HP Dragonfly Pro Review

An early preview of such a machine on the consumer side is provided by the HP Dragonfly Pro ($1,399 for our review machine with 16 GB of RAM and 512 GB of storage). While the emphasis has been on the device’s performance and battery life, HP has also highlighted the device’s optional customer support capabilities and services. There are slogans like “simplify” and “don’t worry about anything” scattered across the site, with “24/7 support” prominently displayed. HP is eager for you to purchase this laptop so that it can provide support after the sale.

HP Dragonfly Pro Specs

PROS

• A lightning-fast AMD Ryzen 7 CPU
• Macros keys provide additional options for use and personalization.
• Access to a personal concierge for a full year
• Excellent brightness and 3:2 aspect ratio touchscreen
• Quality webcam

CONS

• Thunderbolt 3 ports are the only option available.
• No jack for headphones
• The Full HD screen is passable but inferior to others.

Price

Pricing for the HP Dragonfly Pro begins at $1,399 (about £1,160 or AU$2,110) for the 16GB RAM variant and rises to $1,549 (approximately £1,285 or AU$2,335) for the 32GB RAM model. The price is too high because it lacks the premium features and portability of Ultrabooks.

In addition, we offer round-the-clock live customer support for a year at no cost before charging a subscription fee. Once it begins to operate, the price of the laptop will increase again. Think about the fact that this laptop is aimed at freelancers, many of whom have limited incomes and hence cannot afford such a purchase.

The United States is the only country where you can get your hands on a Dragonfly Pro, leaving the United Kingdom and Australia out in the cold. And an HP spokesman confirmed to me that there is currently no information on a release outside the US. Therefore, if you live in any other region of the world, you will likely have to spend more money to import this specific laptop.

Design

This laptop really stands out in terms of design. Although the HP Dragonfly Pro has been accused of copying Apple’s MacBook Air in every way imaginable, from the clamshell design to the packaging, the end product is a gorgeous, portable laptop that fits well in most bags. When compared to the sparkling black version, which is both safe and dull, the ceramic white version really sticks out. The screen is a stunning full HD HDR touchscreen, capable of producing sharp and clear images that are sure to bring any content to life.

Keyboard & Touchpad

The keyboard’s illumination is great, and it can be turned on and off with a shortcut key, so you can type comfortably even in the dark. In addition to the freely programmable shortcut key, there are three more keys that serve as shortcuts for common activities like changing the audio and video quality, using the 24/7 chat feature, and tweaking the webcam settings.

Some claim that the touchpad provides haptic feedback, but I find it to be no different from any other responsive touchpad. The keyboard and touchpad have a distinct texture that I enjoy because it’s different from the typical smooth finish of other laptops. With its HD webcam, superb lighting, and several customization options, your video calls and online meetings will be even more professional with the MyHP software. Even better, it can be called upon with the press of a button.

Speakers

The Bang & Olufsen speakers on either side of the keyboard deliver crystal-clear sound at loud volumes without sacrificing quality. The connector selection, limited to just three USB Type-C connections, is the most disappointing aspect of the design. There is not a single port of any kind (Type-A, Ethernet, SD, or headphones) included. Although Type-C ports are clearly helpful, the complete lack of diversity is extremely discouraging, especially for freelancers who may require them.

Performance

The HP Dragonfly Pro is lightning fast because of the custom-built CPU that was designed by HP and AMD. It will devour whatever kind of useful work you throw at it. Also, it has no trouble handling all of that in addition to a conference call. Using the AMD platform management framework (PMF), the laptop may optimize its performance.

This technology evaluates the present workload based on factors such as skin temperature, acoustics, and other sensor data. This remarkable load distribution helps the laptop stay cool (helped along by the effective heat dissipation system) and saves energy in the long run. However, I did discover one issue: the laptop gets quite hot and quickly drains the battery whenever it is left in a closed location, such as a backpack, when in sleep mode.

Conclusion

The PMF’s inability to self-regulate in the absence of human oversight is likely to blame. Due to issues with the MyHP 24/7 help center service, the original review unit had to be swapped out for a new one. These are prototypes, but I’m concerned that the problems we’re seeing here may affect even final consumer products.