Battery life is astonishingly good. Running a normal workload of writing into a web app, browsing the web, watching some video and listening to music, I ran the battery down by just 16% in three hours. This would equate to over 18 hours of battery life -- enough to accommodate a working day and then some. However, working with the 250 nits screen on its default battery-power setting of about 50% is not great, and I'd normally have it set much higher, resulting in lower battery life. Conclusions

Earlier, we mentioned a fingerprint reader, and it is located beneath the “Right” Arrow key. Also, if you take a look at the base, you can see that the keyboard is flanked by a duo of Bang & Olufsen branded speakers. PCMark 8, meanwhile, has a storage subtest that we use to assess the speed of the system's boot drive. This score is also a proprietary numeric score; again, higher numbers are better. We expect all systems with SSDs to post excellent scores of around 5,000 on this test, and that's certainly the case here. With six processor cores, the EliteBook's Core i7 CPU makes short work of the basic productivity tasks for which the laptop is intended. I never experienced lag or sluggishness while browsing the web and installing apps, in many cases simultaneously. I did frequently hear the cooling fan spool up, however, even while no apps were open. HP says it has redesigned the EliteBook 840's thermal management system to reduce fan noise, but it’s definitely still noticeable.Transferring files won't take long on these EliteBooks thanks to their speedy SSDs. The 840 G7's 512GB NVMe PCIe SSD took 52 seconds to convert a 25GB multimedia file equating to a transfer rate of 574.9 megabytes per second. The smaller model was a tad slower at 433.9 MBps. I maintain that those are good times, but only the 14-inch EliteBook topped the category average (566.4 MBps) and even it lost out to the X1 Carbon (1,044.7 MBps) and Latitude 7410 (574.9 MBps). EliteBook 830 and EliteBook 840 G7 graphics

Other configurations for the EliteBook 840 range from 4GB to 64GB of DDR4 2666 memory and between 128GB and 1TB of solid-state storage. Our tester includes 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD, a sweet spot for most users. All versions use Intel UHD Graphics, which can easily handle web browsing and other common business tasks, but aren't suited to 3D games or multimedia editing workflows. This dynamic duo flexed all over the competition in our synthetic benchmark tests, with the EliteBook 830 scoring a 4,262 and the 840 G7 notching a 4,378. The Latitude 7410, equipped with an Intel Core i7-10610U, proved with its 3,108 result that splurging on the top-tier CPU variant pays off. Equipped with the same Core i7-10610U CPU, the ThinkPad X1 Carbon (3,913) closed the gap a bit but only the EliteBooks topped the category average (4,037). As with some ThinkPad models, the EliteBook 800 series is also available with Ryzen Pro processors instead of Intel chips. Businesses who don't need Intel-specific features and are seeking the best available computing performance may want to seek out the Ryzen Pro-powered EliteBook 845, whose other features are mostly identical to the EliteBook 840. ( See how we test laptops.) Storage, Content Creation, and CPU Tests Pushing the EliteBook 840 G7's engine didn't cause it to overheat; the laptop warmed to only 92 degrees and the keyboard and touchpad stayed at a comfy 86 degrees and 78 degrees, respectively. EliteBook 830 and EliteBook 840 G7 software and warranty We also run a custom Adobe Photoshop image-editing benchmark. Using an early 2018 release of the Creative Cloud version of Photoshop, we apply a series of 10 complex filters and effects to a standard JPEG test image. We time each operation and, at the end, add up the total execution time. As with Handbrake, lower times are better here. The Photoshop test stresses the CPU, storage subsystem, and RAM, and it can also take advantage of most GPUs to speed up the process of applying filters.

A Refined 14-Inch Screen

I won't go into detail on every app HP includes, but it's worth spotlighting a few. For instance, HP Workwell prompts you to exercise at times and gives you insight on your work patterns. I get it HP, this lifestyle ain't healthy. Here, we see another great product from HP. It has a great build quality and premium, lightweight chassis, thanks to the mainly aluminum build. And while its speakers are not the loudest out there, we found them deep, and they have better dynamics than most of the Windows laptops out there. Next is Maxon's CPU-crunching Cinebench R15 test, which is fully threaded to make use of all available processor cores and threads. Cinebench stresses the CPU rather than the GPU to render a complex image. The result is a proprietary score indicating a PC's suitability for processor-intensive workloads. It shows the EliteBook 840's small advantage over the Latitude and X1 Carbon systems, while the X13 is clearly in a different league. The EliteBook 840 didn't overexert itself in our heat test but the EliteBook 830 had some trouble keeping its cool. Before I joined the tech-journalism ranks, I wrote on topics as diverse as Borneo's rain forests, Middle Eastern airlines, and Big Data's role in presidential elections. A graduate of Middlebury College, I also have a master's degree in journalism and French Studies from New York University.

Intel Core i7-10510U, Windows 10 Pro, 14.0-inch 1,920 x 1,080 anti-glare 400 nits non-touch screen, Intel UHD Graphics 620, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD These results closely match those of our Handbrake video-editing trial, another tough, threaded workout that's highly CPU-dependent and scales well with cores and threads. In it, we put a stopwatch on test systems as they transcode a standard 12-minute clip of 4K video to a 1080p MP4 file. It's a timed test, and lower results are better. You won't have problems using the EliteBook 830 G7 and 840 G7 outside, even on bright days. The 13-inch display reached 374 nits of maximum brightness, just short of the peak brightness on the 14-inch model (378 nits). Again, the Latitude 7410 (402 nits) edges out the competition while the ThinkPad X1 Carbon (364 nits) was a bit dimmer than the rest and the 382-nit category average. EliteBook 830 and EliteBook 840 G7 keyboard and touchpad With so much power to work with, it's no wonder the EliteBook 830 and 840 G7 had no problems converting a 4K video to 1080p using the Handbrake app. It took the 13-inch model 17 minutes and 12 seconds and the 14-inch version 15 minutes and 29 seconds. Rival laptops in the Latitude 7410 (22:34) and X1 Carbon (19:51) needed several additional minutes to complete the same task. According to our colorimeter, the EliteBook 830 G7's panel covers 79% of the DCI-P3 color gamut whereas the EliteBook 840 G7's screen captures 78%. The Latitude 7410 has a more vivid display, at 83%, while the ThinkPad X1 Carbon's 1080p panel is duller (78%). The premium laptop average is 83%.

There's a lot for IT departments and business execs alike to admire about the latest EliteBook 840. Excellent battery life, a stylish, compact exterior and a powerful Core i7 are among its many strengths. There are plenty of wireless and physical connection options, too, and the comfortable keyboard and touchpad should help you get through a long day at the office or working from home. Rarely do I review a laptop with as few shortcomings as the EliteBook 830 G7 and EliteBook 840 G7, and yet, I'm not entirely sold. Yes, these systems nail the basics, but they fail to stand out in any way. While they offer a sleek design, a good 1080p display, fast performance and decent battery life, the EliteBook 830 and 840 G7 don't do anything to separate themselves from the competition. The bottom panel on the 13-inch model reached 99 degrees Fahrenheit after we played a 15-minute, 1080p video. Fortunately, the center of the keyboard (90 degrees) and the touchpad (79 degrees) stayed below our 95-degree comfort threshold. HP EliteBook 840 G7’s IPS panel has a Full HD resolution, comfortable viewing angles, high maximum brightness (457 nits), and a very good contrast ratio. Also, it doesn’t use PWM for brightness adjustment and covers 97% of the sRGB color gamut. Moreover, our Gaming and Web design profile, improves the color accuracy, in compliance with the sRGB standard. This means all of the professionals, whose work is dependant on color accuracy will be satisfied.

I typed at 115 words per minute with a 94% accuracy on the 10fastfingers.com typing test, results that are just short of my usual 119-wpm, 95% accuracy averages. In this test we use 100% on the CPU cores, monitoring their frequencies and chip temperature. The first column shows a computer’s reaction to a short load (2-10 seconds), the second column simulates a serious task (between 15 and 30 seconds), and the third column is a good indicator of how good the laptop is for long loads such as video rendering.Our “Design and Gaming” profile delivers optimal color temperature (6500K) at 140 cd/m2 luminance and sRGB gamma mode. The maximum measured brightness is 457 nits (cd/m2) in the middle of the screen and 431 nits (cd/m2) average across the surface with a maximum deviation of 9%. The Correlated Color Temperature on a white screen and at maximum brightness is 6400K (average) – slightly warmer than the 6500K optimum for sRGB.