HP Elite Folio assessment: type over substance

HP has put out what I can finest describe as a Surface Pro X with a Spectre Folio type issue. The Elite Folio is a light-weight, leather-covered, convertible Windows laptop computer powered by a Snapdragon processor with Arm structure. It’s a neat-looking, futuristic system that’s meant for use on the go, reasonably than for intensive duties.

I typically view merchandise like this as the perfect secondary machine — one thing to convey to a convention, or to run Netflix on at evening. But with a beginning worth of $1,629.73, the Elite Folio is priced like a main work driver.

Arm for Windows has actually improved since we first reviewed the Surface Pro X in 2019. App compatibility is not the entire catastrophe it was then. Still, buying this machine is compromising on efficiency and could also be compromising on software program choices, relying on the apps you’re utilizing. Some individuals are actually well-suited to the Elite Folio, however in the event you suppose you’re in that group, simply ensure you know what you’re entering into.

The main cause the Elite Folio is ready to command that premium price ticket is its design. The total chassis is wrapped in leather-based (vegan leather-based, per HP, so technically polyurethane), which can make you appear to be you’re carrying round a flowery pocket book. It’s 2.9 kilos, but it surely feels lighter than it’s to me, perhaps as a result of the leather-based cowl makes it so snug to hold. The keyboard deck is a darkish onyx colour (matching the leather-based cowl) with a pleasant, easy texture; it’s not a fingerprint magnet, which black computer systems (even at this worth level) typically are. An included stylus lives in a silo beneath the chin, which expenses when it’s not in use.

But probably the most distinctive function is the shape issue. The Folio is a convertible laptop computer, however you’ve got greater than the standard tent, pill, and clamshell choices. You may also pull the display over the keyboard and relaxation it in the course of the deck (both above or beneath the touchpad), making a sturdy easel for note-taking or drawing. (I ended up utilizing this formation loads after I was writing or drawing with the stylus, as a result of the Folio’s hinge isn’t tremendous sturdy, and there’s noticeable wobble whenever you contact the display in clamshell mode.) There aren’t a ton of laptops with this type of type issue, particularly exterior the creativity area. The final one I reviewed was Acer’s ConceptD Ezel, a hulking 5.6-pound affair with a GPU inside. HP has used the design earlier than, in fact, with its 2019 Spectre Folio that the Elite Folio succeeds, however HP isn’t promoting that anymore.

The Folio’s display is easy to maneuver, and I used to be by no means apprehensive about it sliding round. Pulling it over the keyboard does take a agency tug, and it’s a bit tough to do with out touching the display within the course of and probably messing up my tabs. I believe that is the primary laptop computer I’ve ever reviewed that I want had barely bigger bezels.

In addition to the shape issue, the Folio’s audio makes it an honest videoconferencing machine. The four-speaker array, together with upward-firing grills on both facet of the keyboard, delivers clear, wonderful sound with sturdy vocals and even audible bass — a rarity on laptops of this dimension. There’s one catch, which is that there was a little bit of audible distortion round some excessive treble tones (like when Olivia Rodrigo sings the phrases “deja vu” to start with of “Deja Vu”) that I couldn’t completely remove with out bumping the quantity considerably down. I’ve requested HP about this subject.

The HD digicam, then again, is normal mediocre laptop computer fare, delivering a grainy and considerably darkish image even in a vivid workplace setting. It does examine varied helpful bins, although: it helps Windows Hello (which didn’t give me any hassle) and has a bodily privateness shutter that’s fairly simple to snap forwards and backwards.

Inside, the Elite Folio is working Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8cx Gen 2, an Arm chip that’s widespread to see in light-weight Windows convertibles (together with some variations of Samsung’s Galaxy Book S). It helps 5G and 4G LTE (one of many principal advantages of an Arm machine), with an X55 modem. Wi-Fi 6 is on board as nicely.

I keep in mind making an attempt out the primary Surface Pro X in 2019, when Windows on Arm was painfully sluggish. (It’s not an apples-to-apples comparability because the Surface Pro makes use of Microsoft’s customized Qualcomm chips, however there aren’t too many Arm-based Windows units at this worth level for comparability.)

The Elite Folio’s efficiency is evening and day. (And it’s working Windows 10 Pro, not Windows 10 Home.) The machine boots immediately whenever you open it up, and Windows Hello facial recognition takes lower than a tenth of a second to signal you in. And whereas all types of apps had been both unavailable or unusable on the primary Surface Pro X, most of what I wanted labored simply superb right here. (Keyword being most — extra on that in a second.) For these unfamiliar, Windows apps which might be compiled to x86 (the structure Intel makes use of) should be run by means of an emulation layer to be usable on Arm units. The Folio can at the moment run 32-bit apps (although your mileage could fluctuate), however 64-bit emulation is at the moment solely obtainable by means of the Windows Insider beta testing program.

Spotify, which has been sluggish on Arm up to now, had no issues right here. It even ran extra easily than I’ve seen it do on some current Windows laptops. I had no drawback downloading and working varied web-conferencing apps like Zoom, Slack, or Microsoft groups both. Some apps had been obtainable however not one of the best expertise. Lightroom and Photoshop, for instance, may each be downloaded however had been stuttery as I scrolled by means of varied capabilities. That would’ve been a ache if I had been utilizing these apps day in and time out. The software program we often use to calibrate screens is also downloaded however by no means acknowledged my colorimeter as soon as I bought it up and working.

And some packages aren’t obtainable in any respect. Dropbox is a no go — you’ll need to accept the S-Mode model within the Windows retailer, a bare-bones app that doesn’t help you save recordsdata to Dropbox straight. You can obtain Steam, however a bunch of video games aren’t there. I bought CS:GO however couldn’t get Cyberpunk 2077, Red Dead Redemption 2, or Horizon Zero Dawn. But the principle disappointment for me was the slim Adobe choices. I may solely entry Photoshop, Lightroom, and Acrobat DC from the Creative Cloud desktop app; no Premiere Pro, no Audition, no InDesign, no Illustrator, and so on. Plenty of individuals don’t want these apps, in fact, but it surely’s nonetheless a disgrace because the Folio’s type issue may make it an interesting machine for enhancing on the go.

There’s no approach I may check each attainable app on this machine, so the takeaway right here is: do a little analysis and guarantee that the packages you utilize can be found. Call the businesses if it’s important to. I’d actually hate for somebody to spend $1,700 on this product solely to search out out that an app they want gained’t work on it.

When it involves basic workplace use (principally in Chrome, in my case), the Folio was purposeful however actually a step-down from one of the best equally priced Intel and AMD laptops. I used it to leap between round a dozen Chrome tabs and a pair apps, and there was only a bit extra lag than I used to be used to. Text took a smidge longer to meet up with my typing in Google Docs, Slack took a smidge longer to refresh and cargo new conversations, scrolling by means of lengthy articles was a smidge extra stuttery and fewer easy. The smidges weren’t the top of the world, however since I used to be utilizing the Folio all day as my main driver, they added up. My expertise enhancing a giant batch of images within the Windows Photos app was annoyingly sluggish — this system really crashed at one level, which I’ve by no means seen Photos do earlier than.

So what’s the good thing about an Arm chip, if not snappy efficiency? They permit for thinner chassis and are simple to combine with LTE — however the main profit is meant to be battery life. We’ve seen this in Arm-based Chromebooks, which have delivered over 10 hours in our testing, and in Apple’s M1-powered MacBooks, which have one of the best battery lifetime of any MacBooks in current reminiscence. So I dove into the Folio with huge expectations.

Unfortunately, this machine’s battery life, whereas good, will not be astonishing. Using it as my main driver with the display at medium brightness, I averaged eight hours and quarter-hour. To be clear, that’s not a foul outcome in any respect. But there are all types of Intel convertibles that carry out higher, last more, and are cheaper. I simply get 10 hours with that very same workload out of HP’s Spectre x360 14, and near 9 out of the Dell XPS 13 2-in-1. The Folio can also be a case the place totally different workloads could yield very totally different outcomes, nevertheless, since emulated apps will possible eat extra energy.

I’ve been on the lookout for a transportable, sturdy secondary machine that I may use to get some work achieved or watch a film or two on weekend journeys. I want the Elite Folio had been half its worth, as a result of then it could be good for that use case, and I’d be snatching it up.

But I’m a reasonably conventional enterprise consumer, and Elite Folio nonetheless doesn’t have sufficient processing energy to be my main driver. And there are too many apps I exploit, together with Premiere Pro, Dropbox, and plenty of video games, that I’d have to surrender (for now, no less than). That’s too huge of a sacrifice to make, even for a good looking and distinctive chassis.

That doesn’t imply the Elite Folio is a foul laptop computer. It may very well be an incredible alternative for folks with mild day-to-day duties who’re principally working in just a few tabs at a time, or who do plenty of drawing and note-taking on the transfer and would use the easel type. Folks who worth type and presentation over different traits also needs to give it a glance. It’s a stunning product to carry and mess around with. If I bought it without spending a dime, I’d convey it all over the place I went.

But in the event you’re contemplating shopping for the Folio, it is best to strive the machine your self in the event you can or (and I do know I’m biased right here) learn a bunch of opinions earlier than you achieve this. Just ensure you gained’t be caught off-guard by the slower efficiency, and that any apps you utilize can work as you want them to. Otherwise, you’re taking a look at plenty of wasted cash.

Photography by Monica Chin/The Verge