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HP Pavilion x2 review

Let’s face it: Convertible laptops suck. A computer that can switch between a laptop and a tablet compromises too much and fails as both...at least they have in the past.

Thanks to the improvements in low-powered processors, that’s changing. We’re seeing a growing number of Windows 10 machines that function as both a tablet and a computer, do so well, and manage that without emptying your wallet — like the HP Pavilion x2.

The Pavilion x2 is a 10-inch device with a gorgeous screen, great battery life, and a way of getting you to keep using a tablet...without sacrificing your everyday computing needs.

Big for a netbook and tablet, small as both

With the Surface Pro 4's and iPad Pro’s of the world taking over for professionals, the very idea of tablet computing is changing.

The Pavilion x2 isn’t quite in that league, coming in at a Chromebook-low price of $300, but if any device is leading the charge for more laptop-esque computing on tablets, it’s the Pavilion x2. Sure, it’s larger than most 10-inch and 11-inch laptops because it’s packing so much into a small frame. That’s okay though, because the Pavilion x2 really is more than the sum of its parts.

For $300 you get the latest Intel Atom processor, a 1.44GHz quad-core chip that is faster and has better performance than the typical dual-core Celeron silicon used in Chromebooks; 2GB of RAM, 32GB of storage (upgradeable to 64GB), and a 1,280 x 800 IPS display and full removable keyboard. The speakers are also designed by Bang and Olufsen. And it comes in three colors: white, gray or red.

Even without the keyboard the Pavilion x2 makes for a great tablet. It’s built with the keyboard in mind though, so if you forget it at home, don’t expect to comfortably use a Bluetooth keyboard instead. The bottom of the tablet is flat, made specifically for the magnetic connectors on the keyboard’s hinge — not good for standing at an angle or even upright. That’s fine, the two pieces are inseparable.

I never left the keyboard more than a few feet from the Pavilion x2, partly because the two go so well together, and partly because traveling with a 1.3-pound tablet without a screen protector is just foolish. The keyboard is the perfect companion.

The no-compromise tablet

Image: James Pikover/Mashable

As a laptop, the components that make up the Pavilion x2 are limiting. Running a dozen browser tabs simultaneously is going to slow things down. High-performance applications like Photoshop aren’t fast. Don’t even think about video editing and keep photo editing to a bare minimum. No, if you’re going to use the Pavilion x2, it'll be for email, light web browsing, video streaming, and other individual or light tasks.

That’s why it works so great as a tablet. Unplug the keyboard to read a long article or watch a video — no problem. There’s no scuffle to remove the keyboard, no sudden worry that the battery will die, and most importantly no change in performance.

It came so naturally to stow the keyboard away to watch YouTube clips or read on the beautiful display instead of the typical hunch-over-and-read looking down. The option to switch between the two modes feels right; the keyboard and mouse is there when you ned

using a keyboard and mouse when you need to and using the touchscreen without the interference or accidentally pushing buttons when you don’t need to type out that never-ending email.

And with over seven hours of battery life per charge, the trouble is never with getting through the day. As we spend more and more time with complementary devices, like watching TV while looking at a smartphone, the need for tablets is growing in the house. The Pavilion x2 is perfect for that, a capable Windows 10 laptop that is also a lightweight tablet. It’s the Swiss army knife of computers. I’ve used it in the house for everything from web browsing in front of the TV to showing family photos to friends to answering emails and writing full articles.

Give love to get love

Out of the box though, the Pavilion x2 feels like it’s a tugboat pulling an aircraft carrier. It’s slow beyond frustration, with not nearly enough storage space and with constant performance hiccups. It may well be one of the worst computing experiences of the year.

Thankfully that can be fixed. Delete everything not built in by Windows or HP (and maybe even some of HP’s software, but be careful there), and after a reboot the Pavilion x2 is right as rain. Sadly we still live in an age where pre-installed software is a thing, and that software tends to be crap. With the Pavilion x2, it actually ruins the computer.

Image: James Pikover/Mashable

The low resolution of 1,280 x 800 is barely enough for web use today. If you spend any time on Reddit or just love full 1080p content, it’s going to be very scrunched or you’ll be scrolling to see a lot of content not immediately displayed on the screen. That’s not to say it’s not usable...thankfully the mobile web is making lower-resolutions more prominent, but there are going to be plenty of times when the screen is just too small for the given content.

The connection between the keyboard and computer is also somewhat faulty. At times I found the keyboard and mouse completely unresponsive, but after unplugging it a few times it behaves normally.

While battery life is excellent, battery life on standby is still worse than expected on any Windows computer. Keep the Pavilion x2 in your bag for a few days without use and it’ll discharged, unlike the typical tablets which can last weeks without use on a single charge.

It’s the best of both worlds

The @hp Pavilion X2, reviewed by @mashabletech! A photo posted by @jamezrp on Nov 24, 2015 at 8:18am PST

The HP Pavilion x2 is a $300 laptop that’s also a tablet, so don’t expect to be playing Star Wars Battlefront on this computer. Even without desktop-grade performance, the Pavilion x2 puts everything that makes a tablet great into a full-fledged, albeit very lightweight, laptop. And that means a lot, because for the first time we have a Windows computer that works great as a tablet and as a laptop.

But the real frosting is just how well built the Pavilion x2 is. The hardware is top notch, with an easy-to-remove keyboard that connects magnetically and is the easiest thing to snap on and off. The IPS screen is low resolution but still very high quality; I watched an entire season of Marvel’s Agents of Shield in tablet mode and loved it. The combination of high-quality stereo speakers and a great-looking screen made for a better TV experience, more than enough for the friend who kicked his cable to the curb and is ready to do the same with his TV set.

HP did an incredible job with the Pavilion x2, and the price makes it a great gift for the holidays to boot. Whether it’s for the couch potato or the high-flyer, the Pavilion x2 is the Windows equivalent to the low-powered MacBook and iPad Air 2. And it works better as both than just one. Just make sure you open the box up and delete all of the bloatware first, otherwise you’ll be playing tech support all year.