HP EliteBook 860 G10 Review: A Powerhouse for Modern Professionals
In the ever-evolving landscape of business technology, the HP EliteBook 860 G10 stands out as a true powerhouse, designed to cater to the demanding needs of modern professionals. This premium laptop boasts a potent combination of performance, security, and durability, making it a compelling choice for those who require a reliable and feature-rich device to tackle their daily tasks.
HP EliteBook 860 G10 Review: Design and Build Quality with Refined Elegance and Rugged Reliability
The HP EliteBook 860 G10 exudes a refined and professional appearance, thanks to its sleek aluminum chassis. The rounded edges and matte silver finish give the laptop a sophisticated look, while the robust construction ensures minimal flexing or creaking during everyday use. At 1.9 kg (4.19 lbs), the EliteBook 860 G10 strikes a balance between portability and sturdiness, making it a comfortable companion for business professionals on the go.
The laptop’s durability is further enhanced by its MIL-STD-810H certification, indicating its ability to withstand the rigors of demanding environments. This ruggedness, coupled with the well-balanced weight distribution, instills confidence in users who require a device that can withstand the daily rigors of a busy work life.
Connectivity Options: Versatile and Convenient
The HP EliteBook 860 G10’s connectivity options are well-rounded, catering to the diverse needs of modern business users. With a selection of USB-A, USB-C, Thunderbolt, HDMI, and a SmartCard reader, the laptop provides ample flexibility for connecting a wide range of peripherals and accessories. The strategic placement of these ports along the sides ensures a comfortable mouse usage experience, allowing users to seamlessly integrate their preferred input devices.
While the absence of an SD card reader may disappoint some users, particularly photographers and videographers, the laptop’s other connectivity features make it a suitable choice for a broad range of professional applications.
Exceptional Input Devices: A Pleasure to Use
The EliteBook 860 G10’s keyboard is a true standout, offering a responsive and tactile typing experience that is essential for professionals who spend long hours drafting reports, composing emails, or navigating complex spreadsheets. The well-spaced keys, paired with the single-zone white backlighting, ensure a comfortable and efficient typing experience, even in low-light conditions.
Complementing the excellent keyboard is the spacious and smooth touchpad, which provides reliable multi-touch gesture support and satisfying click feedback. This seamless integration of input devices contributes to an overall user experience that is both productive and enjoyable.
Performance and Benchmarks: Unleashing the Power of AMD Ryzen
At the heart of the HP EliteBook 860 G10 is the formidable AMD Ryzen 9 PRO 7940HS processor, which delivers impressive performance in both single-threaded and multi-threaded workloads. Our benchmark results showcase the laptop’s ability to consistently outperform its predecessor, the EliteBook 860 G9, as well as notable competitors like the Lenovo ThinkPad P16s G2 and the Acer Swift Edge 16.
The Ryzen 9 processor’s capabilities make the EliteBook 860 G10 an exceptional choice for professionals in fields such as graphic design, video editing, and software development, where processing power is paramount. However, the laptop’s single-channel RAM configuration can act as a performance bottleneck, especially in GPU-intensive tasks.
Unlocking the Full Potential: Dual-Channel RAM Upgrade
By upgrading the RAM to a dual-channel setup, users can significantly enhance the EliteBook 860 G10’s performance, unlocking its full potential. This upgrade is particularly beneficial for those who frequently engage in tasks that demand considerable GPU resources, such as video editing or 3D modeling.
Complementing the powerful processor is the fast PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD from SK Hynix, which delivers excellent read and write speeds. This combination of a high-performance CPU and fast storage ensures quick application loading and efficient file transfers, contributing to an overall responsive and productive user experience.
Integrated Graphics: Capable for Business Needs
While the EliteBook 860 G10 is not primarily designed for heavy gaming or intensive graphical workloads, its integrated AMD Radeon 780M GPU delivers reasonable performance for a business laptop. This GPU can handle casual gaming and light graphical tasks with ease, making it a suitable option for users who occasionally engage in such activities.
Display Quality: Balancing Practicality and Privacy
The HP EliteBook 860 G10 features a 16-inch IPS display with a 1920 x 1200 resolution and 100% sRGB color coverage, offering vibrant and accurate color representation. This makes the laptop a viable choice for creative professionals who require precise color accuracy for tasks like photo editing or graphic design.
The Sure View Privacy Filter Conundrum
The display’s Achilles’ heel is the optional Sure View privacy filter, which is designed to protect sensitive information from prying eyes. While the Sure View filter effectively shields the screen’s content, it comes at a significant cost — a dramatic reduction in display brightness and viewing angles. This trade-off renders the screen virtually unusable in most environments, particularly in bright office settings where visibility is crucial.
For users who do not require the privacy filter, the alternative display options without the Sure View feature provide a much more satisfactory overall experience, with improved image quality and increased usability in a variety of lighting conditions.
Viewing Angles and Outdoor Visibility
The display’s peak brightness of around 800 nits ensures good visibility in outdoor environments, but the viewing angles are not as wide as one would expect from a premium business laptop. Color distortion can become noticeable at acute viewing angles, which may be a concern for users who frequently collaborate with colleagues or share their screen during in-person meetings.
Battery Life and Thermal Performance: Balancing Power and Portability
The HP EliteBook 860 G10 is equipped with a 76Wh battery, which delivers impressive battery life in less demanding tasks. During our testing, the laptop managed to last between 13 to 15 hours on a single charge, outperforming many of its competitors in web browsing and video playback scenarios.
However, the laptop’s power consumption spikes under heavy load, leading to shorter battery runtimes in demanding workloads. This trade-off is likely due to the high-performance Ryzen 9 PRO 7940HS processor and the energy-intensive display.
Efficient Thermal Management
The EliteBook 860 G10’s thermal performance is generally efficient, with the single fan keeping the laptop cool during typical office tasks. While the fan can struggle to dissipate heat effectively under sustained heavy workloads, leading to hot spots on the chassis and increased noise levels, the overall thermal design strikes a reasonable balance between performance and user comfort.
Security Features and Software: Fortress of Data Protection
The HP EliteBook 860 G10 is equipped with a comprehensive suite of security features and software, designed to safeguard business data. The HP Wolf Security platform, which includes HP Sure Click Pro and HP Sure Sense Pro, provides a multi-layered approach to protecting the device and its contents — a critical consideration for business professionals who handle sensitive information.
Convenient and Secure Access
Complementing the robust security software, the EliteBook 860 G10 also features a fingerprint scanner and a SmartCard reader, allowing users to conveniently and securely access the laptop. These features enhance the overall security of the device, ensuring that users can work with peace of mind, knowing their data is well-protected.
Comprehensive Warranty and Support
HP’s commitment to customer support is evident in the one-year limited warranty with next-business-day onsite hardware support, which can be further extended through various optional warranty plans. This level of service is crucial for businesses that rely on their devices for daily operations, providing the necessary assurance and peace of mind.
Conclusion: The Complete Business Laptop Package
The HP EliteBook 860 G10 is a remarkable business laptop that sets a new standard for performance, security, and design. While the single-channel RAM configuration may limit its full potential, upgrading to a dual-channel setup can unlock substantial performance gains, particularly for users who demand the most from their devices.
The display’s Sure View privacy filter poses a trade-off, but the availability of alternative display options without this feature allows users to choose a configuration that best suits their needs. The laptop’s premium build quality, exceptional input devices, and comprehensive security features make it a compelling choice for business professionals who require a reliable and capable device to tackle their daily tasks.
For those seeking the pinnacle of business laptop performance, the HP EliteBook 860 G10 is a strong contender that seamlessly blends power, security, and portability — a true embodiment of the modern professional’s requirements in the ever-evolving landscape of business technology.