HP Pavilion Aero 13 Review

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

For those who prioritize specs over aesthetics, the HP Pavilion Aero 13 laptop is an excellent option. Offering both casual and work use with its modern design, this reliable performer delivers solid results without breaking the bank.

HP Pavilion products have historically been seen as its mainstream line when compared with their higher-end Envy and Spectre lines, however the Aero has greatly altered this perception.

Designed with the environment in mind

The HP Pavilion Aero 13 was created with the environment in mind. As HP’s lightest AMD-based consumer laptop and using ocean plastics for construction materials, this laptop offers more screen real estate without increasing in size – perfect for watching movies and playing games on-the-go!

The Pavilion is powered by an AMD Ryzen 5 series CPU and features 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. A more powerful model with an AMD Ryzen 7 processor and additional RAM may also be available; though more expensive, these ultraportables remain an attractive choice for people seeking affordable yet lightweight ultraportables.

Connectivity-wise, the Pavilion features a Realtek Wi-Fi 6 AX201 modem and Bluetooth 5.2 technology. I never experienced any connectivity issues during my time using it and was easily able to stream HD videos over Wi-Fi with download speeds below 80Mbps – another plus is its Gigabit Ethernet port!

HP has made sure the Pavilion laptop is an excellent option for anyone who prefers working from their laptop. Its 16GB of RAM easily handled multiple Chrome tabs and light gaming. While its AMD Radeon graphics may not meet AAA game benchmarks, they certainly get the job done.

Battery life of the ThinkPad X1 Nano was impressive; we managed to test its endurance using PCMark 10 benchmark test with 150-nit brightness setting for 10 hours and 30 minutes compared with five hours for competitors such as Asus ZenBook 13 OLED and Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Nano.

The keyboard on this laptop is comfortable to use and feels similar to that of HP’s higher-end models, such as Spectre and Envy laptops. It offers good spacing, nicely sized keys, and positional keys on its right side for positional functions. Furthermore, its clickpad feels good although I am used to experiencing more precise bottoming action and clicking action from HP laptops.

Powered by AMD

The Pavilion Aero 13 laptop is like Bumblebee: an outstanding effort with plenty of value for its cost. A lightweight device with impressive battery life, zippy performance, and stunning visuals.

This laptop features a 13.3-inch diagonal HD IPS micro-edge display with stunning visuals for shows, games and apps. Furthermore, its screen-to-body ratio exceeds 90% to provide an engaging viewing experience.

This laptop is powered by an AMD Ryzen 7 5800U processor with 16GB of RAM and a 512GB solid state drive, making it suitable for most users. Our PCMark 10 benchmark test showed it can easily perform most everyday tasks without breaking a sweat; however, in our 3DMark Fire Strike synthetic benchmark it fell behind both Dell XPS 13, Swift 3, and Asus Zenbook 13 OLED models.

When it comes to keyboard and touchpad performance, this laptop ranks highly. The keyboard offers full Home, Pg Up, Pg Down and End keys; its precise touchpad responds without jumping; additionally it includes fingerprint recognition for passwordless login. Some minor flaws exist such as lack of privacy shutter or shortcut for instantaneous mic-killing; however these issues shouldn’t be dealbreakers.

As is typical for thin-and-light laptops, the Aero 13 experiences a noticeable drop in performance when running from battery (DC). But its performance only drops about 15% when not connected to AC; not nearly as steeply as you’ll find with gaming laptops. Our Battery Mag test of Wi-Fi web browsing at 150 nits found that its battery lasted approximately 10 hours 32 minutes on this test.

Although the Pavilion Aero 13 is an impressive laptop at its price, we would suggest looking elsewhere if you want an ultralight computer. We suggest opting for something like the Dell XPS 13 which offers superior build quality as well as stunning OLED displays while remaining considerably more cost effective.

Designed for entertainment

HP’s Pavilion Aero 13 may just be this year’s best budget PC contender, as it combines thinness, lightweightness, and premium features into one sleek package. Boasting an impossibly slim design and 16:10 display that’s suitable for heavy tasks as well as powerful hardware to handle them easily, the Aero 13 also comes in several fun color choices to add some flare.

The Pavilion Aero is an affordable solution if you require a reliable laptop for work, school and play. With its compact chassis and quiet fans making it comfortable to use for extended periods. Plus its powerful processor can easily manage media apps while its long battery life eliminates worries of plugging it in for recharge.

Lightweight design makes the Pavilion E515E perfect for travel or the office, featuring an IPS panel offering comfortable viewing angles and spacious yet responsive keyboard layout. Furthermore, its precision touchpad makes this device superior to older Pavilion models which only offered plastic touchpad implementation.

Aero’s webcam supports video conferencing with its HD 720p quality 720p webcam, though its quality falls short due to missing Windows Hello facial recognition or manual privacy shutter features and it also does not support an SD card reader.

Graphics performance of the Aero’s AMD Radeon Vega 8 GPU falls below average. Though adequate for basic work and light gaming, its overall system performance has lagged far behind that of its rivals as measured in benchmark tests such as 3DMark Night Raid and Time Spy benchmarks – particularly 3DMark Time Spy’s Night Raid score is unfavorable to this laptop.

Although its graphics performance falls short, the Pavilion Aero 13 remains an excellent budget pick for work and entertainment. Its thin body makes it effortless to carry, while its long battery life and zippy performance allow you to complete projects or binge watch television without worry over running out of juice.

Be mindful that the Pavilion Aero is more expensive than your typical budget laptop; some essential features, such as backlit keyboard lighting, may incur additional charges. Also note that its warranty doesn’t provide coverage against accidental damage and theft – you’ll have to purchase three years accidental damage and theft protection separately.

Designed for productivity

If you need to get work done while traveling, the HP Pavilion Aero 13 laptop is an excellent choice. Equipped with enough power to take on most tasks while lasting all day on one charge, its lightweight body and comfortable keyboard make this an ideal workstation. However, some features could be essential depending on who uses it; our test model lacked backlit keyboarding as well as Thunderbolt ports; these could easily be added by purchasing additional accessories.

As far as thin and light computers go, the Pavilion Aero 13 stands out. Its thin chassis is carefully engineered for minimal flex, and its keyboard deck rises slightly for improved ergonomics while typing. Furthermore, its screen has a slight tilt heel to assist positioning for improved user experience – creating a laptop which feels solid in hand yet easy to open with one hand.

Another thing I love about the Pavilion is its impressive performance for such an affordable machine. With an 8-core/16 thread AMD Ryzen 7 5800U CPU that outshines Intel’s current consumer thin and light laptop lineup in terms of video editing power and battery life. Plus it comes equipped with more storage options than its rivals!

The Pavilion falls a bit short when it comes to its graphics capabilities, though. While its Radeon Vega 8 GPU may suffice for light gaming and video editing tasks, more intense titles running at high settings won’t keep pace. While this shouldn’t be a deal-breaker for most users, it should still be remembered when selecting their ideal computer.

The Pavilion also comes packed with unnecessary software bloat. There are eight HP apps, such as Support Assistant for updating drivers and checking warranty information; there’s also QuickDrop for sharing photos – although all this would have been more streamlined had they all been combined into one app like in Lenovo and Asus laptops.

The Pavilion is an outstanding value at its price, boasting enough power for most productivity tasks and an all-day battery life. While some features, like backlit keyboard, may be lacking, I highly recommend this laptop to any individual or company looking for ways to stay productive on the move.

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.