HP EliteBook 14" 840 G5 2018, Core i7-8650U, 16GB, 512GB SSD, Silver

The HP EliteBook 840 G5 is a refurbished 14-inch business laptop with 16GB RAM, a 512GB SSD, and a touchscreen. It's light at 1.31kg and runs Windows 11 Pro, but the 8th gen Core i7 and integrated graphics are showing their age. Gaming is basically a no-go with an 11.5/100 score. At CAD 661 to CAD 820 in Canada, it's a decent budget pick for students and light productivity, but not for heavy work.

The Core i7-8650U is a 4-core, 8-thread chip from 2017, and it sits at the 24th percentile for CPU performance in our database. That's not a typo. It's behind most modern laptops, but for everyday tasks like email, Office apps, and light photo editing, it still gets the job done. The 16GB of RAM helps a lot here. You can keep dozens of tabs open and run a few apps side by side without the system grinding to a halt. The 512GB SSD is also a nice touch for a refurb at this price, giving you enough room for a decent file collection without immediately needing an external drive.

The Intel UHD Graphics 620 is where things get rough. It lands at the 28th percentile for GPU performance, which means gaming is basically off the table. Our gaming score for this machine is 11.5 out of 100, one of the weakest we've seen. You can play older 2D titles or stream games, but anything 3D from the last decade will struggle. The 1080p IPS display is fine for text and video, though it ranks at the 39th percentile for screen quality, so don't expect vibrant colors or high brightness for outdoor use.

Stacked against the Apple MacBook Air M4, this HP gets absolutely demolished on performance. The M4 chip is in a different universe for both CPU and GPU work, and the Air's screen and battery life are far better. But the MacBook costs a lot more, so it's not a fair fight. The EliteBook's real competition is other refurbished business laptops and cheap new Chromebooks or Windows machines.

The Lenovo Legion 5i and ASUS ProArt PX13 are gaming and creator machines with discrete GPUs. They'll run circles around the EliteBook for anything graphical, but they're also heavier and pricier. The MSI Creator A13V and Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro are premium ultrabooks with modern CPUs and better displays. If you can stretch your budget, any of those will feel faster and last longer on battery. The EliteBook wins only on upfront cost and the fact that it's already running Windows 11 Pro with a touchscreen.

The value story here is all about the refurb market. At USD 623 for the single US listing, you're getting a lot of RAM and storage for the money, but the CPU is the trade-off. In Canada, the spread is CAD 661 to CAD 820 across two listings. That CAD 159 difference is significant, and the lower-priced vendor is the one to watch if you're north of the border. We don't see a meaningful spec difference between those listings, so paying the higher price makes no sense.

Compared to a new budget laptop, this EliteBook gives you more RAM and a business-class chassis for less cash. But you're also buying into older silicon. If your workload is light and you value portability and build quality over raw speed, the price is reasonable. If you need CPU muscle for anything beyond basic productivity, you'll feel the age of that i7-8650U quickly.

The HP EliteBook 840 G5 is a refurbished business laptop that keeps showing up in our database because it nails one thing: being a cheap, portable workhorse. You're getting an 8th gen Intel Core i7-8650U, 16GB of DDR4 RAM, a 512GB SSD, and a 14-inch 1080p touchscreen in a 1.31kg chassis. That's a lot of practical hardware for the money, especially if you just need something to handle documents, spreadsheets, video calls, and way too many browser tabs.

Who's this for? Students and anyone who wants a compact machine without spending MacBook money. Our scoring puts student use at 66.9 out of 100 and compact at 63.9, which tells you it's a solid daily driver but not a powerhouse. The business score of 47.9 is a bit lower, mostly because the CPU and integrated graphics are getting long in the tooth for heavier enterprise workloads.

The interesting part is the price spread. In Canada, listings run from CAD 661 to CAD 820 depending on the vendor. That's a meaningful gap for a refurb, so shopping around actually matters here. And with Windows 11 Pro already installed, you're not dealing with license headaches out of the box.

If you need to run anything graphically intensive, skip this. The integrated UHD 620 graphics and 11.5 gaming score mean video editing, 3D modeling, and modern games are all off the table. Look at the ASUS ProArt PX13 or MSI Creator A13V if creative work is on your list.

Also skip it if you need a machine that will stay fast for years. The 8th gen CPU is already behind the curve, and the Wi-Fi 4 connectivity means slow wireless speeds on modern networks. A newer refurb with at least a 10th gen Intel chip or a Ryzen 4000 series would give you more headroom. And if battery life is critical, the Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro or MacBook Air M4 will run circles around this thing.

For students and casual users who need a lightweight laptop for writing, research, and streaming, the EliteBook 840 G5 is a decent buy at the right price. The 16GB of RAM and 512GB SSD mean it won't feel cramped, and the 1.31kg weight is easy on your back. Just don't expect to edit video or play games on it.

For business users, I'd be more cautious. The business score of 47.9 reflects the aging CPU and weak graphics. If you're running spreadsheets, CRM tools, and video calls all day, it'll work, but you might notice slowdowns with heavier multitasking. If reliability and longevity matter, a newer refurb with at least a 10th or 11th gen Intel chip would be a smarter long-term investment.