Specter x360 14 review: the best

I've used a lot of laptops over the last year and some of them are quite nice.

MacBooks

I've been nailing the "premium" look and feel for years, and I won't miss an opportunity to learn from the build quality of . to rave

Dell's XPS range

.

But I've never touched a consumer laptop as great as the Specter x360 14. The new Specter's rugged black chassis, glossy accents, and boldly sharp edges would make it a standout among convertible laptops across the board, even if it doesn't have a number of other excellent qualities - which set it apart from the 3:2 screen and the boxed stylus to its outstanding performance and battery life absolutely does.

With a starting MSRP of $1,299.99 ($1,589.99 on review), the Specter x360 is easily my new favorite 2-in-1 laptop. Today's market is full of capable convertibles that look good, perform well and doing certain things really well. While it's not a perfect laptop, the Specter x360 14 excels in almost every area. It's a sleek chassis, top-notch panel options, pen support, a powerful processor, and a fantastic battery all rolled into one .It's proof that you can have it all - at a price.

Our review too

HP Specter x360 14

marginal score

9

from 10

Good stuff

Beautiful design

Great battery life

3:2 display with OLED and 1000 nit options

Bad things

It's not cheap

Touchpad is a bit stiff

Comes with some bloatware

Buy for $1,159.06

by HP

The HP Specter line is second to none when it comes to design, and this latest model is no exception. As it is

13-inch predecessor

, the Specter x360 14 is CNC-machined from aluminum. Also like its siblings, the 14 comes in Nightfall Black, Poseidon Blue, or Natural Silver. Check out some images before choosing your color, there they all have quite different vibes. The Nightfall Black option has a sophisticated, sleek aesthetic that looks made for a boardroom. Poseidon Blue is friendlier and probably what I would choose myself.

However, the accents set the Specter apart from the legions of other black laptops. Glossy trim lines the lid, touchpad, and deck. The hinges are the same color as the HP logo on the lid. It's bold without being obtrusive Both rear corners are diamond-shaped, and one of those houses a Thunderbolt 4 port on its flat edge. (On the sides are an audio jack, a USB-A, a microSD slot, and an additional Thunderbolt 4, a decent selection - gone the trap door that covered the 13-inch model's USB-A port.) And the edges are all beveled, making the notebook appear thinner than it actually is (it's 0.67 inches thick). Meticulous craftsmanship is here obvious - I'm not exaggerating when I say this Specter feels like a work of art.

take it

And as the "x360" moniker suggests, the Specter is a 2-in-1. At 2.95 pounds, it's a bit heavy to use as a tablet for long periods of time, but it's sleek and easy to fold, and the hinges are pretty Sturdy. Unlike many convertibles, the touchscreen shakes very little. The display is also pen-compatible; the Specter comes with HP's MPP2.0 pen that attaches magnetically to the side of the case.

Despite its design similarities, this Specter looks noticeably different from its ancestors, and that's in the screen. The new model sports a 3:2 display that's 13 percent taller than the 16:9 panel on last year's device. (It has the maintain the same 90 percent screen-to-body ratio.)

It hardly wobbles when you use the touchscreen

Microsoft's Surface devices

have been using the 3:2 aspect ratio for years, and I'm glad the Specter line is like that

finally switch

.If you're used to using a 16:9 display (which many modern Windows laptops have) and you try a 3:2, you'll see what I mean. You'll have significantly more vertical space, which means less scrolling up and down and less zooming out to fit everything you want to see. It makes multitasking significantly easier without adding bulk to the chassis.

This 3:2 panel can come in a variety of forms. My review unit has an FHD option, which HP says should hit 400 nits of brightness. I've measured it multiple times, but in my testing it only hit 285 - which is darker than I would hope for from a device at this price point. I've contacted HP to see what's going on and will update this review if it turns out to be a bug. (Of course 285 Nits still more than enough for indoor office work.)

The OLED panel is certified for "low blue light".

In addition to the FHD display, you can opt for a 3000 x 2000 OLED panel (HP didn't provide a brightness estimate for this;

LaptopMag

measured at 339 nits) or a 1,000-nit option with HP's Sure View Reflect technology, which makes the screen harder to read from the sides. This will primarily benefit business users.

In terms of other specs, the base model pairs the 400-nit screen with a Core i5-1135G7, 8GB of RAM, and 256GB of storage (plus 16GB of Intel Optane). Then there are a few upgrades you can opt for. My review unit, priced at $1,589.99, keeps the screen of the base model but has a beefier processor (the quad-core Core i7-1165G7) and twice the RAM and storage. I think this model is for the A good option for most people - it gives you a top-end processor and a good amount of storage without too high a price. If you want to go snazzy, you can get the OLED screen and 1TB of storage (plus 32GB of Intel Optane) for $1,699 or get the Sure View screen and 2TB of storage for $1,959.99.

Of course, laptops aren't just for looks, but you don't compromise on performance to get that build quality. The Specter is verified by Intel's Evo platform, which means it offers a number of Intel-chosen benefits, including Thunderbolt 4, Wi-Fi 6, all-day battery life, fast boot time, fast charging, and reliable performance. In my testing, it more than exceeded those standards.

On the left is a single USB 3.2 Type-A port.

Right: two USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports, one audio jack, one microSD card slot.

The system handled my heavy workload of Chrome tabs, downloads, and streams quickly with no issues. Battery life was excellent; I averaged 10 hours of continuous use with the screen at around 200 nits brightness. That is, if your daily tasks are similar to mine, the Specter should easily get through your work day. (You'll likely get less if you go for the OLED panel.) The processor also packs Intel's integrated Iris Xe graphics. While you're not using those for serious gaming want, they are able to drive more easily.

Elsewhere I have almost no complaints. The backlit keyboard is snappy with a solid click - it's easily one of my favorites. The speakers sound good, with very audible bass and percussion. To the left of the arrow keys is a fingerprint sensor and Windows Hello camera, neither of which gave me any problems.

I have almost no complaints

Darkness aside, there are only two things I'm not in love with about this laptop. They're both underage; the fact that I even mention one of them in this review is a testament to how excellent this device is.

First is the touchpad. It's fairly fluid and roomy (16.6 percent larger than last year's Specter x360 13) and handles scrolling and gestures well. But it's noticeably stiffer than some of the best touchpads out there. The pressure required to click is firm enough that I used my thumb to do it most of the time. On devices like the Dell XPS 13 and MacBook, finger clicking is a lot less of an effort. When I first got it When I clicked with the integrated buttons, I also had to overcome an initial resistance to hit the actuation point (in plain language, each click felt like two clicks). This problem resolved itself on my second day of testing, but it always is another hiccup that I usually only see on cheaper items.

My complaints are minor - that's almost perfect.

Second, bloatware. There are a number of junk programs that come pre-installed on the Specter, and several are pinned to the taskbar. Dropbox, ExpressVPN, McAfee, and Netflix are all here, and I've been getting all kinds of notifications from them. This is an oddity at this price point, and when cheap McAfee warnings pop up on the Specter, it's like seeing really ugly bumper stickers on a Ferrari. This software doesn't take too long to uninstall, but I'm disappointed to see it anyway.

But those are really the only two complaints I have and none of them should stop you from buying this laptop. It's beautiful to look at and a dream to use. I've used it in my spare time instead of my personal device (which at test devices almost never - I really like my products).

Agree to continue: HP Specter x360 14

Every smart device now requires you to agree to a set of terms before you can use it—contracts that no one actually reads. It's impossible for us to read and analyze every single one of those agreements. But we've started counting accurately how many times you have to click "agree" on verification to use devices, as these are agreements most people can't read and definitely can't negotiate.

To use the HP Specter x360 14, you must agree to the following terms:

A request for your region

A request for your keyboard layout

License agreements for Windows, HP and McAfee

PEN

You can also say yes or no to the following:

Wireless Internet access

Microsoft account (can be bypassed if you stay offline)

Windows Hello fingerprint recognition and face recognition

Privacy Preferences (Voice Recognition, Location, Find My Device, Diagnostic Data Sharing, Inking and Typing, Tailored Experience, Advertising ID)

Customize your device for gaming, schoolwork, creativity, entertainment, family or business

Sync an Android phone

OneDrive backup

Office 365

Allow Microsoft to collect and use information for Cortana's personalized experiences and suggestions, including: location and location history, contacts, voice input, speech and handwriting patterns, input history, search history, calendar details, content and communication history from Microsoft services, News, and Apps

Provide your name, region, and contact information to HP

Allow HP to use information about your system to provide customer support and enable your PC to view HP contact options, warranty information, and support messages

Allow HP to use information about your system to improve HP products and services

Allow HP to use your contact information and information about your system to send personalized messages and offers

That's six mandatory agreements and 20 optional agreements for using the Specter x360 14.

When evaluating a convertible laptop at the Specter's price point, the big question is how it compares to the gold standard of Windows convertibles, the

Dell XPS 13 2-in-1

.The XPS has a few advantages: it's a bit thinner and lighter, its touchpad is less stiff, and it has a more streamlined look that some users might prefer.

But for me, the ballgame is tight but clear. The Specter x360's meticulous craftsmanship, classic aesthetics, and 3:2 screen make it stand out. It beats the XPS in a few key ways: the keyboard is more comfortable, the battery life is better and Dell's

cheapest configuration

about this device only has half its storage. The Specter's smaller conveniences that the XPS lacks -- like the included stylus, USB-A port, blue color, and OLED option -- are icing on the cake.

If you're looking for a premium Windows convertible with a classic aesthetic, the Specter is a no-brainer. This is HP at its best; it's a luxury laptop in pretty much every area. I can't imagine that it won't be the next laptop I buy.

Photography by Monica Chin / The Verge