HP EliteBook 840 G5 (i5-8250U, SSD, Full-HD) Laptop Review

[Redaktion]

A lot of changes! After HP only gave its business notebook a quick brush-up last year, a lot of changes have been made to the new EliteBook 840. There is the Kaby Lake Refresh processor, and a new case redesign. This does not necessarily mean that new is always better. Find out what changes have been made and how the new business companion fares in our set of tests below.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/HP-EliteBook-840-G5-i5-8250U-SSD-Full-HD-Laptop-Review.295916.0.html

[Francois]

Please modify the comparison table at the beginning of the article.  The Elitebook G5 is not actually in the table, the G4 is.

[SSD write perf]

Maybe partition is unaligned (4K; partition starts at 63 sector, not at 1MB)

[feelsbadman.jpg]

Fan control of this laptop is broken; the fan quickly spins to full speed and stays at full speed until sleep/restart. The 830 G5 also suffers from this issue. If you're sensitive to noise, avoid the G5 series unless you want to gamble on new BIOS.

The RX 540 in the dGPU equipped version throttles at 60-65 degrees Celsius. The dGPU throttles by rapidly switching between 200-500MHz (normally 950-1000MHz). For long term usage, the dGPU is barely better than the iGPU (extremely bad framepacing/stuttering when the dGPU is throttled).

[AirVetra]

Doesn anybody know - what pci-lanes number it comes with on Thunderbolt port? 2x or 3x?

Anothe idea - is it possible to test 8550 with dGPU and WHQ display installed?

Thanks!

[Merlinz]

There's one major change from the G4 that should have been pointed out in the review - the G4 could accommodate both a SATA and an m.2 disk. As far as I can make out the G5 is m.2 only.

[WebSurfer]

I see that the camera only scored 27 / 85. Could you share the test methodology?

[Muramas]

One thing about the chassis is that the underside has a lot of sharpness to its length though the edges are rounded.

The underside is a bit easier to unscrew than the G4 due to less screws and the screws are attached to the base (not removable) but the base is harder to pry off.

G3/G4 had a displayport plug and the new G5 has HDMI instead.

The hotkey software doesn't seem to work properly currently (software update fixable) as it always enables the function key so if you want to alt F4 a program you need to push alt + fn + f4 otherwise the Fkeys will just do their pictured tasks.

Oh and HP's new logo looks like it is saying Lip

[Duncan Teh]

How do I temporarily disable the touchpad if I want to do some typing? There's no top left orange button to disable touch pad anymore.

[Dimitris]

I would like your advice in something about this ultrabook! How can I know the brightness of the screen of the model (3JX27EA) that I find in a store in Greece. Because I see that HP has different options as far as the screen is concerned during the buy process in their site. Thank yoy very much.

[HPuser]

According to HP specs for the 840 G5, if there's an ambient light sensor - it's a 400nit screen. It has much higher color gamut as well.

[NikoB]

Why Display only 87%?! Redaktion?
1600:1 (as on top smarphones), <0.25 black level, 90% sRGB, it almost perfect IPS for this segment! 95%, not less.

85-87% in your review you claimed for dull and with contrast 800:1, <60% sRGB. In this case, such should receive no more than 70%. Do you have any inadequate model for screen ratings, expensive edition

[HPuser]

If there typo or measurement error in sRGB rating?

If not, the comment about screen quality of G5 is not correct then.

"Compared to the HP EliteBook 840 G4, the fifth-generation shows visible improvements".

Yes, properties of this screen are better compared to TN display in previous version of HP 840 G4 but compared to 2 IPS screens offered by previous G4 model this one is worse offering only 88% of sRGB compared to 92-94% before.

Check out your previous comparison of those 3 panels:

HP-EliteBook-840-G4-What-is-the-best-display-option

Could you please comment on it?

Thank you!

[x_tomas_x]

Beware the keyboard of this laptop as it does not have an Insert key !!! Thankfully I figured it out before buying, this key in crucial for work related programs. HP suggests using the combination FN + E, but people say it doesn't always work plus when combined with ctrl or shift it's freaking hard to press all this keys with your left hand.

[AlezJ]

The 840G5 keyboard is very "clicky" and loud. The Elitebook 840 G1 keyboard appeared to be far quieter and more comfortable to type with.