HP Envy 23 TouchSmart: Review

HP Envy 23 is a TouchSmart All-in-one PC equipped with Windows 8 and embellished by the Full HD screen and Beats by an audio certificate. 

The world of desktop PCs now accounts for a small share of the market, dominated by mobile devices, notebooks and tablets on everyone, but that does not mean that it is a market stale and poor in ideas. The All-in-one PC, are keeping afloat in this industry, and HP contributes with its latest proposal, the Envy 23 TouchSmart. Hp Envy 23 TouchSmart is equipped with the new operating system Windows 8, and as the name implies, uses a multitouch screen 23″ with full HD resolution.

In its slim design, the TouchSmart PC 23 appears as an All-in-one conventional, although not face to miss anything, including a powerful Intel Core i5 processor and a certified integrated Beats sound bar. The ambition of HP is to go beyond the classic PC, both thanks to the touch of Windows 8, both through the integration of a TV tuner for digital terrestrial television (HD compatible), making of HP Envy 23 TouchSmart a attractive solution, “all in one” for home entertainment.

HP Envy 23 TouchSmart: Features

The design of the HP Envy 23 TouchSmart is taken care of while not particularly elegant, with the wide plastic base which represents one of the hallmarks: a metal bar in the shape of a ” U ” that goes embracing the wide screen at the sides. The solution adopted by HP is definitely original and also pleasant to the sight, and fairly functional thanks to the pins on the side on which the screen is locked, that allow a range of about 30° to obtain the correct viewing angle.

Below the screen are the aforementioned soundbar, decorated with the chrome logo HP. The display panel is edge-to-edge, which helps to make the basic design. The structure of the HP TouchSmart Envy 23 is slim, with the back bent that helps to create the illusion that it is even thinner. On the left side, we find the expansion interfaces you use most frequently: two USB 3.0 ports, microphone jack and one headphone Beats and multi-format memory card reader.

On the back are integrated all the other: Four USB 2.0, Gigabit Ethernet, audio Beats accompanied by a dedicated output to the subwoofer, the TV antenna input and HDMI output. On the right side, there is the optical drive Blu-ray, unfortunately cart-type and slot-in, a choice is not the height of minimalist elegance of this All-in-one. Finally, the traditional HD webcam stands at the front, well embedded in the upper frame of the screen.

The plastic base, though not up to the overall quality, below the screen allows you to store your keyboard and wireless mouse, for both discrete precision and ergonomics. Finally, HP has also thought about the possibility of hanging the HP Envy 23 TouchSmart to a wall or bracket: behind a plastic panel are well camouflaged clips to the VESA system, available as an optional accessory.

HP Envy 23 TouchSmart: Performance

Hp Envy 23 TouchSmart comes as a single solution for home entertainment and from this, point of view does not betray (or almost) expectations. The screen 23 ” with IPS panel and shines 1080p resolution for sharp image, color accuracy and black level while the contrast is average.

The viewing angle, as expected, is excellent. The glossy bothering to reflections that generates in the presence of several light sources, but the high brightness on the screen makes up much of this unpleasant effect, canceling it in a room with moderate ambient light.

The vision of video content is a Full HD feast for the eyes, with bright colors, high detail even in dark areas within the image and excellent flow in the action scenes more excited. The label Beats Audio is well spent: integrated speakers in the soundbar does not stand for power, but generates a full, clear sound, especially in the mids and treble.

In deeper bass, unfortunately, the small speakers are in crisis, with a distortion that is felt at maximum volume. The HP Envy 23 TouchSmart will not be able to fill a large environment with its sound, but at an intermediate level of volume – enough for a bedroom, for example – the experience is really rewarding even for the most trained ears.

The HP Envy 23 TouchSmart does not only play multimedia content in high definition via streaming or through the integrated Blu-ray optical drive: also has a handsome HD DVB-T tuner controllable via the included remote control as a traditional TV with a user interface minimal but functional. Used as a traditional PC, the HP Envy 23 TouchSmart offers average performance: the Intel Core i5-3330S 2.7 GHz is supported by 8 GB of DDR3 memory and an AMD Radeon HD 7450A graphics card with 1GB of dedicated memory unfortunately not so powerful to allow you to play at full resolution and maximum detail. The storage capacity of 1 TB is enough to store easily videos, photos and music. In terms of wireless connectivity, finally, nothing is missing: Bluetooth and Wi-Fi class N.

The HP Envy 23 TouchSmart is based on the 64-bit version of Windows 8, which operates smoothly and without hesitation. The screen confirms its excellent quality even in multitouch control, sensitive and accurate, and compatible with up to 10 fingers gesture. Unfortunately, the ecosystem is still limited, but the Windows Store is growing day by day and in any case, no shortage of essential app for home entertainment and fun.

HP comes to help the user equipping its new all-in-one with the MediaSmart suite that facilitates the import, processing and sharing on social network’s photos and videos. The package Universal Music, along with Beats Audio console, instead covers very well the audio portion: on one side, a large catalog of music to listen to stream, the other full control of the options to improve the sound according to personal preferences and the media played. HP completes the equipment software with the trial version of Norton Internet Security.

Conclusions

The premises of HP are confirmed by our findings. The HP TouchSmart Envy 23 was born and designed for multimedia. Is like an elegant and effective solution all-in-one to be placed in the living room or bedroom, nice to see and use. Overall the system does not offer very high performance and, apart from the extent set out in the gaming industry, having held in every task which is responsible for: home entertainment, browsing online and traditional activities for study and personal productivity.