HP Envy x360 15t-w200 Convertible Review

[Redaktion]

Jack of all trades... The latest Envy x360 15-inch convertible is strikingly similar to the previous ones. And as before, it's here to convince us that it can do it all: be a laptop, be a tablet, play some games, do some work, all for an affordable price... but is it really the ideal choice for these tasks?

http://www.notebookcheck.net/HP-Envy-x360-15t-w200-Convertible-Review.187847.0.html

[fmyhr]

We must once again admit our puzzlement at the endurance of the 15.6-inch convertible notebook trend; not only is it impractical due to the sheer size of the machine, but the weight (2.3 kg) is nothing convenient to hold in tablet form. Its only plausible uses are on a counter or table for quick reference at a distance or on a couch or bed streaming video in lieu of a nearby television. Nevertheless, it's been years now since we first saw this design, and the same limitations still apply.

Different strokes for different folks. Some of us with less than 20/20 vision want the larger usable screen real estate. As for the weight & size, remember that many textbooks are larger and heavier.

[Computer tech]

Are you sure that your instruments are making precise measurements? I got this laptop (16 GB of RAM) from the US just couple of days ago. Before that I had Acer Swift 3 that you reviewed too. According to your your measurements Acer's screen was brighter and overall it got better score from you. Do you know why I returned the Acer? That's right, due to the veeery dim display. And without any measurements I can tell you for sure (you don't need any measurements to realize it as it was so obvious) that Envy's screen is much brighter and overall image quality is much better. So, here is the question again: are your measurements precise?
About the sluggish hard drive I would agree only if it wasn't that easy to upgrade it to SSD. Overall, my impression is that the author's goal was to criticize this machine as I believe that it's much better laptop than you presented in your review...

[Steve Schardein]

Hey guys, thanks for reaching out!

@fmyhr:

I hear you.  The argument isn't that a 15.6-inch screen is too big; it's simply that 15.6-inch convertibles don't necessarily make a lot of sense unless the manufacturer finds a way to make them extremely portable.  This the Envy certainly is not.


@Computer tech:

I can't speak for the scientific measurements as they are performed in our lab before our editors (myself) perform all benchmarks and assemble the final review.  However, I will say that it is possible you were dealing with some sort of power savings settings on the Acer; some of these models come with presets which are VERY conservative in the Intel HD Graphics control panel specifically.  You probably already are aware of this, but you would be looking for "Intel Display Power Savings Technology", which is a slider under the Battery heading in the Power section.  You can either disable this entirely for the best possible appearance or dial it back some for improved brightness and contrast.

I hope this helps!

Steve

[Paul3443]

We must once again admit our puzzlement at the endurance of the 15.6-inch convertible notebook trend; not only is it impractical due to the sheer size of the machine, but the weight (2.3 kg) is nothing convenient to hold in tablet form. Its only plausible uses are on a counter or table for quick reference at a distance or on a couch or bed streaming video in lieu of a nearby television. Nevertheless, it's been years now since we first saw this design, and the same limitations still apply.

Different strokes for different folks. Some of us with less than 20/20 vision want the larger usable screen real estate. As for the weight & size, remember that many textbooks are larger and heavier.

I agree with you. There are numerous use-cases for a foldable 15" device that Notebookcheck has not though of. One of the most useful I can think of is NOT to use as a tablet but to use for drawing on with pen input while sitting on a desk. In fact, I would like a 17" device with such a feature as still find 15" too lacking in screen real-estate and find it very disappointing that so few manufacturers are making 17" devices any more.

[Computer tech]

Hi Steve,

Thanks for quick reply. Actually I checked the Acer once again (at the store) and it seems that changing Graphics settings doesn't make any noticeable difference. Display is still too dim comparing with Envy. My only guess is that different markets might be getting "different" products. Both HP and Acer I got from US/Canadian markets and I assume you're getting yours from Europe. According you, may this be the explanation for discrepancy ?

Thnx

[Steve Schardein]

It is entirely possible that the panels vary between models, yes.  It's honestly impossible for me to say as I have not seen all of the candidates in question personally.  However your input is appreciated as always -- and thank you for reading most importantly!

Steve

[Vit]

I just got off the phone with HP and they confirmed that this laptop has DDR3 for dedicated video memory, not GDDR5 as stated in this article. What kind of performance difference should we expect?

[Steve Schardein]

I just got off the phone with HP and they confirmed that this laptop has DDR3 for dedicated video memory, not GDDR5 as stated in this article. What kind of performance difference should we expect?

Hey Vit,

There will be no difference from the benchmarks we posted, as the model we reviewed did indeed include DDR3 memory.  The error was on my part in terms of the specifications I listed, not in the benchmark results -- so nothing else was affected.  I've submitted the correction and it should be updated shortly.

Thanks for pointing this out by the way, and thanks for reading!

-Steve