HP Pavilion 15 2023 review

The HP Pavilion series has been synonymous with the working Indian for years now, and its laptops that can do both business and pleasure are in great demand. The new HP Pavilion 15 2023 aims to target this very space. But does it succeed? Here’s our take on who the new Pavilion is for, and whether this laptop is worth its asking price.

Design and build

Design is visibly one of the laptop’s strongest areas. The HP Pavilion 15 is not just a good-looking laptop, but also built well – something that is evident from the moment you pick it up. It is sleek, and the blue shade on the variant makes you question if this design was partly created by automobile enthusiasts.

Tiny details like the subtle curve on the sides of the laptop or the recessed area for the keyboard that makes sure your buttons don’t touch the screen when the laptop is shut are worth your attention. These also help give the Pavilion some character, something the productivity laptop segment could really use.

Having said that, there are areas that could certainly use some improvement. The power button, for instance, is sandwiched awkwardly in the top row of keys. The bezels around the display aren’t the slimmest and features like a fingerprint reader or webcam privacy shield are missed.

Display

Coming to the display, many will find the 15.6-inch screen to be a blessing. The crisp 1080p IPS LCD panel can get sufficiently bright, making it ideal even for outdoor work in this hybrid working era. However, eye protection and good low brightness levels also mean you can comfortably use this machine in the wee hours without burning your eyes out.

The Pavilion also comes with 10-point multitouch support, which means you can use your fingers to navigate even faster through tasks. The touch response on offer is very smooth, although we must admit that the screen can quickly pick up fingerprints and will need frequent cleaning.

Performance

Being one of the first 13th-gen laptops on the market gives the HP Pavilion 15 some neat advantages. One of them is the ability to efficiently run any piece of software. The Core i5 chipset powering this machine can clock a mean 4.60GHz when needed. Additionally, the 12-core configuration should give most users a good balance with the battery life as well.

Throw in 16GB DDR4 RAM and 512GB of SSD storage and you have a powerful combination that can get work done, and help you enjoy some casual gaming on the side. Some triple AAA tiles like GTA Online shouldn’t be a problem, but newer titles with higher graphical requirements will need dedicated graphics. The built-in Intel Iris Xe graphics is sufficient for creators and designers on the move.

The keyboard on offer is a full-sized one (with numpad on the right), and matches the design of the rest of the laptop. It offers a sturdy typing surface, and while the trackpad isn’t the biggest, it gets the job done.

There is a good selection of ports on the HP Pavilion, but some may argue that there aren’t enough of those. Those who use USB Type-A accessories may not be content with the two USB 3.2 Type-A ports, and creators will miss a card reader. There is an HDMI port though and the USB 3.2 Type-C port acts as a single port for data transfer, charging and external displays. For your other needs, we recommend you pair this Pavilion with a third-party USB hub for the extra ports.

Battery Life

The laptop comes with good battery life. A full charge can get you 7-8 hours of light usage, but your mileage may vary based on usage. However, the charging isn’t the fastest out there, and the 3-cell 41Wh battery charges about 39% in 30 minutes of charging and 72% in an hour of charging.

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Thankfully, you do get a Thunderbolt port, which besides data transfers and the general perks of having a USB Type-C port, also offers charging support. This means you can charge the laptop with a Type-C charger, but expect different charging times based on the adapter you use. This is handy for those who travel a lot because it allows you to carry a single charging adapter with you to charge your laptop, phone, and any other Type-C accessories.

Verdict

The HP Pavilion 15 is a great laptop for creators and other working adults looking for a powerful machine with a touch panel. With competitive specs at its core, the laptop is also future-proof, and there isn’t much to complain about besides some design choices and missing features. The lack of biometric authentication may be a deal-breaker for some, but the laptop excels at pretty much everything else making it a good buy at its price of Rs 76,990.