Not everyone has thousands of dollars to spend on a new laptop, and the new HP Pavilion x360 14 is a prime example of a good-priced laptop that wants more.
The version I got came with an 8th generation quad core processor, though there’s also a model with a 10th generation chip on the table. I was looking at the affordable one I found for $560, it has 8GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD, which sounds pretty solid on paper.
It’s a tempting price, but question is, does a laptop this low cost still manage to deliver everything you actually need ?
A design that feels like it should cost more
The Pavilion x360 is silver, but it’s not aluminum. So if you’re trying to dodge plastic you’ll probably want to step up to one of the more expensive relatives, like the Specter x360 13, which is pricey in a way you can feel.
Under day to day use the lid gives a bit under pressure, same story with the keyboard deck. Nothing major, and yeah you’re paying less than half the amount, but that doesn’t automatically mean it’s flimsy or bargain-bin. It’s sturdy enough that you can move it around with confidence and not baby it every time.
The hinge, which is always important on a 360-degree switch that can switch between clamshell, tent, media, and tablet modes, is stiff enough to keep the screen steady but smooth enough when spinning.
The Pavilion x360 is also an attractive laptop, available in various colors, including Natural Silver, Mineral Silver, Warm Gold, Blue, and Light Gold. There’s a $10 or $15 surcharge for all but Natural Silver, but whichever color you choose is appealing with just enough chrome and matching angles familiar to HP fans. That isn’t a gem-cut Specter or even a modern Dell Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-Black Edition, but for half the price, you might not care.
However, I wouldn’t call the Sleek Booth. The side bezels are reasonably thin, and the top bezel isn’t huge – but man, the chin below the screen is huge. Meanwhile, the Pavilion x360 is a bit chunky at 0.8 inches thick and 3.49 pounds.
Budget laptops are usually well-appointed with ports, and the Pavilion x360 is no exception.
That’s kind of heavy for a 14-inch laptop that’s made mostly of plastic. The all metal Dell Inspiron 2-in-1 mentioned above weighs in at 0.63 inches, and 3.08 pounds. I mean, sure, the Pavilion x360’s weight is really a top priority when you’re using it as a tablet, so yeah it matters. All that is common with laptops at this price point, so I’m not too surprised.
Interestingly, I’ve noticed that budget laptops are generally well-equipped with ports. The Pavilion x360 is no exception, coming with a nice selection, including a USB-A 3.1 Gen 1 port and an audio jack on the left edge. On the right-hand side there’s another USB-A connection along with a full size HDMI jack, a USB-C 3.1 Gen 1 port, plus a full-size SD card reader. Unfortunately there’s no Thunderbolt 3 support , but well that’s kind of expected for this price range.
Premium asymptotic input options
No matter how great a laptop looks or how well it’s built, the keyboard really should stay usable. Luckily, the Pavilion x360 kinda inherits a keyboard thats pretty close to its Specter sibling. It’s a familiar style, with keycaps that match the system colors, and the writing is light but still legible. The mechanism is a bit shallow and not as sharp as the Specter keyboard – my personal favorite – but it’s better than most other budget laptops I’ve used. That’s a real plus in favor of this machine.
The touchpad is very wide but a bit short; There’s plenty of room on the keyboard for a larger trackpad. Fortunately, HP has switched to Microsoft precision touchpad drivers in its latest laptops, including the 2019 Envy 13, which I like quite a bit. Unlike older HP laptops that use Synaptics drivers, the Pavilion x360’s touchpad is accurate and reliable.
The Pavilion x360’s touchscreen is responsive, another area where you’d be hard-pressed to tell the difference from a more expensive premium laptop. My review unit didn’t include the HP Active Pen, but if you configure the 10th gen version at HP.com, the pen comes in the box. Accordingly, I didn’t get a chance to test it.
Finally, Windows 10 Hello passwordless login is provided by a fingerprint reader conveniently located on the keyboard deck, to the touchpad’s right, and off the road. It works well, and that’s a bonus you don’t find on many budget laptops.
Performance is just used.
As mentioned up front, my review unit came with Intel’s 8th Gen Whiskey Lake Core i5-8265U, just like you might expect. Based on our benchmarks, the Pavilion 360 showed up about as good as we thought it would. For instance, in the Geekbench 4 synthetic test , HP landed essentially the same score as the far more pricey Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 4, even though both systems run that same CPU.
Then in our more day to day style Handbrake encode, where we converted a 420MB video to H.265, the Pavilion x360 wrapped it up in a little over five minutes, and 16 seconds ahead of the Lenovo, too.
In other words, this 2-in-1 is very fast for the typical productive worker. You won’t want to use the Pavilion x360 for high-end video or photo editing, but for Office apps, web browsing, content consumption, and the like, you’ll be fine.
One thing you won’t want to do with the Pavilion x360 is played modern games. Intel UHD Graphics 620 won’t keep up.
HP Pavilion x360 14” Touchscreen Laptop, 11th Gen Intel Core i5-1135G7, 8 GB RAM, 256 GB SSD Storage, Full HD IPS Display, Windows 10 Home OS, Long Battery Life, Work & Streaming (14-dw1024nr, 2021): Buy it now
HP Pavilion x360 14 Convertible 2-in-1 Laptop, 14” Full HD Touchscreen Display, Intel Core i5, 8 GB DDR4 RAM, 512 GB SSD Storage, Windows 10 Home, Backlit Keyboard (14-dh2011nr, 2020 Model): Buy it now
2020 HP Pavilion x360 14″ FHD WLED Touchscreen 2-in-1 Convertible Laptop, Intel Core i5-1035G1 up to 3.6GHz, 8GB DDR4, 256GB SSD, 802.11ac, Bluetooth, Webcam, HDMI, Fingerprint Reader, Windows 10: Buy it now
HP – Pavilion x360 2-in-1 14″ Touch-Screen Laptop – Intel Core i5 – 8GB Memory – 256GB SSD – Warm Gold – 14m-dw1023dx: Buy it now
Battery life is a disappointment.
At least at this price point, but I’m still thinking about battery life. Like, if you want a laptop that keeps you away from plugs most of the day, does the Pavilion x360 actually qualify?
I put it through our usual battery test kit and, well… unfortunately this 2-in-1 has pretty middling staying power. When browsing the web, the Pavilion 360 ran for about six and a half hours, versus the more budget leaning Acer Aspire 5 at nine hours with its 15.6-inch display. And when we looped through our Avengers test trailer, the HP wrapped up in under eleven hours while the Acer held out closer to 13.
So yeah, battery life isn’t the Pavilion x360’s strongest side.
On the more punishing Basemark web benchmark, it barely cleared the two-hour mark, whereas the Aspire 5 added another hour and forty minutes.
Basically, battery life isn’t the Pavilion x360’s strong point—at least not in the 8th Gen Core i5 setup. It might get better with the 10th gen chips, so that’s something to watch.
An attractive price, a cheap monitor
One component that often impresses systems is the display, and the Pavilion x360 is a case in point. Five years ago, a Full HD display like this would have been average. Today, it’s trivial.
Specifically, colors are muted. Just 62 percent of sRGB and 48 percent of AdobeRGB, you’re missing some of your colors, and accuracy is off too. Contrast is also below average, at a contrast ratio of 670:1 and brightness at 262 nits, well below our 300 nit threshold.
That isn’t a bad display, but you can get a better one, even on other budget laptops. The Aspire 5 is a great example – it has similar colors, but its higher contrast makes productivity tasks involving black text on a white background more pleasant.
That’s the story here: The Pavilion x360’s display is fine for productivity work, and its gamma at 2.4 is close enough to a perfect 2.2 that media consumption is a good experience. I will note that the sound is a strong point, comes in loud, and doesn’t distort when turned up. The Pavilion x360 doesn’t exceed its weight in this category, but it’s not embarrassing in itself.
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Tech Reviewer & Product Analyst
Định Bia has spent over 10 years testing consumer electronics with a focus on smart technology. He work as a product advisor at Biareview where he helped customers find the right devices for their needs. He personally tests every product featured on this site using a consistent evaluation framework covering quality, durability, and value. All reviews are based on experience, not influenced by the manufacturer.