HP Announces ENVY 14 Spectre Ultrabook
by Kristian Vättö on January 11, 2012 11:15 AM ESTTo keep the flow of CES coverage steady, HP has announced ENVY 14 Spectre Ultrabook. The use of glass makes Spectre special: The lid, display, palmrest and trackpad are all covered with scratch-resistant glass. HP claims that the glass makes the laptop more durable, although the actual chassis seems to be aluminum too. HP didn't reveal the full specifications but Engagdet listed the specs of the entry, $1399, model:
| HP ENVY 14 Spectre Specifications | |
| Screen | 14.0" LED backlit |
| Resolution | 1600x900 |
| Processor | Core i5-2467M (2/4, 1.6GHz/2.3GHz, 3MB) |
| Graphics | Intel HD 3000 (350MHz/1150MHz) |
| Memory | 4GB DDR3 (Up to 8GB) |
| Storage | 128GB mSATA SSD (Up to 256GB) |
| Ports | 1x USB 3.0, 1x USB 2.0, Mini DisplayPort, HDMI, Gigabit Ethernet, audio in/out |
| Battery | Up to 9 hours |
| Software | Full versions of Adobe Photoshop Elements and Premiere Elements, 2 years of Norton Internet Security 2012 |
| Dimensions (WxDxH) | 12.88" x 8.7" x 0.79" |
| Weight | 3.79lb |
| Price | $1399 |
| Availability | February 8th (US) - March (others) |
Spectre has a 14" screen but HP claims the chassis size to be more common in 13.3" laptops, which matches up if you compare it to e.g. 13" MacBook Pro (12.78" x 8.94" x 0.95"). The use of a bigger screen allows HP to use a higher resolution panel, as 1600x900 is more commonly found in 14" and 15" laptops (although there are 13.3" laptops like Sony Vaio SA and ASUS Zenbook with 1600x900). The stock configuration comes with Core i5-2467M but HP offers configurations with Core i7 ULVs as well (HP didn't list any SKUs, though).
At 3.79lb, Spectre is definitely heavier than most Ultrabooks we have seen. If you're wondering how is this still an Ultrabook, Intel requires +14" laptops to be thinner than 21mm, which translates to 0.83" - there is no weight limit. For sub-14" laptops, the height limit is 18mm (0.71"). $1399 also makes Spectre fairly expensive, or premium as HP says. The bundled software is worth over $200, but it's always a risky move to include shareware software as the end-user may not use it at all but still pays for it.
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Taft12 - Wednesday, January 11, 2012 - link
"If you're wondering how is this still an Ultrabook, Intel requires +14" laptops to be thinner than 21mm, which translates to 0.83" - there is no weight limit. For sub-14" laptops, the height limit is 18mm (0.71")."Ugh, and here I thought it was difficult to tell the difference between a netbook and a "subcompact laptop".
It's all moot since Ultrabooks are a market failure before they've even been released. I hope this costs Intel and any OEM that buys into the Ultrabook scam a fortune.
solipsism - Wednesday, January 11, 2012 - link
Netbooks came into being because of Atom CPUs even though that isn't a static definition. I think Intel has very specific requirements for their Ultrabooks, including the CPU.name99 - Wednesday, January 11, 2012 - link
Uhhh --- what are you so worked up about?(a) People buy computers based on a gestalt of price, appearance, performance, etc. Intel tried to nudge its vendors towards some higher priced, better looking, reasonably performing designs rather than the (netbook: cheap, too small to be useful, horrible performance) and (laptop: cheap, huge, OK performance) models they were shipping.
The issue is not the legalities of exactly what the Intel specs are and what the penalties are if they're missed; it is that Intel achieved its goal. This time last year there were very few reasonable MBA competitors, now there are a lot.
(b) You claim the market for Ultrabooks is a failure. Based on what? The MBA market is certainly anything BUT a failure; and most of these competitors came out so recently that we have no idea how they're selling. Many of the first round of MBA competitors have been underwhelming (somewhat like the 1st gen MBA itself), but not all of them. I think an honest person would admit they have NO IDEA how this will play out --- both for the category as a whole, and for which vendors in the category.
You seem to suffer from the sort of extreme narcissism that is all too common on technical blogs: "This device is not right for me, therefore it is a curse upon the world, anyone who buys it is an idiot who should be shunned, and it will fail horribly".
Grow up.
JNo - Wednesday, January 11, 2012 - link
Hear hear.Furthermore Taft12 you miss the point that Intel has track record in this game - it's very arguable that they greatly accelerated the uptake of wireless capable laptops with the centrino brand and specification.
Yes, I too see it all as a cynical marketing ploy but if it helps bring upon a standard that I would find use of, then I'm not totally against it either. I personally think it likely that the ultrabook category will become a success. Which is good because their imminent abundance might actually make it possible for me to afford one one day :)
Wolfpup - Wednesday, January 11, 2012 - link
Seems like a great Macbook Air competitor I'd totally recommend for someone who wants Windows and actually WANTS an Air...but just like the Air, I can't help but go "umm...I can get way better hardware for the same price or less".solipsism - Wednesday, January 11, 2012 - link
If they want a MBA and want Windows then the MBA is the way to go.ananduser - Wednesday, January 11, 2012 - link
Why not this one ? The 13" MBA goes as high as 1600$, the entry level Spectre is 1400$ and comes standard with an IPS based Radiance display that is better in every way.If you want Windows you have a brilliant lower end choice in Folio or Dell's recently unveiled ultrabook or for premium the Spectre or the recently revamped Series9 from Sammy that even goes to 15"(a first for an ultrabook).
Oh and the bootcamp drivers for Windows are legacy IDE which severely impact the system's IOPS.
The fact is that you're a pretty staunch Apple supported and thus cannot see further than your preferences or personal experience.
moltentofu - Wednesday, January 11, 2012 - link
"If they want a MBA and want Windows" pretty much covers it, I think, ananduser. Passionate defence though - also the newly unveiled version of the Series9 looks amazing.Also, you're being super aggressive. What exactly is your use case where legacy IDE is the critical performance bottleneck in a 13in laptop that comes standard with an under-sized 5400 rpm hard drive?
Anecdote: I bootcamp Win XP on my 13 in MBP, and weirdly I'll grant you, I actually got better performance for my battery time on my last flight with XP than OS X. OS X ate through 25% of my batter in about 30 minutes, and after I switched to XP I was fine for the rest of the 5 hour flight (same typing, light browsing the whole time).
Now if only they'd release drivers to support advanced multi-touch in XP...
ananduser - Wednesday, January 11, 2012 - link
*I* am passionate ? I am all for common sense, the mac fanbase is the one over the top. My pseudo-issue is this; how can you say that the MBA is the only ultrabook choice for windows when you have brilliant options both premium and value thoroughly reviewed on all tech blogs.I am not aggressive mind you, I speak the truth. Bootcamp drivers are there to help you run Windows for the odd Win app, and not to provide the optimal experience. I would imagine that the IOPS hit is more observable on synthetic benchmarks.
I am happy for your MBP and I hope it lasts you forever. Thinking about OSXLion vs XP I would say that Lion has relatively higher hardware requirements than a soon 11 year old OS like XP. Which is why it must've burned your battery more slowly than Lion. Kudos to Apple anyway for being open and allowing users the choice of Windows.
solipsism - Wednesday, January 11, 2012 - link
You missed how the OP stated in his scenario that they want a MBA but want it to run Windows... something that already exists.If you want a Spectre and want it to run Windows... then you get a Spectre. It's that simple.
That's common sense!
PS: No where in this blog did Kristian Vättö state it was an IPS display. If you have other info to back up that claim it would be kind of you to post it.
PPS: IPS on a notebook under $1500 as standard indicates a shift toward IPS on mid-range notebooks as standard, finally.