HP Pavilion 17-f114dx 17.3 inch Notebook Review

HP Pavilion 17-f114dx 17.3 inch Notebook Review

17.3" HP Pavilion 17-f114dx
via Amazon



HP Pavilion 17-f114dx is a desktop replacement type 17.3 inch laptop with a Haswell Intel i7 processor and good specs and features and that runs wonderfully at day to day and more demanding tasks. It is a great performer even without a Solid State Drive installed, thanks to the fast but energy efficient CPU (with a passmark score of 3989 as of 14 January and Thermal Design Power of 15) and good amount of memory. It is not an advanced gaming or multimedia editing machine but great for pretty much everything else classified as general use- suitable for home, school or business use.

HP Pavilion 17-f114dx has the 4th generation dual core Intel i7-4510U (4MB cache) processor with 2.0GHz base speed up to 3.1GHz with turbo (energy efficient by staying at lower speeds at not so demanding tasks and extra power when you need it) and hyper threading for two cores to handle 4 threads hence better utilising the processor, 6GB DDR3L SDRAM to run several apps and browsers simultaneously and that can be upgraded up to 16GB max (this is not easily done by the user, not without voiding the warranty- a little tedious but the 6GB would be enough for most people), 750GB Serial ATA hard drive at 5400rpm rotating speed as spacious storage space at regular speed (fast enough read and write times) and 64-bit Windows 8.1 operating system.

17.3 inch WLED-backlit HD+ display with 1600 x 900 pixel resolution with BrightView technology offers crisp images with adequate clarity and vivid colours- you do need at least HD+ for this size of screen anyway and could be better with Full HD with IPS panel but that would add to the cost of the machine and HD+ with TN panel serves the purpose just fine as you’re not buying an expensive computer with the highest technical specs. Graphics performance is provided by the Intel HD 4400 that uses up to 1792MB total memory and is sufficient for general multimedia purposes and some gaming. It provides up to 30% better performance than the standard Intel HD 4000, less than HD 4600 and is comparable to the discrete Radeon HD 7550M- you can play games like Sims 4 without any problems and those more demanding titles you can at lower settings and resolutions. You have a front facing HP TrueVision HD webcam with built-in dual array digital microphone for comfy live chats with family and friends. Sound is decent with the Beats Audio and stereo speakers- not amazing like an iMac or other expensive machines but perfectly fine.

HP Pavilion 17-f114dx 17.3 inch Notebook Review
Stylish natural silver HP 17-f114dx with HP textured linear finish and an ash silver keyboard dock weighs 6.2 pounds with measurements of 11 x 16.50 x 1.10 inches- is slim and lightweight enough for a 17.3 inch machine but not particularly compact so when you’re buying a laptop of this size, you want the larger screen and not so much the portability and this one is also not very portable if you’re on the go a lot but can be moved around easily in the house. You have the ash silver island style full-size keyboard with a 10-key numpad for easy data entry and a one piece responsive imagepad that supports multiple gestures. There is a Multiformat DVD±RW/CD-RW to help you create custom DVDs and CDs, 802.11b/g/n wireless for on-the-go connection, 10/100Base-T Ethernet LAN with RJ-45 connectivity for quick and stable wired internet, Digital SD media card reader, 2 x USB 3.0 ports, 1 x USB 2.0 port, an HDMI port to link to your HDTV via a single HDMI cable for sound and video and a Headphone-out/microphone-in combo jack. The 4-cell 41WHr 2.8Ah lithium-ion battery will give you up to 4-5 hours on a single charge depending on use.

Conclusion: HP Pavilion 17-f114dx is a great machine for how much it costs: Intel i7 processor, 6GB RAM, 750GB HDD, Intel HD 4400, Optical Drive, 2 x USB 3.0 ports, HDMI port, modern and stylish looks, numeric keypad and more.. Small cons would be: The difficulty of upgrading the system (about 20 screws holding it together) although it supports 10GB more memory for serious multitasking and ability to replace HDD with SSD for overall snappier performance (but it is a great computer with many positive reviews from happy customers and no need for upgrade for smooth operation of daily tasks and more) and Bluetooth is not enabled by default but all you need is a low cost USB dongle and to connect it to one of the 3 USB ports provided. You’ll get the CyberLink Suite (PhotoDirector, PowerDirector, PowerDVD and more) and 1 month trial version of Microsoft Office 365. It is an Energy Star certified unit partly because it has an ultra low voltage i7 processor with a TDP of 15 watts and meets the power efficiency guidelines by EPA and US Energy Department. Going through the technical specs and features as well as the real life performance reviews by many customers, this is one good 17 inch laptop that is quite hard to beat at the price level.

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