Main characteristics
Price: $750/£650 or $1100/£1199
Screen size: 13.3 inches, 1920 x 1080
Weight: 2.9 lbs / 1.3 kg
Memory: 8 GB or 16 GB
Battery life: Until 10 hours 45 minutes
storage: 512 GB SSD
Warranty: 1 year
Operating system: Windows 11 home
Display: 13.3-inch OLED touch screen 1920 x 1080, 400 nits brightness, 100% DCI-P3
CENTRAL PROCESSOR: Intel Core i5-1135G7 (11th Gen) or Intel Core i7-1165G7
Graphics: Intel Iris Xe
ports: One Thunderbolt 4 with USB-C, two USB-A, one headphone/mic
The HP Envy x360 is the kind of laptop you’ll want to take to the coffee shop to show off—it’s one sleek piece of kit. With the added bonus of being so light you can carry it in one hand effortlessly, you’ll want to take the HP Envy x360 with you wherever you go.
Fortunately, he’s also smart underneath. With some solid performance for those focused on typing or coding, the HP Envy x360 is also perfect for catching up on the best streaming services thanks to its gorgeous OLED screen. The display is also touch-sensitive, so you can use the laptop’s hinge to flip it into tent mode or turn it into a Windows-based tablet. It’s pretty seamless, though you’ll have to worry about getting fingerprints all over the screen.
With decent all-day battery life (depending on how you use it), the HP Envy x360 will quickly become that reliable device you need throughout the workday. It only really falters when it comes to typing for long periods of time. The keyboard is reasonably springy and comfortable, however we reviewed the 13-inch model so it’s a bit cramped, as is the trackpad. The small enter key takes some getting used to, and the smaller size means no numeric keypad.
Other than that, we were tricked by the HP Envy x360. It’s fast, nice to look at and feels good in the hands. If you want something that won’t take up too much space in your life and yet is versatile enough for both work and lounging at the end of the day, this is a good choice and one of best laptops for students.
HP Envy x360 13 review: design and features
- Easy assembly
- Reliable features
- Incredible keyboard and ports
The HP Envy x360 looks great. It’s slim, sleek, and has a silver finish that exudes sophistication thanks to its all-metal design. Weighing in at just under three pounds (1.3kg), it’s also easy to carry around, making it perfect for taking between classes or bringing your ‘office’ to your favorite cafe.
In terms of security, the keyboard offers a fingerprint reader which is reasonably accurate. There’s also a webcam shutter button so you can ensure the 720p webcam has been disabled.
The keyboard isn’t backlit by default, but it’s easy to see when in use. The buttons feel very springy to your touch, although the enter key is small and takes some getting used to. Additionally, the HP Envy x360’s trackpad is also small. These concessions have to be made with the 13-inch model, but it will slow you down while you work.
In terms of ports, the HP Envy x360 offers one USB-C along with two USB-A, one 3.5mm combo jack for microphone and headphones, and a microSD card reader. The lack of an HDMI output or Ethernet port may be off-putting to some, but the screen quality makes up for the lack of HDMI.
HP Envy x360 13 review: specs and performance
- Fast Intel processors
- Fast loading time
- Entry-level graphics core
We reviewed the HP Envy x360 model, which offers an Intel Core i5-1135G7 processor and 8GB of RAM. There’s also the option to upgrade to an Intel Core i7-1165G7 and 16GB of RAM. Both systems include integrated Intel Iris Xe graphics, which means that any simpler games are unfortunately out of the question.
However, the i5 processor offers four cores and up to 4.2 GHz, while the i7 increases this speed to 4.7 GHz. Whichever processor you choose, it will be able to handle most of your daily tasks. This involves running a lot of browser tabs to manage Office tools, creating basic content, and some coding. The best laptops for coding and programming ideally an upgrade to 16GB with the more expensive HP Envy x360 is required, but other than that, even the base spec HP Envy x360 will do just fine thanks to the presence of a fast SSD for quick file access.
Ultimately, the HP Envy x360 is better suited for college students who just need to type up papers, but you can make it work for more advanced study if you upgrade it. Just don’t count on this laptop for epic gaming.
During use, we noticed the occasional fan noise under particularly heavy loads, but it wasn’t too intrusive and the chassis never got too hot.
HP Envy x360 13 review: screen and speakers
- OLED panel
- FHD resolution
- Bang & Olufsen speakers
The HP Envy x360 has a 13.3-inch Full HD panel with a resolution of 1920 x 1080. At first glance, it’s nothing special, but it also has two major selling points.
It’s an OLED panel, so everything looks great on it. Blacks look deeper than on the smaller panel, while colors in other parts of the screen still look vibrant. The 16:9 aspect ratio means that if you like to watch movies or TV shows on your laptop, the HP Envy x360 is the perfect system for that, even if the screen is smaller than some alternatives.
Bright and vibrant with 400 nits of brightness, it’s also 100% DCI-P3 for color accuracy, so the HP Envy x360 is great if your work requires you to be precise in your design.
And, of course, it’s a convertible laptop. When needed, the screen folds down and rests against the keyboard so you can use it as a tablet or prop it up for presentations or watching movies in tent mode. The touchscreen is nice and responsive, although fingerprints will be inevitable.
On the audio side, there’s some excellent Bang & Olufsen engineering, which means the stereo speakers sound louder than you’d expect from a laptop the size of a laptop.
HP Envy x360 13 review: battery life
- All-day battery life for typical student use
- Brightness has a significant impact on battery life
As long as you don’t put it under a lot of stress, the HP Envy x360 will easily last you a day’s work. Watching a Netflix show at full brightness definitely drains battery life, draining around 12-14 percent each hour, but that number can be increased if you’re just browsing the web or typing up documents.
HP claims up to 10 hours and 45 minutes of battery life. We didn’t quite make it, erring on the side of eight hours with regular use. We found that lowering the brightness increased the battery life, so it lasted a bit longer.
Ultimately, if you don’t put the HP Envy x360 to the test often, it will last you a full day of work and sometimes more.
HP Envy x360 13 Review: Price
The HP Envy x360 starts with 750 dollars (opens in a new tab)/750 pounds (opens in a new tab) for the Intel Core i5 model with 8GB of RAM. Upgrade to an Intel Core i7 model and you’ll also get twice the RAM for $1,100/£1,199. If you want to write code, the more expensive model is the better option thanks to the extra RAM, but for general document work and web surfing, both will suffice.
Alternatively, there’s a 15.6-inch model with the same Intel Core i7 processor and costs the same. What’s the catch? The screen is an IPS panel with a brightness of 250 nits and 45% NTSC, so it’s not as good, but you get some extra screen real estate.
Whichever laptop you choose, HP offers a standard one-year warranty.
HP Envy x360 13 Review: User Reviews
Similar HP Envy x360s by Amazon 4.5 out of 5 stars (opens in a new tab), with 243 ratings. This is for an older model with a smaller screen. Reviewers praise its speed, the fact that it doesn’t come with a lot of viruses, and how smooth it is. The only criticism is that the battery life is not as high as claimed.
Should I buy the HP Envy x360 13?
The HP Envy x360 is perfect for college students who need an entertainment machine that’s also light enough to take to class and fast enough for work.
It’s certainly not a gaming laptop, and coders will prefer to upgrade to the Intel Core i7/16GB model for the best performance, but it’s still a nice looking and well-made work laptop.
With a redesigned touchscreen, the HP Envy x360 is flexible enough for many occasions, and its size means it’s great for those with limited space.
If this laptop is not for you?
It’s an attractive system, but the HP Envy x360 isn’t perfect, as demonstrated by its limited keyboard and minimal number of ports.
If you need an equally light machine, there is Microsoft Surface 4 Laptop which has a better keyboard, although it still lacks useful ports. It weighs more but has a much better battery life of up to 19 hours. Starts at $899/£919.
As an alternative, there is a powerful but expensive one Dell XPS 15 if you can increase your budget further. It’s perfect for programmers, but could have better color accuracy. Prices start at $1,549/£1,395 with an extra $400/£225 to get the OLED display.
If you want to change the operating system, there is always MacBook Air M1. The perfect lightweight system for students, it’s highly portable and priced at $999/£999. Some may argue that it looks dated.
