HP Envy 14 Spectre Laptop

HP Envy 14 Spectre makes a great one. The glossy, glass-topped display bezel and keyboard tray look elegant and understated, and the uniform, thin chassis gives the laptop a sleek appearance. Encapsulating the monitor bezel in glass, however, allowed HP to build a 14-inch display into tight quarters--the Specre offers essentially the same width and length as most 13.3-inch Ultrabooks do. HP took advantage of the bigger display area, packing in a 1600-by-900-pixel native-resolution LED-backlit IPS panel. It looks great, and it offers superb video playback fidelity.

The 1600-by-900-pixel display also makes editing photos a bit easier than systems with a more standard 1366-by-768-pixel display typically do. The higher-resolution display likely has some impact on performance, but having all those extra pixels makes up a little for the slightly lower scores.

Like most Ultrabooks, the Envy 14 Spectre is somewhat lacking in expansion ports, offering a scant two USB connections (one USB 3.0 and the other USB 2.0). The base model of the Spectre includes a 128GB solid-state drive; HP offers a 256GB SSD as an option. HP doesn’t offer an option for built-in LTE or any other wireless broadband technology.

At moderate volume, HP’s Beats Audio equalization system enables music and movie content that sounds richer than on most laptop speakers, but if you crank the volume past about 60 percent, you can hear noticeable speaker distortion. The Spectre offers a convenient analog-style volume dial on the right side.
Like most Ultrabooks, the Envy 14 Spectre uses Intel’s HD 3000 graphics technology, so it’s suitable for only light-duty PC gaming at lower resolutions and detail levels.

HP Envy 14 Spectre Laptop

Display
Display size 14 inches
Maximum resolution 1600 x 900
Display type Glossy LCD with LED Backlight

Processor
Processor class Intel Core i5
Processor model 2467M
Processor speed 1600 MHz
Number of Cores 2
Cache size 3 MB

Graphics
Graphics Type Integrated
Integrated Graphics Chipset Intel
Integrated Graphics Chipset Model Number HD Graphics 3000

Memory
Installed memory 4 GB
Memory technology DDR3
Memory Speed 1333 MHz

Storage
Hard Drive Type Solid-State Drive
Total HD Size 256 GB
Number of hard drives included 1
Other Storage SD/MMC Card
SDHC Card

Battery
Vendor Rated Battery life 9.5 hours

Networking
Ethernet Type 10/100/1000 Mbps
Wifi Type 802.11 n
Interface Connections
Number of USB 3 Ports 1
Number of USB 2 Ports 1

Video Interfaces
HDMI
Mini DisplayPort

Additional Interfaces 
Bluetooth

Dimensions
Weight (min) 4 pounds
Weight (with accessories) 4.8 lbs
Width 12.9 inches
Depth 8.7 inches
Height 0.9 inches

Software
Operating system Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium

Other Features
Built-In Speakers Stereo
Docking Station Port No

Devices
Backlit Keyboard
Built-In Microphone
Built-In Webcam
Carrying Case/Cover

Input devices
Keyboard (backlit)
Touchpad (multitouch)

HP ENVY 14-3010NR Spectre 14-Inch Ultrabook (Silver/Black) HP $1,238.13

HP ENVY 14-2130NR Notebook PC - Gray HP $819.88

HP ENVY 14-3017nr Spectre, 14 inch ultrabook PC, compact notebook, Intel Core i5 processor, HDMI, WiDi HP $1,365.00