HP ProBook 13.2" 630 G8, Core i5-1145G7, 16GB, 512GB SSD, Black

A port-packed business laptop that's cheap and capable for office work, but don't expect it to do anything fun. It's the sensible sedan of laptops, reliable enough for the commute, boring as hell on the highway.

The Intel Core i5-1145G7 with 16GB of RAM handles office multitasking without much drama. What surprised us is the port selection, it lands in the 93rd percentile for connectivity, which is rare on a 13.2-inch laptop. You get Thunderbolt, three USB-A ports, HDMI, and Ethernet. That's more than some 15-inch machines we've tested. The 512GB NVMe SSD is about average, and the CPU sits in the lower third, so don't expect to render video or compile massive codebases quickly.

Stacked against the Lenovo Slim 7 or the Apple MacBook Air M2, the ProBook 630 G8 gets smoked on performance, screen quality, and battery life. The MacBook Air M2 is in a completely different league for CPU and GPU work. The ASUS Zenbook UX3402VA and Samsung Galaxy Book6 Pro both offer better displays and newer processors. But none of those are $369 USD. The ProBook's real competition is the Dell Latitude XPS 13, and even that has a better reliability track record. If you need a cheap, portable machine with legacy ports, the ProBook holds its own. If you want speed or battery life, look elsewhere.

At $369 USD, this is a solid deal for a refurbished business laptop with 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD. But the affordability percentile being at zero tells you the market is flooded with cheaper options that do less. If you need the ports and the touchscreen, it's worth it. If you just need a basic laptop, you can find something cheaper.

The HP ProBook 630 G8 is a compact business laptop that knows exactly what it is, and what it isn't. It's a refurbished workhorse with a touchscreen, backlit keyboard, and enough ports to make a docking station blush. The one thing to know? This is a $369 USD machine built for spreadsheets and email, not for anything that'll make the integrated Radeon Graphics break a sweat.

If you're looking for a laptop that can edit video, play games, or last all day on battery, this isn't it. Go get a MacBook Air M2 or a Lenovo Slim 7 instead. The ProBook 630 G8 is for people who need ports and a keyboard, not performance.

Buy the HP ProBook 630 G8 if you need a compact business laptop with a touchscreen, backlit keyboard, and every port you'll ever need, and you're okay with refurbished. It's not fast, it's not pretty, and the battery life is a mystery, but it gets the job done for office work. For $369 USD, it's a reasonable tool, not a toy.