HP EliteBook 865 G9 Laptop review - 1000-nits Sure View display not quite up to par
The HP EliteBook 800 series features high-quality business laptops. This year, it has produced a 16-inch model that can be equipped with either an AMD or an Intel CPU. The Intel series is available as the EliteBook 860 G9, the AMD model is named 865 G9. We have tested the AMD model 865 G9 (model number 6F6H5EA), equipped with an AMD Ryzen 7 Pro 6850U with an integrated Radeon 680M GPU, 16 GB of RAM, a 512-GB SSD and a 16:10 IPS display (1920 x 1200 pixels) with an integrated privacy filter (Sure View) and a maximum brightness of 1000 nits.
Comparison of potential competitors
Rating | Date | Model | Weight | Height | Size | Resolution | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 87.2 % v7 (old) | 12 / 2022 | HP EliteBook 865 G9 R7 PRO 6850U, Radeon 680M | 1.9 kg | 19 mm | 16.00" | 1920x1200 | |
| 89.3 % v7 (old) | 09 / 2022 | Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 i5-1240P, Iris Xe G7 80EUs | 1.9 kg | 20.5 mm | 16.00" | 1920x1200 | |
| 86.3 % v7 (old) | 06 / 2021 | LG Gram 16 (2021) i7-1165G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs | 1.2 kg | 16.8 mm | 16.00" | 2560x1600 | |
| 84.3 % v7 (old) | 02 / 2022 | SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H i7-11370H, Iris Xe G7 96EUs | 1.7 kg | 19.9 mm | 15.60" | 1920x1080 | |
| 83.8 % v7 (old) | 10 / 2022 | LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G R3 5300U, Vega 6 | 1.6 kg | 16.3 mm | 16.00" | 1280x1200 |
Case - an elegant metal exterior
The new 16-inch EliteBook 865 G9 has the same case as the ZBook Firefly 16 G9. Its design is less angular compared to that of the older EliteBook 850 G8. The silver aluminum case appears to be of high quality. Both the display cover and the base unit are very stable. The laptop opens to almost 180 degrees; the hinges cannot prevent minimal teetering. The narrow bezels give the device a very modern appearance.
The new 16-inch device is a little thicker than the old 15-inch EliteBook 850 G8, but not any wider. The Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1, which also has a 16-inch screen, is slightly bigger and a little thicker too. Overall, the new EliteBook 865 G9 is very portable. The 110-watt power supply weighs 451 grams, and the EliteBook itself weighs approximately 1.9 kg.
Connectivity - AMD EliteBook with USB 4
HP has equipped its EliteBook 865 G9 with two fast USB C 4.0 ports that can also be used for charging and to connect external monitors. We did not experience any issues when connecting our test unit to a USB C screen (including an Ethernet connection and input devices). The device also features an HDMI output, a SIM card slot, and two regular USB A ports.
Communication
The AMD EliteBook is equipped with a modern WI-Fi module from Qualcomm (WCN6856, BT 5.2) which should support the new Wi-Fi 6E standard. However, we were unable to connect to our Asus reference router's 6-GHz network. The transfer rates were excellent in the 5-GHz network - some of the fastest recorded so far at 1.7 GBit/s. We did not encounter any connectivity issues while testing.
The test unit is also equipped with an Intel LTE module (XMM 7560) that can either be used with a Nano SIM card or an eSIM. Our Telekom SIM card worked fine. The WWAN module has to be configured at the manufacturer's - it cannot be retrofitted. Unlike for the Intel model (EliteBook 860 G9), this device does not include an optional 5G modem.
| Networking | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 6GHz | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6GHz | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| iperf3 transmit AX12 | |
| iperf3 receive AX12 | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| iperf3 transmit AX12 | |
| iperf3 receive AX12 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 6GHz | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6GHz | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| iperf3 transmit AX12 | |
| iperf3 receive AX12 | |
Webcam
As in the ZBook Firefly 16 G9, the device is equipped with an IR webcam that supposedly offers 5 MP. However, images are recorded at a maximum of 3.7 MP (2560 x 1440 pixels). The webcam still is better than the usual 720p or 1080p webcams, particularly when it comes to sharpness. All in all a decent performance that stands out from most other laptops.
Maintenance
The bottom cover of the base unit is easy to remove - unlike the ZBook Studio 16, this device does not have any hidden screws. The maintenance options are good. In addition to slots for the RAM module and the M.2 2280 SSD (each hidden beneath an additional cover), users can replace both the Wi-Fi and the WWAN module.
Input Devices - EliteBook with great keyboad
The backlit keyboard with a dedicated number pad made a very good impression on us. The keystroke is very firm, so opinions may vary depending on personal preference, but overall, this is one of the best keyboards available for mobile devices. It is better than the more expensive ZBook Studio 16 G9 and can even be compared to Lenovo's ThinkPads, although their quality has dropped over the last few years. Overall we would prefer the EliteBook's splashproof input device to that of the current ThinkPad T16. Only the integrated power button and the small vertical arrow keys take a bit of getting used to.
HP has not used a touch stick on its business models for some time now, which leaves us with the large ClickPad (12.8 x 8.7 cm). The touchpad is very comfortable and easy to use. In addition, the click sound seems very muffled and superior - that's how it should be.
Display - Sure View remains a problem
Our test unit is equipped with the optional Sure View panel, which features an integrated privacy filter. Its general characteristics (1920 x 1200 pixels, a matte surface and up to 1000 cd/m² brightness) are promising, but there is much more to consider. The integrated privacy filter can be activated at the touch of a button, but even with it turned off, viewing angles are very limited - the sweet spot right in front of the display where image quality is not reduced is very narrow. Even small movements can lead to noticeably lower contrast and brightness. Bright content also appears slightly grainy on the matte panel. Brightness regulation is another big issue. Sure View only works at the lowest levels of brightness. This leads to two problems: Sure View is difficult to use in bright surroundings (e.g. on the train or in public spaces) and it has to be activated in low-light surroundings in order to get to the lowest possible level of brightness. We have listed the values in the following table:
| Brightness | 100% | 90% | 80% | 70% | 60% | 50% | 40% | 30% | 20% | 10% | 0% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sure View off | 865 | 729 | 634 | 535 | 436 | 332 | 252 | 216 | 180 | 142 | 105 |
| Sure View on | 157 | 146 | 136 | 125 | 115 | 104 | 94 | 83 | 72 | 62 | 51 |
The results are very good in general. The maximum brightness reaches around 900 cd/m² and the black value lies at around 0.3 cd/m², which results in a very high maximum contrast ratio. However, this is only true if you are sitting right in front of the panel. The bad brightness distribution of only 72 percent is another issue. It means that the lower right corner in particular is much darker than the rest of the screen. The minimum brightness - even with Sure View - is 51 cd/m², which is still too high in very dark surroundings. The panel also uses PWM of 56 Hz, even at maximum brightness.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Brightness Distribution: 72 %
Center on Battery: 865 cd/m²
Contrast: 2883:1 (Black: 0.3 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 2.4 | 0.5-29.43 Ø4.86, calibrated: 1.5
ΔE Greyscale 3.8 | 0.09-98 Ø5.1
73.2% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
99.3% sRGB (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
71.4% Display P3 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
Gamma: 2.36
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 X160NV42, IPS, 1920x1200, 16" | Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 B160UAN01.K, IPS, 1920x1200, 16" | LG Gram 16 (2021) LG Philips LP160WQ1-SPA1, IPS, 2560x1600, 16" | SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H BOE07D8, IPS, 1920x1080, 15.6" | LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G LG Display LP160WU1-SPH1, IPS, 1280x1200, 16" | HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA InfoVision X156NVF8 R1, I, 1920x1080, 15.6" | HP ZBook Firefly 16 G9-6B897EA BOE0A02, IPS, 1920x1200, 16" | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Display | 8% | 16% | -12% | -48% | -8% | -4% | |
| Display P3 Coverage | 71.4 | 80.1 12% | 95.8 34% | 64.5 -10% | 36 -50% | 68.1 -5% | |
| sRGB Coverage | 99.3 | 100 1% | 99.8 1% | 86.2 -13% | 55 -45% | 95 -4% | 96.1 -3% |
| AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage | 73.2 | 80.5 10% | 83.8 14% | 62.9 -14% | 37 -49% | 65 -11% | 70 -4% |
| Response Times | 26% | -5% | -58% | -13% | -34% | -16% | |
| Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * | 35.5 ? | 27 ? 24% | 44 ? -24% | 58.4 ? -65% | 38 ? -7% | 47 ? -32% | 52.8 ? -49% |
| Response Time Black / White * | 23.5 ? | 17 ? 28% | 20 ? 15% | 35.2 ? -50% | 28 ? -19% | 32 ? -36% | 19.5 ? 17% |
| PWM Frequency | 56.7 | 312 ? | |||||
| Screen | -34% | -53% | -51% | -60% | -39% | -30% | |
| Brightness middle | 865 | 404 -53% | 331 -62% | 329 -62% | 299 -65% | 802 -7% | 526 -39% |
| Brightness | 771 | 391 -49% | 309 -60% | 316 -59% | 270 -65% | 702 -9% | 499 -35% |
| Brightness Distribution | 72 | 80 11% | 88 22% | 92 28% | 85 18% | 77 7% | 93 29% |
| Black Level * | 0.3 | 0.29 3% | 0.22 27% | 0.3 -0% | 0.265 12% | 0.245 18% | 0.31 -3% |
| Contrast | 2883 | 1393 -52% | 1505 -48% | 1097 -62% | 1128 -61% | 3273 14% | 1697 -41% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 2.4 | 3.9 -63% | 4.64 -93% | 5.4 -125% | 4.57 -90% | 6.22 -159% | 3.6 -50% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 5.8 | 8.5 -47% | 9.82 -69% | 10.1 -74% | 8.92 -54% | 9.92 -71% | 6.6 -14% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 calibrated * | 1.5 | 1.7 -13% | 3.16 -111% | 2.5 -67% | 5.02 -235% | 2.6 -73% | |
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 3.8 | 5.4 -42% | 6.9 -82% | 5.1 -34% | 3.8 -0% | 7.69 -102% | 5.5 -45% |
| Gamma | 2.36 93% | 2.21 100% | 2.34 94% | 2.1 105% | 2.6 85% | 2.75 80% | 2.02 109% |
| CCT | 6922 94% | 6242 104% | 7904 82% | 7609 85% | 6142 106% | 6135 106% | 6527 100% |
| Color Space (Percent of AdobeRGB 1998) | 75.1 | 65 | |||||
| Color Space (Percent of sRGB) | 100 | 95 | |||||
| Total Average (Program / Settings) | 0% /
-16% | -14% /
-31% | -40% /
-43% | -40% /
-51% | -27% /
-33% | -17% /
-23% |
* ... smaller is better
We measured the panel with our professional CalMAN software (X-Rite i1 Pro 2) and are fairly pleased with the results ex-works, for a business laptop. The display has a minimal cast that is hardly visible during normal use and the color deviations to the sRGB reference color space are very low. Activating Sure View increases deviation. We would not recommend processing images in this mode.
Our calibration (which is available to download for free above) further improves color display. The panel covers the entire sRGB color space .
Display Response Times
| ↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
|---|---|---|
| 23.5 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 13.4 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 10.1 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. » 51 % 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 | ||
| 35.5 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 17.1 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 18.1 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. » 47 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is similar to the average of all tested devices (32.3 ms). | ||
Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)
| Screen flickering / PWM detected | 56.7 Hz |  | |
The display backlight flickers at 56.7 Hz (worst case, e.g., utilizing PWM) . The frequency of 56.7 Hz is very low, so the flickering may cause eyestrain and headaches after extended use. In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 8437 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 343500) Hz was measured. | |||
Outdoors, it becomes difficult to use the laptop if you're not sitting right in front of the display. The viewing angles look fairly good in the following images, but the camera hides the limitations to a certain extent. Subjectively, the limitations are greater, which you can also see in the outdoor pictures.
Overall, we cannot recommend the Sure View panel. You won't get much out of its high brightness levels in practice, but you will quickly become annoyed by the restricted viewing angles and contrast, even when the Sure View function is deactivated. The matte low-power display, which we already reviewed in the identical ZBook Firefly 16 G9, is clearly the better option overall.
Performance - Ryzen 7 Pro and single-channel RAM
The Ryzen 7 Pro 6850U, its integrated graphics card Radeon 680M and 16 GB of RAM provide the EliteBook 865 G9 with more than enough power for a business notebook. The only limitation is the RAM configuration, which consists of a single 16-GB module. This makes upgrading quite easy but restricts GPU performance unnecessafrily. We would highly recommend either purchasing a model with dual-channel RAM or installing a second module.
Processor - AMD Ryzen 7 Pro 6850U
The AMD Ryzen 7 Pro 6850U is a mobile processor with 8 cores (16 threads) and additional security functions compared to the regular consumer chip Ryzen 7 6800U. HP's power limits are fairly conservative and allow the processor to access up to 30 watts for a short time. Energy consumption then stabilizes at 25 watts after a few seconds. The CPU performance is particularly good and stable in our multi-core tests. The ThinkPad T16 G1 equipped with the Core i5-1240P is slightly faster in the first CineBench run but then soon drops and falls behind the AMD EliteBook. The current Intel Alder Lake chips with their Performance cores fare better in single-core tests.
Performance remains stable when running on battery. You can find further CPU benchmark results here.
Cinebench R15 Multi loop
Cinebench R23: Multi Core | Single Core
Cinebench R20: CPU (Multi Core) | CPU (Single Core)
Cinebench R15: CPU Multi 64Bit | CPU Single 64Bit
Blender: v2.79 BMW27 CPU
7-Zip 18.03: 7z b 4 | 7z b 4 -mmt1
Geekbench 5.5: Multi-Core | Single-Core
HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2: 4k Preset
LibreOffice : 20 Documents To PDF
R Benchmark 2.5: Overall mean
| CPU Performance Rating | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U | |
| Average of class Office | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G -2! | |
| Cinebench R23 / Multi Core | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (9923 - 11026, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average of class Office (1577 - 20399, n=88, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| Cinebench R23 / Single Core | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| Average of class Office (618 - 1958, n=88, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (1409 - 1520, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| Cinebench R20 / CPU (Multi Core) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (3784 - 4457, n=6) | |
| Average of class Office (590 - 8086, n=86, last 2 years) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| Cinebench R20 / CPU (Single Core) | |
| Average of class Office (229 - 766, n=86, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (587 - 596, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| Cinebench R15 / CPU Multi 64Bit | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (1652 - 1901, n=6) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average of class Office (246 - 3132, n=90, last 2 years) | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| Cinebench R15 / CPU Single 64Bit | |
| Average of class Office (98 - 294, n=88, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (228 - 241, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| Blender / v2.79 BMW27 CPU | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| Average of class Office (163 - 1956, n=89, last 2 years) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (282 - 307, n=6) | |
| 7-Zip 18.03 / 7z b 4 | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (44011 - 50871, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average of class Office (7532 - 76886, n=90, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| 7-Zip 18.03 / 7z b 4 -mmt1 | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (5057 - 5542, n=6) | |
| Average of class Office (2972 - 6497, n=89, last 2 years) | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| Geekbench 5.5 / Multi-Core | |
| Average of class Office (1018 - 14192, n=88, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (7044 - 8050, n=6) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| Geekbench 5.5 / Single-Core | |
| Average of class Office (510 - 2096, n=89, last 2 years) | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (1433 - 1533, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2 / 4k Preset | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (11.7 - 13.5, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average of class Office (1.72 - 22.4, n=87, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| LibreOffice / 20 Documents To PDF | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| Average of class Office (31.3 - 129.6, n=87, last 2 years) | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (46.3 - 58, n=6) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| R Benchmark 2.5 / Overall mean | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| Average of class Office (0.4098 - 1.135, n=86, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (0.507 - 0.544, n=6) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
* ... 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 | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average of class Office | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G -1! | |
| AIDA64 / FP32 Ray-Trace | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (11272 - 12485, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average of class Office (763 - 31245, n=88, last 2 years) | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| AIDA64 / FPU Julia | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (72242 - 79484, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average of class Office (4113 - 125394, n=88, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| AIDA64 / CPU SHA3 | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (2419 - 2638, n=6) | |
| Average of class Office (287 - 5398, n=88, last 2 years) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| AIDA64 / CPU Queen | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (86644 - 92945, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| Average of class Office (8185 - 115197, n=88, last 2 years) | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| AIDA64 / FPU SinJulia | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (10917 - 11637, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average of class Office (404 - 18321, n=88, last 2 years) | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| AIDA64 / FPU Mandel | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (39609 - 43843, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average of class Office (2075 - 66922, n=88, last 2 years) | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| AIDA64 / CPU AES | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average of class Office (7254 - 155900, n=88, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (45568 - 50859, n=6) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| AIDA64 / CPU ZLib | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (641 - 713, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average of class Office (78 - 1366, n=88, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| AIDA64 / FP64 Ray-Trace | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (5967 - 6637, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average of class Office (432 - 17834, n=88, last 2 years) | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| AIDA64 / CPU PhotoWorxx | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| Average of class Office (4814 - 55359, n=88, last 2 years) | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (19707 - 26584, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
System Performance
The EliteBook 865 G9's subjective performance is very good. This is a responsive device that did not show any stability issues while testing. The test unit achieved good results in the synthetic benchmarks despite its single-channel RAM configuration, which only becomes noticeable in the AIDA Memory tests.
CrossMark: Overall | Productivity | Creativity | Responsiveness
| PCMark 10 / Score | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (5873 - 6152, n=6) | |
| Average of class Office (2463 - 7578, n=80, last 2 years) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| PCMark 10 / Essentials | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| Average of class Office (5575 - 20841, n=80, last 2 years) | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (9151 - 10263, n=6) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| PCMark 10 / Productivity | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (8435 - 8891, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average of class Office (3041 - 10415, n=80, last 2 years) | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| PCMark 10 / Digital Content Creation | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (6796 - 7417, n=6) | |
| Average of class Office (2049 - 11108, n=80, last 2 years) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| CrossMark / Overall | |
| Average of class Office (348 - 1891, n=84, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (1154 - 1430, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| CrossMark / Productivity | |
| Average of class Office (393 - 1870, n=84, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (1188 - 1426, n=6) | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| CrossMark / Creativity | |
| Average of class Office (340 - 2155, n=84, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (1180 - 1523, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| CrossMark / Responsiveness | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| Average of class Office (258 - 2017, n=84, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M (990 - 1243, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| PCMark 10 Score | 5873 points | |
Help | ||
| AIDA64 / Memory Copy | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| Average of class Office (7158 - 108783, n=89, last 2 years) | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (31003 - 48605, n=6) | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| AIDA64 / Memory Read | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| Average of class Office (7325 - 127282, n=89, last 2 years) | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (34682 - 45079, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| AIDA64 / Memory Write | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| Average of class Office (7579 - 117935, n=89, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (34532 - 51096, n=6) | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| AIDA64 / Memory Latency | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U (92 - 135.3, n=6) | |
| Average of class Office (7.6 - 185.2, n=86, last 2 years) | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
* ... smaller is better
DPC latencies
Our standardized Latency test (surfing the web, 4K on YouTube, CPU load) shows that the EliteBook 865 G9 (with its current BIOS version) does not have any limitations and is suited to real-time audio applications.
| DPC Latencies / LatencyMon - interrupt to process latency (max), Web, Youtube, Prime95 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| LG Gram 16 (2021) | |
* ... smaller is better
Storage Devices
The AMD EliteBook supports fast PCIe 4.0 SSDs, but our test unit is only equipped with a PCIe 3.0 2242 SSD. The Samsung PM991 drive has a capacity of 512 GB of which 428 GB remain available after the first start-up. The transfer rates are not great at a maximum of 2.7 GB/s, but they should not cause you any real limitations in everyday use compared to the faster PCIe 4.0 drives. Read up on further SSD benchmarks here.
* ... smaller is better
Disk Throttling: DiskSpd Read Loop, Queue Depth 8
Graphics Performance
The processor's integrated AMD Radeon 680M is responsible for graphics performance and is one of the fastest iGPUs currently available. Unfortunately, its performance is limited by the single-channel RAM configuration, which places our test unit on par with the Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7 with 96 EUs.
The Lenovo ThinkPad T14 G3 is equipped with the same AMD processor and has the same power limits but features a second RAM module. The difference is impressive: depending on the test, the Lenovo's GPU performance is between 45 and 75 percent better than that of our test unit.
All this should not play a big role in your everyday use of the laptop as a business device. But if you are interested in playing the occasional game, you may want to upgrade the RAM configuration or you will be limited to the lowest level of detail on almost all games.
The graphics performance remains stable both under permanent load and when running on battery. Find out more GPU benchmarks here.
| 3DMark 11 Performance | 6852 points | |
| 3DMark Cloud Gate Standard Score | 22343 points | |
| 3DMark Fire Strike Score | 3719 points | |
| 3DMark Time Spy Score | 1589 points | |
Help | ||
| Blender / v3.3 Classroom HIP/AMD | |
| Average of class Office (296 - 1133, n=12, last 2 years) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average AMD Radeon 680M (270 - 555, n=34) | |
| Blender / v3.3 Classroom CPU | |
| LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 | |
| Average of class Office (245 - 3964, n=85, last 2 years) | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 | |
| Average AMD Radeon 680M (389 - 980, n=35) | |
* ... smaller is better
Witcher 3 FPS diagram
| low | med. | high | ultra | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GTA V (2015) | 87.7 | 78.3 | 25.9 | 11.3 |
| The Witcher 3 (2015) | 74 | 23 | 14.3 | |
| Dota 2 Reborn (2015) | 108.9 | 83.5 | 55 | 48 |
| Final Fantasy XV Benchmark (2018) | 37.5 | 19.4 | 14.8 | |
| X-Plane 11.11 (2018) | 41.4 | 32.4 | 29.3 | |
| Far Cry 5 (2018) | 39 | 23 | 21 | 20 |
| Strange Brigade (2018) | 72.9 | 30 | 25.3 | 22 |
| F1 2021 (2021) | 103.2 | 49.7 | 37 | 16.1 |
| Farming Simulator 22 (2021) | 86 | 40 | 30 | 27 |
| F1 22 (2022) | 44.1 | 38 | 30 | 7.88 |
Emissions - very quiet EliteBook
System Noise
HP has equipped the EliteBook 865 G9 with a fan and a heat pipe. The cooling system is not very active due to the moderate power limits. This also means that the notebook is very quiet. Under normal load, you will likely hear a low whirring at a maximum of 29.1 dB(A). And even during the stress test, system noise will not exceed 32.9 dB(A). This makes the HP one of the quietest devices in our comparison field. Only the LG Gram 16 is even quieter (but provides significantly less CPU performance). We did not hear any other electronic noises.
Noise Level
| Idle |
| 23 / 23 / 23 dB(A) |
| Load |
| 29.1 / 32.9 dB(A) |
 | ||
30 dB silent 40 dB(A) audible 50 dB(A) loud |
||
min:  , med:  , max:  Earthworks M23R, Arta (15 cm distance) environment noise: 23 dB(A) | ||
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 Radeon 680M, R7 PRO 6850U, Samsung PM991 MZVLQ512HBLU | Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 Iris Xe G7 80EUs, i5-1240P, Samsung PM9A1 MZVL2512HCJQ | LG Gram 16 (2021) Iris Xe G7 96EUs, i7-1165G7, SK Hynix PC601 1TB HFS001TD9TNG | SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H Iris Xe G7 96EUs, i7-11370H, Samsung SSD 980 Pro 1TB MZ-V8P1T0BW | LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G Vega 6, R3 5300U, Samsung PM991 MZVLQ512HBLU | HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA Iris Xe G7 96EUs, i7-1165G7, Samsung PM981a MZVLB1T0HBLR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Noise | -0% | -9% | -25% | -12% | -10% | |
| off / environment * | 23 | 23.3 -1% | 26 -13% | 24.4 -6% | 25 -9% | 26 -13% |
| Idle Minimum * | 23 | 23.3 -1% | 26 -13% | 24.4 -6% | 25 -9% | 26 -13% |
| Idle Average * | 23 | 23.3 -1% | 26 -13% | 24.4 -6% | 25 -9% | 26 -13% |
| Idle Maximum * | 23 | 23.3 -1% | 26 -13% | 26.7 -16% | 25.4 -10% | 26.2 -14% |
| Load Average * | 29.1 | 25.1 14% | 30.8 -6% | 43.8 -51% | 36.2 -24% | 29.5 -1% |
| Witcher 3 ultra * | 29.1 | 32.1 -10% | 43.8 -51% | |||
| Load Maximum * | 32.9 | 34 -3% | 31.1 5% | 44.8 -36% | 36.4 -11% | 34 -3% |
* ... smaller is better
Temperature
The EliteBook 865 G9's surface temperatures remain under control at all times - despite the quiet fans. Temperatures remain normal at low load and only heat up to a maximum of 47 °C in one area on the bottom of the base unit under maximum load. This does not affect the keyboard nor prevent you from using the device on your lap.
The processor starts our stress test at 30 watts but then soon drops to 25 watts for about 10 minutes. After that, consumption further reduces to 23 watts. We did not encounter any performance impacts after the stress test was finished.
(+) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 39.4 °C / 103 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 47.6 °C / 118 F, compared to the average of 36.8 °C / 98 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 23 °C / 73 F, compared to the device average of 29.5 °C / 85 F.
(±) Playing The Witcher 3, the average temperature for the upper side is 34.1 °C / 93 F, compared to the device average of 29.5 °C / 85 F.
(+) The palmrests and touchpad are cooler than skin temperature with a maximum of 28.7 °C / 83.7 F and are therefore cool to the touch.
(±) The average temperature of the palmrest area of similar devices was 27.6 °C / 81.7 F (-1.1 °C / -2 F).
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, AMD Radeon 680M | Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 Intel Core i5-1240P, Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7 80EUs | LG Gram 16 (2021) Intel Core i7-1165G7, Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7 96EUs | SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H Intel Core i7-11370H, Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7 96EUs | LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G AMD Ryzen 3 5300U, AMD Radeon RX Vega 6 (Ryzen 4000/5000) | HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA Intel Core i7-1165G7, Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7 96EUs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heat | -21% | -7% | 1% | -6% | -6% | |
| Maximum Upper Side * | 39.4 | 45 -14% | 46.9 -19% | 39.1 1% | 39.5 -0% | 37.9 4% |
| Maximum Bottom * | 47.6 | 42.8 10% | 45.1 5% | 43.4 9% | 45 5% | 39 18% |
| Idle Upper Side * | 23.6 | 33 -40% | 26.4 -12% | 24.3 -3% | 26.7 -13% | 31 -31% |
| Idle Bottom * | 24.1 | 33.6 -39% | 24.1 -0% | 25.1 -4% | 28.2 -17% | 27.8 -15% |
* ... smaller is better
Speakers
The two stereo speakers produce a good, full-bodied sound for a business laptop. While the speakers can't quite compare to high-quality multimedia devices such as the Apple MacBook Pro 16, they perform better than the direct competitor Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1.
HP EliteBook 865 G9 audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (82.5 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 19.6% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (10.9% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 1.2% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (2.2% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 3.5% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (4% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(+) | overall sound is linear (13.8% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 6% of all tested devices in this class were better, 4% similar, 90% worse
» The best had a delta of 7%, average was 21%, worst was 53%
Compared to all devices tested
» 14% of all tested devices were better, 4% similar, 83% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 24%, worst was 134%
Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 audio analysis
(±) | speaker loudness is average but good (75.16 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 20.5% lower than median
(-) | bass is not linear (15.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 2.3% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (4.1% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 3.2% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (5.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (17% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 21% of all tested devices in this class were better, 7% similar, 72% worse
» The best had a delta of 7%, average was 21%, worst was 53%
Compared to all devices tested
» 28% of all tested devices were better, 8% similar, 64% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 24%, worst was 134%
Energy Management - AMD EliteBook with impressive stamina
Power Consumption
The consumption rates clearly show the impact of the bright 16-inch display: while idling, we measured a maximum consumption of 14.1 watts for the EliteBook 865 G9 with a Sure View panel. The identical ZBook Firefly 16 G9 equipped with the regular Full HD panel (~500 cd/m²) only consumed around 9 watts. Under load, the AMD system remains very efficient with a peak of 56 watts and continuous consumption of approx. 48 watts. When running on standby, consumption is slightly too high at 1.6 watts.
The USB C power supply has a rated output of 110 watts, with a maximum of 100 watts delivered to the laptop. The other 10 watts are available via the additional USB A port that can be used to recharge a smartphone, for example. The power supply has no problems with maximum consumption and there are also enough reserves to charge the battery under load.
| Off / Standby | 0.38 / 1.6 Watt |
| Idle | 5.3 / 12.8 / 14.1 Watt |
| Load |
48.5 / 56.6 Watt |
   
| |
Key:
min: ,
med: ,
max: Metrahit Energy | |
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 R7 PRO 6850U, Radeon 680M, Samsung PM991 MZVLQ512HBLU, IPS, 1920x1200, 16" | Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 i5-1240P, Iris Xe G7 80EUs, Samsung PM9A1 MZVL2512HCJQ, IPS, 1920x1200, 16" | LG Gram 16 (2021) i7-1165G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, SK Hynix PC601 1TB HFS001TD9TNG, IPS, 2560x1600, 16" | SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H i7-11370H, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, Samsung SSD 980 Pro 1TB MZ-V8P1T0BW, IPS, 1920x1080, 15.6" | LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G R3 5300U, Vega 6, Samsung PM991 MZVLQ512HBLU, IPS, 1280x1200, 16" | HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA i7-1165G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, Samsung PM981a MZVLB1T0HBLR, I, 1920x1080, 15.6" | HP ZBook Firefly 16 G9-6B897EA i7-1265U, T550 Laptop GPU, Samsung PM9A1 MZVL21T0HCLR, IPS, 1920x1200, 16" | Average AMD Radeon 680M | Average of class Office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power Consumption | 27% | 26% | 16% | 35% | 19% | 5% | -1% | 19% | |
| Idle Minimum * | 5.3 | 2.9 45% | 3.8 28% | 4.5 15% | 3.7 30% | 5.8 -9% | 4.5 15% | 6.76 ? -28% | 4.61 ? 13% |
| Idle Average * | 12.8 | 6 53% | 9 30% | 8.5 34% | 6.8 47% | 8.4 34% | 8 37% | 8.87 ? 31% | 7.53 ? 41% |
| Idle Maximum * | 14.1 | 6.9 51% | 11.3 20% | 9.1 35% | 8.6 39% | 9.9 30% | 8.7 38% | 10.5 ? 26% | 8.94 ? 37% |
| Load Average * | 48.5 | 27.3 44% | 35.2 27% | 43.5 10% | 30 38% | 33 32% | 48.3 -0% | 53.2 ? -10% | 42.2 ? 13% |
| Witcher 3 ultra * | 48.7 | 42.6 13% | 37.5 23% | 30.2 38% | 34.3 30% | 45.3 7% | |||
| Load Maximum * | 56.6 | 81.53 -44% | 43.5 23% | 69.4 -23% | 45 20% | 60 -6% | 94.7 -67% | 70.1 ? -24% | 62.4 ? -10% |
* ... smaller is better
Power consumption Witcher 3 / stress test
Power consumption with external monitor
Battery Life
The ElieBook is equipped with a 76-Wh battery that enables a very good battery life and even beats the ThinkPad T16 G1 (86 Wh). At a brightness of 150 cd/m², our test video continued playing for 18.5 hours, thanks to the AMD iGPU's highly efficient video decoder. The Wi-Fi test lasted 15 hours, which is also a very good result. Setting the display to maximum brightness reduces the battery life to about 7 hours. The low-power display should provide even better results.
It takes about 2 hours to fully recharge the device when running, but only 32 minutes to reach 50 percent.
| HP EliteBook 865 G9 R7 PRO 6850U, Radeon 680M, 76 Wh | Lenovo ThinkPad T16 G1 21BWS00200 i5-1240P, Iris Xe G7 80EUs, 86 Wh | LG Gram 16 (2021) i7-1165G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, 80 Wh | SCHENKER Work 15 Tiger Lake-H i7-11370H, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, 73 Wh | LG Ultra-PC 16 16U70Q-G.AR36G R3 5300U, Vega 6, 72 Wh | HP EliteBook 850 G8 3C7Z8EA i7-1165G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, 56 Wh | Average of class Office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Battery Runtime | 15% | 52% | -18% | 24% | -25% | -17% | |
| H.264 | 1112 | 623 -44% | 1204 8% | 576 -48% | 394 -65% | 755 ? -32% | |
| WiFi v1.3 | 899 | 846 -6% | 943 5% | 614 -32% | 1026 14% | 509 -43% | 669 ? -26% |
| Load | 106 | 208 96% | 258 143% | 132.7 25% | 141 33% | 140 32% | 114.7 ? 8% |
| Reader / Idle | 1713 | 1472 | 1937 | 1254 ? |
Pros
Cons
Verdict - Yes to the EliteBook 865 G9, but without Sure View
The new 16-inch EliteBook 865 G9 has the potential to be one of the best business notebooks on the market. It has a high-quality metal chassis, good input devices, a wide range of ports, and modern connectivity including LTE. The AMD model even features very good, stable CPU performance and an extremely long battery life.
And yet, we cannot recommend our test unit. HP has squandered a lot of GPU power by choosing a single-channel configuration of the RAM and the Sure View display has too many disadvantages that are very noticeable during everyday use. The high brightness may be good, but viewing angles and image quality are very limited as soon as you look at the screen from even a slight angle, even without activating the privacy display filter. The brightness settings are another issue. Sure View has to be activated in order to access brightness levels below 100 cd/m² while the maximum available brightness with the privacy filter on is limited to 150 cd/m², which is often insufficient, particularly when working away from the office (e.g. in the train or in public spaces). These limitations miss the point of the privacy filter.
The new EliteBook 865 G9 is a very good business notebook with a fast AMD processor, a very good keyboard, and a long battery life. We would not recommend the optional Sure View display as it has too many disadvantages for everyday use despite its great brightness.
We would recommend choosing the model with the very good low-power Full-HD display, which we already tested in the identical ZBook Firefly 16 G9. Provided this is combined with a dual-channel RAM configuration, we can wholeheartedly recommend the EliteBook as one of the best business laptops on the market. Compared to its direct competitor, the ThinkPad T16 G1 equipped with the Intel Alder Lake processor, our model's CPU performance is more stable and its iGPU has the potential to be a lot faster. The EliteBook is slightly more compact and its maintenance options are very good.
Price and availability
Our test configuration of the HP EliteBook 865 G9 is available from various online shops, including from HP themselves for $2,600.
HP EliteBook 865 G9
- 12/18/2022 v7 (old)
Andreas Osthoff
Price comparison
