The HP ENVY 15-1050NR looks slimmer and sleeker compared to other 15 inch laptops mainly because the bottom chassis doesn't have any optical disc drive. This lets the laptop be a bit slimmer, giving it a form factor closer to the 13-inch thin-and-light laptops. At 5.4 pounds it isn't really that lightweight but it does offer a very solid feel to it thanks to the magnesium alloy and aluminum metal casing. Overall styling is sleek and definitely looks as upscale as it is priced.
The other thing that sets the HP ENVY 15-1050NR from the rest of the crowd is that it comes packing with a powerful Intel Core i7 720QM and a game-ready ATI Radeon HD 4830. 6GB worth of DDR3 memory and a 500GB hard disk drive round up the components. The 15.6 inch active matrix TFT LED back-lit LCD delivers full HD 1920 x 1080 pixel resolutions. Like other ENVY products the laptop uses the Beats Audio technology which is just awesome for headphones, especially those that are Beats compatible. The laptop does have integrated speakers, but these don't do the audio any justice. Connection-wise the laptop connects via 802.11 b / g / n wi-fi and Bluetooth. It also has a HDMI port, two USB ports, one eSATA/USB combo port, a card reader and a bundled external DVD burner.
With this sort of processing power the HP ENVY 15-1050NR can handle light to mid-level gaming with ease so it should be able to handle some light 3D rendering, video editing and image manipulation or other design work as well. Full HD movies are smooth but you'll have to opt for the external Blu-ray optical disc drive if you want to watch BD movies. The interface between the external drive and the HP ENVY 15-1050NR is a bit unstable sometimes though. Battery performance is borderline average at just below two hours on single charge.
Overall, if you've ever wanted a more powerful and larger thin-and-light then the HP ENVY 15-1050NR is probably the best bet for you. Combining powerhouse performance with a super stylish sleek design the laptop is impressive with an equally impressive price. Clearly this laptop is meant for those with a bit more cash to burn, but at the very least it does deliver the performance to match the price tag.
