Your smartphone isn't the only thing that companies are obsessed with making thinner. Focus has turned to laptops as well, with the belief that making thin-as-paper and light-as-air notebooks will draw in more of the forever-on-the-go working professionals. Thinness also lends itself to design challenges that both excite and loom over OEMs—on one hand, thin laptops should be inherently sexy, but on the other hand, it can be a challenge to make a truly powerful, performance-driven pancake notebook.

Enter HP's new Spectre 13 laptop. The company bills it as the thinnest notebook in the world, and its sleek, metallic-accented design complements that title. However, unlike Apple's newest MacBook, HP managed to fit full Core i5 and i7 processors into the Spectre, in addition to three USB Type-C ports and a 4-cell battery. While it doesn't come cheap with a starting price of $1,169, it does do its best to offer more power and a fresh design compared to the likes of the MacBook and Dell's XPS 13.

Look and feel

HP reps have said the main goal with the Spectre 13 was to make it "distinctly thin," and they managed to do that with the 10.4mm-thick laptop. While the Spectre 13 weighs more than Apple's ultra-thin MacBook (2.06 pounds), and even the company's own Elitebook Folio G1 (2.14 pounds) at 2.45 pounds, it seems to lose weight when you pick it up because it appears so svelte. When I unboxed the Spectre 13 for the first time, I was only partially surprised to see that its packaging weighed more than the laptop itself did.

While dimensions speak volumes, HP carried over the svelte aesthetic to the design of the entire notebook. The body is mostly matte black, made of an anodized aluminum and carbon fiber mix, and it's accented in copper with the HP logo on the top of the lid and with the recessed piston hinge that connects the lid to the chassis.

Specs at a glance: HP Spectre 13 (as reviewed) Screen 13.3-inch, 1920 x 1080, IPS OS Windows 10, 64 bit CPU Intel Core i7-6500 RAM 8GB HDD 256GB PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD GPU Intel HD 520 Networking 802.11ac (2x2) and Bluetooth 4.0 combo Ports 1 USB Type-C, 2 Thunderbolt Size 12.8 x 9.03 x 0.41 in Weight 2.45 lbs Battery 4-cell, 38 Wh Li-ion Warranty 1 year Starting price $1,169 Price as reviewed $1,249 Other perks HP TrueVision webcam

Back when the Spectre 13 was first announced, the hinge is what caught everyone's eyes—not only because of its blinged-out copper coating, but also for the way it basically keeps the lid and display hovering over the back portion of the chassis with two curved hooks. HP reps say the company was inspired by furniture design when creating the Spectre 13, and the hinge is the perfect example of that influence. However, some might be disappointed that the hinge prevents the screen from tilting back more than 120 degrees.

But at the same time, the hinge keeps the display sturdily stuck in place, so it won't fall back or forward at will. The display itself is a 13.3-inch, 1920 x 1080, IPS screen with a .04-inch layer of Corning Gorilla Glass 4 on top of it. My only issues with the display are that the bezel at the bottom is a bit thicker than I'd like (1 inch, compared to the other sides' .5-inch bezel) and the display as a whole can be overcome by glare at some angles. Otherwise, the brightness, contrast, and colors are all good, but if you're looking for a 4K option, you won't find one on the Spectre 13's model list.

HP focused a lot on the Spectre 13's appearance but didn't sacrifice productivity either. On the back of the hinge are a headphone jack and three connectivity ports: one USB Type-C port and two Thunderbolt ports. Any of these three ports can charge the laptop, and the Thunderbolt ports can be used for data transfer, 4K monitor connects, and more. HP seems to be adding more and more ports as it debuts new laptops; its EliteBook Folio G1 has two USB Type-C ports that indirectly (or directly) one-upped Apple's one-port MacBook. Having multiple ports is crucial for me, especially in such a portable laptop that I would likely be traveling with a lot and would need to connect my phone, camera, mouse, and possibly an external display to at once. HP thankfully includes one regular USB to USB Type-C adaptor with the Spectre 13, so if you're like me you'll make use of that to connect older accessories and products to the laptop. However, HP's other USB Type-C adaptors, including Ethernet and HDMI, are optional accessories and cost $49 each.

The last thing to note about the Spectre 13's design is something you cannot see. HP partnered with Intel to build a hyperbaric cooling system inside the notebook that works to keep it cool even when you're pushing its processor to the limit. The system basically draws in cool air through the bottom vents and pushes it over the processor to keep the entire system from overheating. While the hinge did get a little warm sometimes, the rest of the notebook remained comfortable. However, the dual fans involved in the hyperbaric system were loud at times. HP issued a software update that fixed this a bit, but it didn't render the fans completely mute.



Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Valentina Palladino

Keyboard and trackpad

The Spectre 13's keyboard follows the design of the rest of the laptop with its symbols and sides highlighted in copper. With 1.3mm of travel between keys, they're slightly snug, but I didn't feel cramped while typing on the keyboard. The corner keys—Escape, Delete, right arrow, and Control—are curved at the edges so the entire keyboard is encased in a rounded, rectangular figure. It mimics the design of the lid and the chassis making it look just slightly more fluid and pulled together than other keyboards. The left and right sides of the keyboard are hugged by speaker grills that let the Bang & Olufsen speakers work their magic.

The etched glass trackpad is a Synaptics SMBus Clickpad and it sits in the middle of the keyboard deck just under the space bar. It's incredibly smooth to use even if it is small at just 3.7 x 2.2 inches. While some trackpads, like that on Lenovo's X1 hybrid, can feel a little cramped if they have extra buttons at the top or bottom, the Spectre 13's trackpad felt cramped simply because it's too narrow of a rectangle. Aside from the lack of room, gestures like pinch-to-zoom and controls like two-finger scrolling worked just fine.

Software

HP doesn't weigh down the Spectre 13 with bloatware. In fact, the only HP-branded apps are HP Welcome where you can register your Spectre 13 for better warranty support; HP ePrint for monitoring printouts; and HP Help and Support, which includes apps like HP Recovery Manager where you can run some computer maintenance tests and reinstall drivers if need be.

Otherwise, the Spectre 13 is your general Windows 10 notebook. The only thing it's really lacking is the fingerprint privacy features of Windows Hello since it doesn't have a fingerprint sensor. The most you can do to protect your notebook is add a password to your account, create a PIN, and select a photo password.

Performance

The Spectre 13 is a pretty capable laptop. Our review unit is powered by an Intel Core i7-6500 processor, but the base model has Core i5. But both our model and the base have 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. In many of our benchmark tests, the Spectre 13 beat out Microsoft's Surface Book and performed ever-so-slightly better than its cousin, the EliteBook Folio G1.







I didn't experience any problems working on the Spectre 13 for hours at a time. Its sustained performance is on par with Microsoft's Surface Book, and with its Intel HD 520 GPU, it bested the Dell XPS on most of our graphics benchmarks as well. While I don't expect most Spectre 13 users to be using the notebook for hardcore gaming, it's certainly up to the task of the occasional Candy Crush session.











Another plus of the Spectre 13 is that it comes with PCIe storage, up to 512GB. HP ditched the SATA SSD III option from the EliteBook Folio G1, which simply gives the Spectre 13 an edge when comparing it to the XPS 13 or to any Apple laptop from the past three years.





Battery life

HP divided the Spectre 13's battery into four polymer cells, so it could fit within its ultra-thin design. The company promises nine hours of battery life on a single charge, and in our test, the Spectre 13 lasted an average of 615 minutes, or just over ten hours. That means you'll get at least a full day's worth of activity before you have to plug in again, which is promising since the Spectre 13 has been billed as the ultimate portable notebook. On our WebGL test, which puts the GPU to work, the Spectre 13 lasted 210 minutes or about three hours.





Few compromises for the thinnest option

HP ticked all the boxes it wanted to when it developed the Spectre 13. It's an incredibly thin laptop that won't take up much space no matter where you store it, nor will its 2.45-pound weight break your back. Thanks to its Core i5 and i7 processors and solid overall performance, you can get a lot of work done on this laptop without it slowing you down. It also won't overheat on you thanks to the hyperbaric cooling system, even if you'll have to deal with the occasional hum of the fan.

The Spectre 13's metallically enhanced design may not be everyone's style, but I do give HP props for not making a MacBook or MacBook Air clone. Windows users have another flashy notebook to choose from in the Spectre 13, and one that will surely make a couple of heads turn. I also appreciate that HP didn't try to make the Spectre 13 a hybrid—it's a laptop for people who prefer laptops thanks to its sturdy hinge and comfortable keyboard. I only wish the trackpad gave me more room to breathe.

Overall, there are few compromises to make for the HP Spectre 13. It doesn't have any 4K or touchscreen display options, so keep that in mind if you have been wanting a laptop that supports either. You also won't be able to lean the display back very far due to the hinge's design, but that's a small price to pay. If you have considered the new $1,299 MacBook but are not married to OS X, the HP Spectre 13 is a good alternative that has more connectivity options and is also slightly more affordable.

The Good

Statement design without being too over-the-top.

Super lightweight and thin.

Long battery life.

Three USB-C ports, two of which are Thunderbolt.

Comfortable chiclet keyboard.

Core i5 and i7 processor options.

The Bad

Hinge design doesn't let the screen tilt back very far.

Fan can be loud at times.

No 4K or touchscreen display option.

The Ugly