HP 15 15.6" 2025, Core Ultra 5 125H, 16GB, 1TB SSD, Silver

A budget workhorse with a great CPU and massive storage, but the screen and battery are stuck in 2019. Buy it for spreadsheets, not for fun.

The Core Ultra 5 125H is the real story here. It sits at the 68th percentile for CPUs, which means it's comfortably above average for everyday productivity. The 1TB SSD is the standout spec, landing in the 80th percentile, so you won't run out of storage space anytime soon. But the integrated Arc Graphics are a letdown. They're fine for desktop work and light photo editing, but the moment you try anything 3D, the whole thing wheezes. The 41Wh battery is also a concern. With a 14-core chip and a 15.6-inch touchscreen, you'll be hunting for outlets by mid-afternoon.

The Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition is the obvious alternative if you care about build quality and screen. It costs more, but you get a much better display and a more premium feel. The MSI Prestige is another business-focused option with a stronger port selection and better reliability scores. And if you're even slightly tempted by gaming, the ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 or Lenovo Legion 5i will run circles around this HP, though you'll pay significantly more. The HP's real advantage is price and storage capacity. It's the budget pick, and it knows it.

At $729, this is a fair deal for a business laptop with 16GB RAM and 1TB storage. You're getting a lot of capacity for the money. But the weak screen, tiny battery, and mediocre port selection mean you're paying for storage and CPU, not the overall experience. If you just need a dependable machine for Office, email, and web browsing, it's a reasonable buy. If you want anything more, keep looking.

The HP 15.6" is a budget business laptop that gets the fundamentals right and not much else. You get a 14-core Intel Core Ultra 5 125H, 16GB of DDR5, and a full 1TB NVMe SSD for around $729, which is a genuinely solid spec sheet for the money. The one thing to know? This is a work machine, not a fun machine. The integrated Intel Arc Graphics will handle spreadsheets and video calls all day, but the gaming score of 16.3 out of 100 tells you everything about its ambitions.

If you care about screen quality, battery life, or any kind of gaming, this isn't the laptop for you. The 62.5% sRGB display is a weak spot, and the 41Wh battery will have you tethered to a wall outlet. Go get a Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition for a better screen, or an ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 if you want actual graphics performance.

The HP 15.6" is a competent office laptop that nails the basics: fast CPU, plenty of RAM, tons of storage. But the weak screen, small battery, and useless GPU hold it back. If you need a no-frills work machine and you're on a tight budget, it'll get the job done. If you want a laptop that's enjoyable to use, spend a bit more on something with a better display and battery life.