HP 15 15.6" 2025, Core i5-1334U, 32GB, 512GB SSD, Silver

You're paying for 32GB of RAM and a touchscreen, and not much else. Fine for office drones, forget it for anyone who wants performance.

The 32GB of DDR4 is the standout here, landing in the 73rd percentile for RAM, which is honestly more than most people need for office work. But the CPU sits at the 39th percentile, and the Iris Xe graphics are dead average at the 49th. That means multitasking with a dozen Chrome tabs and Excel will feel okay, but anything heavier, like video editing or even light gaming, will have you staring at a loading spinner. The 512GB SSD is on the smaller side too, so you'll be leaning on cloud storage sooner than you'd like.

Stacked against the Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition, the HP 15 feels like a budget compromise. The Surface has a better screen, better build quality, and a more efficient processor, though you'll pay more for it. The Lenovo Legion 5i is in a different league for gaming and performance, but it's also heavier and pricier. If you want a touchscreen business laptop without spending Surface money, the HP 15 is an option, but the ASUS ProArt PX13 offers a much better display and more capable hardware for creative work, assuming your budget stretches.

At $669 USD, this is a tough sell unless you specifically need 32GB of RAM and a touchscreen on a budget. The RAM is the only spec that justifies the price, because the CPU, GPU, and storage are all middle-of-the-road or worse. If you can live with 16GB of RAM, there are better-built laptops with faster processors for similar money. But if you're running memory-hungry business apps and don't care about gaming or creative work, this is a passable deal.

The HP 15 is a budget business laptop that tries to punch above its weight with 32GB of RAM and a touchscreen, but the rest of the package feels stuck in 2019. The i5-1334U is fine for spreadsheets and web browsing, but the integrated Iris Xe graphics and a middling 512GB SSD keep this thing firmly in 'get work done' territory, not 'enjoy using it' territory. The one thing to know? You're buying RAM and a touchscreen, not performance or polish.

If you're looking for a laptop that can handle gaming, video editing, or any kind of creative work, this isn't it. Go get a Lenovo Legion 5i or an ASUS ProArt PX13 instead. And if you just need a basic laptop for web browsing and email, you can spend less and get something lighter with better battery life.

The HP 15 is a one-trick pony. That trick is 32GB of RAM, and if you need that much memory for business apps or virtual machines, this laptop will get the job done without breaking the bank. But for everyone else, the weak CPU, average graphics, and limited storage make it hard to recommend. It's a functional workhorse, not a laptop you'll love.