HP Pavilion 15-p114dx / 15-p100dx 15.6″ Budget Laptop with Fast Intel Core i7 CPU

The 15.6-inch HP Pavilion 15-p114dx and 15-p100dx (both models have the same specs) pack a surprisingly serious punch in their unimpressive budget-class chassis. This plastic notebook with a 0.9″ thin casing incorporates the Intel Core i7-4510U dual-core processor, among the fastest CPUs for thin-profile laptops. Above this chip in the hierarchy there are the full-voltage and quad-core CPUs, but they’re usually used in thicker systems, consume much more power, and need noisier cooling fans.

Therefore the i7-4510U is an optimal solution for demanding users who still don’t require ultimate performance and are concerned about power consumption, heat, and noise. The chip is of course good for the daily home, office, and school chores and has enough oomph for more demanding programs like video and photo editors.

The 15-p114dx / 15-p100dx is an above average budget notebook in terms of system memory and hard drive sizes. Instead of 4GB and 500GB it comes with 6GB of RAM and a 750GB hard drive. RAM size is more than sufficient for the vast majority of tasks an average user might throw at a laptop. On the other hand, the HDD is capacious, but quite slow, with a rotating speed of 5,400rpm. Some might want to upgrade the traditional hard disk to multiple times faster solid state drive storage, but unfortunately HP’s 15-p114dx / 15-p100dx doesn’t provide an easy path for component upgrades. Accessing the storage bay and RAM slots requires removing of the top base panel where the keyboard is located, which can be troublesome for many inexperienced users.

On the other hand, the battery is easily removable. We have no info on battery life, but the included 2800 mAh battery unit hasn’t an impressive capacity.

The screen resolution is 1366×768.

As for data input and interaction with software, the Pavilion 15-p114dx / 15-p100dx features a full-size keyboard with chiclet keys and dedicated numeric pad, as well as a trackpad with integrated “mouse” buttons.

Other specs worth mentioning are a DVD burner, stereo speakers, a 720p web camera, Wi-Fi wireless and Ethernet LAN networks support, three USB connectors with two of them at fast 3.0-standard speed, HDMI video output for monitors and TVs, and a multi-in-one memory card reader. Bluetooth is missing.

To conclude, the HP Pavilion 15-p114dx / 15-p100dx is a good and affordable solution for higher-performance computing. However, for a bit more money, you can get a Dell Inspiron 7548 15.6-incher with a Full HD IPS wide viewing angle screen, keyboard backlight, and sleeker aluminum chassis. Before purchasing, don’t forget to take a look at the other similar notebook offers with various prices and features included.

UPDATE: A newer version of the notebook with the latest 5th Gen Intel i7 is available now.