Portable and affordable but with some
usability issues
Like its big brother, the HP Envy 6, the HP
Envy 4 ($975inc. VAT) is an affordable Ultrabook offering good looks and good
sound. However, while the Envy 6 is a traditional 15.6-inch size, this is a
smaller and more portable 14-inch option. So, does the Envy 4 still retain its
sibling’s best aspects?
HP
Envy 4
It still has the same all-black cool of the
Envy series, and the bright red Beats logo is evident on the Envy 4’s speaker
grill. Like the Envy 6, it has the metallic finish and the rubberised red
coating around the edges that not only looks cool but makes the laptop easier
to grip.
The HP Envy 4 only weighs 1.8 kg, and given
its smaller dimensions at 340 x 235 x 18 mm, you might want to give this
machine the nod over its brother if you’re looking for portability. The 214
minute battery life doesn’t hurt either.
The smaller size does mean a slight
decrease in power however, and the Core i3 processor inside the Envy 4 won’t
touch the HP Envy 6’s Core i5 muscle. Even so, we found the Envy 4 to be more
than capable during our time with it and it handled all the software we threw
at it during our testing.
Rattle and hum
Usability wasn’t quite as comprehensive.
Although we didn’t find any flex on the chassis, there was a noticeable rattle
whenever the keyboard or touchpad was given a firm tap.
Because of the slim dimension required for
Ultrabook status, there’s very little travel on the keys. This comes down to
personal preference and, to be truthful, we didn’t notice it after 15 minutes
or so of typing. Unfortunately the same can’t be said of the touchpad, which
features two unbelievably stiff and unforgiving integrated click buttons.
It’s
got its shortcomings, but the Envy 4 is still very cool. If you’re after an
Ultrabook for media use, it’s an affordable option
You won’t find any kind of optical drive on
the Envy 4 but it does include the requisite ports and connections. If you want
to use a second monitor, then you’ll need to use HDMI rather than VGA, and
there are three USB ports and an SD card slot for expanding on the 500GB
storage.
If you’re planning on getting a laptop for
media use, then HP has always been a good manufacturer to turn to. The 14-inch
screen on the Envy 4 is very bright and you get the standard 1,366 x 768
resolution for 720p videos, games and films.
Sound is provided courtesy of Beats by Dr
Dre, and there’s a lot of volume to be found from this slim machine. What would
have been the icing on the audio cake is if the aforementioned Beats logo on
the speaker grill was a dedicated launch button for the Beats Audio control
panel. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case.
We’ve been quick to point out shortcomings
with the Envy 4, but the truth is it’s a very cool Ultrabook indeed. There’s
enough of a design edge to single it out and performance, while not exactly
breathtaking, is certainly credible enough.
So, if you’re in the market for an
Ultrabook for media use and aren’t prepared to fork out for something in the
price range of, say, the HP Envy Spectre, then the Envy 4 is an extremely
affordable and attractive alternative.
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Info
Price: $975
Website: www.hp.com
What’s it best for
Web, mail & photos
HD, movies & TV
Light & portable
Key features
Supplier: www.hp.com
OS: Windows 7
Home Premium
Processor: Intel
Core i3-2367M 1.4GHz
Memory: 6GB
Storage: 500GB /
128GB SSD
Screen size: 14-inch
Screen resolution: 1,366 x 768
Graphics: Intel
HD Graphics 3000
Weight: 1.8kg
Verdict
Value: 3/5
Features: 4/5
Performance: 3/5
Total: 3/5
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