A couple of weeks ago we published a full breakup of Windows on ARM performance, looking at how the Snapdragon 835 SoC fares when running native UWP applications from the Windows Store, and standard x86 programs via emulation.

Today nosotros'll looking more closely at the get-go Snapdragon 835 device running Windows: the HP Envy x2. Having now used this tablet for a few weeks, there'due south a lot of things HP did well to make this a hardware experience to rival the Microsoft Surface. And so on the other hand, they were probably a bit permit downwards past the performance of x86 emulation on ARM processors.

The key slice of hardware in the Green-eyed x2 is the Snapdragon SoC, all the same HP has packed in several other decent components. The display is a 12.three-inch 1920 x 1200 IPS LCD, at that place's decent 41.6 Wh battery, and you'll get either 4GB of RAM and 128GB of storage or 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage depending on the configuration and region. In the United States, the 4GB model is what you'll go, while in Australia and another areas the 8GB variant is the default.

As with most Windows tablet except the Surface Pro, both a keyboard cover and stylus are included in the box at no additional charge. Meanwhile Microsoft is still able to charge nearly $200 extra for these essentials, which blows my heed.

HP'southward Windows on ARM device is the most premium of the devices announced so far. While Asus and Lenovo are aiming to offer mid-range devices, the Envy x2 screams in at the top with a total metallic structure and an middle-watering $1,000 price tag.

Co-ordinate to Qualcomm, both HP and Lenovo opted to use several elements of Qualcomm'south Windows on ARM reference design for their devices. Despite this, the last build of the Envy x2 is fantastic: it looks excellent with metallic on all sides and Gorilla Glass protecting the display. The near seamless construction gives it a premium impact you'd expect from a loftier-end tablet.

The Envy x2 is besides thin and light for a Windows device, at 7.7mm thick and a touch under 700 grams. Nevertheless that'south peradventure not as impressive when you realize the Surface Pro is 8.5mm thick, effectually 770 grams heavy, yet manages to integrate a kickstand into the body, features a fully-fledged Intel Core processor, and a slightly larger battery.

However, the Envy x2 feels bang-up to agree and the silverish metal design is of similar quality to HP's flagship laptops similar the Spectre x360. At that place'southward enough bezel around the display to make the tablet usable in a handheld fashion without overwhelming the screen with bezel. The 12.3-inch brandish feels like a suitable size for this sort of tablet and I like the 16:10 aspect ratio.

The I/O selection on this tablet is pretty slim, at just one USB 3.ane Type-C and a headphone jack. It's overnice that information technology charges via USB-C, merely if you want to accuse information technology and employ a peripheral at the same time, you'll have to buy a dongle. Luckily HP does include a USB C-to-A adapter for peripheral use.

While yous don't get many USB ports on this tablet, you do go both a microSD card slot and a nano-SIM slot. Cheers to the Snapdragon 835, you become an integrated Snapdragon X16 LTE modem in the Envy x2, then y'all can chuck in a SIM and enjoy the connectivity wherever you go. I wish more laptops had integrated LTE support; with Windows on ARM, you can guarantee you're getting the feature.

The keyboard cover attaches to the Envy x2 using magnets and pins, so nothing too unusual. Yet equally the stand is integrated into the cover rather than the tablet itself, there are a couple more steps to become the tablet prepare in the comprehend than with the simpler Surface-style kickstand design. The way the stand up folds dorsum over itself is a unique take and information technology does allow a wide range of angles, though for a standard laptop-style angle, it's non as quick and like shooting fish in a barrel as with the Surface.

Having the stand attached to the keyboard likewise means y'all can't prop upwardly just the tablet alone. If the stand up was integrated into the tablet body, the Envy x2's strengths as a media consumption device could be made even stronger. Prop upwards the tablet, watch a video, and enjoy outstanding battery life. But as you'll need to bring along the keyboard to use the stand, this sort of experience is a bit diminished.

The good news is the keyboard itself is excellent. It has a great tactile clicky response, the keys are a decent size for typing, and there's not a meaning amount of flex in the cover while smashing out a Discussion document. Information technology'due south very similar to the keyboards on HP'due south fully-fledged laptops in this regard. The trackpad is too quite good and works well considering the express infinite allocated to it.

HP has too done well with the display. The 12.3-inch 1920 x 1200 LCD isn't anything special from a spec perspective, just its performance exceeded my expectations. It's capable of a loftier level of brightness, around 500 nits, plus it features a decent dissimilarity ratio of 1415:i and nifty viewing angles. Information technology does take a content-enlightened automatic brightness feature, though it's not too ambitious and helps conserve energy where possible.

The key attribute that impressed me is the calibration. Delta Es in the two.4 to 2.viii range aren't quite in the realm of 'very accurate', however it'southward much amend than a lot of other Windows laptops, and should suffice for those that desire to practise some light content creation – or more likely on such a slow device – view photos. An average temperature of 7000K or and so isn't surprising but non terrible.