Is it doable to “have all the pieces” in a laptop computer? To reply that, it helps maybe to begin with some floor guidelines on what constitutes all the pieces. Killer efficiency—on each enterprise apps and graphical duties—is a should. Add to that an excellent display, wonderful battery life, an excellent keyboard, plus a suitable weight and value given all the above.
HP’s new Envy 16 doesn’t unilaterally tick each one in every of these containers, however it comes shut sufficient on all fronts to benefit severe consideration for those who’re searching for a powerhouse pocket book PC.
Inexperienced With Envy
{Photograph}: HP
The Envy 16 is, because the title implies, outfitted with a 16-inch show with a 16:10 side ratio. You could find sharper screens in the marketplace than the Envy’s 2,560 X 1,600-pixel decision, however that spec is nice sufficient for many customers and most sorts of computing. The OLED touchscreen isn’t amazingly vibrant, however it’s impressively clear, although I discovered it seemed finest close to its max brightness ranges.
Beneath the hood, you’ll discover a 2.6-GHz Intel Core i9-13900H CPU (thirteenth technology), 16 GB of RAM, and a 1-TB SSD. These are strong specs, however it’s the inclusion of an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 Max-Q video card that modifications the sport. Collectively, these parts gave the Envy 16 a number of the highest benchmarks I’ve ever clocked, notably on the graphics entrance, the place I skilled totally playable framerates on fashionable gaming titles and silky clean rendering exams. On enterprise apps, the unit was off the charts, doubling the efficiency of high-end laptops from a number of years in the past.
All of this energy should come on the expense of battery life, proper? Extra excellent news: I used to be shocked to attain simply over 9 hours of uninterrupted video playback on the max display brightness—although that may absolutely be stretched by firming down the efficiency settings a bit.
With its enormous trackpad and spacious, responsive keyboard (a regular island-style design), getting work completed isn’t onerous—and also you all the time have the choice of interacting immediately with the touchscreen if desired. In contrast to so many modern laptops, the Envy 16 doesn’t skimp on growth ports, providing two USB-C ports, two full-size USB 3.1 ports, HDMI output, and a microSD card slot. All ports are side-mounted, as your complete bottom of the laptop computer works as a single hinge for the display. All of it will weigh you down a smidge greater than 5 kilos, with a svelte 26-mm girth.
{Photograph}: HP
Discuss of the City
All work and no play makes for a boring day on the workplace, and the Envy 16’s built-in audio system from Bang & Olufsen give it loads of audio energy, a lot in order that I discovered it uncomfortable to take heed to at full quantity when sitting immediately in entrance of the unit. Music, videoconferenced voices, and gaming results all got here by way of crystal clear, and there’s loads of bass to go round courtesy of the downward-firing woofers.
Machines like this usually should compensate for his or her excessive energy ranges with loud, aggressive followers, however HP has clearly completed some work to maintain issues moderately quiet, even underneath heavy load. Chalk that as much as what HP calls a “gaming class” thermal answer known as the vapor chamber, during which airflow is directed by way of your complete chassis by way of two centrally positioned followers. It really works effectively, holding issues cool and, whereas removed from silent, quieter than anticipated.
The mannequin I examined—roughly in the midst of the Envy 16’s configuration lineup—runs $1,750, which feels cheap, although decidedly not cheap. (The highest-end configuration hits a whopping $2,685.) For anybody who wants the additional actual property offered by a 16-inch display—and doesn’t thoughts that it’s going to most likely imply upgrading your laptop bag to accommodate it—it’s a standout computing choice.
