HP Spectre 13 (2017) Review

[@Renasense]

I just realised that I've been watching this channel for 6 years! Always helpful, insightful and a joy to watch!

[@THEGAMINGHELP101]

This is the best-looking laptop on the market.

[@Lastman10101]

THEGAMINGHELP101 not the most reliable

[@THEGAMINGHELP101]

Josh Jones This is the biggest issue with most of the laptops out there. And it seems to have gotten worse.

[@user-ch5ij5yd2g]

This trashes the macbook in terms of design

[@DarkSoul-ds2]

Josh Jones muh Thinkpads

[@miltonhuynh4209]

Purple asus zenbook ux390 looks better

[@julianbransky7168]

I love your reviews, very informative and no rambling whatsoever.

[@ijulesy]

Wow so cool, a laptop from 90 years in the future!

[@nikolaavakumovic8156]

Bravo care

[@gummystar45]

Hey Lisa! I just wanna say I love your reviews and the products you show to us. Would you be able to provide us with official links on where to buy the products you review? I think it would be very convenient and over all improve your videos..

[@MrZattack101]

There was some weird discoloring filter on this video, you can see it against the white b roll. Like 3 large bars that go horizontal across the screen.

[@September222036]

I've got the black edition, and I can say with confidence that it is by far the best ultrabook I've ever used. I bought it in 2017 alongside two of my friends who got a Surface, and a MacBookPro at that time. Both of them have changed chargers, had to part with their piece for several weeks for some hardware/software bugs/issues, and one of them had to format last year. I never touched anything on Spectre and it runs as smoothly as the first day I got it, and I am being serious here. It is truly a piece of mastery and I a proud to own one. It feels like a laptop built to accompany you through the digitalization era. It responds well and accurately, although Cortana sometimes pops up on her own. It records all my personal data and activity so I can have a better idea of myself when time is relevant. My digital twin will be also easier to construct thanks to the backup data collected by HP. This is an intro into the future that awaits us. I am currently looking for a new side-laptop for coding / visual software and if there was a Spectre 2020 I'd grab it. For now, I might go with the Surface as it seems to be the 2nd best combo of fine aesthetic, performance, characteristics, lifespan, and price, after Spectre laptop.

[@VarghaHokmran]

Thank you. Definitely one of the most pro reviewes I've ever seen

[@JustAnotherDayToday]

Another great review, Lisa.

[@Stan_sprinkle]

Hiaruga lol, your profile icon really frustrated me thinking there is an eyelash that kept falling on my screen and I couldn't blow it off.

[@kc7159]

I would’ve fell for it if the picture weren’t so pixelated

[@Razib10000]

What about me?

[@Stan_sprinkle]

Bob Didlboc yeah I couldn't tell cuz I was in the dark at the lowest brightness.

[@kc7159]

FanboySlayer slightly

[@nicholaschibueze8571]

Please any link to purchase this machine?

[@MoPoppins]

The HP Spectre truly is a great value for the price--it's beautiful, and specs are superior compared to other laptops in the same price range. I have the x360 model (1st gen). I'm glad they've improved battery life on it. Mine only gets 4 1/2 hrs from normal use. I tried playing with brightness levels and it didn't really make much of a difference. Another awesome review, Lisa!

[@dxace1]

Thanks for finally getting this review up -- a bit disappointing that they couldn't re-engineer it to put it above 7 hours battery life, but it is a thing of beauty. UPDATE: I ordered a Spectre at the end of the year using coupon available from HP, which brought the price for 1TB/16 RAM down to just over $1500. Hard to beat that price. You buy one of these for the lightness of the thing -- and it is truly light, amazing design -- and for the looks -- it is absolutely stunning. A number of times already I have had this open in public space and people approach and ask what it is (often mistaking it for a Mac). As for battery life, someone observed that they're getting only about 4.5 hours and sadly, that is my result as well despite the claims in other reviews of as high as 9 to 10 hours. Performance-wise, this serves my needs quite well -- the 16 GB RAM / 1 TB version, with the top 8th generation processor does just fine with You Tube videos and is a massive improvement over my previous laptop. I do not do gaming so no need for a separate video card. All in all, this is an amazing piece of equipment -- you can stick it in the nice leatherette envelope it comes with and it's like carrying around a small stack of paper -- like you have no PC at all.

[@panesolo3082]

Love your reviews. Keep up the good work

[@insidentes]

I came here just for watching the t-shirt. Just kidding, I love your reviews.

[@ordinarygeek1893]

Love your reviews, Lisa. Keep up the good work!

[@BrianHan0110]

can you show some full screen pictures? The improvement is the bezel but you didn't show it

[@bgcm1995]

We're in 2020, I wonder if this laptop is still worth buying considering I need a new one. And this one always caught my eye..

[@umarjamshed6420]

yes worth it , laptops are moving very slow in terms of progress so 2.5 years are not that much. It is mostly similar to today's laptops and is the most beautiful laptop ever period. so in my opinion it is worth it. but it will be hard to find it new. other thing is that its battery life is little bit on shorter side but not that much.

[@t.3465]

Umar Jamshed is it worth it over the hp pavilion x360 14

[@umarjamshed6420]

@@t.3465 depends on price. Buy which you can buy cheaper.

[@t.3465]

Umar Jamshed but in terms of raw product what offers more because they have advantages and disadvantages (ex the Pavilion has a 2-in-1 but the Spectre has type c)

[@umarjamshed6420]

@@t.3465 Go with spectre as it is the premium product and will last you a long time. The only down side of this model of spectre is the little smaller battery size.

[@dantem306]

Great video as always !

[@apoorvswarup]

The 1399 version is available for 1199 right now on HP's website!

[@sirrobot4489]

Fantastic review, as always

[@BrianT383]

Will you review the Envy 13? It has a new design :)

[@zynan]

I love the hinge, and the more modern HP logo.

[@SupaREX684]

Ports on the back, what a throwback, it has nice design still though

[@mrmonday42]

Would you take this over the Matebook X?

[@jonathanfieldstampa]

Always great reviews. Thank you

[@MikeIsCanadian]

Thanks for this review. Was eyeing this laptop.

[@RodrigoCh]

What would you recommend compared to the latest XPS13?

[@dr.mahera9284]

Hands down one of the best reviewer's on the market or what? don't care much about this laptop now that the Surface Book 2 is out..but just cant help watching her go on and on about new tech :)

[@dxace1]

UPDATE: I ordered a Spectre at the end of the year using coupon available from HP, which brought the price for 1TB/16 RAM down to just over $1500. Hard to beat that. You buy one of these for the lightness of the thing -- and it is truly light, amazing design -- and for the looks -- it is absolutely stunning. A number of times already I have had this open in public space and people approach and ask what it is (often mistaking it for a Mac). As for battery life, someone observed that they're getting only about 4.5 hours and sadly, that is my result as well despite the claims in other reviews of as high as 9 to 10 hours. Performance-wise, this serves my needs quite well -- the 16 GB RAM / 1 TB version, with the top 8th generation processor does just fine with You Tube videos and is a massive improvement over my previous laptop. I do not do gaming so no need for a separate video card. All in all, this is an amazing piece of equipment -- you can stick it in the nice leatherette envelope it comes with and it's like carrying around a small stack of paper -- like you have no PC at all.

[@markholle3450]

I bought the i7-8550u model and my suggestion for battery life is to create a power plan that maximizes battery life. When you select "Choose or customize a power plan", you will probably only see the HP recommended settings. Select "Create a power plan" off to the left. You can build a custom plan off the "Power saver" template. I used the default settings and labeled it "Power saver". When I select this plan, I am getting over 6 hours. Mileage will vary on what you're doing but give it a try.

[@maanasperumalla7737]

Do a comparison between the last year's spectre. Also do a comparison with the Macbook of 2017.

[@jaedenedmonds-williams1318]

Great Video Lisa !! As always but can you please please please do one of your amazing reviews on the Lenovo Flex 5

[@dluv4u2]

I appreciate the white color, I really hate grey. Wish Surface book had some color options.

[@daimolight]

Hi lisa, can you do a comparison between the hp spectre and the lenovo yoga 920 for artists?

[@JackDander]

I have one of the originals. I can see it has a sort of inverted edge that I can imagine makes it a lot easier to open. I'd suggest using more full screen images so you can actually tell what the screen size is. Hard to see the edge on the gloosy screens.

[@ericji2001]

Nice review Lisa! I am pretty confused about HP Spectre13 and Dell XPS13 which one is better! Would you plz do a video about these two smackdown as you always do?

[@abdullahbabakharkhail4315]

Go for spectre 13

[@mrmonday42]

How many lanes on the TB3 ports?

[@mathisama8885]

Will there be any Ryzen mobile coverage?

[@ashleymarin6710]

Please help me Lisa, I don’t know whether to get this one or the Dell XPS 13

[@khanstudioz9543]

Think xps will be better but with this sort of money I just dnt like how the xps looks

[@Z00FYxps]

Hi do you know if the ceramic white spectre will be made into a 360 version ? Can’t seem to find any answers online. Thanks

[@aldobecerra3139]

This or a 9370 XPS??

[@722Leistung]

This is a really great review, thank you.

[@sugiarto3342]

How about battery drain when it's off? I heard it was 10% overnight, is it true?

[@abdullahbabakharkhail4315]

Yes

[@TimurKristof]

Can you use one of those Type-C ports to charge your phone while the Spectre is turned off?

[@VintageTechie]

I'm glad I can trust your reviews

[@dxace1]

For those considering the Spectre 13, some additional updates. As noted in one of the latest reviews of this laptop, you should not expect battery life much beyond 4 hours -- this is in stark contrast with various reviews, and especially the claim by HP on its site. A new BIOS (F.13) is now out on the HP site, but I have not been able to determine if this produces much, if any, improvement when it comes to battery duration. HP is apparently quite sensitive to customer concerns in this regard and is quite responsive -- I have received many calls, and follow up calls, from HP seeking to keep track of my concerns.

[@markholle3450]

Two questions. Do you have the 4K screen and did you try setting up a customized power plan?

[@dxace1]

Hi again Mark, yes I took your advice and set up a customized power plan. I do not have 4K screen. The maximum projected duration I get using Battery Bar Pro is in the 3-4 hour range.

[@markholle3450]

I don't have Battery Bar Pro. I am using the Windows 10 battery projection (which has to be turned on in the BIOS by the way). It started at 5:43 with Power Saver settings and settled on 5:16 after about 10 minutes of activity (browsing, Quicken, KZbin, etc.). That seems reasonable with the i7-8550u and how thin the device is. Would I like more? Sure.

[@otaviogaiao8064]

Great review!!!

[@Terreos]

Why is the the Hp Spectre more expensive than the Hp Spectre X360 13? They're basically the same laptop and the x360 has the convertable hinges, pen, finger print sensor, and probably a few more things I'm forgetting. Is it really because of the stealth hinge and weigh?

[@ahss6275]

What’s the difference between HP Envey and Spectur?

[@caffs426]

why is the convertible model cheaper?

[@stianberg5645]

Lisa! What is your favorite 13th inch with the 8th gen intel cpu? I'm curious what you think about the two HP's you recently reviewed compared to the Lenovo Yoga 920

[@aaronlee1157]

Thanks for the review Lisa! Is the HP spectre 13 still worth getting? I'm planning on using it mostly for productivity work and maybe a little bit of android studio.

[@Ringer1982]

I wish they would make the display non glossy. I totally don't understand tendency of making glossy touch displays on laptops. I have one and after some time the reflections started to drive me crazy and I put matt film cover on top. Which is look like crap because alot of air bubbles underneath but it's anyway much better then staring on the reflections of lamps and windows and constantly tilting the screen too much forward just to see less lampls on the ceiling...

[@sofiehildegaard8406]

Didnt even know such coverup excited... shiat.

[@JonathanS89]

omg love the t-shirt lisa!

[@steffenlaurens8280]

God, this one is reaaallllyyyyyy beautifullllll. Does the 15" have the same look?

[@vishalmatam]

Hi Lisa, great review again! Where you get those T-Shirts? :) Custom? They're awesome!!

[@MexinZh]

Does the thunderbolt 3 port have 4 lanes for eGPUs?

[@kyleBlittle]

I'm not a tech guy. I was looking at buying one of these for Christmas 2018. I watched another video and people were talking about meltdowns and spectre vulnerbilities? Can you explain? Should I worry? Or go with something else?

[@celinetham8979]

Hi may I know spectre 13 and x360, which one is better

[@master__oogway]

Is the SSD upgradeable/replaceable? Or is it soldered on?

[@shaymaaalyousef3398]

does it include USB access?

[@IslamFox1]

your reviews are very professional Greaat job, Hp envy x360 with nvidia mx150 please next :)

[@nabuSFEG]

You should also look at HP Envy 13.

[@matt8445]

I was just looking at these thinking about getting one it is nice this came up right now

[@enomooshiki3634]

Can you do a smackdown between this and the razer blade stealth?

[@TCKe]

Lisa best ever as always

[@christinenarag5850]

Can you please do a smackdown between HP Envy 13 2017 and the HP Spectre x360 13 2017? I’m a college student, and I wanted to know what was better to get and what was more cost friendly. Thank you!!!

[@mujjuman]

thanks for telling me that the x360 is the convertible version of this.

[@sarojbhatta6698]

Hi Lisa, thanks for the great review. Based on the performance which one do you think is better; HP Spectre 13 vs HP Spectre x360? Are they same? I am in dilemma, not sure which one I should go for.

[@jimmybobby9400]

Great review as always. Please review the Aero laptops from Gigabyte.

[@vedantathavale8624]

Hey Lisa ! I have a doubt regarding my purchase. I'm going to buy my laptop in India. I'm confused between these two models: Model 1 i5 8 GB ram 360 GB SSD 3 MB cache 2.5Ghz Model 2: i7 512 GB SSD 16 GB Ram 4MB cache 2.7 Ghz Both have 7th gen processors I'm not a hardcore gamer and will start my college studies next year I like to discover new things on every gadget I purchase. I'm also heading for opting Computer Science engineering next year. There is a difference of roughly 600$ between the two models. So is the i7 required or the i5 is enough for me. I'm waiting for your reply. Thank you

[@robert4you]

What about the noise on this one? I have had several HP's over the years, some have been quiet while others have sounded like a kitchen fan on crack... Are there any numbers (db fan noise) on this one? Thanks for a great review.

[@ahmedbhaa]

Does this white ceramic color fade or go yellowish? Because i see the 360 next to the white ceramic and it looks so yellowish

[@venture7o7]

You really have the best reviews. :) Which would you recommend, this hp spectre 13, or the spectrex 360?

[@WinrichNaujoks]

No word on fan noise? No games run, just for fun?

[@rohitgovindan6296]

Can you do a review of HP OMEN X laptop with a GTX 1080

[@zendorea]

@MobileTechReview Can you use the Omen Accelerator with this??? This would be an awesome laptop for a Gaming Station and mobile work laptop.

[@sungminbae7344]

Zendorea Yes. Omen Accerelator can be used with any laptop with thunderbolt 3

[@MrUMitra]

please do a review on HP Envy x360 15t

[@monkz3196]

Can you review the HP Envy 13t

[@khalidd5442]

Plz do a review of hp’s Envy line

[@flunkism]

Any suggestions on where to get one of these online? Only seeing x360s and I'd also like a refurbished one. Any help?

[@SF_5]

Nice review, nice machine

[@Wavester64]

Hi Lisa! While comparing specs, I find the HP - ENVY x360 (Model: 15M-BP112DX) comparable to this model. Main difference other then price (which is a $500+ difference/savings) would probably be the graphics card (Intel UHD Graphics 620 on Envy and NVIDIA GeForce MX150 on Spectre) would you agree?

[@mreverything7890]

hey lisa i love ur review can u do smackdown betn hp spectre x360 15 8th gen vs dell xps 15 8th or 7th gen

[@ahmedp800]

Can you please review Celvo P950HP/Sager 8950?

[@zynan]

I like your commentary.

[@theapena7431]

Hi Lisa! Just wanted to ask if you’re gonna review the Samsung Notebook 9 Pro with the Intel 8th gen CPU???

[@williambrooks5129]

Review the hp envy x360 I think that would be 👍🏽 I love your videos!

[@liventuz]

Hey Lisa, will you be comparing the spectre x360 and spectre 13? If not, which one do you recommend?

[@derekant1612]

That shirt legitimately has me laughing right now 😂 well done Lisa 👏🏾

[@delavago5379]

i don't get it

[@derekant1612]

dela vago Electrical Engineering. Resistance is measured in ohms however it doesn't have much of an impact on the circuit if it is 1 ohm or less. That's probably the simplest way I can explain it.

[@XX88Dante88XX]

Can you upgrade de SSD? Im looking forward the 256gb model for college, but if needed can I change the SSD?

[@mujjuman]

envy vs spectre... which one is better? can u plz comparison review these

[@marielav8674]

mujjuman Spectre 😉

[@dxace1]

Lisa -- hoping you see this comment so you can help update users of the Spectre 13. I received my Spectre a few weeks ago, and of course never assumed it would have stupendous battery life given the design and thin nature of the battery, but I would somewhat disappointed to find that battery life seemed to be sticking in the 3 to 3.5 hour range. I decided to get online with HP, and had a very smart and efficient rep who suggested a screen takeover to tackle the battery issue. He performed 2 or 3 upgrades, one of them was BIOS. Now, that Spectre is doing much better in the 5+ hour range. Wanted to let you and readers know about this. As owners of the Spectre know, reviews and HP itself have much higher figures for estimated battery life on a charge. Those are completely unrealistic of course and anyone purchasing the Spectre 13 should be doing it more because they want the super-thin form factor and fast performance (though it does have only integrated graphics) rather than extended battery performance. If you are a Spectre 13 owner and have been wondering about battery issues, get online with HP or perform BIOS and other checks yourself.

[@markholle3450]

Out of curiosity, is your BIOS now F.10 (from 11/9/17) when you open System Information? On the HP Software and Driver Download page I see F.10 Rev A (11/25/17). The HP Support tool does not show an update is available so I am wondering if these two versions are the same.

[@dxace1]

Just checked and it is F.10 I am wondering if when HP did the takeover of my machine they rolled back to F.10 ?

[@dxace1]

Mark -- also, according to HP just now on the phone, even though the F.10 Rev A is listed as a separate BIOS version, they insist that F.10 is the latest BIOS. Sounds strange, but that is what they say...

[@markholle3450]

Thanks for looking into this and posting what you found. I guess I will wait until the HP Support Assistant suggests a BIOS update. As I say, I am getting 6 hours when I use the Power Saver battery plan which seems about right considering how thin the Spectre 13 is.

[@cypher9000]

Looks really nice but 8GB memory is max? Can't really use it as a work machine with that amount.

[@jalkreviews6304]

8 or 16gb max

[@andrewrecard5857]

Love your shirt ^^

[@AnasNasri]

is it good for gaming on eGPU?

[@puturere]

Not really, you can play old jrpg or farming game

[@MarcoChapita]

Two questions the first is : i have the first gen of the spectre and as you told in your review we cannot charge the first gen laptop with powerbanks or other power sources like monitors,we could only charge with the oficial cable and power brick.do they solve that with this new gen??? and the second question is how is this against the new dell xps 2018 announced a few days ago ???

[@markholle3450]

I bought one of these and I use a j5create JCA374 hub at work and at home to charge the Spectre and connect a HDMI monitor, Ethernet, and two USB-A ports with one cable. I do receive a message that HP recommends their own charger when I plug it in but it works.

[@optimummind]

Hi Lisa, if you still have the HP Spectre 13, can you help me? I'm having trouble connecting my Samsung Galaxy S8+ directly to the HP Spectre 13 using a USB Type C to USB Type C cable? I've tried 3 different Anker cables, a j5create cable, and a Belkin cable. In all cases, both Windows 10 and Android repeatedly mounts then unmounts my Galaxy S8+. The only way that worked, so far, was to use a USB Type C Hub. HP Spectre 13 --> USB Type C Hub --> Samsung Galaxy S8+. Have you had any luck using just a USB Type C to Type C cable to connect between the Spectre 13 and the Galaxy S8+?

[@user-ch5ij5yd2g]

All they need is better battery and a hinge that can go lower/different port areas. Next years with canonlake might be worth buying

[@zynan]

Another awesome shirt!

[@jeypeeeee]

what a beauty, but I can imagine the white version will turn yellow eventually. I hope I'm wrong