HP Latest Stream 14" HD Review

Let's be real from the start. The HP Stream 14 is a $179 laptop, and you feel every penny of that price. Its Intel Celeron CPU sits in the 14th percentile for performance, and the 4GB of RAM is literally in the 0th percentile. That means it has less memory than any other laptop we track. The 64GB eMMC storage isn't much better, landing in the 6th percentile. It's built for one thing: being a cheap, portable screen for basic web tasks. And at 1.47kg, it's decently light, scoring in the 78th percentile for compactness. That's the one bright spot.

Performance is exactly what you'd expect from a Celeron and 4GB of RAM. The CPU's 14th percentile ranking means it's slower than 86% of other laptops. Opening more than a few browser tabs will make it start to choke. The integrated Intel graphics are in the 38th percentile, which sounds okay, but that's only because so many other ultra-budget laptops have similarly weak GPUs. Don't even think about gaming; it scores a 7.6 out of 100 in that category. The 1366x768 screen is in the 3rd percentile for quality. It's dim, low-res, and not great for anything but text. The 64GB of eMMC storage is painfully slow and fills up almost instantly after Windows installs its updates.

The value proposition is brutally simple. You are trading every aspect of performance and quality for a low upfront cost. At $179, it undercuts even most Chromebooks. But you get what you pay for. The experience is defined by its worst-in-class RAM and near-worst storage and screen. It's a value only if your budget is absolutely rigid and your needs are limited to light web browsing on a single tab. For anyone else, spending even $100 more opens up dramatically better options.

This isn't competing with the MacBook Pros or Legion gaming laptops on the list. Its real competition is the used market and Chromebooks. Compared to a $250 Chromebook, the Stream 14 gives you full Windows, which is a plus for specific apps, but the ChromeOS device will feel much faster and smoother with similar specs. Against a used business laptop from a few years ago, like a refurbished ThinkPad, you'd get a far better keyboard, a 1080p screen, an SSD, and 8GB of RAM for the same price, but you sacrifice a new-in-box warranty. The Stream wins on being new and ultra-light, but loses on every performance metric.

I can only recommend the HP Stream 14 in one very specific scenario: you need the absolute cheapest possible new Windows laptop for a student or as a secondary machine for web-based forms, and you accept that it will be slow and limiting. The 0th percentile RAM is a deal-breaker for any real work. For most people, saving up for a better budget laptop or buying a used business machine is a vastly smarter investment. This laptop's best feature is its price tag, and that's not enough to overcome its severe limitations.