HP ProBook 455 G7 Review 2022

Some time ago I tested the ProBook 455 G6 with a Ryzen 5 2500U. That did well in the test. Accordingly, I was curious to see what HP had put together in the new edition – appropriately called the HP ProBook 455 G7 Review 2021.

The ProBook series offers you different variants to choose from. The smallest variant comes with a Ryzen 5 4500U, 8 GB RAM and 256 GB SSD. The strongest model comes up with a Ryzen 7 4700U, 16 GB RAM, 512 GB SSD and 1 TB HDD. My test device ranks in the middle with its Ryzen 5 4500U, 16 GB RAM and 512 GB SSD. You can find the exact technical data in the table.

Technical specifications of the HP ProBook 455 G7 Review 2021

Display	39cm (15.6 ″) anti-reflective IPS panel in 16: 9 format
resolution	1920x1080px (Full HD)
processor	AMD Ryzen ™ 5 4500U processor 6x 2.30 GHz TurboBoost up to 4 GHz 8 MB cache
graphic	Radeon Graphics
random access memory	8 GB DDR4 3200 MHz 1 of 2 installed max. 32 GB
hard disk	512 GB M.2 PCIe SSD
network	Bluetooth 5.0 10 Mbit / s, 100 Mbit / s, 1000 Mbit / s LAN Wireless LAN 802.11 b / g / n / ac
connections	1x HDMI 1x USB 2.0 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C 3in1 card reader (SD / SDHC / SDXC) 1x 3.5mm audio combo
battery pack	HP Long-Life-Li-Ion-Battery 3 cells 45 WH up to 12.5 hours running time
Input devices	backlit keyboard with number pad touchpad
Sound	two speakers
camera	HD infrared camera
security	Kensington Lock fingerprint reader
operating system	Windows 10 Pro 64 bit
Dimensions	36.4 x 25.6 x 1.9 cm
Weight	2 kilos

scope of delivery

The scope of delivery is as you know it from most notebooks. In addition to the ProBook, you will also find the charger with power cable and some literature in the form of a quick start guide in the packaging.

Unfortunately, all parts are packed separately in plastic. There is another way to solve that.

Design and processing

In terms of design, nothing has changed compared to the predecessor (test) , it is the classic ProBook design. The keyboard and number pad are slightly indented so that the keys are flush with the surface of the notebook. The touchpad sits slightly to the left in front of the keyboard and reacts quickly and precisely to your inputs.

On the right edge, in front of the keyboard, sits the fingerprint reader, which does its job. You can find the power button on the left above the keyboard. HP has placed a fine grid between the keyboard and display, under which the speakers are located.

The keyboard has a short HUB and all in all offers a decent typing experience. After a short period of getting used to it, longer texts are no problem.

In my opinion, HP could have taken action on the display bezels. The relatively wide frames just don’t look contemporary anymore. The webcam and infrared camera for Windows Hello are housed in the upper frame. You can cover the webcam with a small slider when you don’t need it.

There are only a few decorative elements. A small, matt HP logo is housed in the lower display frame, and a glossy one is embedded in the display lid. There is also a subtle ProBook lettering on the back and top.

When it comes to materials, HP relies on aluminum and plastic. The palm rest and the lid are made of aluminum. The display frame, the base plate and the cover for the display hinge are made of plastic. But you don’t have to worry that the ProBook will feel cheap because of it. That’s not the case.

There is nothing to complain about in terms of processing. The edges are all flush and there are no burrs or sharp edges to get caught on. The gaps are also as they should be: even.

The ProBook is more robust than it first feels. This is because the palm rest can be depressed with relatively little pressure. However, the impression is deceptive. The notebook is protected against falls, splashing water and dust under the MIL-STD810G standard. This shouldn’t be a problem in the office jungle.

You can Also read: Lenovo yoga c740 i5 review 2021

Enough connections for everyday use

HP doesn’t skimp on the connections in the ProBook 455 G7. With the equipment you can make ends meet very well in everyday life. As with the predecessor, the connections are distributed on both sides of the device.

On the left side, you will find the card reader in front of the air outlet. I always like to see him personally. The USB 2.0 Type-A port and the Kensington lock are located further back. The USB port has a charging function. If the notebook is in operation, you can use it to charge your smartphone, for example. If the ProBook is switched off, this does not work.

On the right side, you will find the 3.5mm jack connection, 2x USB-A (3.2 Gen1), 1x HDMI, the USB-C connection (3.2 Gen1) and the power connection from front to back.
Up

The display has room for improvement

HP has installed a classic office display in the ProBook 455 G7. The matte IPS display has a diagonal of 15.6 “and has a resolution of Full HD. Your content will be presented nicely and sharply. Since it is matt, you have no problem with reflections. There are also the large viewing angles typical of IPS displays. The maximum brightness is 250 cd / m². It’s not particularly bright, but perfectly adequate in closed rooms.

If the 15.6 “diagonal is not enough for you, you can connect an external monitor such as the inexpensive HP P27H G4 via HDMI . At 27 ”it offers you a large and pleasantly bright picture. Thanks to the many ergonomic functions, you can adjust it perfectly for your seating position. Thanks to pivot, it can also be used well in cramped spaces.

The colour space coverage is 64% of the sRGB colour space and 48% of the AdobeRGB colour space. These are average rates and should be expected from an office notebook. In everyday life and with occasional Netflix sessions, however, this is no longer tragic. It would help if you only carried out colour-critical work on a suitable display.

Software & security features

When it comes to software, you can expect a fairly pure Windows 10 Pro version. Only Spotify is still available alongside Microsoft products.

In addition to a password, you can use other methods to log in. On the one hand there is the fingerprint reader, which reacts quickly and reliably. On the other hand there is the face unlock. This is also just as you know it from Windows: fixed and reliable. It is one of those things that you do not want to miss again once you have used it.

In addition, there are of course various HP programs that should make your life easier and safer. On the one hand, there is the Support Assistant, which keeps the drivers up-to-date and, if necessary, easily connects you to HP support. In addition, there is also HP Sure Start, which protects your BIOS from attacks, and HP Sure Sense, which is supposed to protect you from malware.

Of the 512 GB of the SSD, 433 GB are still available in the delivery state.

More than enough power for everyday life

With the Ryzen version of the ProBook 455 G7, you don’t have to worry that you have too little power for your tasks. The Ryzen 5 4500U delivers a really good performance together with the 16 GB RAM and the fixed SSD.

The SSD achieves read rates of 2165.2 MB / s. When writing, it is much slower at 1485.5 MB / s, but you shouldn’t notice that in everyday life. All programs start smoothly and switching between different programs works well.

The increase in performance compared to the predecessor is more than clear. The predecessor performed pretty well, but the G7 is better in all respects. Even if you export several photos simultaneously in Lightroom, you can still work normally with the computer without any problems. However, the ProBook weakens in our Lightroom benchmark. In this scenario, all notebooks have to render 20 RAW files of 50 MB each processed with a special present. It takes 1:04 minutes for this. This is a lot slower than other Ryzen 5 notebooks. But to be clear: It’s complaining at a high level. Most notebooks take 20-30 seconds longer for this task.

Notebooks with the Renoir CPUs from AMD are currently quite clearly at the top in our benchmark databases. Accordingly, the ProBook 455 G7 also ranks way ahead. You can see the exact results in the following graphics.

No problems will arise when working with Office. There is more than enough power for these cases. You can also work with the ProBook 455 G7 in the areas of image processing and light video editing. When it comes to video, however, you should be prepared for the fact that rendering can take longer. Here the integrated graphics slow down the system.
The integrated graphics also remain the limiting factor when gaming. An occasional round of Fortnite is possible if you set the details to “Low”. Then you reach a decent 80-90fps. In high details, however, the frame rate drops to 15-20fps.

Good battery performance

The Ryzen 5 CPUs are quite energy efficient in operation. This is also evident here. The display was set to 200 cd / m² for our battery benchmark. That corresponds to 95% brightness. In addition, I have chosen the energy profile “balanced” for comparability with other notebooks. And then I saw how far I could get with it in one working day.

In addition to the Office programs, I also use Photoshop, Lightroom and occasionally Premiere Pro. There is, of course, surfing and the inevitable meetings via Teams / Zoom / Google. In normal office applications, the ProBook 455 G7 lost an average of 10-15% charge per hour. When I used Photoshop or Lightroom, the battery ran out faster. Then 20-25% were gone within an hour.

It is possible to get through the day with the ProBook 455 G7. But only if you do without power guzzlers like Photoshop. By default, the display is set to 40% brightness in the “Balanced” energy profile. This means that you can work reasonably well in closed rooms and the battery life is noticeably extended.

Very quiet notebook

The ProBook 455 G7 really delivers in terms of emissions, namely really little. You will hardly hear it in everyday life. When the fans start, they only emit a faint rustling. The noises are easily drowned out by a normal office environment. The notebook naturally gets louder under load. However, the noise level remains within a very good range even then. During our stress test, in which all components are heavily used, it was no longer audible from a distance of almost 20 centimeters.

There is no reason to complain about the temperatures either. The fans have the Ryzen 5 4500U under control. The CPU temperature averaged 64.1 degrees in idle. During the stress test, it peaked at 96.6 degrees. The average temperature was 74.4 degrees. These are solid values. However, you will hardly reach the load of the stress test in everyday life, so you do not have to worry about it. In front of the display, the case of the ProBook 455 G7 does not get more than lukewarm during normal use.

Upgrading is easy

If you need more RAM or more memory, you can simply upgrade the ProBook. All you have to do is loosen seven Phillips screws on the underside. They are of different lengths. There are two short screws at the front, while the remaining screws are longer. Then you can lever out the base plate. It is best to start at the back. This is where it is easiest to lift. Since the plate is held on the case by some plastic hooks, you should use an opening pick or something similar to push it up.

If you have removed the disk, you can access the RAM and the SSD directly. 16 GB DDR4 3200 MHz RAM are installed, one slot is still free. You can install a maximum of 32 GB of RAM. You don’t need to replace the SSD immediately. There is still a free slot for a 2.5 “SSD. You can install them as well.

If the battery should run down, you can easily remove it, because it is only screwed.

Mixed sound

The sound is not great on most notebooks. It’s no different here, even if there are slight improvements over the predecessor. The sound is very treble-heavy and tends to be shrill. The further you turn up the volume, the worse it gets.

The sound is sufficient for Skype or video conferences. For everything else, external boxes are more than recommended.

Conclusion: HP ProBook 455 G7 1B7U0ES

A lot of performance, good quality, many security features, (almost) clean Windows, many connections, easy upgrading – HP has put together a perfect overall package with the ProBook 455 G7 for just under 750 euros *. The notebook should be at your side in everyday office life, and it does really well in this area. Of course, there are fancier notebooks. But good design costs significantly more.

The only thing that really bothers me personally is the display. It is completely sufficient for the intended purposes. But there is clearly still room for improvement.