HP Envy x2 Review

Pros
Well-built
Attractive design
Good screen and speakers (with BEATS AUDIO)
Good battery life
Full-size SD card slot

Cons 
Overpriced Atom performance still disappoints
Less battery life than some rivals
No bundled stylus, optional stylus not Wacom

Key Features: Convertible Win 8 tablet/laptop with removable keyboard dock; 11.6-inch IPS touch screen, 1366 x 768; 1.8GHz dual-core CPU, 2GB RAM, up to 64GB storage; Up to 14hrs battery life

The age of the convertible Windows 8 tablet/laptop is well and truly upon us. All the major brands have thrown their metaphorical gloves into the arena with a whole bunch of form factors, including sliders like the Toshiba Satellite U920t, twisters such as the Lenovo ThinkPad Twist, and even flip-screen models such as the Dell XPS Duo 12. 

However, the most interesting convertible solution is the detachable slate with keyboard dock. This not only gives you a tablet without the weight of the keyboard when you don’t want it, but also means you get far longer battery life thanks to the second battery that’s usually integrated into the dock. The disadvantage is that – with a few exceptions such as the Samsung Ativ Smart PC Pro and Lenovo ThinkPad Helix - most of these convertibles aren’t as powerful as a regular laptop, and usually rely on Intel’s Atom processor for their power. That’s exactly what the HP Envy x2 does, so is it a jack of all trades or master of none? 

Let’s just quickly sum up the basics before getting into the nitty-gritty. Like its main rivals, the Asus Vivo Tab and Samsung Ativ Smart PC, HP’s Windows 8 hybrid is an 11.6-inch affair that consists of a tablet plus detachable keyboard base with extra connectivity and a secondary battery. One of the biggest selling points over Android and iOS offerings is that this tablet/laptop will run many of your legacy Windows 7/Vista/XP apps.

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