Looks like we have a new phone in town. Wait a minute. Is it just a phone? Looks like HP strikes the smartphone market with its new smartphone HP Elite X3. This smartphone has achieved at least one thing – it has triumphantly realized Microsoft’s dream of phones that could eventually replace your PC.
HP Elite X3 Review
Basically, it is a modern age smartphone but with a twist. Now we all know that Microsoft already tried its hand in a similar piece of the phone, the Microsoft Lumia 950 XL but somehow, 950XL failed to deliver what it was meant for.
But now, looks like Microsoft and HP have figured out a decent formula to deliver a mobile that can easily transform into a PC smoothly and can run all the desktop-class applications just the way you would expect it to run in your traditional PC.
HP Elite X3 Specifications
HP Elite X3 is packed with all the best features you would expect in a smartphone and also some extra features too. As a phone, it delivers you the following things out of the box.
Display and Size: 8/10
5.96 inch, 2k display (1440 x 2560 pixels) which is protected with a Corning Gorilla Glass 4. Definitely, HP Elite X3 has scored in this section. The display of this phablet is very good and sharp. 2K display has really made its mark on this phone.
And personally, my favorite part is the phone’s screen to body ratio that gives it an extra premium touch. And one of the positive sides of this phone is its waterproofing, It has got IP67 waterproofing which is great for a device.
Processor: 7.5/10
Under the hood, it is equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 chipset which is a Quad-core processor (2×2.15 GHz Kryo & 2×1.6 GHz Kryo) and it is also supported with Adreno 530 GPU. This phone is well designed and in spite of its huge form factor, it still makes it an easy mobile device to handle.
Camera: 6.5/10
If you were hoping that the Elite x3’s 16MP, f/2.2, autofocus, LED flash rear and 8MP front-facing cameras would emulate an iPhone, say, with a pair of dual lenses, you’ll be disappointed. HP’s camera seems to fail you big time with its mediocre shutter speeds and lack of optical image stabilization and much more.
The major downside of HP’s camera is its mediocre low light capabilities. HP could have done a lot more decent job than this in-camera as this can be coined as one of the cons of this Phablet.
Another major drawback of this phone’s camera is the lack of 4K video recording which is been provided even in budget android phones now and definitely, any user would expect a 4K video recording feature from this premium price tag.
Phone To PC – Great Continuum Experience: 8.5/10
The true advantage of Windows phones, however, is the Continuum experience, which allows a docked Windows phone to serve as a slightly degraded version of a desktop PC. HP over-engineered the Continuum experience with the same attention to detail as its other aspects, and on the Elite x3, it shines brightly.
The dock that is made for the HP Elite X3 is rich in ports and gives you more ports than many latest ports ( You do know which Ultrabook I am talking about).
With two USB 3.0 ports as well as a USB-C port, the Elite x3 dock means business. In fact, the dock’s commitment to productivity extends to the display connector. A full-sized DisplayPort connector, rather than the more common HDMI. It also features an ethernet port.
But the real innovation here is the wireless connection. HP’s Elite x3 uses Wi-Fi to connect the phone to your computer’s display. It extends its range but also significantly reduces latency to just a smidge. In fact, the only lag you might notice is when the phone itself, slowly loads pages over a wireless connection.
Memory and Speakers: 7/10
The front-facing speakers are one of the best features of this phone which are made by Bang&Olufson. It’s loud and clear and does not perform badly in high volumes. It’s got good highs, mids, and lows. When it comes to memory options, the phone comes with 4GB RAM and 64 Gb ROM. It also has an SD card slot that enables us to expand up to 256 Gb.
Battery: 7/10
This phone comes with a huge battery that gives us a full day battery life. Even if you are a power user, it will be difficult to completely deplete the battery in one day. Powered with a 4150 mAh Li-ion battery, HP Elite X3 does not seem to support fast charging.
Performance: 7.5/10
The Elite x3’s performance lives up to its name. Benchmarked against the Lumia 950 and the Liquid Jade Primo, the Elite x3 proved the most powerful Windows phone on the market today. It’s even consistently faster than the Samsung Galaxy Note 5, an Android phone.
We’ve also broken out the AnTuTu benchmark on the three Windows 10 phones to offer a more direct comparison.
Final Verdict: 7/10
If you are going to buy this phone, you better be the mobile fellow in terms of your work habits. This phone is not for everybody, especially with its huge price tag of about approximately $700 for the phone alone and more than $1000 for the whole package.
