HP Spectre x360 upgraded with Intel Kaby Lake CPUs and beefed-up batteries

Thinner and lighter, as well as faster

HP has unveiled an upgraded version of the Spectre x360 convertible that now comes with improved Kaby Lake processors and a bigger battery.

The new device has the same brushed aluminium chassis, but HP has slimmed the Spectre x360 down to 13.8mm thick (compared with 15.9mm) and 1.3kg (down from 1.45kg). The biggest size reduction has been made to the bezel surrounding the 13.3in FHD Touch display, which is now 77 per cent thinner.

HP naturally took this as an opportunity to poke fun at the MacBook Air, which is thicker at 17.2mm, heavier (just) at 1.35kg and has a 13.3in HD+ non-touch display.

The keyboard has also been improved, according to HP. The Spectre x360 has an edge-to-edge full-sized keyboard, complete with 1.3mm of key travel and a glass trackpad that offers less resistance than the previous version.

Design-wise, HP has talked up the fact that the Spectre x360 now comes with the company's new logo etched into the lid. Contain yourselves.

The convertible uses Intel's 7th-generation Core chips, codenamed Kaby Lake, up to i7. HP also offers up to 16GB of DDR3 memory, 256GB, 512GB or 1TB of storage, two USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 3, one USB 3.0 port and, depending on region, a USB-C to USB 3.0 dongle.

The Kaby Lake chips also provide an improvement in battery life. HP claims 15 hours for the Windows 10-powered machine, a 25 per cent improvement on the previous model.

HP said that the included fast charging technology can provide 90 per cent capacity in just 90 minutes.

There's also a wide-vision webcam built into the front of the device, along with an IR camera for use with Microsoft's Windows Hello authentication. Four front-firing speakers also sit on the front, an upgrade from the two on last year's model.

The HP Spectre x360 will be available in the US from 30 October priced from $1,159. We're still waiting for UK availability details.

The firm also unveiled an upgraded version of the HP Envy laptop. The new model has Kaby Lake chips paired with hyperbaric cooling, which the firm claims allows higher power in an ultra-thin chassis.

The new HP Envy also has a reworked hinge design for more comfortable typing, a 14-hour battery life (compared with 10 hours) and a 13.3in display available in a non-touch FHD model or a QHD IPS with optional touch.