Best HP laptops 2024, tested and reviewed by experts

The premium sibling (at a premium price) to our favorite HP Envy x360, HP's Spectre is the laptop to strive for if you're a self-proclaimed PC loyalist. Its specs are solid, the build quality is outstanding and it looks — and feels — sleek and powerful. (Did we mention it’s trimmer and lighter than the past generation, too?) It even has glam metallic edges that hint at what a jewel of a machine it is: It’s built to speed through all the gaming and multitasking you want to do, with 1 TB of storage, a radiant 3000 x 2000 AMOLED touchscreen display and an impressive 12 hours of battery life.

This HP OmniBook X laptop will have Apple shaking in its boots. Why? Because it’s packed with a Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite chip.

“So what?” you may be thinking. “What’s the big hoopla regarding the Snapdragon X Elite chips?” Well, I’m glad you asked.

For quite some time now, Qualcomm has been insinuating that Snapdragon X Elite-packed laptops are going to leave M3-based MacBooks in the dust. This is a bold claim to make because, let’s be honest, Windows PCs have been struggling to keep up with Apple laptops.

As a reviewer, though rare, I’ve seen some Windows laptops outpace comparable M-series processors, but every single one struggles to beat MacBooks in power efficiency. The M3 MacBook Pro, for example, lasted 16 hours on a charge — and you’d be hard-pressed to find a Windows laptop that can do the same.

The question is, does the HP OmniBook X, featuring the Snapdragon X Elite chip, live up to Qualcomm’s claims? And will it earn a spot on our best laptops page?

HP OmniBook X price and specs

The HP OmniBook X I’ve tested has the following specs:

• Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite X1E-78-100 processor
• Qualcomm Dreno graphics
• 16GB of RAM
• 1TB of SSD storage
• Windows 11
• 14-inch, 2240 x 1400-pixel resolution
• Touchscreen support

You can purchase this configuration at Best Buy for $1,199. There’s also a cheaper variant, sporting 512GB of storage, that will set you back $1,049.99 via HP.

HP OmniBook X design

Design-wise, the OmniBook X is a bit of a snoozefest. If I could personify this HP laptop, it’s the boring, safe, cookie-cutter partner that you take home to your parents. With a buttoned-up suit and zero tattoos, it won’t offend anyone, but it fails to excite.

No, the OmniBook X isn’t a looker, but it’s not designed to be. HP wants this to be the laptop that you bring into the office – and it blends right in with the sterile, clinical vibes. 

The only striking feature about the OmniBook X is the light-blue power button on the top-right of the keyboard

An audible gasp escaped my lips when I unboxed the HP Victus. I don't know how HP did it, but it somehow managed to elicit a lot of badass out of this machine.

Despite having an all-black chassis, just like countless other laptops on the market, the Victus 16 looks like something that'd be sitting inside the batmobile. On top of that, the Victus 16 ran Cyberpunk 2077 like a dream, but the question is, is it the best cheap gaming laptop you can get? Or does it fall short of claiming that throne?

Let's dive into how it stacks up against comparable gaming laptops within the sub-$1,000 price range.

HP Victus 16 price and specs

The HP Victus 16 in this review is only $999. You can find our exact configuration at Newegg and it comes with the following specs:

• AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS processor
• Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 GPU with 8GB of VRAM
• 16GB of RAM
• 1TB of SSD storage
• 16.1-inch, 1080p display

What I love about the HP Victus 16

I gushed about the HP Victus 16's swanky black chassis at the outset — and I'll continue to do so here. Black, along with the grays and silvers that plague the laptop market, typically bores me to tears, but the Victus 16 is one hell of a looker.

The design will appeal to minimalist-loving gamers

If you, like me, aren't a big fan of gaudy, over-the-top gaming laptops that look as if they were ripped out of Optimus Prime's body, you'll appreciate the Victus 16's subdued, sophisticated chassis. Never in a million years would Batman opt for a garish, tacky gaming laptop. He'd choose something urbane and refined to match his batsuit, batcave and batmobile.

HP gave the Victus 16 a futuristic edge with a shiny "V" in the center of the lid. You'll find the word "Victus" written across the back hinge in clean, sleek letters. This laptop looks good AF. The only downside is that it tends to collect fingerprints.

Better battery life than similarly priced competitors

As you'll see in the battery life section, the HP Victus beats all of its competitors when it comes to battery life. However, you must temper your expectations. Gaming laptops typically don't last very long on a charge.

Amazing cooling

I spent an hour playing Cyberpunk 2077 and

With the $800 HP Chromebook Plus x360 14c, you have to temper your expectations.

If you're expecting performance so fast you get whiplash, audio so crisp you can practically bite into the sound waves, and a display that can be described as "visual candy," this laptop ain't for you.

However, if you're seeking a simplistic Chromebook for lightweight workloads, including juggling between Google's variety of apps (e.g., Gmail, YouTube, Meet, Calendar, Docs, etc.), the HP Chromebook x360 14c may be just enough for your workflow needs.

Still, before you snatch this Chromebook up, there are some things you should know.

HP Chromebook Plus x360 14c price

You can snag this laptop via HP's official website. It's got a starting price of $789 and comes with the following specs:

• Intel Core i3-1215U
• 8GB of RAM
• 128GB of SSD storage
• 14-inch, 1920 x 1200-pixel display
• Fingerprint reader

The configuration I tested has 256GB of SSD storage, which adds $30 to the price (i.e., $819).

What I like about the HP Chromebook Plus x360 14c

"HP Chromebook Plus x360 14c" is a mouthful to say, but does the weightiness on the tongue match the value it brings at a price tag of $800? In some ways, yes. Let's start with the positives.

Solid, premium-esque build

At a quick glance, the HP Chromebook Plus x360 14c looks a lot like the HP Spectre x360 14, a laptop that has a price that hovers around $2,000.

From the dual speakers that flank the keyboard to the solid, aluminum gray chassis, this laptop looks like it cost more than $800. I wiggled the lid to test its durability, and fortunately, there was little to no give.

However, it's worth noting that the chassis is susceptible to scratches, and it's quite the fingerprint magnet.

As the name hints, the HP Chromebook Plus x360 14c has 360-degree dual hinges, allowing the laptop to transform into several different modes, including tablet mode and tent mode.

The HP Elitebook 1040 G11 5G looks unassuming, but it’s full of surprises. At first glance, all I noticed was its boring (albeit fingerprint-resistant) silver exterior, but after using it for a few weeks, this laptop is certainly more than its lackluster chassis. 

Equipped with one of Intel’s new Core Ultra chips, the HP Elitebook 1040 G11 outpaces the M3 MacBook Pro in almost every category, most notably performance and battery life. I’m used to Windows laptops dying after seven hours; this laptop almost tripled that. It doesn’t quite rival the battery life of Microsoft’s Surface Laptop 7, but still, I was thoroughly impressed.

Consider its satisfyingly responsive keyboard and trackpad, plentiful ports, and barely there weight — and the HP Elitebook 1040 G11 5G might just make it to our best laptops list. It’s certainly not a perfect laptop, but its pros help you overlook some minor foibles.

HP Elitebook 1040 G11 5G price and specs 

The HP Elitebook 1040 G11 5G I tested for this review costs $2,099 via HP and comes with the following specs:

• Intel Core Ultra 7 165H CPU
• Integrated Intel Arc graphics
• 16GB of RAM
• 512GB SSD
• 14-inch, 1920 x 1200-pixel, 60Hz, non-touch display
• Windows 11 Pro

If you don’t need as much performance power, you can pick up an HP Elitebook 1040 G11 configuration for just $1,899. It swaps out the Core Ultra 7 165H CPU above for Intel’s Core Ultra 5 125H CPU, but otherwise shares the same specs.

HP Elitebook 1040 G11 5G design

The HP Elitebook 1040 G11 5G won’t wow you visually with its design. The HP logo is sleek on the top cover, but the laptop’s chassis is a boring silver shade. In the laptop world, silver or dark gray are two of the most common laptop shades — and I’d love to see something new and different for this Elitebook.

While I’m not a fan of the laptop’s colorway, there are other things I adore. Opening the lap