HP might have the fastest AI laptop to date — and I tried it

HP is in the process of redoing its product lines, with the OmniBook lineup taking over all of its consumer machines including budget, midrange, premium, and gaming laptops. The EliteBook remains as its business laptop line, and the new EliteBook X G1a is the latest machine that leverages AMD’s Ryzen AI series of chipsets in the “Next Gen AI PC” initiative.

The EliteBook X G1a introduces several new features aimed at those tasks that businesspeople want the most, and I received a preproduction unit to take a look at. I can’t provide benchmarks or test some of the more advanced features that aren’t available yet. But the EliteBook X G1a is a tantalizing vision.

Design

HP makes some good-looking and high-quality laptops. The EliteBook X G1a is a prime example. It’s solid as a rock all around, with no bending, flexing, or twisting in the lid, keyboard deck, or chassis. And it all seems crafted from chunks of aluminum in a way that’s reminiscent of of Apple’s MacBooks. The silver color scheme is elegant and refined, with a chrome HP logo that stands out without being mere bling.

The hinge is smooth when opening the lid with one hand, and it stays firmly in place. It might be a pre-production unit, but it doesn’t need much adjusting. I like the look and feel quite a bit, and I’m sure HP’s business market will agree.

I don’t have full specs for the laptop. But, it’s not the thinnest or lightest 14-inch laptop. In fact, it’s a little chunky compared to something like the incredibly thin MacBook Air M3 that’s closer to a 14-inch than a 13-inch laptop. I don’t mind it, but it’s not going to lead its class. The display bezels are small enough to keep its width and depth in check, but the Dell XPS 14 remains the best in that department.

I also liked the slightly rounded edges on the palm rest. That made it comfortable for longer typing sessions, like writing up this first look. Overall, I found the same kind of fastidious design that I’ve always perceived in Apple products.

Keyboard and touchpad

HP also makes good keyboards. Its Spectre keyboards have always been among my favorites on Windows laptops, coming very close to my overall favorite, Apple’s Magic Keyboard. And they put a great keyboard in the EliteBook X G1a.

First, the keycap size and key spacing is perfect, and HP put high-contrast lettering that stands out against the dark gray keys. That makes the lettering easier to see even without the backlighting turned on, and it’s an accessibility feature for those with poor vision. Then, the switches are deep enough at 1.5mm, and they’re precise and snappy. They’re also consistent across the entire keyboard, including the space bar that can be too loose on some keyboards.

The touchpad is mechanical, which is a bit of a disappointment. Haptic touchpads are becoming more common on premium laptops, and HP has a great one on the Spectre x360 14. I wish it were available here. The touchpad is plenty large and its buttons have quiet, confident clicks. So it’s a good mechanical touchpad.

The display is touch-enabled, which I like. Overall, input options are excellent even if I wish the touchpad were a haptic version.

Connectivity and webcam

The EliteBook X G1a has plenty of connectivity, with a couple of Thunderbolt 4 ports, USB-C and USB-A, and an HDMI port. Again, I don’t know all the specs, including wireless connectivity, but I have no doubt it’s up-to-date and that cellular connectivity will be an option. Note that the inclusion of Thunderbolt 4 is a little surprising given the AMD chipset. That’s usually not a thing.

The webcam is a 5MP version, but it’s not just a high-res webcam. It includes on-chip AI processing that enables enhanced user presence detection that, for example, blurs the screen automatically when two people are in view. There’s also the usual AI-enhanced functionality we expect with Microsoft’s various Copilot+ features, and Poly Camera Pro that further enhances video quality and performance using the neural processing unit (NPU).

Performance

HP uses a custom version of AMD’s Ryzen AI 9, specifically the R9-12c PRO that’s based on the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 PRO. It enables the kind of security and manageability that enterprises demand, along with the sheer power of the Ryzen AI 9 chipset. I don’t have details on the chipset and I can’t publish any benchmarks.

The custom aspect is that the HP-specific chipset has faster on-device AI thanks to an NPU that runs at up to 55 tera operations per second (TOPS). That’s faster than any other chipset available today, and that means faster AI processing with the efficiency of the NPU compared to using the GPU.

There’s also custom RAM that runs at up to 8,000 MT/s, faster than you’ll see from other AMD chipsets. That, too, helps speed up AI processing. And HP will be introducing its AI Companion software that will enable a variety of AI features above and beyond what Copilot+ provides. AI Companion includes Analyze that lets you dig into files, along with other features that have yet to be fully explained. All of the features will run on-device, though, keeping things theoretically safer and more private and using the NPU to maintain efficiency.

HP also updated its SmartSense feature to use AI to better manage performance and fan speed. Now, there are just two options available — SmartSense and Best Performance — meaning that users won’t need to spend as much time managing the EliteBook X G1a’s performance, heat, and noise. We’ll have to wait until we can run benchmarks to determine how effective the new software is in managing things.

Finally, as a member of HP’s business lineup, the EliteBook X G1a has Wolf Security for enhanced security and privacy.

Battery life

The battery here is reasonably hefty at 74.5 watt-hours. That should be plenty to power the laptop for a reasonably long time regardless of the display choice. But, once again, it’s not something I can test and report on.

AMD’s Ryzen AI 9 chipset hasn’t been as efficient as some others, though, such as Intel’s Lunar Lake that we saw in the Asus Zenbook S 14.

Display and audio

There will be two display options with the EliteBook X G1a. There’s a 14.0-inch WUXGA (1920 x 1200) IPS panel and a 2.8K (2880 x 1800) OLED touch display. The latter runs at up to 120Hz, and it’s the one on my pre-production unit.

I can’t test the display, but it seems to offer the same bright, dynamic colors and inky blacks that I expect out of a typical OLED display. The IPS panel will offer better battery life but much worse image quality.

Audio is provided by a four-speaker setup — two downward-firing and two upward-firing. Dual microphones use AI Noise Reduction to improve quality.

An intriguing laptop for business users

At this point, the most I can say about the EliteBook X G1a is that it’s an incredibly intriguing laptop with a host of features and functionality that could make for an elite (no pun intended) laptop for business users. It’s drop-dead gorgeous and solidly built, even for a pre-production machine. And it promises great performance and AI integration.

Of course, the devil will be in the details, including pricing, and those will have to wait until it’s formally introduced. In the meantime, businesses should be looking into the EliteBook X G1a for its 2025 procurements.