HP offers five very different IPS display options whereas most competing models have just a couple at most. These panels differ in resolution, reflectance, brightness, and even refresh rate. Our table below summarizes the options available and we recommend choosing wisely as each touchscreen panel offers unique advantages over the others.

Regardless of choice, all panels integrate Corning Gorilla Glass 5 with 100 percent sRGB coverage including the matte options. Matte touchscreens are rarely found on consumer devices (the Toshiba Portégé X20W comes to mind), but HP is promising improved durability against touch and pen inputs with its matte etched glass solution.

The test unit we have today uses the less expensive 'option 1' panel below with the matte etched glass anti-glare overlay. Its AU Optronics AUO533D IPS panel name can be found on no other laptop in our database. Contrast is excellent at just over 1400:1 and our own independent measurements back HP's claim of a 400-nit backlight.

Unfortunately, there are two major disadvantages to this otherwise color-accurate panel. Firstly, black-white and gray-gray response times are very slow for significantly more ghosting than many competing models. Secondly, the matte glass overlay introduces a layer of noticeable graininess that is otherwise not present on the standard glossy option. Our microscope images below reveal the consequences of light scatter on the matte panel when compared to a glossy panel.

Another interesting characteristic we discovered is the presence of pulse-width modulation even when on the maximum brightness setting. It doesn't appear to be extreme enough to warrant any concern, but it's worth mentioning nonetheless as this almost never occurs on LED-lit laptop screens.

A small but annoying bug on our unit is that the brightness and volume hotkeys become unresponsive for about 5 seconds after waking from sleep.

The backlight is otherwise uniform with only minimal uneven light bleeding along the edges and corners.