HP's $5,000 Spectre Foldable PC is eye-wateringly expensive but is it worth it?

(Image credit: HP)

HP revealed its latest foldable device, one that it boasts is “the world’s smallest and thinnest 17-inch foldable PC.”

The HP Spectre Foldable PC is a 3-in-1 device that can become a laptop, tablet, and desktop PC depending on how it’s folded up or detached. You can use the keyboard wirelessly with the screen laid flat or propped up on its kickstand at a 120-degree angle. You can also magnetically attach it to the bottom half of the screen, or slide it towards you.

The new Spectre Foldable's default mode is a 17-inch, 0.33-inch (8.5 mm) thick OLED tablet, but it can also be turned into a 12.3-inch laptop, as well as a large-screen PC by taking advantage of the foldable panel and kickstand, built with a durable hinge. It also comes with a stylus, and both the pen and the Bluetooth keyboard charge while attached thanks to wireless charging integrated into the device.

If you use the Spectre Foldable as a laptop, you can switch from the 12.3-inch screen mode to a larger display by sliding the keyboard towards you to reveal more of the OLED. The PC will automatically display windows above the keyboard, making it a 14-inch laptop.

a foldable pc against a pink background — The Spectre knows what to do when you reveal more display (Image credit: Future)

HP says that the expanded screen is the main feature, using Windows Snap along with an HP-enhanced mode to quickly adapt and reconfigure the Windows layout. When using the traditional laptop mode, you can toggle between windows, edit photos in Photoshop using the extended or expanded laptop mode, or watch an IMAX movie on the full-screen.

This foldable laptop has some pretty solid specs to boot, most impressively an Intel Core i7-1250U CPU, 16GB LPDDR5x-5200 RAM, and 1TB storage space. It also has 93 Wh power distributed across dual battery packs, and HP claims that it can last up to a whopping 13.5 hours.

Of course, the price tag is the biggest issue, at $4,999 / £4, 999 (around AU$7,753). This pricing puts the Spectre Foldable in the same range as high-end gaming PCs, yet the GPU is the standard mobile Intel Iris Xe. Even with all these features, specs, and accessories potentially making it one of the best computers, best thin and light laptops, or best tablets, it’s hard to justify that extremely steep price point to pretty much any buyer.

Named by the CTA as a CES 2023 Media Trailblazer, Allisa is a Computing Staff Writer who covers breaking news and rumors in the computing industry, as well as reviews, hands-on previews, featured articles, and the latest deals and trends. In her spare time you can find her chatting it up on her two podcasts, Megaten Marathon and Combo Chain, as well as playing any JRPGs she can get her hands on.