HP Laptop 14/15/17 series guide

Where the HP Laptop 14/15/17 line stands in 2026

HP's no-frills consumer baseline — the machines literally named "HP Laptop" — covers 9 models in our catalog, 2016 to 2024, priced $286 to $650 with a median of $553. Eight rows carry a listing price; one 2022 row lists no price in our data. These are budget drivers: 14 to 17.3 inches, 1.4 to 2.08 kg, RAM ceilings 16 to 64 GB, and mostly integrated graphics with one exception.

The configuration spread

The CPU mix is entry-tier by design: the counts are led by basic Intel chips (13 configurations) and Ryzen 5 (7), with Core i3, i5, i7 and Ryzen 3 filling out the rest — the 2023–2024 rows use Ryzen 3 7320U, Intel Core 3 100U and Core i7 1355U depending on the trim. Graphics are almost all integrated (UHD-class and Arc integrated), with one discrete exception: a GeForce MX550 2GB in the 2023 17-inch row. Screens split 14, 15.6 and 17.3 inches; the family's job is a cheap, large-enough screen, not performance.

Price versus age

The ladder is compressed and recent-weighted: a lone 2016 row at $286, one 2022 row at $333, four 2023 rows from $422 to $553, and the 2024 pair at $650. Between the 2023 and 2024 rows the step is $97–228 for essentially the same class of machine — the 2024 pair runs the Intel Core 3 100U where 2023 ran Ryzen 3 7320U, so the premium buys the newer platform, not a faster class. The interesting value point is the 2022 15-inch at $333 with a Ryzen 5 5625U — the strongest CPU per dollar in the roster.

Which one to buy

The value pick is the Laptop 15-fc0102nr (2022, $333, Ryzen 5 5625U) — the only mid-tier CPU in the family and the cheapest way past entry-level silicon here. The Laptop 14-ep0199nr (2023, $422, Core i7 1355U) pairs the roster's strongest CPU badge with the lowest 2023 price. If a bigger screen with a little graphics headroom matters, the Laptop 17 (2023, $553, Ryzen 3 7320U + GeForce MX550 2GB) is the only discrete-GPU row. The 2024 pair at $650 we would only buy if newest-platform matters more than money; the 2016 row at $286 (Core i5 7200U) is a decade old and easy to beat used at the same price.

Bottom line

Across the roster this is exactly what the nameplate promises: performance index 39.8, USComp Score 47, best GPU median 14.1 and zero games clearing recommended settings at the median configuration — a web-and-documents machine, no more. The pleasant surprises are energy efficiency 90, mobility 70 and reliability 74, all strong for the price class, and a best CPU median of 67.8 lifted by the few modern rows. The summary: shop the 2022 Ryzen 5 row at $333 first, the 2023 i7 at $422 second, and let the 2016 and 2024 endpoints go.