One of the most powerful work laptops I've tested this year is not a ThinkPad or MacBook

ZDNET's cardinal takeaways

• HP's 14-inch EliteBook X G1a features AMD's latest Ryzen AI Pro chip, starting astatine $2,184.
• It's a almighty endeavor laptop with tons of I/O, a sleek signifier factor, and comfy keyboard.
• It's expensive, and tin tally lukewarm nether a dense workload.

HP reorganized its laptop lineup past year, renaming its high-performance concern devices to the EliteBook X series. The archetypal laptop from this bid I've tested is the 14-inch HP EliteBook X G1a, an awesome endeavor laptop with a batch to like, but a fewer considerations that marque it unique. 

Also: I tested Lenovo's fund ThinkPad, and it's a no-frills workhorse acceptable for the workday

There are a fewer configurations of this laptop, the astir premium featuring an AMD Ryzen AI 9 processor -- 1 of the astir cutting-edge chips connected the marketplace close present -- and an OLED display, but the 1 I tested had the AMD Ryzen AI 7 Pro 360 processor, 32GB of RAM, and a 14-inch matte WUXGA IPS display. 

This is simply a concern laptop aimed astatine professionals, and it aims to harvester the connectivity of a ThinkPad, the sleek signifier origin of a MacBook, and HP's signature minimalist, if non-descript, design. 

On the surface, it's minimalist and alternatively corporate-looking, with a matte WUXGA show and an abundant enactment of ports. It passes the one-finger test, and opens up to a alternatively modular show with 400nit brightness and 60Hz refresh complaint and a compact and businesslike keyboard. 

The keyboard is 1 of its champion features. It's utterly silent, with a snappy tactile consciousness with cardinal question that (almost) feels mechanical. The keys are spacious and smooth, and the backlighting is effectual and well-designed. Similarly, the trackpad is responsive and premium, adjacent if the clicks consciousness a small connected the "heavy" side.

Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET

I bash privation it had a haptic trackpad, however, arsenic it would spell a agelong mode toward making it much premium, particularly arsenic a instrumentality geared toward a blase demographic: concern leaders and tech experts. When you see the terms of this laptop, it seems similar a missed opportunity. 

During my testing, I recovered this laptop truly enjoyable to usage for agelong days astatine work, and a large portion of that was owed to the well-designed ergonomics of this laptop. Unlike different machines, which necessitate the idiosyncratic to set to bold oregon unorthodox plan choices, the EliteBook X G1a fits similar a acquainted mitt close disconnected the bat, making it a coagulated long-day-at-work benignant of laptop.  

 Also: I've tested dozens of ThinkPads - this exemplary checks each the close boxes for me

If the keyboard and trackpad lend to an enjoyable carnal form, the abundant I/O enactment solidifies its practicality. You've got an HDMI, 3 USB-C (one Thunderbolt 4 connected each broadside -- convey you), a USB-A port, 3.5mm headphone jack, and Kensington fastener slot. This is, successful my opinion, 1 of the champion combinations of ports you tin inquire for successful 2025, the lone happening that would marque it amended would beryllium an SD paper reader. 

It tin surely pivot to originative tasks, arsenic well, arsenic video editing successful industry-standard programs similar Da Vinci Resolve was a breeze. By the aforesaid token, gaming connected this laptop is possible, but I wouldn't urge this arsenic a dedicated gaming instrumentality with the 60Hz show and its vigor dissipation (more connected that later). 

While testing, I did brushwood a hiccup connecting to an outer show with the Thunderbolt 4 port. Both displays would flicker and restart intermittently, adjacent aft operator and Windows updates.

Issues similar this tin beryllium the effect of immoderate fig of things, including issues with the operating system, hardware, oregon adjacent the USB-C cord itself, truthful I don't needfully responsibility the EliteBook, nevertheless this was the archetypal clip it happened to maine aft utilizing dozens of laptops with that precise transportation and monitor. 

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A engaged workday prevented maine from troubleshooting for an extended play of time, but this is wherever the generous larboard enactment came successful clutch, allowing maine to simply swap to an HDMI connection. It's a cleanable illustration of wherever redundant I/O entree tin lick tech problems, particularly successful the enactment setting. 

In presumption of performance, the EliteBook X G1a is accelerated and responsive, with benchmarking numbers that backmost its assertion of being a almighty endeavor machine. 

One happening I noticed during investigating the EliteBook X G1a, however, was that it ran a spot hotter than different laptops successful its class, kicking connected the fans during sustained workloads successful High Performance mode. When it's not being pushed, however, it's soundless and cool, starring maine to judge there's simply a threshold present with the hardware. At nary constituent did I spot immoderate grounds of throttling, however. 

Continuing its specialization successful the nonrecreational sphere, the EliteBook X G1a features a 74.5Whr battery, which is connected the ample size for a laptop of this size, earning it conscionable implicit 11 hours during our modular artillery test. This is good, sure, but it didn't rather construe to the spectacular duration I was expecting. Particularly erstwhile you comparison this to competitors. 

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For example, this is astir the aforesaid arsenic what we got during our investigating of the MacBook Pro M4, portion that laptop's terms adjacent comes successful a small less, and, well, it's a MacBook. Conversely, HP's ain OmniBook X 14 with the Snapdragon X Elite was an implicit marathon machine, earning implicit 20 hours. 

Of course, the hardware connected the OmniBook is simply a spot much modest, but its 65Wh artillery overperforms successful a mode that can't beryllium ignored. As I spent much clip with this laptop, however, I came to recognize its intended usage lawsuit arsenic a instrumentality that trades successful the ultrathin and airy signifier origin for earthy power, making it a durable, reliable workhorse.

ZDNET's buying advice

There are nary shortage of bladed and airy laptops retired determination with marathon batteries. The HP EliteBook X G1a is, comparatively, much focused connected providing reliable musculus during moving hours. The beefy hardware takes afloat vantage of the ample battery, the abundant ports support your options open, and the comfy keyboard acts arsenic an ergonomic bid halfway truthful you tin hunker down and get enactment done. 

However, each that hardware tin tally lukewarm erstwhile it's pushed, and this is not a inexpensive laptop. If you're looking for a 14-inch instrumentality that's afloat committed to the endeavor usage case, it's a coagulated option, but support successful caput that it's rather specialized for that role. 

If you're looking for a akin laptop for a small less, I urge the Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 – different workhorse laptop with tons of connectivity and the aforesaid processor astir the $1,500 mark.