HP’s latest laptops for the Australian Market - A Complete Guide

Choosing the best HP laptop that fits your needs can be a considerable challenge, thanks to the exceptional range of options available. There are close to 200 different models to choose from presently.

Our latest HP laptops offer various combinations of processing performance, data storage, advanced features, practical usability and budgets to fit all the typical applications and environments where a laptop will provide the functionality you need.

This laptop buying guide will help you explore the best of our latest laptops and find the one that ticks all your boxes.

HP’s laptop categories

The first step in finding the right laptop is navigating the different categories of HP laptops available. The primary categorisation of our laptop range splits into business, home, student and gaming use:

•    The business laptops are those in the EliteBook, Elite Dragonfly, ProBook, and ZBook families.
•    The home laptops are those in the Chromebook, ENVY, Essential, Pavilion, and Spectre families.
•    The student laptops are a subset of the home laptops, excluding the Spectre family.
•    The gaming laptops are those in the OMEN and Victus families.

We also have a premium range that covers the best-performing business and home laptops from the ENVY, Elite, EliteBook and Spectre families if computational processing power is your primary factor.

Business computing

Our business laptops comprise the EliteBook, Elite Dragonfly, ProBook, and ZBook families.

1.     EliteBook

The EliteBook family is a range of prestige business laptops for enterprise clients looking for reliable and robust computers, with excellent performance and corporate security features built-in, including biometric access controls.

They feature a precision-milled aluminium chassis construction that complies with recognised durability standards, and the latest business network connectivity options.

2. Elite Dragonfly

We designed the Elite Dragonfly family for mobile business users requiring standard corporate focussed features in a rugged, lightweight and compact package.

They feature touch screen displays and audio equipment designed to facilitate remote collaborative communications, coupled with wireless communications, including the option for 5G connectivity.

3. ProBook

The ProBook family is a range of economical and dependable laptops aimed at small to medium-sized business users who do not need ultra-high performance for work.

They offer high-end processors that handle business workflows, reliable data storage solutions, and built-in security applications that protect your important information.

4. ZBook

The ZBook family is a specialist range of ultra-high-performance graphical processing workstations that we have developed for intense computational or graphical processing applications.

These mobile workstations provide an alternative to fixed desktop solutions for graphic designers who need to work in different locations or have adopted hybrid working practices.

You can explore the full range of business laptops by visiting the HP store here.

Home computing

Our everyday computing laptops comprise the Chromebook, ENVY, Essential, Pavilion, and Spectre families.

1. Spectre

The Spectre family is a range of sleek and lightweight premium laptops with fantastic displays. They feature a precision-milled aluminium chassis construction and solid-state drives (SSD), ensuring their lustrous designer look doesn’t impact their overall ruggedness.

These laptops also feature the latest high-performance processors and generous memory allocations to provide a high-quality computing experience.

2. ENVY

The ENVY family’s stylish case design is their primary characterisation. They offer a more cost-effective alternative to the Spectre range by introducing build-state economies, such as a stamped aluminium chassis construction and using hard disk drives (HDD).

3. Pavilion

The Pavilion range is our mainstream home computer collection that covers a broad range of performance and construction options. They offer an affordable solution with the performance to excel at everyday computing tasks, from home entertainment to home office use.

4. Essential

The Essential range is a low-cost solution that delivers excellent performance by using older-generation processors and less robust and heavier construction techniques. Their design focuses on doing a job rather than being elegant, but often this is all you need.

5. Chromebook

The Chromebook range offers great starter laptops for children. Still, it includes performance options for advanced users who are looking for a computer built around Google’s browser-centric operating system.

You can explore the full range of everyday computing laptops by visiting the HP store here.

Student laptops

Our everyday computing laptops include models ideal for today’s students. You can explore the full range of student laptops by visiting the HP store here.

Gaming laptops

The HP gaming laptop range comprises the OMEN and Victus families, specifically designed for serious gamers.

1. OMEN

The OMEN family is a range of high-performance gaming laptops built on the renowned Voodoo brand after we acquired this business. These laptops feature the latest high-end processors matched with the best graphics cards to deliver incredible performance.

OMEN laptops also feature stunning ultra high definition (UHD) screens and audio technology to match the needs of the latest immersive online video games.

2. Victus

The Victus family is our range of entry-level gaming laptops that offer an economically attractive start to your gaming experience, without compromising processing performance.

These laptops feature advanced high-performance processors matched with capable graphics cards to deliver the performance needed for the latest highly immersive games.

You can explore the full range of gaming laptops by visiting the HP store here.

Choosing the right HP laptop

The best HP laptop for you will depend on what you need it for and how you will use it. For example:

•    Will you just be surfing the web or running multiple intensive applications simultaneously that need a high-performance processor?
•    Will you need a separate graphics card to manage graphical processing?
•    Will you just be staring at spreadsheets or watching movies and playing games, in which case, what screen size and resolution would suit you best?
•    Will you be carrying the laptop around every day, in which case are weight and ruggedness issues?
•    Will you run off the battery for long periods or within reach of a power socket?
•    Will you need to store lots of data on the laptop, such as photographs or other media files?

Case options

One of the more apparent differences between different laptop models is the form of the case. Traditional laptops have a clamshell case that opens up to reveal the screen on one side and the keyboard on the other.

However, HP laptops are available in a 2-in-1 form where you can fully rotate the two halves of the clamshell and use the touch-sensitive screen as a tablet. This form allows you to use the laptop in the traditional angled position. Alternatively, you can fold the keyboard back into a tent shape and use the screen in tablet mode while the laptop free stands on a suitable surface.

Processor options

HP laptops use Intel® and AMD® processors at their heart for computational processing. The type of processor depends on what you need from your computer.

Intel Celeron® and Pentium® processors and the AMD Athlon™ equivalent offer an affordable solution for simple processing tasks, such as running one application at a time. Alternatively, Intel Core™ and AMD Ryzen™ processors are adept at multiprocessing activities.

The Intel range covers the Core i3 option for multiple simple applications to the Core i9 option for complex and challenging processing, such as multimedia rendering and editing. These core processors are available from Intel’s latest 12th generation range or the lower priced earlier 11th generation.

The AMD range similarly covers the Ryzen 3 option for simple applications to the Ryzen 7 option for more complex processing tasks.

Screen options

HP laptops come in various screen sizes, from 11.6-inch screens at one end of the scale that is easy to carry to 17.3-inch screens, which offer the best viewing experience if laptop size is not an issue.

These displays are available in a range of resolutions from standard high definition (HD), full high definition (FHD) and UHD, supporting 2K and 4K graphics. Look out for the EyeSafe® certification and low blue light level feature if you intend to use the laptop for extended periods.

Operating systems

All HP laptops except the Chromebook family come as standard with Windows operating system installed. Business laptops include the professional version of this operating system, while everyday computers have the home edition.

Chromebooks naturally come with Google’s Chrome operating system.

Why choose an HP laptop?

Choosing a new laptop is an important decision. You’ll be investing time and money into a critical part of your work and leisure activities. Therefore, you don’t want to end up with a computer that doesn’t do everything you need, is slow or unreliable, or becomes obsolete quickly.

Here at HP, we are proud of our long history of producing dependable and high-quality laptops and our outstanding reputation in this competitive and often crowded marketplace. In addition, our commitment to our customers has allowed us to remain a market leader continually.

Even though our laptops are some of the most reliable available, we offer helpful support and a variety of warranties that cover you in the unlikely event your new laptop experiences any issues. These support options include 3-year comprehensive onsite warranties for business users.

HP laptops also feature comprehensive security applications to keep you and your sensitive information safe. Whether this is your personal data, such as online banking details or commercially sensitive corporate data, we ensure our systems are secure by design.

Summary

HP laptops are available with an enormous range of features to suit any user type, from browsing the internet at home, working in an office, creating complex graphical creative media or playing the latest immersive computer game.

Irrespective of your budget, needs and preferences, our extensive range will have a model that meets your requirements. Check out our website for the current HP laptop price and availability information, along with the latest deals and offers for all HP laptops for home, business and gaming.

About the Author: Stephen Mash is a contributing writer for HP Tech Takes. Stephen is a UK-based freelance technology writer with a cybersecurity and risk management background.