HP’s new Spectre 13 is world’s thinnest touchscreen laptop with vanishing bezels

HP has revealed a pair of refreshed laptops – the Spectre 13 notebook and Spectre x360 13 convertible – which benefit from powerful new components, a sleeker and more angular design (including ultra-thin bezels), and some nifty and thoughtful touches.

Let’s start with the second-gen Spectre 13, which steps things up with Intel’s latest 8th-gen processors (Core i5 or i7), complemented by up to 16GB system RAM and up to a 1TB PCIe SSD. You also get integrated graphics courtesy of Intel UHD Graphics 620.

The notebook has a 13.3-inch Gorilla Glass touchscreen with vanishingly small ‘micro-edge’ bezels and a Full HD resolution (with an option on a 4K screen). HP is further claiming that this is the world’s thinnest touchscreen-equipped laptop at 10.4mm – so it’s not just the bezels that are sleek, but the entire chassis.

The claimed battery life of the notebook is up to 11.5 hours (of video playback), and HP has also introduced fast-charge technology that can juice up the battery from empty to 50% in just 30 minutes.

The Spectre 13 benefits from a full-size edge-to-edge backlit keyboard, with a pair of Bang & Olufsen speakers placed above it to deliver what HP promises is crisp sound.

Connectivity includes a pair of Thunderbolt 3 ports, a USB Type-C 3.1 Gen 1 connector, and a headphone/mic combo jack.

Private convertible

Moving on to the Spectre x360 13 convertible (pictured above and below), like the aforementioned Spectre 13, this also boasts a choice of Intel’s 8th-gen Core i5 or i7 CPUs, backed with up to 16GB of RAM and up to a 1TB PCIe SSD. It has a 360-degree hinge allowing for use in four different modes (laptop, tablet, stand, tent).

You get a 13.3-inch IPS touchscreen with the same super-thin bezels as the Spectre 13, and again that can be up to a 4K resolution display.

HP claims that the Spectre x360 offers the best battery life out there when it comes to quad-core 2-in-1s, lasting for up to 16.5 hours (depending on the exact configuration you go for, and as ever, your mileage will likely vary when it comes to battery longevity).

This machine also benefits from HP’s fast charge technology allowing for the notebook to go from empty to a 90% charge in 90 minutes.

There are some nifty security features here, including a fingerprint reader, infrared camera for facial recognition, and the option for a built-in privacy screen (with the Full HD model, not the 4K display).

The latter is invoked at the touch of a button, and darkens the screen for those viewing from the side at an angle, meaning that nosy-parkers sat next to you won’t be able to make out what you’re typing in that private email (or that’s the theory, anyway).

Both of these refreshed HP notebooks hit the shelves on October 29, with the HP Spectre starting at $1,300 (around £980, AU$1,650), and the Spectre x360 13 weighing in at $1,150 (around £870, AU$1,460) for the most basic configuration.