HP EliteBook 2740p review

HP EliteBook 2740p — a 2010 pen convertible whose graphics placing flatters it

A 2010 business convertible-tablet at $140, far below the $297 class median. Core i5-540M with 16GB of RAM. The sheet shows graphics at 16.2 (+322% over class median) as the nominal strength; the honest counterweights are CPU at 0.38 (−99%) and reliability at 5 (−88%).

One of the first pen convertibles — a museum piece that runs

The 2740p was among the first business machines with a rotating pen digitizer — a genuine design milestone. As a purchase in the current market, the design history is what it offers: the graphics index of 16.2 flatters 2010 integrated silicon measured against a low-bar business class, and the capability it implies does not exist. The CPU score of 0.38 is the machine's true face: pre-modern compute at the absolute floor.

Reliability seals the verdict

An index of 5 against a 42.5 median states plainly that a fifteen-year-old machine has no remaining service margin. The 16GB of RAM is the single generous specification — and also the ceiling that cannot be raised further on this platform.

Price trajectory

From a $1,300 base, decay has run 5.44% per year to $140, with a projected $125 (−11%) ahead. The value verdict — worth the asking price — applies only to the narrowest duties: collector interest, single-application terminal, controlled-environment use.

Against its neighbors

Pricier: the EliteBook 8570p ($152) and Dell Latitude E7440 ($147) — the E7440 being an ultrabook-generation machine for $7 more. Cheaper: the ProBook 6550b ($127) and ProBook 6450b ($120) — the same era, marginally less. The E7440 at $147 is the rational neighbor; the 2740p is the sentimental one.

Bottom line

A milestone design with floor-tier capability: the graphics number flatters, the CPU number tells the truth. Buy it as history or as a single-duty terminal — anything practical is better served by the E7440 next door.