Verdict
The HP Envy 16 is degenerate , well - connected and tacky than rivals , so it ’s idealistic if you need a contented creation laptop on a budget - but if you want a great screen and a slimmer and stalwart excogitation you ’ll have to pay more or shop elsewhere .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
If you desire a laptop computer for problematic creative work load then you ’re probably run to buy an Apple MacBook Pro 16 or a Dell XPS , but there are other pick – like the HP Envy 16 .
You might not take a second glance at this laptop when the option are so strong , but the HP has several compelling property . Its show options let in high - resolution OLED and IPS touchscreens , it ’s available with Intel i7 and i9 processors , and it includes Nvidia graphics .
Do n’t assume it ’ll be expensive , either . The model review costs back $ 1749 / £ 1599 / € 1959 , and that figure compares well to rival carriage – the latestMacBook Pro 16starts at $ 2499 / £ 2699 / € 2999 , and theDell XPS 15starts at $ 1959 / £ 1849 / £ 2399 .
There ’s always a risk that a depleted price have in mind a deficiency of quality , so it ’s time to find out if the HP Envy 16 can compete and earn a place on our2023 good laptop chart .
Design and Keyboard
The HP Envy 16 ( 2022 ) might cost less than rival , but its plan inspiration is clear . From the tiny screen bezels and reuse aluminum shape to the curved edges and speaker grilles , this notebook computer has clearly had lessons from the MacBook Pro school of figure .
On the right - helping hand side of the Envy ’s aluminium enclosure you ’ll regain a USB 3.2 Gen 2 port , anHDMI 2.1 outputand twoThunderbolt 4ports , and the use of a barrel adapter means you do n’t have to sacrifice one Thunderbolt port for buck . The left over - hand edge house a earphone jack , another full - size of it USB port wine and a microSD card one-armed bandit .
national connectivity fall from dual - bandWi - Fi 6Eand Bluetooth 5.3 , so I ’ve got no complaints there . The webcam is stunning – a pixel - perfect 5mp unit withWindows Hellosupport and a secrecy push with a bully status light .
The camera ameliorate rival notebooks , and the Envy beats them in some connectivity areas too – the Dell only has one full - size USB port and Apple catch rid of them entirely . However , do bear in intellect that both competitor have full - sizing Coyote State card slot and the MacBook Pro has an extra Thunderbolt porthole .
There are other area where the Envy could be a bit better , too , even if some minor weaknesses are look at this price . Like the competition , it does n’t have any pumped-up cyberspace . There ’s no fingerprint scanner . The showing is robust , but the underside of the base finger too debile . And at 2.3 kg on the exfoliation and 20 millimetre thick , the Envy is larger than its competitors .
Ergonomically , the Envy is all right . The keyboard is dissolute , comfy and quiet , although slightly nipping keys would be welcome . Positively , it ’s got an extra row of function button on the ripe - hand side and the backlight is comme il faut . It ’s even got an emoji clit that loads a card of emojis and gifs – a smart feature of speech take up from smartphone keyboards .
Negatively , though , there ’s no numberpad and a single - height Return key . The trackpad is hunky-dory , but its clitoris imperativeness are too deep .
Screen
The HP Envy 16 I ’ve review apply the most affordable of its three sieve variations . It ’s a 16 - in IPS presentation with a 2560 x 1600 firmness of purpose , so it ’s fairly crisp and the 16:10 view proportion proffer surplus vertical outer space . The 120Hz refresh rate is fine for everyday gaming .
Quality levels are reasonable , too . The excellent Delta E of 1.4 ensure colour accuracy , and the 418 - nitbrightness level means you could apply this panel indoors and alfresco . The contrast proportion of 1161:1 is a good IPS upshot and render self-colored vibrancy and depth without oversaturation .
There ’s a reason this is the most affordable panel , though . The black percentage point of 0.36 nits could be a bit lower , and means that the darkest areas lack some depth . And while the HP ’s gore bring on a reasonable 96 % of the sRGB colour gamut , it hovers around 70 % in the Adobe RGB and DCI - P3 colour space . This particular screen only has the colour chopper for mainstream creative workloads .
That entry - level screen falls behind the MacBook Pro 16 , which has a 3456 x 2234 Liquid Retina XDR control board with good direct contrast , brightness and color ability – it ’s a no - brainer .
If you do need more originative ability , you ’ll have to pay $ 200 for HP ’s OLED upgrade . That board has a 3840 x 2400 resolution and nails the sRGB and DCI - P3 gamuts , but it still ca n’t plow the Adobe RGB colour blank space and it still only crown at a 400 - nit luminance level in SDR musical mode .
That upgrade panel matches the MacBook and XPS screens for lineament and gives you more creative exemption – a worthwhile and impressive upgrade for a rig that ’ll still cost less than $ 2000 and will therefore stay much cheaper than the MacBook and OLED - equipped XPS .
There ’s a sting in the buns here . That OLED panel is the Envy ’s best covert option , but in the UK and Europe it ’s not currently available – so buyers in those markets keep money but escape out on caliber .
The HP ’s third screen alternative cost $ 70 redundant and adds touch functionality to the entree - level information processing cover . In the UK the touchscreen interlingual rendition is useable as the nonpayment option .
sound recording pump out from the front edge of the rig and either side of the keyboard , and the Envy ’s Bang & Olufsen ironware deliver well volume and freshwater bass , albeit with a slightly weak mid - range . This audio kit ca n’t quite vie with the MacBook , but it ’s good enough for everyday medium .
Performance
The Intel Core i7 - 12700H has telling productiveness credentials – it ’s got six performance cores and eight efficiency cores that handle 20 thread , and those performance cores supply a top amphetamine of 4.7GHz .
The Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 computer graphic core has 6 GB of consecrate memory , 3840 stream processors and a healthy TDP of 95W , and the Envy also deploys 16 GB of dual - channelDDR5 computer storage . Its 1 TB Micron 3400SSDhas impressive read and save speed of 6814MB / sec and 5016MB / s , so personal computer and software boot times are rapid .
The Envy ’s i7 - 12700H C.P.U. is one of the fast version of the chip I ’ve control . Its Geekbench single- and multi - core results of 1779 and 12,214 are stellar . Its PCMark 10 score of 7127 is first-class , too , and I expect the invidia to systematically be a little faster than theXPS 15 .
That foretell well for creative calculation . The Core i7 chip will easily manage any photograph - blue-pencil task and everyday video - editing and encryption workloads . Multi - tasking , coding and business office program run easily , and you may open as many web web browser tabs as you wish .
The only way you ’ll get a significant climb is by kick upstairs to the Core i9 - 12900H. That ’s worthwhile if you want to tackle tougher contented existence labor , like 4 K video work and CAD software . That version of the Envy start at $ 1949 / £ 2099 / € 2799 , and the US and UK prices look peculiarly good – the XPS cost $ 2399 / £ 2249 with a Core i9 CPU .
The Envy ’s biggest carrying into action challenger is theM2 Pro chip inside the new MacBook Pro 16 . When deployed in the young Mac Mini , that CPU slews about 1950 and 15,000 point in Geekbench , so it looks like Apple ’s update laptop computer will hold the performance lead .
Still , the HP is no slouch in creative apps , and it ’s a decorous gaming performing artist too . Stick to a more manageable resolution of 1920 x 1200 and you ’ll be able to play ask single - actor titles at self-coloured framerates – the Envy ranBorderlands 3at 62fps and was 15 systema skeletale quicker inHorizon Zero Dawn .
AnyeSportstitle will run at averages beyond 120fps at native resolution , which bodes well for competition – although keen eSports fans will demand a high refresh rate than 120Hz . Switch over to creative apps , and you ’ll get a solid boost to any software system that can tap GPU acceleration .
If you want to utilize HP ’s GPU for gaming , though , expect some caloric concern . When the graphics core is stressed the exterior gore become hot and the stochasticity level matches the yield you ’d expect from a eminent - end gaming laptop . It ’s not insuperable , but it ’s irritate .
The situation is better in employment benchmark – fan stochasticity is present and the outside is lovesome , but it ’s more modest and easier to do , specially if you ’re using speakers or a headset .
Battery
Despite the beefy internals , the HP Envy 16 did well in barrage bench mark . habituate the enviousness for conventional , everyday study tasks – include a bit of contentedness creation – and you ’ll make it through a whole day of piece of work . Indeed , in a mainstream body of work test , the Envy lasted for 8hrs 42mins .
That shelling life stretched to a mighty 14hrs 52mins in a moving-picture show playback test with the screen luminousness thin , so you ’ll get through the commute too if you ’re careful about how you use the notebook .
If you desire to really push the components or use the enviousness for gambling , then gestate a more minor 90 minute of arc of use – a disappointing but not surprising result .
That lifespan is sound than anything the XPS can manage , although you ’ll get even better results from the MacBook Pro . And bear in intellect that electric battery life-time will omit if you choose for the OLED upgrade .
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Should you buy it?
:
The HP Envy 16 is fast than most rivals and will easily last for a full working 24-hour interval , and its cost undersell rivals even if you elevate to an OLED exhibit .
The HP Envy 16 is chintzy than challenger , but it ’s thicker and heavy than them too – and the superb OLED screen door option is n’t available in every realm .
Final Thoughts
The HP Envy 16 is fast , well - connected and long - durable , and it ’s loud than the competition – so it ’s a great content universe tool . That said , shop elsewhere if you want guaranteed OLED displays , slimmer or sluttish designs or more robust build quality .
Trusted Score
How we test
Every gambling laptop we review goes through a serial of uniform substantiation plan to gauge cardinal thing include physique quality , public presentation , screen lineament and battery life .
These include formal synthetic benchmarks and written tests , plus a serial publication of real universe checks , such as how well it run when endure a AAA game .
FAQs
The HP Envy 16 is available with a touchscreen in select markets . two-fold check the configuration before checkout .
There are a range of options , including the MacBook Pro , Dell XPS 15 and Huawei Matebook 16 .
Test Data
Full Specs
