HP 17-y044ng Notebook Review
For the original German review, see here.
The HP 17-y044ng is identical in design with its sibling, the recently reviewed HP 17-x110ng; only the color scheme is slightly different. However, there are more distinct differences between the laptops' internals. Our current test device comes with an APU made by AMD; the HP-17-x models carry Intel processors. Some rivals of the HP 17 are devices such as the Acer Aspire E5-774, the Lenovo IdeaPad 110-17IKB, and the Dell Inspiron 17 5759.
Case and Connectivity
The HP 17-y004ng and the recently reviewed HP 17-x110ng are identical in construction. The only difference is in the coloring. The lid and the top of the base unit are silver on the HP 17-y004ng (HP 17-x110ng: black). An imprint simulates brushed metal on the upper side of the base unit. The black as well as the black and silver case can be found in both HP-17 series.
| SD Card Reader | |
| average JPG Copy Test (av. of 3 runs) | |
| Acer Aspire E5-774-54HJ | |
| HP 17-y044ng | |
| Lenovo Ideapad 110-17IKB 80VK0001GE | |
| HP Pavilion 17-x110ng | |
| Dell Inspiron 17 5759-5118 | |
| maximum AS SSD Seq Read Test (1GB) | |
| Acer Aspire E5-774-54HJ | |
| HP 17-y044ng | |
| Lenovo Ideapad 110-17IKB 80VK0001GE | |
| Dell Inspiron 17 5759-5118 | |
| HP Pavilion 17-x110ng | |
| Networking | |
| iperf3 transmit AX12 | |
| Lenovo Ideapad 110-17IKB 80VK0001GE | |
| HP Pavilion 17-x110ng | |
| HP 17-y044ng (jseb) | |
| iperf3 receive AX12 | |
| Lenovo Ideapad 110-17IKB 80VK0001GE | |
| HP 17-y044ng (jseb) | |
| HP Pavilion 17-x110ng | |
Display
The HP notebook's matte 17.3-inch display has a native resolution of 1600x900 pixels. The brightness (232 cd/m²) and the contrast (447:1) do not convince us, but considering the price range of the notebook, they are still all right. Good: The display does not exhibit PWM-flickering at any time.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Brightness Distribution: 80 %
Center on Battery: 263 cd/m²
Contrast: 447:1 (Black: 0.59 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 10.58 | 0.5-29.43 Ø4.87
ΔE Greyscale 13.13 | 0.5-98 Ø5.1
74% sRGB (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
48% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
52.6% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
73.8% sRGB (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
50.9% Display P3 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
Gamma: 2.49
| HP 17-y044ng TN LED, 1600x900, 17.3" | HP Pavilion 17-x110ng IPS, WLED, 1920x1080, 17.3" | Lenovo Ideapad 110-17IKB 80VK0001GE TN LED, 1600x900, 17.3" | Acer Aspire E5-774-54HJ TN LED, 1920x1080, 17.3" | Dell Inspiron 17 5759-5118 TN LED, 1920x1080, 17.3" | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Display | 21% | -0% | 31% | 28% | |
| Display P3 Coverage | 50.9 | 63.6 25% | 51.1 0% | 71.3 40% | 69.3 36% |
| sRGB Coverage | 73.8 | 86.5 17% | 73.4 -1% | 91.7 24% | 90.6 23% |
| AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage | 52.6 | 63.3 20% | 52.6 0% | 67.1 28% | 66.3 26% |
| Response Times | -13% | -6% | 1% | -52% | |
| Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * | 43 ? | 41 ? 5% | 50 ? -16% | 42 ? 2% | 86 ? -100% |
| Response Time Black / White * | 23 ? | 30 ? -30% | 22 ? 4% | 23 ? -0% | 24 ? -4% |
| PWM Frequency | 200 ? | 50 ? | 1000 ? | 200 ? | |
| Screen | 28% | 7% | 37% | 25% | |
| Brightness middle | 264 | 288 9% | 231 -12% | 353 34% | 304 15% |
| Brightness | 232 | 285 23% | 210 -9% | 320 38% | 292 26% |
| Brightness Distribution | 80 | 88 10% | 83 4% | 82 3% | 84 5% |
| Black Level * | 0.59 | 0.61 -3% | 0.37 37% | 0.38 36% | 0.37 37% |
| Contrast | 447 | 472 6% | 624 40% | 929 108% | 822 84% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 10.58 | 4.56 57% | 9.83 7% | 5.07 52% | 10.62 -0% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 18.96 | 7.76 59% | 18.35 3% | 10.12 47% | |
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 13.13 | 4.95 62% | 12.46 5% | 13.38 -2% | 11.78 10% |
| Gamma | 2.49 88% | 2.48 89% | 2.43 91% | 2.69 82% | 2.39 92% |
| CCT | 14044 46% | 7669 85% | 13115 50% | 15991 41% | 12997 50% |
| Color Space (Percent of AdobeRGB 1998) | 48 | 48 0% | 60.1 25% | 59 23% | |
| Color Space (Percent of sRGB) | 74 | 93 26% | 73 -1% | 91.6 24% | 90 22% |
| Total Average (Program / Settings) | 12% /
20% | 0% /
4% | 23% /
31% | 0% /
15% |
* ... smaller is better
Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)
| Screen flickering / PWM not detected | ||
In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 8492 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 343500) Hz was measured. | ||
The color reproduction also corresponds to the price range of the laptop. The DeltaE-2000 color deviation amounts to 10.58 in factory default settings. A value below 3 should be aimed for. In addition, the display suffers from a considerable blue tint.
Display Response Times
| ↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
|---|---|---|
| 23 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 7 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 16 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows good response rates in our tests, but may be too slow for competitive gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 48 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (20.7 ms). | ||
| ↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey | ||
| 43 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 21 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 22 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows slow response rates in our tests and will be unsatisfactory for gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.165 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 69 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (32.5 ms). | ||
HP equips the 17.3-inch notebook with a TN panel that has narrow viewing angles, meaning that the content on the display cannot be seen well from every position. The HP 17 is difficult to use outdoors on a sunny day, which is also due to the poor display brightness and low contrast. It is a different story in cloudy conditions or in the shade.
Performance
With the 17-y044ng, HP has a 17.3-inch office notebook in its lineup that has enough processing power for office applications and web browsing. Our test device costs about 500 Euros (~$539), but there are also other versions. The currently most affordable model of the series can be had for less than 300 Euros (~$323). It is, however, only equipped with the weak E2-7110 APU. The offering is additionally enlarged by the identically built models of the HP 17-xXXXng series. The latter come with CPUs made by Intel. We have already reviewed a corresponding model, the HP 17-x110ng.
Processor
HP equips the 17.3-inch notebook with an AMD A10-9600P APU (Bristol Ridge). There are practically no differences to the APUs of the previous generation (Carrizo); Bristol Ridge is effectively an optimization of Carrizo. With a TDP of 15 watts, the built-in APU is about on par with Intel's ULV processors. The CPU part of the APU consists of a quad-core processor with a base frequency of 2.4 GHz. An increase up to 3.3 GHz is possible with Turbo. However, Turbo Boost is never fully utilized in our CPU tests. Single-thread tests are handled at 2.6 GHz. One core is occasionally slowed down to 2.4 GHz. Multithread tests start off at a frequency between 2.4 and 2.6 GHz, but they are soon throttled down to somewhere between 2 and 2.4 GHz. Nonetheless, the maximal speed of 3.3 GHz is often achieved during everyday use.
| Geekbench 3 | |
| 32 Bit Single-Core Score | |
| Lenovo Ideapad 110-17IKB 80VK0001GE | |
| Acer Aspire E5-774-54HJ | |
| Dell Inspiron 17 5759-5118 | |
| HP 17-y044ng | |
| 32 Bit Multi-Core Score | |
| Lenovo Ideapad 110-17IKB 80VK0001GE | |
| Acer Aspire E5-774-54HJ | |
| Dell Inspiron 17 5759-5118 | |
| HP 17-y044ng | |
| Geekbench 4.0 | |
| 64 Bit Single-Core Score | |
| Lenovo Ideapad 110-17IKB 80VK0001GE | |
| Acer Aspire E5-774-54HJ | |
| HP 17-y044ng | |
| 64 Bit Multi-Core Score | |
| Lenovo Ideapad 110-17IKB 80VK0001GE | |
| Acer Aspire E5-774-54HJ | |
| HP 17-y044ng | |
| JetStream 1.1 - Total Score | |
| Lenovo Ideapad 110-17IKB 80VK0001GE | |
| HP Pavilion 17-x110ng | |
| Acer Aspire E5-774-54HJ | |
| Dell Inspiron 17 5759-5118 | |
| HP 17-y044ng | |
System Performance
The system runs smoothly and without hiccups; we did not encounter any problems. The PCMark 8 result is good and corresponds with the built-in APU's capability. Nevertheless, the HP 17 falls behind most Intel-based rivals. This is due to the single-thread performance of the AMD APU, which is rather poor compared to current Core-i processors. However, the single-thread performance is key for everyday use. The laptop's overall performance can still be increased by replacing the HDD with an SSD.
| PCMark 8 Home Score Accelerated v2 | 2754 points | |
Help | ||
| PCMark 8 - Home Score Accelerated v2 | |
| Lenovo Ideapad 110-17IKB 80VK0001GE | |
| Dell Inspiron 17 5759-5118 | |
| HP Pavilion 17-x110ng | |
| Acer Aspire E5-774-54HJ | |
| HP 17-y044ng | |
| Acer Aspire ES1-731G-P5UR | |
Storage Devices
A common 2.5-inch hard drive by Western Digital functions as the system drive. It runs at 5400 revolutions per minute and offers a capacity of 1 TB. The transfer rates of the HDD are at a normal level for 5400-RPM drives.
| HP 17-y044ng WDC Scorpio Blue WD10JPVX-75JC3T0 | HP Pavilion 17-x110ng SanDisk Z400s SD8SNAT-256G | Lenovo Ideapad 110-17IKB 80VK0001GE WDC Scorpio Blue WD10JPCX-24UE4T0 | Acer Aspire E5-774-54HJ Western Digital Scorpio Blue WD5000LPCX-24C6HT0 | Acer Aspire ES1-731G-P5UR Toshiba MQ01ABD100 | Dell Inspiron 17 5759-5118 Seagate Momentus SpinPoint M8 ST1000LM024 HN-M101MBB | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CrystalDiskMark 3.0 | 7160% | 38% | 18% | 4% | -12% | |
| Read Seq | 105.5 | 500 374% | 110.3 5% | 88.9 -16% | 105 0% | 91.8 -13% |
| Write Seq | 102 | 325.1 219% | 109 7% | 70.9 -30% | 96 -6% | 84.7 -17% |
| Read 512 | 19.17 | 290.2 1414% | 39.19 104% | 33.01 72% | 32.89 72% | 26.59 39% |
| Write 512 | 28.27 | 300.3 962% | 52.9 87% | 51.6 83% | 25.77 -9% | 32.7 16% |
| Read 4k | 0.328 | 11.24 3327% | 0.45 37% | 0.381 16% | 0.324 -1% | 0.288 -12% |
| Write 4k | 1.013 | 86 8390% | 1.201 19% | 1.117 10% | 0.755 -25% | 0.638 -37% |
| Read 4k QD32 | 0.891 | 145.4 16219% | 1.079 21% | 0.891 0% | 0.892 0% | 0.59 -34% |
| Write 4k QD32 | 1.03 | 272.7 26376% | 1.234 20% | 1.13 10% | 1 -3% | 0.642 -38% |
Graphics Card
The GPU of the built-in APU is called Radeon R5 (Bristol Ridge). The graphics core supports DirectX 12 and achieves speeds of up to 720 MHz. It can draw on RAM working in dual-channel mode. The results of the 3DMark benchmarks are approximately on the same level as those of Intel's HD Graphics 620 GPU (also with active dual-channel mode).
| 3DMark 11 Performance | 1913 points | |
Help | ||
Gaming Performance
Quite a large number of games run smoothly on the HP 17, above all titles with low hardware requirements or games that came out a few years ago. Our chart shows that the only games from 2016 that are actually playable are Farming Simulator and - to a lesser degree - Civilization VI. The recently published Resident Evil 7 also achieves playable frame rates. However, you will have to settle for low resolutions and low quality settings in any case.
| low | med. | high | ultra | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (2011) | 36.2 | 25.9 | 18.8 | |
| BioShock Infinite (2013) | 63.9 | 32.7 | 25.5 | |
| Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (2014) | 34.6 | 18.3 | ||
| F1 2014 (2014) | 54 | 34 | ||
| Dragon Age: Inquisition (2014) | 25.7 | 18.2 | ||
| Battlefield Hardline (2015) | 22.8 | 12.8 | ||
| GTA V (2015) | 38 | 35.2 | ||
| Metal Gear Solid V (2015) | 46.1 | 30 | ||
| Anno 2205 (2015) | 17.4 | 11 | ||
| Rainbow Six Siege (2015) | 36.3 | 24.3 | ||
| XCOM 2 (2016) | 15.9 | 6.1 | ||
| Far Cry Primal (2016) | 13 | 8 | ||
| The Division (2016) | 19.6 | 11.5 | ||
| Need for Speed 2016 (2016) | 18.6 | 15 | ||
| Mirror's Edge Catalyst (2016) | 21.1 | 13.6 | ||
| Deus Ex Mankind Divided (2016) | 13.9 | 10.1 | ||
| Battlefield 1 (2016) | 16.5 | 12.1 | ||
| Civilization 6 (2016) | 30.5 | 13.9 | ||
| Farming Simulator 17 (2016) | 60.3 | 38.4 | ||
| Titanfall 2 (2016) | 27.9 | 23.4 | ||
| Resident Evil 7 (2017) | 38.8 | 29.1 |
Emissions and Energy
System Noise
In idle mode, the fan is slowly but constantly running. As with many HP notebooks, the reason for this is the activated BIOS option "Fan always on". Nevertheless, the fan is hardly perceptible, because the swooshing of the hard drive is louder. Deactivating the above-mentioned option and replacing the HDD with an SSD would, at least when idling, result in less noise, partly even complete silence. The fan becomes louder under load, but we measure a sound pressure level of only 34.8 dB during our stress test. However, do not be fooled by this value: The CPU and the GPU run at their lowest possible speed during our stress test, meaning that the fan does not need to spin much faster. In day-to-day use, though, the fan occasionally picks up more speed. It only takes a low load to accelerate the fan.
Noise Level
| Idle |
| 32 / 32 / 32 dB(A) |
| HDD |
| 33.4 dB(A) |
| DVD |
| 36.3 / dB(A) |
| Load |
| 35.6 / 34.8 dB(A) |
 | ||
30 dB silent 40 dB(A) audible 50 dB(A) loud |
||
min:  , med:  , max:  Audix TM1, Arta (15 cm distance) environment noise: 30.2 dB(A) | ||
Temperature
The HP laptop finishes our stress test (Prime95 and FurMark run for at least an hour) with the same results running on battery or plugged in. The processor maintains a frequency of 800 MHz, while the graphics core starts the test at 500 MHz but is later permanently throttled to 300 MHz. However, there is no need to worry that the operating speeds would drop so low in everyday use as well: This stress test is an extreme scenario that does not occur in day-to-day use. The notebook does not warm up significantly during the stress test; only one measuring point slightly surpasses the 40 °C limit.
(+) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 33.9 °C / 93 F, compared to the average of 34.3 °C / 94 F, ranging from 21.2 to 62.5 °C for the class Office.
(±) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 40.1 °C / 104 F, compared to the average of 36.8 °C / 98 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 26 °C / 79 F, compared to the device average of 29.5 °C / 85 F.
(+) The palmrests and touchpad are reaching skin temperature as a maximum (33.9 °C / 93 F) and are therefore not hot.
(-) The average temperature of the palmrest area of similar devices was 27.6 °C / 81.7 F (-6.3 °C / -11.3 F).
HP 17-y044ng audio analysis
(-) | not very loud speakers (69 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(±) | reduced bass - on average 13.6% lower than median
(+) | bass is linear (6.4% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 2.7% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (6.1% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 4.8% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (6.8% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (16.4% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 17% of all tested devices in this class were better, 6% similar, 77% worse
» The best had a delta of 7%, average was 21%, worst was 53%
Compared to all devices tested
» 25% of all tested devices were better, 6% similar, 70% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 24%, worst was 134%
Apple MacBook 12 (Early 2016) 1.1 GHz audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (83.6 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(±) | reduced bass - on average 11.3% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (14.2% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 2.4% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (5.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 2% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (4.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(+) | overall sound is linear (10.2% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 6% of all tested devices in this class were better, 2% similar, 91% worse
» The best had a delta of 5%, average was 19%, worst was 53%
Compared to all devices tested
» 4% of all tested devices were better, 1% similar, 95% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 24%, worst was 134%
Frequency comparison (checkboxes are selectable/deselectable!)
Power Consumption
When idling, we measure a maximal energy consumption of 9 watts - a good value for a 17.3-inch notebook. The power requirement increases to 38.3 watts during our stress test. The high degree of CPU and GPU throttling is noticeable here, otherwise the value would be higher. The power supply included in the box has a nominal output of 65 watts.
| Off / Standby | 0.4 / 0.47 Watt |
| Idle | 4.7 / 7.7 / 9 Watt |
| Load |
35.3 / 38.3 Watt |
   
| |
Key:
min: ,
med: ,
max: Metrahit Energy | |
Battery Life
Our realistic WLAN test simulates the workload of loading webpages. The profile "Balanced" is active, the energy-saving functions are deactivated, and the display brightness is lowered to about 150 cd/m². The HP 17 achieves a runtime of 4:23 h. This is considerably shorter than the runtime of its Intel-based sister model (5:46 h).
Pros
Cons
Verdict
The processing power of the AMD APU is perfectly sufficient for office and web applications. The laptop barely warms up and can - at least when idling - work silently. You will not run out of storage space quickly thanks to the 1 TB hard drive. Replacing the HDD with an SSD would be possible, but this would require opening the case, and the notebook does not have a maintenance hatch. The built-in keyboard is decent enough for home use. The battery life will not knock anybody off their feet, but it is still alright for a 17.3-inch device. The matte display offers poor brightness, low contrast, and unstable viewing angles.
With the 17-y044ng, HP delivers a decent 17.3-inch notebook for a home desk. However, it bears an unnecessarily large amount of shortcomings.
Aside from the obvious weaknesses, there are others, which are not immediately noticeable: For example, HP offers only a one-year warranty; many rival models come with a two-year warranty. In addition, the built-in WLAN chip does not support the fast AC standard. HP also made cuts in terms of Ethernet: The 17.3-inch laptop only offers Fast Ethernet. Furthermore, there is no USB Type-C port.
The HP 17 costs about 500 Euros (~$539). At this price, it will be difficult to find buyers, since the competition offers more for the money. The Acer Aspire E5-774 is a noteworthy example. The model we tested offers a significantly more powerful Core i5-7200U processor, a brighter Full HD screen, USB Type-C, Gigabit Ethernet, a maintenance hatch, and a free M.2 slot. The price is currently situated around 550 Euros (~$593, without Windows operating system), which is only slightly more expensive than the HP 17.
HP 17-y044ng
- 02/01/2017 v6 (old)
Sascha Mölck
Price comparison
