HP EliteBook 835 G9 review: Powerful business notebook with bright screen and great keyboard

HP's EliteBook 835 G9 is a high-end business notebook with a starting price of around US$1,600. In return, you get a compact 13.3-inch notebook with a bright screen powered by a Ryzen 5 PRO 6650U or a Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U APU (Rembrandt). We recently reviewed a 16-inch sibling model that is almost identically equipped, the EliteBook 865 G9. Competing devices include the Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3, the Dell Latitude 13 7330 and the Dynabook Portégé X30L-K.
Possible Competitors in Comparison
Rating | Date | Model | Weight | Height | Size | Resolution | Price |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
89.2 % v7 (old) | 01 / 2023 | HP EliteBook 835 G9 R7 PRO 6850U, Radeon 680M | 1.3 kg | 19.2 mm | 13.30" | 1920x1200 | |
89.4 % v7 (old) | 11 / 2022 | Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE i5-1235U, Iris Xe G7 80EUs | 1.3 kg | 18.9 mm | 13.30" | 1920x1200 | |
85.1 % v7 (old) | 08 / 2022 | Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 i5-1240P, Iris Xe G7 80EUs | 905 g | 17.9 mm | 13.30" | 1920x1080 | |
89 % v7 (old) | 07 / 2022 | Dell Latitude 13 7330 i7-1265U, Iris Xe G7 96EUs | 1 kg | 16.96 mm | 13.30" | 1920x1080 |
Case - HP uses metal for the 835
The notebook's hardware is housed in a silver-gray metal case with matte, smooth surfaces. HP makes use of a straightforward, neutral design: The laptop does not stand out optically. The battery (screwed, not glued) and the rest of the internal components can be accessed after removing the bottom shell.
The workmanship gives no room for criticism. Gap dimensions are even and no material protrusions are to be found. The base unit and lid yield a little under torsional stress, but is still within limits. The hinges keep the lid firmly in place. The maximum opening angle is about 170 degrees. One-handed opening of the lid is possible.
Equipment - EliteBook comes with USB 4
The EliteBook comes with two USB-A ports (USB 3.2 Gen 1) and two USB-C ports (USB 4; Power Delivery, DisplayPort). The latter serve to power the computer and enable the use of a docking solution. The laptop has three video outputs (2x DP, 1x HDMI). A combined audio jack and a SmartCard reader rounds off the port selection. No memory card reader is on board.
Communication
The WLAN transfer rates determined under optimal conditions (no other WLAN devices in the immediate vicinity, short distance between notebook and server PC) are excellent and correspond to the Wi-Fi chip's capabilities (Qualcomm FastConnect 6900 Wi-Fi 6E). There is no Ethernet slot.
Wireless connections can also be established via the LTE network thanks to a corresponding modem (Intel XMM 7560 LTE Advanced Pro). HP offers a 5G modem only for the Intel-based EliteBook 830 G9 sister model. A positive aspect: No tool (SIM needle) is needed to remove the SIM card tray.
Webcam
A 5 MP infrared camera (max. 2,560 x 1,920) equips the EliteBook for video conferences and Zoom meetings. It produces very respectable results, but the color deviation is a little high - this is no better among the competition. On the software side, HP offers some functions to improve image brightness, found within the preloaded MyHP app. A positive aspect: The camera has a mechanical shutter.

Security
The 13.3-incher provides access protection via fingerprint scanning, Windows Hello or SmartCard. A Trusted Platform Module (2.0) is also on board. The device can be physically secured via a cable lock. On the software side, there are various HP applications such as Sure Click (VM for applications and files) or Secure Erase (secure deletion of drives).
Accessories
Apart from the usual documents (warranty information, quick-start guide), no other accessories are included with the EliteBook.
Maintenance
Disassembling the baseplate is quite easy. After loosening the screws on the underside, the base unit can be removed with the help of a flat spatula - we advise starting at the hinges. Afterwards, the SSD (PCIe 4), the WLAN module, the fan, the BIOS battery, the LTE modem, the speakers and the battery can be accessed. The RAM is soldered and thus cannot be upgraded.
Warranty
HP equips the EliteBook with a one-year warranty in the USA - including pick-up service. This can be extended to a two-year "Next Business Day Response Onsite w/Accidental Damage Protection" warranty for US$212.00 or a three-year "Active Care Next Business Day Response Onsite w/Accidental Damage Protection" warranty for US$391.00.
Warranty terms may differ depending on location, so be sure to double-check before purchasing.
Input Devices - HP notebook has an excellent keyboard
Keyboard
The concave, smooth keys of the illuminated chiclet keyboard have a short travel and a clear pressure point. The crisp key resistance is very pleasing, and the keyboard does not yield during typing. A downside: The left shift key and the arrow keys are quite small. The two-stage key backlight is controlled via a function key. All in all, HP delivers a keyboard suitable for everyday use.
Touchpad
Display - HP installs a bright, high-contrast panel with a privacy filter
HP equips the 835 with a 13.3-inch screen (1,920 x 1,200) in a work-friendly 16:10 format. Brightness (827.8 cd/m²) and contrast (2,651:1) of the matte display are excellent. A positive aspect: No PWM flickering is present at any brightness level.
A privacy filter (HP Sure View) that can be activated at the click of a button aims to impede or prevent viewing of the display from the sides. Whether you really need a screen with an anti-glare filter should be considered carefully. Even with slight deviations from the optimal viewing angle (centre, 90 degrees), the filter causes a visible reduction in contrast and brightness - also when switched off. The alternatively available 400 nits display (without privacy protection) may be a better choice for some.
|
Brightness Distribution: 65 %
Center on Battery: 928 cd/m²
Contrast: 2651:1 (Black: 0.35 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 1.76 | 0.5-29.43 Ø4.9, calibrated: 1.09
ΔE Greyscale 2.4 | 0.5-98 Ø5.2
72.1% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
100% sRGB (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
70.7% Display P3 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
Gamma: 2.324
HP EliteBook 835 G9 InfoVision X133NV4M R0, IPS, 1920x1200, 13.3" | Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE NV133WUM-N61, IPS Grade, 1920x1200, 13.3" | Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 LQ133M1JW41, IGZO, 1920x1080, 13.3" | Dell Latitude 13 7330 LG Philips 133WF9, IPS, 1920x1080, 13.3" | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Display | -1% | -8% | -6% | |
Display P3 Coverage | 70.7 | 70.4 0% | 64.3 -9% | 66.1 -7% |
sRGB Coverage | 100 | 99.8 0% | 94.5 -5% | 93.5 -6% |
AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage | 72.1 | 71 -2% | 64.8 -10% | 68.2 -5% |
Response Times | 37% | -18% | -29% | |
Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * | 37.7 ? | 22.9 ? 39% | 39 ? -3% | 48.4 ? -28% |
Response Time Black / White * | 22.7 ? | 14.8 ? 35% | 30.3 ? -33% | 29.6 ? -30% |
PWM Frequency | 23600 ? | |||
Screen | -11% | -62% | -11% | |
Brightness middle | 928 | 290 -69% | 494 -47% | 460.1 -50% |
Brightness | 828 | 288 -65% | 451 -46% | 445 -46% |
Brightness Distribution | 65 | 88 35% | 88 35% | 89 37% |
Black Level * | 0.35 | 0.21 40% | 0.34 3% | 0.31 11% |
Contrast | 2651 | 1381 -48% | 1453 -45% | 1484 -44% |
Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 1.76 | 1.9 -8% | 3.8 -116% | 2.42 -38% |
Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 3.94 | 4 -2% | 10.2 -159% | 3.97 -1% |
Colorchecker dE 2000 calibrated * | 1.09 | 0.8 27% | 1.1 -1% | 0.77 29% |
Greyscale dE 2000 * | 2.4 | 2.6 -8% | 6.8 -183% | 2.3 4% |
Gamma | 2.324 95% | 2.23 99% | 2.18 101% | 2.23 99% |
CCT | 6689 97% | 6195 105% | 6894 94% | 6262 104% |
Total Average (Program / Settings) | 8% /
-2% | -29% /
-44% | -15% /
-12% |
* ... smaller is better
Screen colors are displayed very well in the state of delivery: With a deviation of 1.76, the result (DeltaE < 3) is clearly within limits. A calibration further reduces the deviation to 1.09 and ensures an even more even representation of grayscale. The display completely reproduces the sRGB color space (100%), but not the AdobeRGB (72%) and DCI-P3 (71%) color spaces. But this is not much different among screens of the competition.
Display Response Times
↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
---|---|---|
22.7 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 12.8 ms rise | |
↘ 9.9 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. » 47 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is similar to the average of all tested devices (20.9 ms). | ||
↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey | ||
37.7 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 17.9 ms rise | |
↘ 19.8 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. » 52 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (32.7 ms). |
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 8627 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 343500) Hz was measured. |
The viewing-angle stable IPS panel is basically readable from any position, but the anti-glare filter makes reading difficult at times. The display's high brightness allows reading outdoors. But this is also naturally influenced by the filter, depending on the viewing angle.
Performance - Rembrandt provides plenty of steam
HP's EliteBook 835 G9 is a high-end business notebook that offers sufficient computing power for office and internet applications as well as light games. AMD APUs of the Rembrandt generation are deployed within the series. Prices start at around US$1600 for the series.
Testing Conditions
The notebook offers no manufacturer-specific performance profiles; Windows' own profiles are used. We used the "Balanced" profile, which is active by default. The "Best Performance" profile does not bring about a performance increase.
Processor
The octa-core processor of the Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U APU (Rembrandt) works with a base clock of 2.7 GHz. An increase up to 4.75 GHz is possible via Turbo. Simultaneous multithreading (two threads per core) is supported. The benchmark results are just below the CPU average.
The multi-thread test of the Cinebench R15 benchmark briefly runs at 4 GHz before dropping to around 3 GHz. The single-thread test runs at 2 to 4.75 GHz. Clock rates are slightly lower in battery mode.
As shown in the CB15 loop test, a high Turbo clock can only be used for a few seconds. For the most part, the CPU operates at a clock rate just above the base clock. Nevertheless, it delivers excellent performance and clearly outperforms the competition in multi-thread applications. In addition, it is very energy efficient and offers more performance per watt than the Intel CPUs of the competitors.
Cinebench R15 Multi Sustained Load
CPU Performance Rating - Percent | |
Average of class Subnotebook | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 |
* ... smaller is better
AIDA64: FP32 Ray-Trace | FPU Julia | CPU SHA3 | CPU Queen | FPU SinJulia | FPU Mandel | CPU AES | CPU ZLib | FP64 Ray-Trace | CPU PhotoWorxx
Performance Rating | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U | |
Average of class Subnotebook | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 |
AIDA64 / FP32 Ray-Trace | |
Average of class Subnotebook (1135 - 32888, n=61, last 2 years) | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (11272 - 12485, n=6) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 |
AIDA64 / FPU Julia | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (72242 - 79484, n=6) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Average of class Subnotebook (5218 - 123315, n=61, last 2 years) | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 |
AIDA64 / CPU SHA3 | |
Average of class Subnotebook (444 - 5287, n=61, last 2 years) | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (2419 - 2638, n=6) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 |
AIDA64 / CPU Queen | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (86644 - 92945, n=6) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Average of class Subnotebook (10579 - 115682, n=61, last 2 years) | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE |
AIDA64 / FPU SinJulia | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (10917 - 11637, n=6) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Average of class Subnotebook (744 - 18418, n=61, last 2 years) | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 |
AIDA64 / FPU Mandel | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (39609 - 43843, n=6) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Average of class Subnotebook (3341 - 65433, n=61, last 2 years) | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 |
AIDA64 / CPU AES | |
Average of class Subnotebook (638 - 161430, n=61, last 2 years) | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (45568 - 50859, n=6) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 |
AIDA64 / CPU ZLib | |
Average of class Subnotebook (164.9 - 1379, n=61, last 2 years) | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (641 - 713, n=6) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 |
AIDA64 / FP64 Ray-Trace | |
Average of class Subnotebook (610 - 17495, n=61, last 2 years) | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (5967 - 6637, n=6) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 |
AIDA64 / CPU PhotoWorxx | |
Average of class Subnotebook (6569 - 54881, n=61, last 2 years) | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (19707 - 26584, n=6) | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 |
System Performance
The smoothly running system handles office and internet applications as well as gaming in low to medium settings. The PCMark results are very good. The transfer rates of the available working memory are on a normal level for DDR5-4800 memory. A pity that HP did not install faster LPDDR4/5 memory to squeeze more performance out of the hardware.
CrossMark: Overall | Productivity | Creativity | Responsiveness
PCMark 10 / Score | |
Average of class Subnotebook (4993 - 7788, n=51, last 2 years) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (5873 - 6152, n=6) | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE |
PCMark 10 / Essentials | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Average of class Subnotebook (9363 - 11331, n=51, last 2 years) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (9151 - 10263, n=6) | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE |
PCMark 10 / Productivity | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (8435 - 8891, n=6) | |
Average of class Subnotebook (6440 - 10623, n=51, last 2 years) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE |
PCMark 10 / Digital Content Creation | |
Average of class Subnotebook (5305 - 10983, n=51, last 2 years) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (6796 - 7417, n=6) | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE |
CrossMark / Overall | |
Average of class Subnotebook (365 - 1971, n=59, last 2 years) | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (1154 - 1430, n=6) |
CrossMark / Productivity | |
Average of class Subnotebook (364 - 1875, n=59, last 2 years) | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (1188 - 1426, n=6) | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE |
CrossMark / Creativity | |
Average of class Subnotebook (372 - 2210, n=59, last 2 years) | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (1180 - 1523, n=6) |
CrossMark / Responsiveness | |
Average of class Subnotebook (312 - 1899, n=59, last 2 years) | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (990 - 1243, n=6) |
PCMark 8 Home Score Accelerated v2 | 4730 points | |
PCMark 8 Work Score Accelerated v2 | 5271 points | |
PCMark 10 Score | 6090 points | |
Help |
AIDA64 / Memory Copy | |
Average of class Subnotebook (14554 - 108756, n=61, last 2 years) | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (31003 - 48605, n=6) | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 |
AIDA64 / Memory Read | |
Average of class Subnotebook (15948 - 122210, n=61, last 2 years) | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (34682 - 45079, n=6) |
AIDA64 / Memory Write | |
Average of class Subnotebook (15709 - 117898, n=61, last 2 years) | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (34532 - 51096, n=6) | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 |
AIDA64 / Memory Latency | |
Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (92 - 135.3, n=6) | |
Average of class Subnotebook (7.2 - 187.8, n=61, last 2 years) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 |
* ... smaller is better
DPC Latency
DPC Latencies / LatencyMon - interrupt to process latency (max), Web, Youtube, Prime95 | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 |
* ... smaller is better
Storage Devices
Drive Performance Rating - Percent | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Average of class Subnotebook | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Average Kioxia BG5 KBG50ZNV512G | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 |
* ... smaller is better
Sustained Read Performance: DiskSpd Read Loop, Queue Depth 8
Graphics Card
The Radeon 680M graphics core is currently one of the most powerful iGPUs. However, it can only work at a maximum clock speed (2,200 MHz) for short periods of time, as demonstrated in the Witcher 3 test. Long-running clock rates of around 1,800 MHz are possible. The benchmark results are on par with the GPU average determined so far.
3DMark Performance Rating - Percent | |
Average of class Subnotebook | |
Average AMD Radeon 680M | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 | |
Lenovo ThinkPad X13 G3 21BN0046GE | |
Dynabook Portégé X30L-K-139 |
3DMark 06 Standard Score | 30052 points | |
3DMark 11 Performance | 9294 points | |
3DMark Cloud Gate Standard Score | 29014 points | |
3DMark Fire Strike Score | 5699 points | |
3DMark Time Spy Score | 2136 points | |
Help |
V-Ray 5 Benchmark - CPU | |
Average AMD Radeon 680M (6710 - 9834, n=24) | |
Average of class Subnotebook (4784 - 14978, n=21, last 2 years) | |
HP EliteBook 835 G9 | |
Dell Latitude 13 7330 |