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HP Envy 23 TouchSmart All-in-One

5/17/2013 6:51:50 PM

There’s plenty of good-looking competition in this group test, but HP's Envy 23 still stands out. A large part of its success comes from its unusual construction: while all the other systems here use rear-mounted stands, the HP sits on top of a slender, brushed-metal base, and it's held up by a pair of curving, tubular legs.

The TouchSmart has a large, glossy 23-inch screen surrounded by a thick black bezel

The TouchSmart has a large, glossy 23-inch screen surrounded by a thick black bezel

The eye-catching design is matched with good build quality. The base, which curves up to a thick point and tapers backwards, anchors the system solidly, and the tilting design is reliably sturdy. There's only one big downside to this good-looking design, though, and it's a big one: a severe lack of flexibility. The HP's screen tilts back a few degrees, but it's not far enough to even use the Envy from a standing position, and this desk-bound machine looks limited when compared to the versatile, double-hinged Asus ET2300.

The screen, like four other systems here, has a 23" diagonal and 1920 x 1080 native resolution. Its average Delta E of 3.3 means this is the best PC here for color accuracy, and images never look oversaturated or insipid. It's great for photo editing and other work tasks, but a couple of minor issues put this panel into second place, behind the Asus – there’s a little bit of backlight leakage along the bottom edge, and the measured brightness of 208cd/m2 is a little low.

Intel's 2.7GHz Core i5-3330S is a low-power part an unfortunate prerequisite for most all-in-ones and its benchmark score of 0.82 sits in the middle of this month's performance tables. Windows 8 felt slick, but we can't say the same about the Envy's gaming muscle: the AMD Radeon HD 7450A is the weakest discrete GPU here, and its Medium-quality Crysis result of 19fps puts paid to any gaming prospects – you’ll be restricted to the casual titles found in the Windows Store.

Its unusual stand design doesn’t allow for as much adjustment as many rival machines

Its unusual stand design doesn’t allow for as much adjustment as many rival machines

That said, the 2TB hard disk on offer in the HP is this test's biggest, and there's a Blu-ray reader and TV tuner – so the media boxes are all ticked.

HP has included Beats Audio inside the Envy 23, but we wish it hadn't bothered. Dr. Dre's favorite audio system delivers overwhelming amounts of bass that completely overpower the mid and high-end, and it's so bad that the audio actually distorts at full volume.

HP has included Beats Audio inside the Envy 23

HP has included Beats Audio inside the Envy 23

Fortunately, it's possible to disable Beats Audio, and the HP's speakers are better for it. There's still too much bass, but the mid-range and high-end sounds are audible, and it's a much more balanced listening experience that's on par with the victorious Asus.

It's the lack of versatility and the higher price that damage the HP's prospects when stacked up against the Asus. That means it's a runner-up this week, but it's still worth considering. While it's not as flexible, the good screen and powerful specification mean the Envy 23 is particularly good when it comes to work rather than play.

It's the lack of versatility and the higher price that damage the HP's prospects when stacked up against the Asus.

It's the lack of versatility and the higher price that damage the HP's prospects when stacked up against the Asus.

Details

§  Price: $1,575

§  Ratings: 8/10

§  Screen size: 23.0in

§  RAM capacity: 6GB

§  CPU nominal frequency: 2.7GHz

§  Processor socket: LGA 1155

§  Hard disk: Hitachi Deskstar 7K3000

§  Resolution: 1920 x 1080

§  Speakers: HP Beats Audio

§  Speaker type: 2 x 2W

 

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