| Specs at a glance: HP Spectre Foldable 17-cs0097nr |
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|---|---|---|---|
| Screen | 17-inch 1920×2560 OLED touchscreen | ||
| OS | Windows 11 Home | ||
| CPU | Intel Core i7-1250U | ||
| RAM | 16GB LPDDR5-5200 | ||
| Storage | 1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD | ||
| Networking | Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3 | ||
| Ports | 2x Thunderbolt 4 | ||
| Size (folded) | 10.91×7.53×0.84 inches | ||
| Weight (with keyboard) | 3.58 lbs | ||
| Battery | 94.3 Wh | ||
| Warranty | 1 year | ||
| Price (MSRP) | $5,000 | ||
| Other | HP Rechargeable MPP2.0 Tilt Pen, Bluetooth keyboard, and HP Envy USB-C Hub included | ||
Although foldable smartphones have been available for five years, the devices are still trying to justify themselves. And after using a foldable-screen laptop as my primary PC for about four weeks, I'm not sure they're ready for prime time.
I'm leaving my time with HP's first foldable laptop with a sense of anticipation for the future of laptops, which I think would benefit from a resurgence of creative ideas that cater to the unique ways people use their computers. But I seriously question if the benefits of having a 17-inch screen in a 12-inch laptop body are worth the trade-offs inherent in today's foldable PCs.
Early participants in the foldable laptop world have an opportunity to define the space, while consumers can decide if this is something they even want. HP's foldable is the most beefed-up option ever, and weeks of use have shown me a lot about what I want and don't want to see when the dust settles.
HP Spectre Fold
Ultimately, the question I'm facing regarding foldable laptops is, "Why this instead of a clamshell or 2-in-1 laptop?"
Pricing pitfalls
Like it or not, laptop makers are trying to build a market for PCs with foldable OLED screens. Asus released its first foldable PC in 2022. Lenovo's second foldable PC is available for purchase, LG announced a foldable laptop for South Korea, and now we have the HP Spectre Foldable 17. Windows 11, with Snap Layouts that work intuitively with unique and multi-screen setups, helps make these products feasible.
As of this writing (and upon first release), HP's foldable costs an eye-watering $5,000. Foldable PCs are young and flashy enough to automatically command a higher price tag than similarly specced laptops in traditional form factors, but $5,000 isn't even normal for a foldable laptop. Asus' Zenbook 17 Fold OLED debuted at $3,500, and Lenovo's 16-inch ThinkPad X1 Fold debuted at $2,500.
HP would certainly love it if some C-suite executives and well-endowed technology enthusiasts snagged up the Spectre Fold, but the device feels like it is less interested in pushing units and more about proving what a foldable PC can be.
This article will take a deeper look at what HP has done successfully with its landmark foldable, where it missed the mark, and how the Spectre Fold might impact the future of foldable laptops.
A 17-inch laptop in a 12-inch body
For people relying on their laptop as a primary computing device or for multitasking, a bigger screen fitted into a smaller space can be attractive. But finding a comfortably portable 17-inch laptop is challenging, especially since many laptops in this size class feature a discrete GPU. Foldable laptops promise new opportunities for laptop users dreaming of ultimate portability that doesn't sacrifice screen space.
Foldable screens make the 17-inch form factor more portable than ever. The Spectre Fold is 10.91×7.53×0.84 inches folded and 3.58 lbs with its detachable keyboard (2.99 lbs without the keyboard). HP's 17-inch Envy laptop (with integrated graphics) is 15.68×10.20×0.77 inches and 5.49 lbs. LG's Gram 17 clamshell (also with integrated graphics) is 14.91×10.19×0.74 inches and 2.9 lbs. Foldability means you can have something that's about as easy to carry around as a Dell XPS 13—which happens to be wider (11.63 inches) and deeper (7.86 inches), with a similar weight (2.59 lbs) to HP's laptop—but with up to 26.9 percent more screen real estate.
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