The EliteBook x360 1030 G3 directly addresses our biggest complaint about the 1030 G2: the dim display. Our 1030 G3 unit is about 75 percent brighter than the 1030 G2 and that doesn't even include the 700-nit option. Combine this with the smaller footprint and narrower bezels and the best 13-inch business convertible just got even better in almost every way.

"Almost" is the key word here because this latest revision has dropped a couple of features. Both the MicroSD and Smart Card readers are seemingly gone for good and we're unlikely to see dedicated mouse keys or the TrackPoint nub return anytime soon. CPU Turbo Boost sustainability could be better and graphics performance is weak. Otherwise, everything else from the 1030 G2 is intact. It's amazing how HP has crammed 4G LTE, NFC, great speakers, Thunderbolt 3, and 4K UHD touchscreen options all onto a portable and relatively quiet 13-inch convertible. It's too bad that the $1900 USD starting price is such a tall obstacle for most because we can't recommend it enough for both office users and on-the-go students alike.

It's a shame that HP does not offer any Ryzen options since the Vega 8 or Vega 10 would have boosted graphics performance significantly over the UHD Graphics 620 for light editing tasks. We hope to see AMD or Intel Bean Canyon Iris Plus options in future models to expand the versatility of the series even further.

