HP EliteBook 845 G8 Laptop AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 5650U

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Looks like a good deal for this laptop ($234.99):

Processor has 6 cores/12 threads. Its energy efficient (15W) and has overall good reviews on multiple websites. #1 best seller on newegg.com.

Keyboard has some good feedback on the following thread:

Shipped and sold by newegg as well. Never had a HP before but I think I might order one.
 


I didn't look at the GPU. I never really look at the GPU. I only plan on using it for basic usage like web browsing and office applications. You think that GPU would be good enough for that?
 
It's impossible to tell since they provide zero information about the GPU that you'll get.

That's my complaint, they hide information most likely because GPU is so bad that giving accurate specs about it would ruin the whole thing, typical marketing trick.

Of course it will work for basic stuff, but I'm looking at this differently, if I buy a laptop I want my money to be well spent and I want to know what exactly I'm buying.

GPU doesn't have to be super extra if you don't need it, but you still want to know what you'll be getting so that you can actually compare the laptop to other laptops.
You may discover that by adding just a few bucks more you can get a laptop with much better GPU for instance.
 
That's my complaint, they hide information most likely because GPU is so bad that giving accurate specs about it would ruin the whole thing, typical marketing trick.
Haha yea I'm aware of this. I usually just look at the processor, RAM, and keyboard quality. I avoid sellers who hide details. This one is sold by newegg directly though I think they just forgot to include the details of the GPU.

My current machine has Intel HD Graphics 620 and a quick search online says the AMD GPU in this machine is better. Everything runs fine on my Intel machine. This was an AI result however. Let me do a little bit more digging before I order.
 
I looked it up and this is supposed to feature an integrated Radeon RX Vega 7. I looked at the benchmarks and it's plenty powerful enough for browsing and light gaming.
 
I'm soo mad that these offers always just include a 256GB SSD, I have to have at least a terrabyte, better two to carry my stuff around. Also the laptops nowadays aren't really upgradeable
 
I looked it up and this is supposed to feature an integrated Radeon RX Vega 7. I looked at the benchmarks and it's plenty powerful enough for browsing and light gaming.
Ok great that was I got too (Radeon RX Vega 7) when I searched but wasn't sure. I'm clueless when it comes to GPU. Anyway I'll try it out. Its newegg so returns are easy if it doesn't work out.

I'm soo mad that these offers always just include a 256GB SSD, I have to have at least a terrabyte, better two to carry my stuff around. Also the laptops nowadays aren't really upgradeable
I store everything on a encrypted external USB drive. 256GB is good enough for me as long its SSD.
 
this is a 2001 mahine built for W 10 with Radeon RX Vega graphics [could be 6/7/or 8 depending on where in the range it fell]
I have HP desktop [granddaughter has a HP laptop from 2016] both throw up a few wobblies when installing Debian] personally for that money i would be looking for a Dell or Lenovo
 
"I would actually say yes. If it suits your needs and budget, then go for it. I bought an 845 G8 and was happy with it. The EliteBook models are indeed much better than the consumer models. Build quality is good. Storage, RAM and wifi module are easily upgradeable on the G8."

"I had the 840 G8 as a work machine and have a Z book en route as a replacement. I actually quite like the build quality on the Elitebook. Feels nearly as solid as a Macbook and the upgradeability is solid."

 
this is a 2001
I think you meant 2021. Not that old (not for me anyway).

I have HP desktop [granddaughter has a HP laptop from 2016] both throw up a few wobblies when installing Debian] personally for that money i would be looking for a Dell or Lenovo
I look at Dells and Lenovos first but they are much more expensive for slower processors. I'll try this one out and post back on this thread.
 
I did a quick search for laptops under 300 and have difficulty finding anything better.
What you found looks like solid offer for this price, laptops are anyway more expensive than PC's so specs will always be worse compared to PC's.

Last time I bought a laptop was over 10 yrs. ago, prices since then didn't change much from what I see.
 
Looks like a good deal for this laptop ($234.99):

Processor has 6 cores/12 threads. Its energy efficient (15W) and has overall good reviews on multiple websites. #1 best seller on newegg.com.

Keyboard has some good feedback on the following thread:

Shipped and sold by newegg as well. Never had a HP before but I think I might order one.
I have one of those with linux on it and it works great. I am using fedora and it worked great right out of the box. except the fingerprint reader is not supported but no use for that anyway.
Only thing I would worry about is newegg itself. They are notorious for selling out of date garbage that does not work right. But as long as that one works it is fine.
 
I have one of those with linux on it and it works great. I am using fedora and it worked great right out of the box. except the fingerprint reader is not supported but no use for that anyway.
Only thing I would worry about is newegg itself. They are notorious for selling out of date garbage that does not work right. But as long as that one works it is fine.
Excellent. You have the same exact model? I haven't had any bad experiences with newegg...yet. They have an extended holiday return policy. I basically have until 01/31/26 to return it. Plenty of time to test it out thoroughly.
 
I received this laptop two days ago. So I've been using it since then. Laptop came in pretty much brand new condition. Don't see a single scratch or dent on it. There are a few places on the keyboard that needs to be cleaned but barely noticeable. Most importantly the laptop works.

Battery is in pretty good shape and looks like it can run 5-8 hours on a full charge:
Code:
inxi -B
Battery:
  ID-1: BAT0 charge: 33.6 Wh (79.6%) condition: 42.2/53.2 Wh (79.3%)
    volts: 11.8 min: 11.6

The whole thing is a solid piece of metal so the build quality is nice. Keyboard is very nice as well (this version came with a backlit keyboard). I prefer the keyboard layout of the Dell Latitude 5490. Everything was there in the right spot. The camera has a sliding cover so you can keep it covered. The speakers seem to be pretty good quality but I wouldn't be the best judge for that. The laptop is thin, lightweight, and seems smaller than a 14 inch laptop.

Cons:
1. The keyboard does not have a FN key/number pad like my Dell Latitude. I'm sure there is a way to assign the keys manually to what I want them to be. Need to figure it out without messing anything up.

2. This model came with a 250 nit display. I haven't noticed any issues yet. I need to see how it does in bright light outside. My Dell Latitude's display doesn't do well in bright light outside. I'm expecting this one to be better.

3. Doesn't have an ethernet port and has only two USB A ports. It does have two USB C ports however.

4. Runs a little warm. I left it under a pillow the other night and it was really hot with the fan running on maximum. I wonder if that will happen while in a backpack.

5. The touchpad and mouse buttons are nice but it doesn't have a middle mouse button like my Latitude.

6. I carry my laptops by hand everywhere. I feel like this one can slip from my hand easily. Probably due to the metal surface.

The one that concerns me the most is #4 above. The rest are minor issues. This laptop is a really good value should it last a long time (and I don't see why it shouldn't). The processor lies in between an intel 11th gen and 12th gen processor in terms of performance (at least from my research online).

Here are the specs from inxi -F:
Code:
System:
  Host: mx-845g8 Kernel: 6.12.57+deb13-amd64 arch: x86_64 bits: 64
  Desktop: Xfce v: 4.20.1 Distro: MX-25_x64 Infinity November 12  2025
Machine:
  Type: Laptop System: HP product: HP EliteBook 845 G8 Notebook PC v: SBKPF
    serial: <superuser required>
  Mobo: HP model: 8895 v: KBC Version 43.3E.00 serial: <superuser required>
    UEFI: HP v: T82 Ver. 01.21.00 date: 04/08/2025
Battery:
  ID-1: BAT0 charge: 31.9 Wh (75.6%) condition: 42.2/53.2 Wh (79.3%)
    volts: 11.7 min: 11.6
CPU:
  Info: 6-core model: AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 5650U with Radeon Graphics bits: 64
    type: MT MCP cache: L2: 3 MiB
  Speed (MHz): avg: 1519 min/max: 400/4289 cores: 1: 1519 2: 1519 3: 1519
    4: 1519 5: 1519 6: 1519 7: 1519 8: 1519 9: 1519 10: 1519 11: 1519 12: 1519
Graphics:
  Device-1: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD/ATI] Cezanne [Radeon Vega Series /
    Radeon Mobile Series] driver: amdgpu v: kernel
  Device-2: Quanta HP HD Camera driver: uvcvideo type: USB
  Display: x11 server: X.Org v: 21.1.16 driver: X: loaded: amdgpu
    unloaded: fbdev,modesetting,vesa dri: radeonsi gpu: amdgpu
    resolution: 1280x720~60Hz
  API: EGL v: 1.5 drivers: kms_swrast,radeonsi,swrast
    platforms: gbm,x11,surfaceless,device
  API: OpenGL v: 4.6 compat-v: 4.5 vendor: amd mesa v: 25.0.7-2 renderer: AMD
    Radeon Graphics (radeonsi renoir ACO DRM 3.61 6.12.57+deb13-amd64)
  API: Vulkan v: 1.4.309 drivers: radv,llvmpipe surfaces: xcb,xlib
  Info: Tools: api: eglinfo, glxinfo, vulkaninfo de: xfce4-display-settings
    x11: xdriinfo, xdpyinfo, xprop, xrandr
Audio:
  Device-1: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD/ATI] Renoir Radeon High Definition
    Audio driver: snd_hda_intel
  Device-2: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] Audio Coprocessor driver: N/A
  Device-3: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] Family 17h/19h/1ah HD Audio
    driver: snd_hda_intel
  API: ALSA v: k6.12.57+deb13-amd64 status: kernel-api
  Server-1: PipeWire v: 1.4.5 status: active
Network:
  Device-1: MEDIATEK MT7921 802.11ax PCI Express Wireless Network Adapter
    driver: mt7921e
  IF: wlan0 state: up mac: 90:e8:68:b9:1f:93
  IF-ID-1: wg0-mullvad state: unknown speed: N/A duplex: N/A mac: N/A
  IF-ID-2: wwan0 state: down mac: N/A
Bluetooth:
  Device-1: IMC Networks Wireless_Device driver: btusb type: USB
  Report: hciconfig ID: hci0 rfk-id: 4 state: down
    bt-service: enabled,running rfk-block: hardware: no software: yes
    address: 90:E8:68:B9:1F:92
Drives:
  Local Storage: total: 267.14 GiB used: 75.48 GiB (28.3%)
  ID-1: /dev/nvme0n1 vendor: SK Hynix model: PC711 HFS256GDE9X073N
    size: 238.47 GiB
  ID-2: /dev/sda vendor: SanDisk model: USB 3.2Gen1 size: 28.67 GiB
    type: USB
Partition:
  ID-1: / size: 232.05 GiB used: 71.31 GiB (30.7%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/dm-0
  ID-2: /boot size: 1.32 GiB used: 459.6 MiB (34.0%) fs: ext4
    dev: /dev/nvme0n1p2
  ID-3: /boot/efi size: 252 MiB used: 8.7 MiB (3.5%) fs: vfat
    dev: /dev/nvme0n1p1
Swap:
  ID-1: swap-1 type: file size: 18.95 GiB used: 0 KiB (0.0%) file: /swap/swap
  ID-2: swap-2 type: zram size: 14.95 GiB used: 2.67 GiB (17.8%)
    dev: /dev/zram0
Sensors:
  System Temperatures: cpu: 43.6 C mobo: 36.0 C gpu: amdgpu temp: 42.0 C
  Fan Speeds (rpm): N/A
Info:
  Memory: total: 16 GiB note: est. available: 14.95 GiB
    used: 11.39 GiB (76.2%)
  Processes: 461 Uptime: 1d 15h 22m Shell: Bash inxi: 3.3.38

Here is a more in depth youtube review of the previous generation of this model:
 
Last edited:
I received this laptop two days ago.

4. Runs a little warm. I left it under a pillow the other night and it was really hot with the fan running on maximum. I wonder if that will happen while in a backpack.

The one that concerns me the most is #4 above. The rest are minor issues. This laptop is a really good value should it last a long time (and I don't see why it shouldn't). The processor lies in between an intel 11th gen and 12th gen processor in terms of performance (at least from my research online).

you could always crack it open and clean/reapply thermal grease to the heat spreader - and probably clean out the fan while you're in there. HP laptops are relatively simple to open up.
 
Thanks for the suggestion. The laptop runs slightly warm most of the time as long as the vents have enough space. If it becomes a major problem I will open it up and apply some thermal paste and also check the fan.
 


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