Got a late 2016 HP Spectre x360, noticing a few issues

Hi,

I was very excited about the new x360. Upon getting it I like it, BUT I've noticed a few issues. I bought it to replace a surface pro 4 since it turned out I didn't need a tablet hybrid. It does appear the surface is the a more refined device though.

Main issue I've noticed is that the laptop heats up. Especially the top left and to the point where it is almost too hot to touch. I fixed it after putting it on battery saver mode to automatically come on at 100%. Battery saver comes off when you charge it though, so I installed speed fan. That seems to fix it but it seems to constantly heat up when charging, then speed fan kicks in, and it cools back down.

Also in general compared to the SP4 it seems scrolling is a lot faster and the screen does not get as bright. Around 330 nits vs 384 for the SP4. It did make a difference during the day with me having to set max brightness on the Spectre.

Not trying to complain, just want to get some inputs on this. The heating thing alone makes me feel that I got an early production model with some bugs to be ironed out.

 

I picked up the new Spectre x360 i7/16gb/512gb from Best Buy today.. Did you update to the latest BIOS? It was one of the first things I did. One of things I notice is that the fan remains completely off until about 70c.. and uses some sort of algorithym for sustained temps.. When I run a bench it will run the CPU up to 80c before the fan(s) turn on. Then the annoying part is that it remain on full blast for a while even though CPU temps are back in the 30s. It's not very loud per se, it's a wooshing sound with a slight ringing to it but nothing overwhelming. My unit gets warm in the areas you mention but nothing I would consider hot.

Perhaps updating to the latest bios if you haven't yet and see if that helps. Otherwise it's a great machine so far.. Blazing fast. Also, consider undervolting the CPU to keep temps down (i'm working on mine, unstable at -100mv core/-100mv cache.. But seems okay at -75/-75 so far.

Edit: I also have a work issued SP4 i7 and because of the way you use the keyboard and device, it doesn't get as hot when used as a laptop. I don't know how much i'd actually use the Spectre in tablet form because you'd definitely notice the heat way more.