🔬[REVIEW] HP EliteBook 860 G9 - Close to being perfect
Channel: LaptopMedia
Date: 24/12/2022

📈 💵  Specs and Prices: https://laptopmedia.com/series/hp-elitebook-860-g9/
👁️  Buy our display profiles: https://laptopmedia.com/review/hp-elitebook-860-g9/#buy-our-profiles
🔬 In-depth Review: https://laptopmedia.com/review/hp-elitebook-860-g9/

➡️  CONTENTS:
[0:00] Introduction
[0:18] Design and construction
[0:37] Keyboard and Touchpad
[1:16] Ports
[1:34] Display quality
[2:33] Battery life
[2:55] Performance
[3:20] Temps and Stability
[4:06] Disassembly and upgrade options
[4:40] Verdict
_______________________________________
🔬[REVIEW] HP EliteBook 860 G9

While expensive business laptops aren’t for everyone, manufacturers are still investing heavily in them. This is how we get the HP EliteBook 860 G9, a well-crafted machine with some modern touches, which are definitely needed in 2022. 

[Intro]

Wherever you touch the EliteBook, you’ll feel aluminum, as the device is made entirely of the material. This keeps it lightweight and durable, as it weighs only 1.76 kg and has a profile of 19.2 mm, which is great, considering the large 16-inch display on the front. The laptop feels even thinner, thanks to the rounded edges and corners. Durability is good, as both the lid and the base remain mostly flex-free. 

[Input devices]

Opening the laptop reveals the base with all its goodies. There is a fingerprint reader below the NumPad, which is a must-have for any self-respecting office laptop of this size. The keys have long key travel and clicky feedback which makes it great for typing. The backlight and spill resistance further increase the usability during the night, and if you’re particularly clumsy with drinks. The touchpad however could use some more work, as our current unit skips all over the place. 

[Ports]

On the sides, we see the ports, with the left housing two Thunderbolt 4 ports, one 5-gigabit full-sized USB port, and an HDMI 2.0 port. The right side keeps an audio jack, one more USB port of the same speed and an optional SIM card slot. 

[Display]

There are three display options, all with a 1200p resolution but they differ when it comes to maximum brightness. With an FHD+ resolution and a 16:10 aspect ratio, you’ll fit every app you need at once, which is good for any self-proclaimed productivity master. 

The 16-inch panel reaches 509 nits of brightness, which is fantastic, while a high contrast ratio of 1740:1 means deep blacks, which will make looking at text and tables easier on your eyes. For the more creator-inclined users, the display covers 92% of the sRGB gamut, while reaching a dE value of only 1.2 with our Design and Gaming profile, which you can purchase in the description, along with our other display profiles. 

[Battery]

The laptop uses a 76Wh battery pack, which lasts for 23 hours of Web browsing, or 13 hours and 31 minutes of video playback when paired with the Core i7-1255U. While these tests are conducted without any other apps opened, we think that the laptop will endure a whole day of work with no problems.

[Performance]

To put it bluntly, the laptop isn’t necessarily made for performance, as the Core i7 doesn't score well in benchmarks, falling to the Core i5-1254U-powered Dell Latitude 7530. The EliteBook is also available with a bunch more Alder Lake CPUs, both from the U-series and the P-series, including the most powerful i7-1280P model.

[Cooling]

Looking at the cooling and stress test results and you’ll clearly see why the gap in performance exists. The CPU is kept in check by a single heat pipe and one fan, which isn’t exactly a recipe for success. It spikes up quite quickly, going as high as 3.23 GHz, however, only for about thirty seconds, after which, clock speeds drop down to below 2.00 GHz and the wattage hovers around the base 15W. However, if you don’t use the laptop for long heavy loads like video editing, chances are that you won’t notice that.

In terms of comfort, the EliteBook does perfectly, as the base temperature doesn’t go over 38°C, while the single fan can’t get loud enough, even if it wants to. 

[Teardown and Upgradeability]

We are really excited to check out the EliteBook on the inside, as most office devices seem to forego upgradeability. However, here we have two SODIMM slots that fit DDR5 memory. You can equip up to 64GB which is nice. For storage, there’s only one M.2 slot, which works with both Gen 3 and Gen 4 SSDs. 

For those of you who want to see how to take apart the EliteBook 860 G9, we have a special teardown video, which we’ll link in the upper right corner. 

[Verdict]

While not the best performer for heavy loads, the HP EliteBook 860 G9 has a lot of other redeeming qualities, like the sturdy build, the good upgradeability, and the fantastic screen, which will serve you well both at home and at the office. The battery is also large enough to last through a whole day, while noise levels and temperatures are comfortable even during the most torturous of benchmarks.