If you want an affordable, big-screen laptop, you might consider the HP 17-cn0025nr. For under $700, you get a sprawling 17.3-inch HD+ display, a typical HP keyboard, and Intel Iris Xe graphics packed into a sleek minimalist chassis.
But while it looks elegant at first glance, the 1600 x 900 pixels screen, average battery life, and less-than-desirable speaker quality may make you do a double-take. We’ve seen several 17-inch laptops with beautiful 4K resolutions, including the Razer Blade Pro 17, but it seems the HP 17-inch laptop didn’t get the memo.
Overall, if you’re willing to forgo Full HD resolution (or above) and need a large display, the HP 17-cn0025nr is a solid buy, especially with its desktop-replacement charm.
HP 17-cn0025nr Specs
- Laptop Class: Personal, Business
- Processor: Intel Core i5-1135G7
- Graphics card: Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7
- Display: 17.3”, HD+ (1600 x 900), TN
- Storage: 256GB SSD
- RAM: 8GB DDR4
- OS: Windows 11 Home
- Battery: 41Wh, 3-cell
- Weight: 4.53 pounds
- Dimensions: 15.78 x 10.15 x 0.78 inches
Design
The HP 17-cn0025nr looks like the smaller HP Pavilion, only that it comes in a larger chassis but keeps the same silver aesthetic. It rocks a minimalist silver body and an easy-to-open lid that you might easily mistake for an HP Envy 17, but the stylized Chrome HP logo on the top is visible enough to give the game away. Nonetheless, this notebook looks elegant and feels luxurious, marking it for a professional laptop.
As expected for a 17-inch laptop, the 17-cn0025nr isn’t the most portable you’ll find around, but it isn’t worse either. This is one chunky boy at 4.53 pounds and 15.78 x 10.15 x 0.78 inches. It’s practically huge compared to the LG Gram 17, which weighs just 3 pounds and measures 15.0 by 10.3 by 0.7 inches. And it’s no surprise that the 15-inch Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 is more portable than the HP 17-inch laptop, at 3.4 pounds and 10.76 x 14.6 x 2.12 inches.
HP makes up for the 17-cn0025nr’s size with many ports. On the left side, there is a USB Type-A port, an HDMI port, a headphone jack, and one USB Type-C port, while the right side features the power jack, a USB Type-A port, and an SD card slot.
Display
The HP 17-cn0025nr’s display isn’t the best when it comes to media creation. It has an HD+ (1600 x 900) resolution screen and an Intel Iris Xe graphics card, but it’s not up to the task of photo or digital artwork. It simply allows you to view and analyze data on a big screen with a wide color gamut and adequate brightness.
If you need a laptop for photo editing, go for a specialized graphics card and a higher screen brightness. In any case, if your ideal notebook doesn’t have a maximum brightness of at least 300 nits in 2021, you should seriously reconsider it. You may look into the MSI Creator 15 or the Razer Blade Stealth 13 for this.
Keyboard and Touchpad
The 17-cn0025nr features a great keyboard that is comfortable to use. The keys offer excellent travel — not as good as the Lenovo ThinkPad T490, but still better than most notebooks in this price range. They are backlit, so you can work late at night without feeling strained.
Another exciting feature of this keyboard is that the power switch is situated on the top-right of the keyboard instead of the side of the chassis. The keycaps are comparable to those on the HP Envy 13; however, there’s enough for a number pad because the HP 17-inch laptop is larger.
The trackpad is a little difficult to use right out of the box, but once you raise the sensitivity level in the settings, it’s simple to use. After reviewing the Asus ZenBook 14, which has the smoothest trackpad, I believe that all other trackpads are inadequate for my needs.
Performance
The HP 17-inch laptop is perfect for daily office use. One of the most appealing features is performance, especially in the model we’re looking at, which has an 11th generation Intel Core i5-1135G7 processor, 8 GB RAM, and 256GB SSD storage. That is an important feature set for a non-gaming laptop used for the workplace or academics.
As earlier mentioned, this is not a gaming laptop. Despite this, the overlap in gear used by professional creatives and gamers makes it challenging to distinguish between the two, except for the graphics card option. Although you can only play basic games on the HP 17 laptop, it’s better used for work and college.
With that in mind, remember it’s not the Acer Predator Helios 300 or the ASUS TUF Gaming A15. You can’t go wrong with this notebook if you’re looking for a work pc that will flip around and deliver on your day-to-day productivity tasks.
Battery Life
The 17-cn0025nr offers good battery life – around 7 hours 26 minutes, with the display’s brightness maxed at 150 nits. HP’s official spec sheet claims over 8 hours, but that figure only adds up if you’re not doing much on the laptop.
Bottom Line
The HP 17-cn0025nr is a decent desktop replacement laptop. Our critical quibbles with it are the not-so-bright HD+ screen resolution and its bulk build quality, but they shouldn’t be issues if it spends most of its time on your desk. It also offers a comfortable typing experience, is well priced, and has good performance and connectivity options.
A few years back, all of this would have made the HP 17-inch laptop a kickass notebook for fans of big-screen machines. In 2022, however, you have better options than desktop-replacement buyers of yesteryear did.
If a big screen on a laptop is what you’re after, you can get better value for your buck by choosing a 17-inch gaming notebook, some of which are thinner and lighter than the HP 17-cn0025nr; take, for example, the 17-inch iteration of the Acer Nitro 5.
Otherwise, if you want a huge screen but are not willing to sacrifice portability, the relatively expensive LG Gram 17 (2021) offers toughly the same size display at about half the carry weight.
Finally, if money is an object and you’re after the ultimate large laptop, the HP 17-cn0025nr is a solid choice.
Recommended Configuration
HP 17-inch Laptop, 11th Generation Intel Core i5-1135G7, Intel Iris Xe Graphics, 8 GB RAM, 256 GB SSD, Windows 11 Home (17-cn0025nr,Natural Silver)
$589.99 in stock
2 used from $469.88
The Review
HP 17-cn0025nr
The HP 17-cn0025nr is a decent desktop replacement laptop. Our key quibbles with it are the not-so-bright HD+ screen resolution and its bulk build quality, but they shouldn’t be issues if it spends most of its time on your desk.
PROS
- Plenty of ports
- Decent performance
- Minimalist styling
- Comfortable keyboard
CONS
- Screen would be brighter
- Lacks Thunderbolt 3
Review Breakdown
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EDITORS RATING
