 

Hopefully Haswell will improve the TDP of the next generation ULV processors. This hybrid has a really nice design and form factor, but the Atom processor is too anemic for everything except the most basic tasks and there's no way I would choose this over Acer's W700. You're better off with AMD's E2 series APUs if you're looking for a low wattage processor that can do something other than word processing fluidly.

 

Just thought that I should point out the fact that the HP Envy x2 is NOT an ultrabook despite what the review said. For a device to be considered an ultrabook, it must have Intel;s i-series processors.

Other than that this machine seems to be built for leisure users. Even though they run different operating systems it would be interesting to compare the raw power of the x2 against the 4th gen iPad out of curiosity.

 

I think eventually the power of the laptop will be married to the portability and longevity of the tablet to create one device. We are already seeing the baby steps toward this goal with all the windows 8 convertibles such as the Vaio duo 11 and XPS 12. Currently, manufacturers are experimenting around with form factors and performance combos in order to meet this goal whether it is their intention or not.

Nowadays consumers are more prone to buying a tablet which they use for light tasks and basic productivity and only turn to a laptop or a desktop as a last resort. Sure, high performance laptops and desktops will never die but eventually rather than seeing a divergence between laptops and tablets the gap will be closed by one type of device. The Windows 8 convertibles that we see today are only the beginning - 'prototypes' if you will- of something that will prove to last much longer in terms of technology.

Sure, Lenovo and others will have offerings for both sides, but these devices' days are clearly numbered. The ultimate goal of all manufacturers is to sell as many of their products as they can. This, however, is the exact opposite of what the consumers want- they want a singular device that will do it all for them. I predict that in the near future, perhaps within the next 3-5 years, the majority of consumers will no longer have to purchase both a laptop and a tablet. They will be able to get a device that does it all.

 

You're preaching to the choir...I've been a believer in the laptop-tablet singularity since I took possession of my Vaio Duo 11 on October 29, 2012

 

@Mitlov
Certainly good to seem that we are on the same page then!

I know that this is a bit off topic, but do you have any qualms about the display of your Duo 11 facing outside all the time? ( I understand that the Duo 11 and the x2 are in completely different performance classes but still, in terms of durability how do you feel about the screen facing the outside?- this is especially taking into account the fact that other convertibles have screens that are not exposed when they are closed)

 

Thanks for the clarification, but I blame Intel's confusing definition and requirements for an Ultrabook as my defense there

That'd be nice, but I'll be waiting for hopefully less than 10-years from now when a Smartphone can be the brains for a laptop, like the Motorola Lapdock did. That has since been pulled by Google, it just wasn't ready for prime time, nobody bought it or used it. One day we may be able to use one device for calling and all of our computing, with different dummy client form factors it can work inside depending on what the work situation calls for.

Until then, I'll be interested in watching how the tablet/laptop hybrid market evolves as clearly there is room for growth and merging of devices there.

 

It doesn't concern me at all. The screen is not any more vulnerable than the screen on slates like the iPad and Kindle Fire, and how many Fire owners do you know who complain about scratching their screen? I truly abused my first-gen Fire and the Gorilla Glass never got the slightest blemish. I'm a lot more delicate with the Duo 11 (carry it in a nice laptop case, etc) and its screen is protected by the same Gorilla Glass that my Fire had.

Plus, I love the one-movement conversion from tablet to laptop that the slider design provides. Just love it.

 

LMAO $850 for an Atom powered device??? And then to rub it in you throw in a 1366x768 resolution?

I think not.

Silly HP expensive prices are for real ultrabooks.

 

I know that there is a separate thread for the Vaio duo 11 and everything but what about the ribbon cables at the back?

 

What about them? They're not actually reachable to do physical damage to them unless you set out to damage them deliberately. It's not like there's any reason to ever, deliberately or inadvertently, reach inside the tunnel created by the hinge.

And there's nothing inherently unreliable about ribbon cables. Any old laptop has a cable connecting the monitor to the base unit--you just can't see it. It's hidden inside the hinge, but they still have them. That's what connects the monitor to the base unit.

 

Yes, I know that there is nothing inherently wrong with them and that they are the wires used to transmit information from the computer base to the display- its just that I feel uneasy about them being exposed(even on the sides). I guess my major qualms about this issue come from my current notebook which has major problems with its display due to the flimsy build.

Let me rephrase my question: Do you think that over time and repeated use of the slider mechanism that the cables or the general assembly could break? I am just comparing it to other builds such as the XPS 12 and the Yoga 13, both of which seem a heck of a lot more durable than Sony's implementation. That being said, I have not actually gotten a chance to play around the Duo 11 which is why I am asking you for you opinion.

 

Nothing about the design feels breakage-prone to me. The hinge is very solid-feeling to me.

The ribbons aren't right inside the edge of the tunnel. I have to insert my fingers into the final set of knuckles to touch one. So there's no way to inadvertently brush one, even on the side. And there's no way the ribbon could be pinched--it lays down smoothly as you open and close it with nothing near it that might pinch it.

I haven't heard of any failures or build quality complaints about the Duo 11. But I have heard at least two reviewers/owners note the edges of the Yoga 13's keyboard coming undone. I'd worry more about that (particularly because it's on the underside in tablet mode) than the Duo 11's screen hinge, given that I have yet to hear a single person report any sort of failure or damage.

People have been complaining about "insubstantial-feeling" hinges on the Vaio S for years. Yet I've never heard of one actually failing. Feeling insubstantial and actually being prone to physical breakage are two separate issues. Sony's got a recent history of the former but not the latter.

 

Is this the first tablet pretending to be a laptop with full windows 8?

So there is the surface with real windows and lynx from lenovo coming soon, is there more?

 

Yes, there are plenty more. Clover Trail tablets (full Windows 8 combined with fanless design, iPad-esque thinness and lightness, and 8 hour battery lives) include HP's ElitePad (yes, HP has two different Clover Trail Windows 8 tablets), IdeaTab Lynx, Thinkpad Tablet 2, Dell Latitude 10, Asus VivoTab RT, and Samsung Smart PC.

 

My guess is intel set the standard spec and they make around it. I mean the thinpad one have a keyboard with red trackpoint.. . and other business class have business class dock
It gonna be hard to find a real winner between so many similar machine.

 

Intel may have set the spec, but I am pretty sure that the only requirements for the new Atom Clover Trail tablets is that they are less than 0.5 inches thick and have 'Intel inside'.

 

@baiii

In addition to Clover Trail tablets there are also tablets than run windows 8 on intel i-series processors such as the MS Surface Pro. Once that is released, there almost will definitely be an influx of new intel i-series tablets. And with Haswell 22nm processing architecture about to be released soon (as in a few months), you can expect them to retain the power of ultrabooks but with greater longevity (unlike the projected battery life of the surface pro which is around 4-5 hours at best)

 

Don't know what to say.. $850 for an entry spec model is well above the average. There's a model from Asus in the same price range so maybe users will go for that instead.