HP ZBook X G1i 16” review

HP ZBook X G1i 16 (2025) Review: Processor-First Workstation Design

The ZBook X G1i 16 is HP's 2025 mobile workstation pairing an Intel Core Ultra 5 225H with an RTX Pro 500 Laptop GPU and 64 GB of memory at $1,760. HP has clearly spent the budget on the processor side of the sheet — the numbers there are the best in this batch — while the graphics-fed axes read like a machine still waiting for its professional GPU to be measured.

Where it holds up

Overall performance posts 94.41 — 55.7 percent above the workstation-class median of 60.64, in the top band — the joint-highest performance reading in this entire batch. The processor score of 94.51 is likewise joint-best here, 58.4 percent over the class median, and reliability reads 85, nearly double the median at 43.5. Office work lands at 91.91 in the top band, engineering CAD holds mid at 46, and portability at 35.5 is mid — reasonable for a 16-inch workstation. No capability entry is flagged as a weakness for this configuration.

Where it falls short

The gaming index reads zero because no matched scoring entry exists for the professional RTX Pro 500 yet — a coverage gap, not a verdict. Among the axes that are measured, modeling sits at 22 in the low band, the weakest reading on the sheet, and photo design at 36 is only mid — thin results for a workstation badge with a professional GPU aboard. Value at 48.9 is mid-band.

Price and depreciation

At $1,760 this is standard 2025 workstation pricing for the batch. The modeled depreciation curve for the class runs at 20 percent per year — the steepest pace here — and no listing anchor is available for dollar projections.

Alternatives to consider

The ZBook X G2i 16 (2026) at $2,200 carries the newer 336H processor, doubles memory to 128 GB and posts a photo design reading of 88 against 36 here — the stronger creative chassis if the budget stretches. The ZBook 8 G1i 14 (2025) at $1,760 delivers the same 94.41 performance and 94.51 processor scores in a 14-inch frame with 70.4 portability. CPU-first buyers outside the workstation line should note the EliteBook 8 G1i 16 at $1,144 posts a top-band 92.31 performance reading with an RTX 500 Ada aboard.

Bottom line

Fairly priced for the class. The ZBook X G1i 16 is a joint-best processor and performance chassis wrapped in a reliability-strong frame — buy it for compute, not for the unscored GPU, whose absence leaves modeling at 22 as the sheet's low watermark.