The new HP Spectre x360 14 brings a gorgeous 3:2 OLED display and packs Intel ‘smarts’
Finally! HP has made a 3:2 convertible laptop with nearly everything in it all for $1,200.
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What you need to know
HP has been making steady improvements with every generation of its premier Spectre series of laptops. Today, it is adding a brand-new model to that growing line. The Spectre x360 14 sits between the refreshedHP Spectre x360 13and 15-inch models but has some unique features going for it, namely a new, taller 3:2 “3K2K” display.
The overall design of the Spectre x360 14 is similar to the 13-inch model, but it features a taller 13.5-inch display (yeah, it’s notreally14-inches) that more closely matches that of the Surface Laptop.
With a resolution of 3000 x 2000, the OLED, touch, and pen-enabled micro-edge with anti-reflection Corning Gorilla Glass the screen is the real star of the show. It has a welcomed 90.33 percent screen-to-body-ratio and 100 percent DCI-P3 color calibration with a Delta E of less than two. HP claims the taller resolution lets you see 20 percent more information than traditional 16:9.
I have beenarguing for 3:2 and 16:10 aspectsfor over two years because it is not just the better display. As a result of the screen being taller, the keyboard deck also gets taller giving more space to rest your wristsandletting HP put in a larger, Precision TouchPad – which they did. The new trackpad is now 16.6 percent larger than theSpectre x360 13, making it more enjoyable to use.
Another benefit of that more massive keyboard deck is HP has added back two more top-firing speakers. On the recent refreshed Spectre x360 13, HP did not have space due to the display micro-bezels, so it went with bottom/side-firing ones instead. While the audio was still impressive, this new Spectre x360 14 HP can once again feature quad-firing speakers.
Onboard is Intel’s latest 11th Gen Core processor – the quad-core i7-1165G7 – with a 34 percent boost in performance over 10th Gen. Indeed, this laptop wasco-engineeredwith Intel earning it the Evo platform designation for performance, battery life, instant-on, and “intelligence.” While AI and laptops getting smarter have a ring of consumer gimmickry, Intel’s latest chips promise some impressive and proactive tech, including:
Assuming those features work as intended those are not stunts by any means, and it shows why Intel-based laptops still have something to offer over AMD.
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For graphics, HP is using Intel’s latest Iris Xe Graphics. HP claims that chips get a nearly 80 percent performance boost over last year’s Intel UHD.
Battery life is rated at an impressive 17 hours with fast charge support for the 66WHr battery (more like 10 hours for real-world usage). There’s also Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0, HP MPP 2.0 Tilt Pen support (which attaches magnetically to the chassis and is included in the box,nice).
Unfortunately, there is no 4G LTE or 5G options, but perhaps HP can add that in on a refresh.
Security is also a big deal, and HP is continuing its push for consumer needs. Like other recent HP laptops, the Spectre x360 14 has a dedicated keyboard button to hide the 720P web camera with built-in facial recognition for Windows Hello. There’s now a hashed-out lens to let you know the camera is blocked. There’s also a fingerprint reader built-in to the keyboard deck and a keyboard button to mute the microphone. There is also the option for HP’sSure View privacy techto prevent onlookers from viewing your data.
All of that comes in a 3.0-pound laptop in three colorways, including Nightfall Black with Copper Luxe accents, Poseidon Blue with Pale Brass accents, and Natural Silver for old school fans.
Look for the all-new Spectre x360 14 sometime in October with a starting price of $1,200 from HP.com. For those who want to see one in person or prefer their local Best Buy, the chain will be carrying the Spectre x360 14 sometime in November.
Nearly perfect
The HP Spectre x360 14 is a brand-new addition to the Spectre line of laptops. With a 3:2 “3K2K” OLED display, quad speakers, larger trackpad, larger battery, included pen, and Intel’s latest 11th Gen tech, this $1,200 convertible laptop may be the best value this October.
Daniel Rubino is the Editor-in-chief of Windows Central. He is also the head reviewer,podcast co-host, and analyst. He has been covering Microsoft since 2007, when this site was called WMExperts (and later Windows Phone Central). His interests include Windows, laptops, next-gen computing, and watches. He has been reviewing laptops since 2015 and is particularly fond of 2-in-1 convertibles, ARM processors, new form factors, and thin-and-light PCs. Before all this tech stuff, he worked on a Ph.D. in linguistics, watched people sleep (for medical purposes!), and ran the projectors at movie theaters because it was fun.
