HP Pavilion Plus 16 review: A versatile laptop for work and play

HP recently added a new model to its Pavilion line up in India: the HP Pavilion Plus 16. This laptop features a 16-inch form factor, which is becoming increasingly popular among users who want a large screen without compromising on portability. The HP Pavilion Plus 16 offers clean and simple design, and a powerful hardware configuration that includes an Intel Core i7-13700H processor and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 GPU. With this combination, the HP Pavilion Plus 16 aims to bridge the gap between regular laptops and gaming laptops. The laptop costs around Rs 1,25,000, but is it worth it? In this review, we will explore whether this laptop is a balanced and affordable choice for those who need a versatile device. But first, let’s take a quick look at its specifications. Also Read: Best 8 Laptops Under Rs 35,000 For Creators, Students, And Office Workers: Check Lightweight And HD Display Laptops

HP Pavilion Plus 16 specifications

HP Pavilion Plus 16 review: Build and design

Let’s start with the physical aesthetics of the laptop. Overall, the laptop has a sleek and premium design, with sharp edges and a silver-coloured metal chassis. It comes with aluminium display shell, which has a frosted finish that adds a modern touch to the laptop and prevents fingerprints. The laptop weighs 1.89kg, which is slightly heavy, but the weight is well-balanced and easy to carry around. The laptop also has a slim profile and curved edges at the bottom, which makes it look slimer than its actual dimension. The hinge of the laptop is smooth and allows you to open the laptop with one hand and the screen does not wobble much at any given position. Also Read: HP Omen 16 (2025) Gaming Laptop Debuts In India With RTX 5070 Ti GPU, 240Hz Display: Price, Specs, Features

The laptop offers a variety of I/O ports for connectivity. On the right side, you can find the power connector, a USB Type-A port, a Thunderbolt 4 port, and a USB Type-C port. However, these ports are quite close to each other, which can make them hard to use simultaneously. On the left side, you can find another USB Type-A port and an audio jack. I find the placement of the audio jack a bit concerning as it is located at the top left corner, which can be inconvenient for some users, as the wire of their audio device may get in the way of their hand movements.

HP Pavilion Plus 16 review: Display and speakers

The HP Pavilion Plus 16 has a 16:10 screen that gives you more room for your content, enhanced by the slim bezels on both sides (right and left). The screen displays colours accurately, as it covers the full sRGB range. The screen is not OLED, but it still has deep blacks, high contrast, and vivid colours. The screen also has a wide viewing angle, with minimal colour distortion. The anti-glare coating on the screen helps you work or enjoy content in bright settings without much glare. The only downside is that the screen is not very bright, at 400 nits, so you may have trouble seeing it in direct sunlight. The screen is designed to suit both regular and gaming laptops users, and it makes games look and feel amazing.

The sound quality of this laptop is enhanced by B&O speakers, which produce crisp and powerful sound. However, the speakers could use more bass, and their bottom placement can reduce the volume when the laptop is on a soft surface like a bed. Nevertheless, the speakers are satisfactory for immersive gaming. For a better sound experience, you can use a headphone or a wireless headset with Bluetooth 5.3 connectivity.

HP Pavilion Plus 16 review: Keyboard and trackpad

This laptop gets a very large keyboard with a full-sized numpad. The keys are good and properly spaced out, and they have a good depth to get the job done. The keyboard is backlit and comes with three levels of brightness. Unfortunately, the LED backlight output is low for an environment that is not completely dark.

The track pad has a large surface area, which makes navigation easy including gesture-based inputs. Overall, it is accurate, easy to use, and has a satisfying click sound.

HP Pavilion Plus 16 review: Productivity and gaming

The Pavilion Plus 16 is a versatile laptop that can handle various tasks with ease. Whether you need to edit photos or videos, or work on your office or school projects, this laptop can do it all smoothly. I tested its gaming performance and found it satisfactory for lighter games like Shadow of Tomb Raider, Destiny 2, PUBG, and more. However, it struggled to run FarCry, even on low graphics settings, and often froze or crashed.

During my testing, I also ran various benchmark test on the laptop and here are the benchmark results of my test unit:

HP Pavilion Plus 16 review: Webcam, Privacy and security

The laptop features an IR webcam, located in the upper edge of the screen. It supports Windows Hello facial recognition, which offers both speed and security. The webcam has a high resolution and a wide angle, and the AI noise-canceling mics excel at eliminating background sounds during video calls or online gaming. The only drawback is that the laptop does not have a fingerprint reader.

The webcam also comes with a handy physical privacy shutter, which lets you block the camera whenever you want. You can also mute the mic with a keyboard shortcut. The IR webcam and the privacy shutter provide a balance between convenience and privacy.

HP Pavilion Plus 16 review: Battery, charging, and heat management

HP Pavilion Plus 16 offers a solid performance and a battery life of four to five hours for normal use and three hours for mixed use. However, the battery drained quickly when playing games with high graphics settings. It lasted for only two hours in my test. The battery also takes a long time to charge, requiring 2-2.5 hours to reach full capacity. Therefore, I think the laptop is not very impressive in terms of battery life and it is only average at best.

The laptop also tends to overheat when performing graphics-intensive tasks such as gaming. I observed uneven temperatures across the laptop’s body during my test, with one side being very hot and the other side being very cold.

HP Pavilion Plus 16 review: Verdict

The HP Pavilion Plus 16 is a sleek and powerful laptop that offers a 16-inch screen, an Intel Core i7 processor, and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 GPU. The laptop can handle various tasks smoothly, such as photo and video editing, office and school projects, and gaming.

However, it struggles to run some heavy games like FarCry. The laptop has a good display, sound, keyboard, trackpad, and webcam, but it lacks a fingerprint reader and a bright screen. It also tends to overheat and has a mediocre battery life.

The laptop is a balanced and affordable choice for those who need a versatile device, but it is not very impressive in terms of performance and features. It is suitable for casual gamers and regular users, but not for hardcore gamers and professionals.