Customer Ratings & Reviews

Should have bought it instead of the Dell XPS 15 4K.

This computer has performed very well with Adobe CC

I bought this computer new for work. Terrible computer. I feel like i habw a lemon. Internal fan has been broke since i bought it. It become very hot on any surfaces.

great computer. however the small screen does not allow to take advantage of the resolution although its 7i it is not much faster as my other 3i laptop is definitely too heavy for is streamline size

When buying products I want to make sure my money is well spent. This means reading plenty of extensive reviews before purchasing anything, often across multiple sites and databases with conflicting points of view, sometimes creating price/performance spreadsheets comparing multiple devices, and even returning many different devices from time to time just to make sure the product fit into my lifestyle. When looking for a new laptop I wanted to find one with the best balance of performance, build quality, price and functionality. I wanted to be able to take notes on it (often handwritten) with ease, a large amount of RAM (or at least the ability to upgrade the RAM), a fast processor, fast solid-state drive with fairly large capacity, long battery life and durable construction. With the provided N-Trig pen (which I'm glad HP FINALLY came to their senses and included) I can take handwritten notes with ease, and it actually feels quite natural. Not like writing on paper, but very similar to a whiteboard. I found the pen "experience" quite satisfying. In fact, this is what finally sold me on this device. I had even tried out the non-pen version that initially came out and almost settled for that, but the extra $50 for the pen capabilities is well worth it and I would advise anyone that the version with the pen capabilities is a much better value. The main performance characteristics hold up very well, too. The Kaby Lake i7 is a great CPU (for a laptop) and has proven more than capable for almost any task I come across. File compression runs fairly smooth and quickly. When running chrome or firefox with 20+ tabs, the Spectre never skips a beat, and even intensive coding, or running virtual machines doesn't really slow down the computer at all. This isn't the processor for you if you are looking to game, are a serious video editor or are looking for a powerful quad-core, but for all but the most serious applications the processor is solid. The on-board RAM isn't bad either. Nothing spectacular, but it will get the job done. It would have been great if it could have come loaded with DDR4 instead of LPDDR3, but the battery life gained by using low power RAM more than makes up for this. Again, for what I mostly use it for (day-to-day productivity, hardware design, running virtual machines, IT work, etc.) it keeps the Spectre running smoothly. The main issue to keep in mind however is that the RAM is soldered on, so you can't upgrade in the future. This is a fair compromise when considering the size and portability of the Spectre, but it's probably best to go for the model with 16GB instead of the one with 8GB unless you are really budget constrained or definitely know you won't use more than 8GB of RAM. The storage on here is quite nice as well. This 512GB option leaves plenty of storage space for the average user, and the drive is one of fastest in any laptop currently, only really being beat out by the 2016 MacBook Pro. The NVMe standard on these leads to some of the fastest drive speeds so far, and the model I purchased had a Samsung drive built in (one of the best brands when it comes to fast solid-state drives). The battery life on the Spectre is amazing, especially considering the performance capabilities and the size and weight. HP advertises 14 hours, but those who know anything about how Windows machines exaggerate those numbers knows this is a fantasy. Still, the Spectre gets around 8-10 hours of typical use (web browsing, editing documents, etc) which is more than enough for most for a full work day. It charges extremely fast too thanks to the USB-C charger (about 50% in 30 minutes) and the included charger is quite nice as well. It has the typical 6ft charger, but also included an extension, very similar to that of previous MacBook chargers. The construction is quite durable considering the size, and the keyboard is one of the best in the thin and light category. The keys are springy and responsive and it feels like there's a decent amount of travel (although, the best way to tell what keyboard you prefer is to just go and test a bunch out). The trackpad is also very nice. While not as good (to some) as the MacBook trackpad, the glass feels quite smooth, it feels quite clicky (which I personally prefer) and it's spacious without taking up an absurd amount of room. Personally, I prefer the texture of this trackpad over that of the Dell XPS series as it feels like my fingers just glide over the trackpad. The display is quite crisp on the Spectre even at 1080p. Personally, I don't think a 4k screen makes much of a difference in a 13" laptop and they tend to suck up more battery life anyway. It gets quite bright as well, only really being out done by the 2016 MacBook Pro. Pretty much the same with the speakers. Good quality, quite loud for a 13" laptop as well, and only really beat out by the MacBook Pro. The inclusion of TWO thunderbolt 3 ports on the Spectre is another great selling point. This is one of the fastest transfer protocols in existence right now at 40Gb/s bi-directional. This technology is the future and it was a smart decision to include it. It is disappointing seeing laptops like the Lenovo Yoga 910, which is almost a Spectre clone (similar battery life, performance, pricing, etc.) and even gets extra points for a larger screen that goes up to 4k in some models, but the two USB-C ports on the Yoga are only USB 2.0 and 3.0 rated, with only one of the two ports being USB 3.0 rated. If you are looking at investment in your equipment for the long term, Thunderbolt 3 is almost a necessity. The inclusion of a USB type-A port was a nice touch as well, allowing most people to keep using there current USB devices out of the box, unlike the MacBook Pro and other USB-C only devices. All-in-all this is a great, well-rounded device. It may be expensive compared to most Windows laptops but it stands head an shoulders above those devices in terms of a great balance of performance, portability, durability and productivity. It also may not be as good as the MacBook Pro in some regards, but the price difference between the two more than makes up for that. It also may not be the most powerful laptop on the market, but again it is an excellent balance of all the categories to typically consider when buying a laptop. Plus, personally if I need something that has a lot of power behind it I would rather use a desktop. This seems like one of the most valuable laptops on the market. For what you pay, you get a lot out of it without needing to sacrifice much at all. As long as you consider what types of work this is aimed at, and that falls into what you are looking for, you won't be disappointed. SIDE NOTES: -Get this with a protection plan if you can. It is well worth it. While durable, it's nice knowing that if you drop it you aren't out $1400+. Plus, all the little extras that come along with the service are a great value. -For any interested (although this is most likely VERY few) this makes for a great Linux-based laptop. I've never really been a fan of Windows and Linux performs very well on this machine. I actually had someone almost mistake it for a MacBook Pro when they saw it. It may take some time getting it set up perfectly, but once you do it makes a huge difference. -There are some downsides to look out for. The hinge could be a bit stiffer, although you typically won't notice this. It's not as sturdy as the Dell XPS 13 2-in-1, which is actually very noticeable when you go to twist/bend the screen of either. However, being both less expensive and more powerful more than makes up for this. There are times the lack of ports can be frustrating, and there aren't as many good USB-C adapters out there as I would like. It really won't perfom well with any mid-to-high-level gaming or video editing. It also is frustrating that there is no Intel Iris graphics. However, the benefits of the Spectre far outweigh these pitfalls, and for the right user with reasonable expectations, this could be considered the perfect laptop.

My husband wanted to get me a laptop for mother's day so I started researching what kind of specs and features are out nowadays. I first bought a Dell XPS 13, but the next day it started disconnecting from the wifi every 2 minutes so I returned it. I didn't like the auto light/dim feature or the i7Y version processer as much, so I picked out a Lenova Yoga 910 instead. I was using it daily for about 2 weeks when it started abruptly shutting down anytime the power cord was disconnected and couldn't turn on unless plugged in, talk about bad luck! Also returned it and opted for this machine as I did not want to deal with the odd shift key layout again. Alas, I looked at more reviews and picked out this guy- third times the charm I hope! Having gotten to recently experience 3 products in a similar class, price, and spec range on a day to day basis, this HP is proving to be my favorite. Pros: - This one has been the fastest. I downloaded the same programs for each laptop when I got it: Python, Pycharm, Dropbox, and a set list of files to work with. The HP was noticeably faster in download times, program startups, and general web surfing. - Perfect size to slip in my backpack and take to work, much like the XPS was but without the features I didn't like. - Doesn't show fingerprints like the 910, and I wasn't a huge fan of the watchband look for the hinges. - Hands down best keyboard. Good level of key resistance and travel, not to mention has a more standard layout than the annoying shift key on the 910. - Though the XPS didn't have any fans to deal with, I'll take the infrequent noise on the HP if it means more speed. The XPS would heat up a bit as well, and the 910 seemed to run them more often and louder. This is a great in between, I have no complaints on fan noise. - Price! Ended up getting some money back after returning the 910 for this guy. - Backlit keyboard is appreciated, and 4k screen offers crisp display like the 910. - Included stylus pen is a bonus feature. Cons: - There's a little bit of give in the lid. Doesn't feel flimsy or cheap, but not as solid as the other 2. - That's literally it lol

She bought it and returned it. Because it froze at the next day. Also, it has a super high temperature when it works.

Gets extremely hot fast! The mousepad is quite touchy and is not the best..

Owned for 3 years and usb c stopped charging. Requires a whole motherboard replacement. Very disappointed. Seems to be an issue with these from what I’ve read

I bought and returned three times for different issues. First, I set it up and it worked great for about 24 hours. Then the mouse and trackpad starting going crazy. I searched online and there were several hundred issues posted about this. I exchanged it for another one and Best Buy was awesome about it. Got the second one home and the trackpad was loose and continuously ticking anytime I touched it. I ended up returning that and went with the Asus Q325 which has turned out to be an incredible product. Do not go with HP Spectre. Total garbage.

The facial recognition causes it to crash regularly, so had to deactivate. The bezel on the bottom of the screen is enormous and makes using as a tablet weird. The touch works well in some microsoft apps, but can also be very slow and finicky in other applications. The stylus is handy, but requires adjusting settings to make sure the screen doesn’t jump around when you touch it with your arm accidentally, and still has issues even after adjusting. Don’t buy this.

The keyboard broke after 18 months-a hardware failure. There is no physical damage to the laptop and everything else worked fine. I went through HP and since the computer was out of the 1 year warranty, HP referred me to Ubreakifix, who looked at it and said it could not be repaired. I was surprised HP has no repair service. It seems like it is a total loss. I'll never buy HP again. I'll looked at Dell, Lenovo and Microsoft for a replacement.

I'm a Mac user and needed a PC for professional reasons, and I loved the design of this machine. It's crazy thin and lightweight and the battery lasts longer than I was expecting. And the price was right given all of the features it touts. There are a few things that irk me a bit - the trackpad isn't very sensitive and requires a hard touch. So I use it with an external mouse 95% of the time, otherwise, it's too much effort and my thumb starts to ache after a few hours. And the preloaded software is really annoying with all the pop ups and incessant updates that make the machine hot when trying to install. I had forgotten how PC manufacturers bog down new machines with a bunch of unneeded software. Perhaps it's because I'm not as familiar with Windows 10, but the option to turn it into a tablet is a bit wonky and I haven't figured out how to do it seamlessly. But I do see myself using the 2-in-1 technology when I travel once I get used to it. And although minor, the silver backlit keyboard is hard to see in daylight. In hindsight, I would have purchased the black machine with a black keyboard for better visibility, but it's only a minor annoyance. There are some little great things too - I liked that it came with a nice leather sleeve and stylus. It travels remarkably well because it is so thin and light. And the machine is FAST. Installation and set up of MS office, etc. didn't take long at all. Setup was easy (sans dumping the extra unneeded software).

Feel like this wont last for more than a year. when one spends that sort of money on a laptop, it should be sleek and also solid at the same time. HP has not been able to attain it. Product design means product design and not picking up clues from here and there and bundle in. You dont compete like that.

Got the laptop in Dec 2017. Already stopped working. The battery also wasn't that great (3-4 hours) after a month or so. Geek Squad took forever, didn't give an estimate on shipment and repair

This PC on day number 50 stopped charging. This is my work device and now has to be sent off for repair. I will have to replace it to work. Very very unhappy customer. The store recommended this PC

After a lot of research, I decided that this would be the best laptop for my purposes. For reference, I'm a senior accounting student and a PC laptop is strongly recommended for business students. However, in my opinion, this laptop is a better choice than a MacBook. Pros: its lightweight, the screen is bright, lots of cool features, the touch screen is beyond handy, and the speakers are loud. Cons: It does heat up sometimes and the fans go on. Overall, great laptop and the cons outweigh all the pros.

Windows 10 Black Screen of Death on startup. Returned. Great customer service at bestbuy.

New laptop. Stopped powering up after 3 uses. Thank God it's been discontinued.

Was a pretty good computer. Now doesn't have the guts to upgrade windows so will be parting ways soon. Had some glitches on the touch screen, but I never really used anyway so I shut it off. Other than that was a great computer!