HP Spectre 2-in-1 16" 2.8K Review

The HP Spectre x360 16 is a laptop that tries to be everything to everyone, and that's its biggest problem. You get a gorgeous 16-inch OLED touchscreen, 32GB of RAM, and even a discrete RTX 4050 GPU, all wrapped in a convertible 2-in-1 design. But here's the one thing you need to know: it's a jack of all trades that feels like a master of none, especially when you see the $2,598 price tag. It's too heavy and bulky to be a great tablet, and its gaming and creator performance is held back by a mediocre CPU and thermal constraints.

The performance story is a mixed bag. That RTX 4050 GPU lands in the 73rd percentile, which is solid for light gaming and creative work, but it's paired with a CPU that's only in the 23rd percentile. You'll feel that bottleneck in CPU-heavy tasks. The 32GB of RAM and 1TB SSD are great on paper, but they can't make up for the fact that this machine just doesn't feel as snappy as its specs suggest, especially when you're pushing it.

At $2,598, this is a tough sell. You're paying a premium for the 2-in-1 form factor and OLED screen, but you're getting mid-tier performance and questionable reliability. There are much faster and more reliable laptops at this price that don't try to do everything.

For creators, the 14-inch MacBook Pro with M4 Max runs circles around this Spectre in CPU performance, battery life, and reliability, though you lose the touchscreen and 2-in-1 flexibility. If you want a Windows powerhouse for gaming or creative work, the MSI Vector 16 HX or Gigabyte AORUS MASTER 16 offer far better GPU performance and thermals for similar money, but they're pure laptops, not convertibles. The ASUS Zenbook Duo gives you dual screens and more innovation for less cash if the 2-in-1 form factor is a must.

I can't recommend the HP Spectre x360 16 for most people. It's a classic case of specs looking better on paper than they feel in real use. If you absolutely need a large-screen Windows convertible and money is no object, maybe consider it. But for nearly everyone else, you're better off getting a more focused machine. Buy a killer laptop and a separate tablet if you need both. This hybrid doesn't excel at either role enough to justify its cost.