HP EliteBook X G1a 14 AI review: Supercharged business laptop with AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX

The AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375 CPU helps to distinguish the EliteBook X G1a 14 AI from other 14-inch business laptops. Performance is very fast for the size and category to be a worthwhile investment for users or content creators who want more power than what the typical U-series subnotebook can provide. The comfortable keys and respectable battery life make the system better than expected for travelers as well when considering its speedy HX-series processor.

While the system is faster than it looks, it's also a bit heavier than it looks as well. Most U-series alternatives like the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 13 or Asus ExpertBook P5 are noticeably lighter and with more display options than the EliteBook X G1a 14 AI. The lack of WAN might detract certain users who rely on the feature while content creators may want to consider the OLED panel for P3 colors and the higher refresh rate. It's also a bummer that the standard limited warranty is just one year instead of three years despite the starting price of over $2000 and the fact that the EliteBook X is a higher-end business machine.

HP is now shipping the EliteBook X G1a 14 starting at $2100 for the Ryzen AI 7 1200p IPS configuration up to $2750 for the Ryzen AI 9 HX 1880p OLED configuration. Alternatively, Amazon has select SKUs starting at $2100.

The high-end EliteBook X G1a 14 is a direct successor to the EliteBook 1040 series as HP is changing up the naming convention moving forward to be easier for users to understand. In this case, the 'X' replaces the '1000', the '14' replaces the '40' to represent inches, the 'a' represents AMD, and the 'G1' represents the first generation with the new name.

Our test unit is a middle configuration with the Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375, 32 GB LPDDR5x RAM, and 1200p IPS display for approximately $2200 USD. Other configurations are available with the lesser Ryzen AI 7 PRO 360 or pricier 1800p OLED touchscreen. The model is notable for being one of the few 14-inch business laptops with Zen 5 HX-series PRO processor options.

Alternatives in this space include other high-end 14-inch office laptops like the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon, Dell Latitude 7450 2-in-1, or Asus ExpertBook P5.

(February 25, 2025 update: The OLED panel features 120 Hz and P3 colors while the IPS panel is limited to 60 Hz and sRGB.)

More HP reviews:

• Pavilion 16
• EliteBook 845 G11
• OmniBook X AI 14
• ZBook Studio 16 G11
• Envy 17

The bright gray aluminum alloy chassis should look recognizable to existing EliteBook owners. It's resistant to twisting and bending even around the display for strong first impressions, but there is still some warping when pressing down the center of the outer lid.

There are several visual differences when compared to the outgoing EliteBook 1040 including the sharper and flatter edges and corners, larger ventilation grilles along the bottom cover, redesigned speaker grilles, and the use of fewer screws for even easier servicing. The small changes add up for a slightly sleeker machine.

The model swaps out a USB-A port for a USB-C port when compared to the outgoing model. The change allows for charging on either side of the unit whereas the EliteBook 1040 G10 can only be charged along the left edge.

Note that only two of the three USB-C ports support Thunderbolt 4 or 40 Gbps speeds.

The 5 MP webcam is of lower resolution than the 9 MP sensor on the OmniBook Ultra 14. Image quality is otherwise satisfactory for meetings or video streams. Both IR and a physical shutter come standard.

HP boasts 80 percent recycled aluminum for the outer cover, 50 percent recycled plastic for the keycaps, 30 percent recycled ocean-bound plastic for the speakers, 20 percent recycled cooking oil for the plastic bezels, and 50 percent recycled copper for the cooling solution. The packaging is also paper and cardboard with only a bit of plastic around the AC adapter.

The retail box includes no extras outside of the usual paperwork and AC adapter.

Unfortunately, the standard warranty in the US is only one year instead of the three years that we've come to expect from flagship Elite series models.

The keyboard is GS Mark compliant for an optimal ergonomic typing experience. Key travel is relatively deep at 1.5 mm while feedback is uniform and sharper than a Lenovo IdeaPad or Dell XPS. Clatter is average and not overly high-pitched, either.

We set MyHP to Performance mode prior to running the benchmarks below. The two power profiles in MyHP (Smart Sense and Performance) correlate with the Windows Balanced and Performance profiles, respectively. Changing one setting will automatically change the other unlike on older versions of MyHP.

CPU performance is a significant boost at ~2x over most other 14-inch business laptops where Intel options are much more common. The Ryzen AI 9 HX PRO 375 runs at a higher power envelope than Intel Lunar Lake or Raptor Lake-U and the advantages really show.

Dropping down from our Ryzen AI 9 HX SKU to the Ryzen AI 7 PRO 360 option is expected to impact performance by as much as 35 percent based on our time with the Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6. The performance difference is rather significant between the two processor options.