Rated 5 out of
5 by
Dusan from
Hp SpectreGreat product
Date published: 2024-09-09
Rated 5 out of
5 by
Jordan Mele from
Well made and well tunedRuns cool, when the load demands it the thermal solution works remarkably well (lots of airflow that quickly moves heat out of the system).
Colours on the display feel rich. Minimum brightness isn't as low as some other devices can go (but gets low enough), maximum brightness is very good. High resolution so everything is clear, even when looking closely at the display (handy when using a stylus).
I've been using a Surface Pen with this in Affinity Photo. Tip-to-screen alignment is good and pressure sensitivity works. While the pen isn't made for this device, it can attach (loosely, I wouldn't rely on it) on the right side.
In the standard laptop orientation sound is good. Plenty of volume and most of the range (bass, etc) is there. Quickly wise, I'd put it somewhere between the Surface Book 2 13" and 2021 Macbook Pro. In tablet, tent, etc orientations the sound quality takes a big hit but remains better than, say, the Framework Laptop 13" with the default un-calibrated speaker setup. One odd thing I've noticed is that sounds often seem to be delayed. For example if a Windows warning dialogue box appears, there is often a delay of 1 second before the accompanying sound is heard. This delay issue is inconsistent and does not seem to affect all sounds.
The touchpad is absolutely massive on this thing and haptic feedback is in place giving a consistent feeling and audible 'click'. I was bullish on this when it was first introduced to Apple's Macbook lineup, but it has grown on me. Especially considering it enables a nice consistent feel for a touchpad this large. There is a downside to the touchpad being as large as it is however... Sometimes my palm will touch one of the edges and it'll misinterpret the input as a gesture. This is really annoying when it happens.
The USB-C ports seem to have poor signal integrity. I have a USB-C switch (an ATEN model) so I can quickly change between my desktop and laptop while at a desk. The switch also passes in power over the USB-PD protocol. When I connect it I get assaulted by "use the correct charger" notifications that appear and disappear every half second, and no USB device successfully connects. While disappointing I hold this as more of a indictment of the USB-C protocol and the ecosystem around it, I've experienced all manner of issues across many devices. Before buying this device I have sunk hundreds (maybe even thousands) trying to come up with a combination of accessories that "just works" and the best I got was "it works for my work MBP and home desktop, most of the time". Do I believe HP can do better here? Absolutely, but I would say that for any company (and USB-IF).
One concern I had when considering my purchase is software bloat, thankfully my concerns were mostly unfounded. The only piece of true bloatware was McAfee when was easily uninstalled. One catch though, HP asked for my email address in the out-of-box-experience (OOBE) and sent it to McAfee (I received marketing communications which I swiftly unsubscribed from). I was not informed this would happen (burying it in legalese does not count, no consent for marketing communications was granted). That unpleasantness aside, overall bloat free.
On the repair-ability front (the following from visual inspection and existing online teardowns, I'm not ready to void my warranty just yet);
- Base can be removed. It is held in place by 4 star-headed screws. I don't _think_ any are hidden under rubber.
- SSD is removable and replaceable.
- WiFi card is removable. It can probably be replaced too, but finding a supported model for a laptop tends to be tricky.
- RAM is soldered. If you expect to need more, you'll need to buy a higher tier model. 32GB is the maximum (most 2-in-1s max out at 16GB right now).
Camera is decent, so is the mic. Both have electronic kill-switches, the keys for which have an orange light that comes on. When the webcam kill switch is active, a physical shutter covers it. There is a camera activity light, but nothing for the mic (nothing beyond what Windows does natively that is).
Typical battery life is 6+ hours (a far cry from the new ARM64 Macbooks and not the best among x86-64 laptops but a solid result; falls short of the Surface Book 2 13" which at least when first released lasted 8+ hours). Under the most taxing continuous load it has dealt with so far (Foundry VTT with default settings, if you use it I strongly recommend dropping down the framerate and graphics quality, it is a very poorly optimised piece of software) it lasts about 2 hours on battery.
Date published: 2024-05-19
Rated 4 out of
5 by
kevin45 from
All I really needNice all-rounder laptop. Beautiful screen - not matte though. Super powerful - runs smoothly editing c-log files and plays games well on low graphics. Speakers also sound really good and keyboard is so nice to type on. Humongous touchpad is so nice to use. Would've liked to see a usb-c port on the left side and an sd card reader.
Having come from a 13 inch ultrabook, the bigger screen size, more power and longer battery life is such a luxury. I commute to uni every day so the only thing I don't particularly enjoy is the weight but an increase in weight would obviously come with a device that is much larger. I don't mind the trade-off but keep it in mind for ur own purposes.
Does HP Spectre x360 2-in-1 Laptop 16-aa0003TX come with a tilt pen in Australia?
Asked by: Kerdze
Hey Kerdze, You need to purchase the pen separately with the HP Spectre x360 2-in-1 Laptop 16-aa0003TX. For more details, please connect with our sales team at 1300 540 516.
Answered by: HP Online Store AU
Date published: 2024-06-20
Does it come with the pen? Also why is the blue color not available?
Asked by: Ap Dhillon
Hey, Ap Dhillon, You need to purchase the pen separately with the HP Spectre x360 2-in-1 Laptop 16-aa0003TX. We have noted your feedback, and we will share it with our relevant team.