HP once again showed it's not afraid of innovation. The company showcased three new commercial laptops in the Elite series, each becoming the world’s smallest in their category (for now). The EliteBook 1050 (starting at $1,899) is slated for a May release while the Elite x2 1013 ($1,499) and the EliteBook x360 1030 ($1,449) are scheduled for a June launch. HP claims that the EliteBook 1050 is the world’s first ultra-slim notebook with discrete Nvidia GeForce GTX Graphics, the Elite x2 1013 is the smallest business detachable and the EliteBook x360 1030 is the smallest business convertible.
Each laptop is MIL-STD-810G-rated, which means they can withstand extreme humidity, extreme temperatures, vibration and high altitude. The systems also features an optional configuration with HP’s Sure View integrated privacy screen which costs an additional $50. Accessed through one of the function keys on the laptop; once pressed, it will darken the sides of the screen and protect any sensitive information on your display from being seen by others.
The 15.6-inch EliteBook 1050 is packed with a Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 GPU with 4GB of VRAM, up to a 2.6-GHz Intel Core i7-8850H processor, 32GB of RAM and up to 4TB of SSD storage with RAID support. There is an Intel UHD Graphics 630 option available outside of the U.S.
Need a brighter display? You can also configure the 1050’s display to produce up to 650 nits of brightness. Along with the Sure View screen, a Privacy Camera physically blocks the lens of your webcam with a slider. The EliteBook 1050's battery is said to last up to 16 hours, and with HP Fast Charge, it can recover 50 percent of its battery life in just 30 minutes.
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HP Elite x2 1013 G3: For Those Who Make an Impression
The 13-inch Elite x2 1013 features up to a quad-core Intel Core i7-8650U processor, 16GB of RAM, up to 1TB of SSD storage and an Intel UHD 620 graphics card.
The notebook’s bezels are 39 percent thinner than the previous generation, allowing a 13-inch diagonal display to fit in a 12-inch chassis that can reach up to 700 nits of brightness. It also supports docking via USB Type-C and up to 4G Cat9 LTE. The Elite x2 has a 10 hour and 30-minute battery life and includes a magnetic HP Rechargeable Active Pen with USB-Type C charging and proximity alerts (notifying you when your when the pen is detached or too far from your laptop).
Other specs you can configure on the 1030 G3 is the CPU which can go up to an Intel Core i7-8650U vPro processor, 16GB of RAM and a maximum 2TB of SSD storage and an Intel UHD 620 graphics card.
HP also included a Sure Recover software which lets you reimage your screen automatically, fixing a blue-screen without the need for a network connection. This convertible is also 70-percent louder than its previous generation, with 4 speakers, 4 discrete amps, and lower bass. It has a full HD webcam and an improved noise canceling microphone that’s Skype for Business Certified. The battery life can last up to 18 hours depending on configuration.
But it takes more than some admittedly stunning design to win us over. We're going to reserve our final judgement for when we get these laptops into our testing lab. Stay tuned for our full review.
